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Social Work

Social Work Library Guide

For Canvas and access to Library resources

If you need assistance accessing Library resources, you will need to contact the Identity and Privileges Office by completing this form: https://www.lib.uchicago.edu/borrow/access-privileges/contact-ipo/.

If you need assistance with Canvas, you will need to email the Canvas team: canvas@uchicago.edu.

 

Syllabus deadline and course reserves

 

  • Syllabi or reading list submitted to the Library prior to or by the deadline date will be processed first. The Library’s goal is to have these course reserves complete by the start of the Quarter.
    • Syllabi or reading list are due 1 month prior to the start of the Quarter, and 1 and 1/2 months prior to Fall Quarter. Instructors are welcome to submit their syllabi earlier as well.
    • The Library accepts the course syllabus or the reading list.
  • Syllabi submitted after the deadline will be processed week by week.
  • Instructors will need to let the Library know the following information:
    • Which readings the instructor needs the Library to upload to Canvas, or alternatively if the instructor has posted the readings themselves or included links in their syllabus, let the Library know that there is no need to process course reserves for this quarter.
    • If there are any changes in the syllabi from the last time this course was taught. If no changes are indicated to the Library we will clone the course from the last time it was taught and consider it complete.
  • Instructors will also need to include complete citations with author, journal or book title, date published, and article or chapter title.

Video streaming license

 

  • Submit your request for videos through Canvas.
  • Refer to this page on instructions on submitting reserves to Canvas, to request a film: Using Canvas to Submit Course Reserves
  • Requesting a film for your course is not a guarantee that the streaming film will be available. Streaming licenses are complex, vendors may not offer licenses for films to be streamed to courses or made available in reserves, or made available in a library collection.
  • Please reach out to the Library (swl@lib.uchicago.edu) for questions about videos for your course as soon as possible.
  • Sometimes vendors do not offer institutional license options for us to purchase, in this case the video would not be available, and students will have to acquire the video themselves.
  • As a best practice, please check with the Library (swl@lib.uchicago.edu) before indicating on your syllabus or communicating with your students that the videos will be available for streaming/viewing through the library or course reserves.
  • Streaming licenses are typically offered for 1 year or 3 years.
  • Videos taught in the past may not be available any longer. Instructors should contact the Library (swl@lib.uchicago.edu) to confirm the videos needed for their course are still available. The license may have to be purchased again if it has expired.
  • Please indicate if you intend to use the video for future courses so that the appropriate streaming license can be purchased.

Electronic availability of books and chapters

  • Some books are unavailable for electronic license purchasing.
  • Some chapter requirements cannot be scanned due to copyright.
  • As a best practice, please check with the Library (swl@lib.uchicago.edu) before indicating on your syllabus or communicating with your students that the books will be available through the library or course reserves.
  • To make sure instructors have the books that are needed prior to the Quarter starting, instructors will need to contact the Library with the list of books needed for their course (swl@lib.uchicago.edu).

Using Canvas vs. asking Library

Submitting course reserves to Canvas

Asking the Library to process course reserves to Canvas

  • For instructors who would prefer not to submit their reserves readings via Canvas, please follow the instructions below.

Copyright

  • The Crown Family School of Social Work Policy and Practice pays copyright for any course reserves over 2 chapters or more than 20% of the work.
  • The Crown Family School of Social Work Policy and Practice will not pay for more than 30% of a work to be scanned. Anything more than that is considered a required text.
  • Copyright is required to be paid. The Library processes this through the reserves process. If instructors choose to share PDFs with their students, the instructors are responsible for determining what they are able to share and what is protected by copyright.

Electronic license to books

  • The Library will prioritize purchasing electronic licenses for books needed for course reserves. The sooner the Library is informed of what books are needed, the sooner we can purchase them. Instructors may contact the Library (swl@lib.uchicago.edu) with requests for eBooks to purchase for course reserves prior to submitting syllabi to expedite the process.
  • Even if a book has an eBook on book retail sites (such as Kindle or Nook), this is not the same as the publisher allowing the purchase of institutional electronic license options. Instructors will need to ask the Library if the books needed are available for electronic license purchasing.

Required and recommended reading

  • The Library will only process required readings and will not process recommended readings.
  • The Social Work Librarian does provide instruction sessions to courses upon request to educate students on how to locate articles and books, as well as how to navigate databases, manage citations, and request materials via Interlibrary Loan.
  • Instructors may contact the Library (swl@lib.uchicago.edu) and request that the Library purchase electronic licenses for specific books that are recommended and not required reading.