The library recently ran a survey of staff and students on the performance of our Resource List at GCU service during the 2021-22 academic year. Gathering user feedback has been an integral part of growing the service since it was launched in 2019 and our wish is to use the feedback to improve the service for the upcoming academic year.
We wanted to circulate some feedback we’ve received from our users in order to share some more information about the Resource List service and platform.
Student feedback
“…more online access to some items on module resources would be great. It’s frustrating when you are at home, and realise something is only available on campus.”
The library operates an e-first policy when we are purchasing resources and while we endeavor to make all materials available online, this is not always possible. If you have a concern about an item on your resource list that is not currently available online, please email us at resourcelists@gcu.ac.uk
“although some resources are very helpful, some of them are quite dated – we are being taught not to use references older than 5-10 years yet in suggested resource lists we are being provided with publications older than that”
“Can have resources which are unavailable or not relevant to the course”
The library works together with your lecturers every year to ensure that your resource lists are reviewed and up to date, with online resources where possible. If you do have any concerns about anything on your resource list, we would recommend reaching out to your module leader to discuss, or you can contact the library at resourcelists@gcu.ac.uk
“If it could link to the library site with recommendations and the ability to email to yourself or add to refworks.”
You can already link your RefWorks account with your resource list and export any citations you might be interested in. To find out how to do this, please look at our student help guide.
“Automatic sign-out happens far too quickly. When you’re reading you either need to hop back and forth between tabs to stay signed in or else repeatedly sign in nearly every time you want to find something new.”
We have increased the automatic sign-out time on library systems such as Resource Lists and Discover to 60 minutes. If you experience any further issues with automatic sign-out times on individual publisher websites, please contact us at ertenq@gcu.ac.uk
Staff feedback
“I wish I had gone to the resource list training. At the time, I don’t think I realised what the resource list was.”
“Unfortunately, workload and lack of adequate time means I have not been able to fully engage with this resource and service. I can see the potential but I am struggling to prioritise its incorporation into the modules”
The library is always happy to provide training to you, either online or in person. Training sessions can be organised at a time to suit your needs and can be a one-to-one session or a group session for your department. We are also happy to assist you in creating your resource lists at any time. All you need to do is send us the basic outline of your list, this can be anything from your module handbook to a list of citations on a Word document, and we will create your list for you. Please contact us at resourcelists@gcu.ac.uk for more information.
“If it was possible to divide up the resource lists by weeks, so the students could see clearly what reading was recommended for each week.”
“Provide better and quicker facility to use the same resource list across a range of modules.”
“Automatic linking of duplicate modules.”
Resource lists can be structured in a variety of ways, depending on what best suits how you are teaching your module. You can find our guidance on how to structure your list in our help guide.
Unfortunately, the resource list system does not give us the ability to automatically link duplicate modules at this stage however we are currently reviewing how we link lists to modules and will be consulting with the wider university on this in the upcoming year. Presently multiple modules can be linked to a single list manually, you can find instructions on how to do this in our help guide, or you can email the ream at resourcelists@gcu.ac.uk who will be able to do this on your behalf.
“[if it] automatically rolled over to the next academic year and was visible on a module site without it having to be requested, or to make it so that it can be easily activated by academic staff”
“To ensure all resource lists links from GCULearn are working prior to the academic year/semester without the need of ML involvement”
“Not getting resource lists for old modules that I no longer teach on as this can be quite confusing.”
Each year the library team rollover all existing resource lists to the new academic year. We time this exercise to coincide with the GCULearn system rollover, this way when you are assigned your module sites, your list will already be available. Your lists will also automatically be set to ‘Complete’ and will be available for your students to view without any extra work required from academic staff. If you do encounter any issues with your resource list at the beginning of the academic year, please let us know by contacting us at resourcelists@Gcu.ac.uk
Unfortunately, the library is not informed when any changes to module codes or leaders are made year to year. To try and make the rollover as smooth for staff as possible, we work with each school to ensure we have correct lists of module codes and associated teaching staff for the upcoming academic year. Regrettably, we do understand that these details may not be finalised when we contact staff in advance of each trimester and therefore, we may contact staff regarding a module they are no longer involved with. If you are aware of any changes of either module code or leader, please contact us at resourcelists@gcu.ac.uk and we will be able to update your list.
“I should be able to export a resource list as a file, save it, copy it, edit it, and import/attach it to my modules.”
As resource lists are automatically linked to your GCULearn module via an LTi link, staff do not need to manually attach any lists to their module sites anymore. This helps us cut down on the amount of set up work that is required by academic staff. The system also gives us the ability to add multiple module codes to a single list. If you wish to copy a list to multiple modules, please contact us at resourcelists@gcu.ac.uk will all relevant information and we can make any changes on your behalf.
The system does offer you the opportunity to export your list in a variety of formats, including Word document or as a PDF. You can also export your list to your RefWorks account or import citations directly from RefWorks to your list. We have some information on how to do this in our help guide or you can contact us at resourcelists@gcu.ac.uk in order to set up a training session.