Using Library Resources in Blackboard
Walker Mangagement Library resources can be incorporated into courses on Blackboard or individual course web pages in several different ways. This guide will help those who are the do-it-yourself kinds of people.
Jump to:
- Linking to Full-Text Articles
- Using the OpenURL Generator Tool
- What if the database doesn't have direct linking?
- Linking to Databases and e-Journals
- A Word About Copyright
- Adding a Research Guide
- Adding the Library Homepage
- Adding a Guide on Beginning the Research Process
- Adding a Direct Link to Help from a Librarian
- Additional Information
- Questions?
Linking to Full-Text Articles
It is often possible to link directly to a full-text article in one of the library's online journal and article collections directly from your course readings in Blackboard. Methods for creating these links will vary:
- Sometimes you can use the URL (web site address) displayed in the address bar at the top of your web browser's window.
- Sometimes you will have to build a link based on information that an online journal or article collection provides. You can use the OpenURL Generator Tool to create links to full-text articles.
It is important to use direct and stable article links when pasting them within a Blackboard couse. What does this mean?
Direct: The link leads immediately to the article, with no need to search or navigate.
Stable: The link works every time you click on it. (NOTE: If you simply copy a link from the address bar, it may stop working after you've closed the broswer and will never work for other people.)
Using the OpenURL Generator Tool
If the database doesn't provide you with a direct and stable link, you can try using a tool called the OpenURL Generator to create links to full-text. The Vanderbilt Libraries maintain current links to the available fulltext for our electronic journals in the library's FindIt@VU database of electronic journals. When you find a citation in a research database and click on the FindIt@VU button, the system constructs a URL on the fly that incorporates the current linking information. This URL may not always be the same (not direct or stable, as mentioned above). However, you can use the OpenURL Generator to build a dynamic URL to a full text journal article that will continue to work even if the static URL for a journal changes. It can be used in your Blackboard site or on your own webpage.
Step 1
Open your Blackboard course to the place where you wish to insert a link to full-text. For example, you can do this in the Assignments or External Links areas of Blackboard. If you are an administrative assistant and are unsure where to place these links within Blackboard, check with the professor of the course or with library staff before doing so.
Step 2
Find all of the information about the citation. Once you have it, go to the OpenURL Generator and fill out the form. Make sure you:
- use the full journal title (omit leading articles like: a, an, the) OR use can use the ISSN (with the dash, for example: 1063-7737)
- include year, volume, issue, start page, and any other fields you have
Step 3
Check the "View OpenURL" box and click on the Submit button. A window with the URL that you need will be displayed. Highlight and copy this URL to your Blackboard course or your own web page.
If you uncheck the "View OpenURL" box, you have the opportunity to go straight into the FindIt@VU service in order to find your aricle (and eventually URL).
What if the database doesn't have direct linking?
Not all full-tect databases provide the ability to do article-level linking. If this is the case, consider this alternative. Give your students the article citation, provide a link to the database where the article can be found, and indicate that they need to search the database on their own.
Obviously this approach takes up a liitle more of the students' time, but it does get them more familiar with the databases. They have to do their own research for various assignments anyway, so this approach could be more beneficial to them in the long-run.
Linking to Databases and E-journals
There are times when you may wish to have students use a particular database and/or e-journal to complete specific assignments. Consider linking directly to these resources. To do this:
- Start by going to the Library's database or e-journal page.
- Find the database or e-journal you want to link to, and place your cursor over the link.
- Right click on the link, and select "Copy shortcut" or "Copy Link Location" (depending upon your browser, this message might be slightly different).
- Paste the URL into Blackboard. By doing it this way, you will get the correct URL with proxy information (the code that allows for off-campus access).
A Word About Copyright
When library staff are not involved in maintaining course pages, whether they are posted in Blackboard or in other applications not supported by the library, faculty should work directly with Vanderbilt University's Copyright Clearance Services. Questions about copyright can be directed to copyright@vanderbilt.edu.
Adding a Research Guide
You may wish to link to one of our research guides within your Blackboard course. These guides are created by Walker Management Libraians and can help direct your students to print and electronic resources that are subject focused. Choose the guide you wish to link to and simply copy and paste the URL from the top of the webpage for your link.
Adding the Library Homepage
Consider linking to the Walker Management Library homepage. This may seem obvious, but it gives students direct access to many library resources and services, not just the ones you point them to. All the links from this page include proxy server information that will allow students to access the materials from both on and off campus. They may need to use either the Owen ID and Password, or their VUnet ID and password to gain access to many of the resources.
The URL to use:
http://www2.owen.vanderbilt.edu/walker
Adding a Guide on Beginning Research
How do I begin my research? is a guide for students who are unclear about how to begin the research process. It includes advice on finding articles, books, specific journal titles, and advanced database searching. It also provides citation and plaigarism information.
The URL to use:
http://www2.owen.vanderbilt.edu/walker/how_to/begin-research.php
Adding a Direct Link to Help from a Librarian
Did you know that students can get online help from a librarian? The Ask a Librarian is an online form that students can use to ask a librarian for research assistance without even entering the library.
The URL to use:
http://www2.owen.vanderbilt.edu/walker/how_to/ask-a-librarian.php
Additional Information
If you don't want to put your materials in your Blackboard course yourself, you can also have library staff do this. Check out the directions on how to submit your citation information to library staff so they can put it on e-Reserves for you.
Questions?
libraryservices @ owen . vanderbilt . edu
Call
Access Services Staff: 615-343-2137