Harvard referencing – new guidance

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Harvard Guidelines CoverThe academic librarians have created guidance for Harvard referencing based on the current British Standard (BS ISO 690:2010).  Our web pages have comprehensive guidance and examples of widely used sources of digital and print information.  You can download the full guide as a PDF  or use the quick links on the web site for specific examples.

We have followed the style of references in the current standard (BS ISO 690:2010) to create our Harvard guide but students should check their module handbook or with their lecturer for the style they are required to use.  The library also provides links and support for other referencing conventions.

If the type of material you want to reference is not included in our guidance or if you want to suggest we cover another referencing style please let us know and we will consider  this for  future guidance.

The library website is the authoritative source for the current guide.  We will review the guide annually to include any required changes and to reflect the current British Standard.

Users of RefWorks should choose the Harvard British Standard 2010 output style which is consistent with our guide. The Library will no longer support or update the GCU Harvard (also known as School of Health Harvard) output style on RefWorks due to multiple versions being in use throughout the university. However, a legacy version of GCU Harvard will still be available for those who wish to use it. Instructions for adding GCU Harvard to your favourites in RefWorks are available here.

Please contact your academic librarian for help or to give feedback on these changes.

New library self-service machines

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We are pleased to introduce our new library self-service machines. A total of 6 machines have been installed throughout the library:
• 2 on Level 1
• 1 each on Levels 0,2,3,4

The new library self-service machines have more functionality than the old models, you can now:

• Borrow and return books in one easy transaction – you can stack all your books on the machine shelf, there’s no need to place one book at a time as the improved functionality scans all of your books.

• Check your account details – gain immediate access to your account and renew books there and then, check and change any items you have on hold

NB: Staff who want to use the new machines please visit the Library Desk for further instruction.

Continue reading →

The Womens Wear Daily Archive

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We are pleased to announce that we have trial access to the Women’s Wear Daily Archive until the end of July. This will take us up to the start of an annual subscription from 1st August.

This  is comprehensive archive of Women’s Wear Daily, from the first issue in 1910 to material from within the last twelve months, reproduced in high-resolution images and will complement our Vogue Archive which is also available on the Proquest Platform.

Continue reading →

Library Scanning Service [reminder]

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The library scanning service helps staff make book chapters and journal articles more easily accessible for to your students. Our Scanning team will digitise the material and add the PDF files to GCULearn. You can then link to them from your module pages.

For more information about the scanning service and to request a new scan please complete the online request form on our scanning web page.

If you wish to renew existing scans, please email the team and include ‘Renew existing scans’ in the Subject line of your email. Please include your department, module code/trimester, module title, course leader and number of students. Please submit your requests for 2015/16 as early as possible

If you have any other queries about the scanning service please contact us at clascanrequests@gcu.ac.uk

Smart tables

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In May we tweeted about our newest tech resource – the smart table, available on Level 1 of the Library.  We’ve just taken delivery of our second search table which can be found on Level 4 and expect the final two search tables delivered before the start of the new semester.

What are they?  Smart tables are a new digital tool to help you make better use of your library by providing instant access to library information and resources. Continue reading →

GCU approves Open Educational Resources (OER) policy

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The University Executive recently approved an Open Educational Resources (OER) policy. This policy places GCU among the key players in open practice in Scotland and the UK. You can view the policy on the university website.

What are OERs? OERs are digital materials that are made available online to be used or re-purposed for teaching, learning and research. They can include images, audio, video, animations, content modules and other digital resources. Continue reading →

Study spaces/Unattended belongings removal

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Study space in the library is in high demand.

Please don’t leave personal belongings to reserve a space in the Library.

Not only do you risk having your belongings stolen you are also depriving your fellow students of the opportunity to use a much-needed study space.

Following consultation with the Students’ Association, and after a poll on the topic – from Monday 23rd March 2015 library staff will implement a policy of removing unattended belongings to make PCs and study space available for other people to use.

The PCs in the Library will also auto log-off after periods of inactivity, and any PC which isn’t logged on will be made available for use by another person.

Do not leave your work station and belongings unattended at any time. Removed property can be collected from the Campus Security Office.

Library helps to raise £15,000 for charity

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As part of the Library’s regular review of stock, we strive to ethically  disposal of any withdrawn material. We are pleased to note that through the online sale of our withdrawn books between 1st February & 31st October 2014, our charity partners, The Book Rescuers, raised almost £15,000 for the African Children’s Educational Trust (A-CET).

The trust supports the education of African children through provision of scholarships and the upgrading of community elementary rural schools.

Research impact and journal quality

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There are a number of measures used for journal quality, article impact and assessing your personal research output.

You may find lists of quality journals designated by experts in particular fields.  For example, the Association of Business Schools (ABS) publishes a guide on journal quality which uses citation data, peer review and expert opinion to provide a list of academic journal titles for management and business researchers.   Thomson Reuters publishes annual Journal Citation Reports (JCR) which provide impact factors and quality rankings for academic journals.  The library provides access to the current JCR Social Sciences and JCR Science editions (log in with your Domain username and password).

Altmetric provide article level metrics to researchers.  They collect data on citations within social media sites, government papers and newspapers as alternative counts to the academic data in JCR mentioned above.  There is a free bookmarklet for researchers.

In 1995, Jorge E. Hirsch proposed the H-index as a measure of the output of individual researchers.  This is still used widely within academia (and you will find many articles discussing it).  Google Scholar provides H-index measures for articles and scholars.  See their metrics pages for details.  You can also find or calculate your own H-index using Journal Citation Reports or Google Scholar.

The academic librarians are here to support you in your research and can offer tailored workshops for groups or one-to-one support.  Please contact us if you want to follow up on anything or if you want to arrange an appointment.  See our contact details.

References

HIRSCH, J. E., 2005. An index to Quantify an Individual’s Scientific Research Output. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences,  102(46) pp. 16569-16572.

Connecting to Refworks

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The way to connect to electronic resources has changed.  This post explains the new process to connect to your Refworks account.

To connect to your Refworks account, choose Refworks from the database A-Z  or from the Refworks quick link at the bottom of the library home page.  You will be prompted to log in with your Domain username and password.

You may occasionally connect to your account from the Refworks home page.  To do this Continue reading →