 

Open Education Week is Now! March 10-15

March 12, 2014

We’re right in the middle of it!  Are you on board?

What is open education and why is it important?  “Open Education is, at its core, about free and open sharing. Free, meaning no cost, and open, which refers to the use of legal tools (open licenses) that allow everyone to reuse and modify educational resources.”  Read more.

Open Education Week raises awareness about Open Education and its impact on teaching and learning.

Open_Education_logo

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Research Paper Due? Start with a Reference Book

November 27, 2013

Use reference books first to get essential background on your topic.

Research papers are due!

A handful of popular titles from the SCC Library’s 3800 volume reference collection:

American attitudes : what Americans think about the issues that shape their lives.
Deadly arsenals : tracking weapons of mass destruction.
Milestone documents in African American history : exploring the essential primary sources.
Encyclopedia of American race riots.
Encyclopedia of gangs.
Encyclopedia of pollution.
Encyclopedia of the First Amendment.
The dream encyclopedia.
Immigration in U.S. history.
A manual for writers of research papers, theses, and dissertations.
New encyclopedia of Africa.
Profiling and criminal justice in America : a reference handbook.
Religions of the world : a comprehensive encyclopedia of beliefs and practices.

Ask a Librarian for help!


What’s Missing From Those Student Essays and Exams?

December 20, 2012

This is the last Reader post of the semester.  Many of you are busy reading student essays and marking exams.  As you do, please note topic areas where your students haven’t used great resources.  Maybe – just maybe – the library doesn’t have the book or video they needed for their research.  Librarians rely on you, the instructional faculty, to help us fill these gaps in the collection.  Contact your librarian or leave a comment on this post.  Just let us know.  We want to have the best library collection your students need.

For magazine, journal and newspaper articles, the library databases can’t be beat.  Millions of quality articles at your command.  (Student access is terminated at semester-end, but staff and faculty access continues.)

And then, have a Happy Holiday!

Gift Book


10 Things Library Staff Would Like You to Know

November 28, 2012

Teachers know, the secret to success lies in reading the directions.  At least in part.

It turns out part of the successful use of library resources lies in simple things students do to get ready.

Library staff offer these tips to share with your students:

  1. Bring to the library:  your student ID card, change or small bills for copiers and printers, your syllabus and assignment handouts.
  2. Ask a librarian when you start your research, don’t wait until you’re at the end.  (You can chat online.)
  3. Start your research 3 times sooner than you think is needed; it just about always takes more time than you think.
  4. Pay your library fines now so you can register for next semester!  (Ask about a promissory note.)smile
  5. Share your smile with everyone and promote stress reduction.

Then there are the just plain great things to know:

  1. The library has hundreds of textbooks for 2 hour loan.  Ask a librarian for help finding the call number.
  2. New books arrive constantly – visit the new book shelves.
  3. Watch a popular video in the Media Center, or check it out.
  4. Read about 80,000 ebooks on your computer from any location.
  5. Look up millions of articles in the library databases, in your jammies, from home.

“Readiness is all.”
Hamlet (although in a completely different context..)

Library hours, numbers, and services.


New Library Databases: History, Theatre, Crime, and More

November 6, 2012

We’re happy to say that the library has acquired a number of new full-text databases. These are available right now, along with descriptions, via the Research Databases page for you and your students to search.

The following changes have been made to EBSCO databases:

  • Our multidisciplinary periodical database, Academic Search Premier, has been upgraded to Academic Search Complete, providing more than 3,000 additional full-text journals.
  • Business Source Premier has been upgraded to Business Source Complete. This database includes more than 1,000 additional periodicals, along many more individual reports and SWOT analyses.
  • Literary Reference Center has been upgraded to Literary Reference Center Plus, with loads more full-text articles, books, and literary works.

We’ve also added a few EBSCOhost databases (you can probably guess the kind of content from their title):

In addition, for the current academic year our EBSCO eBook Collection includes about 80,000 additional ebooks. Unlike our other EBSCO ebooks, these can be viewed by an unlimited number of users simultaneously.

We no longer provide the following databases, which saw relatively little use at SCC: Alt Health-Watch, History Reference Center, and Vocational & Career Collection.

In addition, we managed to add two more JSTOR collections. A lot of people come from graduate school thinking of JSTOR as the go-to database for many topics; but it turns out that there are many levels of JSTOR subscriptions! Until this year we had only collections I and II. We have now added collections III and V, meaning that we now have access to such core journals as PMLA, Journal of Musicology, Journal of American Studies, and Religious Studies. If you’re doing research in the humanities or social sicences, be sure to search JSTOR. (Note, however, that JSTOR does not normally include the most recent 3-6 years of journal content.)

So many places to look; if only there were a single search box for all of them… Look for this in a future post.


Second Annual Sacramento Archives Crawl

October 22, 2012

The second annual Sacramento Archives Crawl on Saturday, Oct. 6 was a huge success with over 500 people attending the event.  This year’s theme was “Building Sacramento/Building Communities,” so crawlers saw a wide range of materials documenting the growth of the Sacramento region.

Caroline Harker at the Sacramento Archives Crawl 2012

Caroline Harker at the Sacramento Archives Crawl, Oct. 6 2012

Participants started at any of four host locations and gathered stamps in their passports as they viewed treasures from dozens of archives and special collections libraries, visited with archivists, and went on special behind the scenes tours.   The four host archives included: California State Archives, California State Library, Center for Sacramento History, and Sacramento Public Library.  Displays of pictures depicting the Sacramento City College library from the 1960s to the present day Learning Resource Center were displayed in the California State Archives.  Photos of SCC buildings from 1920s to 1980s were also displayed along with 1940s year books, and pictures celebrating 90 years at SCC.  The Sacramento Archives Crawl turned out to be a fun filled day reminiscing and talking with people about Sacramento City College.  (Caroline Harker is the new SCC Archivist.  Find her in LRC Special Collections Fridays 8:00 to 4:30 and Saturday by appointment, 558-2532.)


Library Workshops ~ Sign up Now!

October 12, 2012

There are plenty of face-to-face Drop-in Library Workshops left this semester!   Encourage your students to “drop-in” on their own time for a 50-minute overview of the library’s book and media catalog and the online databases.  It’s a good introduction to the library and we provide students with a proof of attendance slip.

Student with books

You can also schedule a customized library orientation for your class, geared toward a particular assignment.

PILOT library instruction modules are online 24/7 and are a good alternative for students who can’t come to campus for a workshop.  Pilot contains six modules, but students may take one or all.  Each module contains a quiz and students can email their scores to you.

Come see us in the Library!


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