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Finding and Teaching with Digital Library Resources in Moodle

Video streaming, article databases, digital course reserves, research tutorials and more are all available to you and your students via the NC State University Libraries. This article will outline how instructors can save students money by integrating resources for reading and viewing that are already part of the NC State University Libraries collections.

In this article

How to Get Started

1. Consider your learning goals

Before determining resources – books, videos, articles, etc., for your students, determine what learning goals you have for them. Then search for and find resources that will help them achieve those learning goals. If you want to plan this out in detail, a course map is a document that can be very helpful in planning the structure of your course.

  • Course learning objectives: What will students be able to do by the end of the course?
  • Module learning objectives: What will students be able to do by the end of this module, unit or lesson?
  • Instructional Materials and Learning Activities: How will students get the information and build the knowledge they need to achieve the learning objectives? Here’s where you will be able to add in content from the NC State Libraries.
  • Assessments: How will you measure students’ ability to demonstrate the learning objectives?

Course mapping resources

2. Find library resources — digital books, streaming media, articles, tutorials and more

Digital Books and Videos

Go to the Libraries website homepage to get started searching for books and media in Discover, the new Libraries catalog and article search tool. If you know the title that you are looking for, search for that title in the Books & Media search. You can also use general search terms and the left sidebar filters to browse. Follow the steps in our Searching for Books with Discover guide. The Libraries has subscriptions to many streaming media databases and not all titles are searchable in Discover. Browse our streaming media collections FAQ for a full list of the subscriptions. 

Tips:
  1. Filter/limit your search to only show resources that are “Available Online” for streaming media or ebooks.
  2. If an ebook will be required reading for a course, make sure we have unlimited or multiple viewer access to the book. Contact the library_reserves@ncsu.edu team for more information. 
  3. You can always use the “Ask Us” chat or email for help finding the right source.

Articles

Discover has also replaced Summon, our previous article search tool. Change the filter to search for articles instead of Books & Media in the dropdown menu or from the homepage search. Search by title if you know it or by topic to browse. Follow the steps in our Search for Articles in Discover guide.

Libraries Tutorials and Instruction Resources

The Libraries has a suite of videos and tutorials to explain research concepts and skills called Learn on Your Own. These are short videos, guide pages, or interactive tutorials available on our website.

We also have more in-depth Library Instruction Moodle Modules for students that explain common research assignments. Students self-enroll in these courses and receive a certificate of completion that can be turned in as an assignment for a course.

LinkedIn Learning

The Libraries pays for a subscription to LinkedIn Learning. Instructors can assign videos or playlists created by LinkedIn Learning or create their own playlists made up of LinkedIn Learning or selected or custom uploaded content. Instructors can assign directly within the site or utilize the integration with Moodle. For more information about creating your own playlists in LinkedIn Learning, contact Alison Edwards.

2. Get links, embed code, or download documents/files to share with students

Permanent links

Once you find a digital book, video, or article you can click the “share” icon to copy the permanent link. Permanent links can be found in the Discover record or in databases after accessing the resource. They are the most stable way to share links to library resources on or off campus because it routes users through the university authentication process, ensuring access. Permanent or proxied links can also be generated using the Library Article Linker. Permanent links are not necessary for libraries created Learn On Your Own tutorials.

PDFs

When sharing journal articles, you can use the permanent link or download the article as a PDF. Note that PDFs may need to be reviewed or remediated for accessibility. Learn more about PDF Accessibility. 

3. Getting the digital book, video, or article into Moodle

Links to resources can be added independently as a URL resource, or you can link to content within any Moodle resource or activity in which you can type text and use the built-in text editor with the linking button.

If you have a downloaded PDF, you can add it as a File Resource in Moodle or embed it within a page using the link tool in the text editor.

External Tools for Sharing Resources

Tools like Perusall and Padlet can be used to share resources with your students in a way that encourages collaboration and engagement. 

Perusall can be used to share digital readings, videos, and other resources while encouraging students to engage with the content through collaborative annotations, questions, and discussions directly within the resource.

Learn more in our Perusall Teaching Resources Article

Padlet can serve as a collaborative resource repository where instructors can organize and share digital books, articles, videos, and other materials. Students can interact with these resources by adding comments, asking questions, and participating in discussions.

Learn more in our Padlet Teaching Resources Article

4. Course eReserves and the Library Course Tools Moodle Block

You can directly link to the library’s e-reserves and request materials be held for students in person or via digital reserves (depending on availability).

Workshop Information

Finding and Teaching With Library Resources in Moodle

If there are no available workshops to register for, please feel free to request an instructional consultation from LearnTech about this topic.

Resources

Links to Support Pages and Video Tutorials

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