July 7, 2020
Dear Colleagues,
As UBC looks towards preparing for the Fall term, UBC Library continues to support faculty in ensuring students have high-quality learning experiences through access to online course materials.
Due to COVID-19, UBC Library branches will remain closed for at least the start of Winter term and print course reserve items will not be available to students. Staff and librarians are focusing on materials and formats that are accessible in an online environment.
Some materials that instructors wish to use may not be available electronically. Approximately 85% of textbooks are not available for sale to libraries in online formats. Much of the non-English language materials do not have online equivalents. Some audiovisual material currently available on DVD may not be accessible through streaming services or via licensed databases.
The Library will purchase online equivalents to print resources, where possible. The Library will license streaming versions of DVDs if they exist. If there are no online versions of a print or physical resource available, you can work with your subject librarian to identify reasonable alternatives. These options include purchasing eBook versions of alternative titles, identifying open-source textbooks, scanning and uploading select print content (subject to copyright), or digitizing DVD content (subject to copyright).
UBC Library encourages you to review your course reading lists as soon as possible so that the course materials your students need are available to them online and in time.
After you have reviewed your course materials, please submit your content into the Canvas-integrated Library Online Course Reserves (LOCR) system to ensure compliance with copyright and license agreements.
1. For a full-service option, faculty and instructors can email Microsoft Word or PDF versions of course reading lists or syllabi to syllabus.service@ubc.ca
2. Faculty or instructors who prefer to upload their own content can do so via https://services.library.ubc.ca/borrowing-services/using-course-reserves/
UBC Library staff review content submitted to LOCR, obtain materials, make copyright determinations, secure licenses where necessary, and upload the content on your behalf. Each item must be assessed individually for copyright clearance each time the course is offered, even if clearance was obtained for the course in a previous term.
The Library will continue to communicate about in-person service options on the advice of provincial health authorities. To stay informed of any change in our services, please check the Library Service Updates linked from the UBC Library home page.
Sheldon Armstrong
AUL Collections, University of British Columbia Library
For further information, your contacts at UBC Education Library are:
Wendy Traas wendy.traas@ubc.ca &
Emily Fornwald emily.fornwald@ubc.ca