Teaching Support: Home

You can find Library resources using the UEA Library Search, Find Journals A-Z and Database A-Z. The Subject Guides are also useful in highlighting key resources in each subject area. We also look after the Archives, which you can explore via Archives and Special Collections.  

You can borrow up to 30 books and keep them for as long as you need them unless they are requested by someone else.  We use Library of Congress Classification scheme and there is a floor guide with floor plans in the main stairwells of the Library. 

Because our electronic resources are made available by dozens of different providers, we recommend using Library Access plug-in browser plug in, to quickly indicate if we have access to the resource.  Alternatively, to access our electronic resources on and off campus is via Library Search or A-Z listings. For queries about accessing resources, make contact with the general Library Helpdesk or Electronic Services.

UEA uses the Talis Aspire Electronic Reading List System and all taught modules are expected to have a Talis list, which can also be embedded into Blackboard courses. There is plenty of help available on using Talis, including online resources and face-to-face support. 

Talis lists provide students with a consistent experience and good access to resources. TALIS lists also alert the Library to which resources you need to support your teaching. We use the lists to ensure that we have the right licences, editions and in sufficient numbers for your module. 

Using the Talis bookmarking tool, you can grab resources from the Library Search or (if we don’t already have it) from a site like Amazon. When the list is reviewed by the Library we will buy in an e-book or print copies from an appropriate supplier and update the Talis links for you. 

We can usually purchase sufficient books or licenses and have them in place in time for teaching if the Talis deadlines are met. However, where the module and subject area are new or the lists are very long, it’s advisable to get these to the Library to review as early as possible (you can continue to add to lists while they are being reviewed). Occasionally we may have to ask you to prioritise resources if time is short or the resources are costly. 

You must talk to your Academic Librarian if you want to add content from journals or databases that we don’t subscribe to as these may be more complicated for us to obtain. And if you expect students to buy their own copies of particular books then you should mark these items as ‘recommended for student purchase’ rather than ‘core’. 

Sometimes a book chapter or extract is required for teaching. By adding this item to a reading list, we may be able to scan it and add it to your reading list rather than purchase an e-book or have students competing for a limited number of print copies.  

These Digitisation Requests are made from within the Talis system as you edit a lists. We will undertake all the work in checking that the scan complies with Copyright law or the terms of our Copyright Licensing Agency (CLA) and then will scan and upload the extract for you. 

If you’re including Library content in online teaching, particularly MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses) or other open content, then you’ll need to check with us to ensure that it doesn’t infringe copyright or the terms of our licences with publishers. 

Further copyright guidance is available from the Compliance team webpages and the Library's Copyright For Staff guide. 

TALIS reading lists are the most effective way of alerting the library to the need for further copies of existing books or new books that need to be bought to support teaching. The Book Suggestions form is intended as a route for requesting single copies of books that will support background or further reading – or to request books for your research that you anticipate will be of wider interest (for very specialised research-related books it may be better to use the Interlending Service). 

Recognising that on occasion it may not be practical to add a new item to your reading list, the Book Suggestions form does support ad-hoc purchases for teaching and includes fields for module information to ensure we buy enough copies/licences. However, this is not the primary purpose of the form and Talis lists are the main way of alerting the Library to teaching resources. 

New journal or database subscriptions should be discussed with your Academic Librarian. Journals are often expensive and they represent an ongoing cost commitment, so it may be necessary to cancel an existing subscription to take up a new one. Your Academic Librarian will normally involve your school’s Library rep in discussions around cancellations, to ensure that other academics are not adversely impacted.  

New journals and databases (whether subscription-based or one-off purchases) are likely to require your Academic Librarian to produce a business case and you may be asked to provide information to support such cases. For larger databases a trial is also often undertaken and you will be expected to help the Library in promoting the trial and collecting feedback. 

Key role of the library team is to help your students get the most out of our resources and succeed in their learning. We do this by supporting Digital Information Literacies and skills. This support is provided through using a Blended approach of online resources: synchronous online sessions; asynchronous content; online drop-in opportunities and, face to face support either in group teaching sessions, or where appropriate individual support.  

As a teacher and advisor you can tap into this support: directing students to the online resources and drop-ins; incorporating resources into your own teaching or VLE content; or working in collaboration with Academic Librarians when delivering your teaching sessions. 

Online “core” Digital Information Skills Support 

For those new to the University Core Digital Information Skills are supported via our “First Assignment” . We will also have additional support via faculty online inductions.  

Please feel free to link to these and let us know if there are other resources we could work on collaboratively with you. 

Online and face to face “next steps” Digital Information Skills Support 

Your Academic Librarians can work in collaboration with you on a range of online synchronous and face-to-face discipline related skills sessions – focusing on the next step up from the core skills supported above. Skills like - finding specialist information; evaluating information sources; dissertation support; and more advanced sessions for postgraduates.  We also offer drop-in workshops where we can support students if they have particular challenges in finding or accessing resources, and if required individual support.