The Patrick Power Library is committed to teaching students and faculty how to find and use information effectively. The Library offers library instruction to groups and individuals through its program of classroom and lab instruction, online learning, and research by appointment service. Visit the Library Instruction webpage for more information.
Professors are encouraged to arrange course-related library instruction for their students. Librarians will tailor sessions to meet individual class requirements and assignments. Librarians will work with you to develop hands-on activities for students and can visit your classes more than once, as requested. Instruction in advanced research skills and specialized resources can be arranged for upper-year and graduate classes. When scheduling a library session, please give as much advance notice as possible (preferably two weeks). See Library Instruction for more information.
Contact Heather Sanderson, Information Literacy Librarian (heather.sanderson@smu.ca / 902-420-5541) to schedule a library instruction session.
Need help with your research? The Library offers personalized assistance through our Research-by-Appointment service. Both students and faculty may schedule one-on-one appointments with a librarian for in-depth assistance with their research needs. Students use this service to discuss specific research difficulties, such as finding information for an assignment or thesis research. This service is also used by Faculty who would like to discuss with a librarian their research projects or new course proposals (and the resources available to support them). To book an appointment, simply reach out to our Research Help Desk or visit our Research Bookings page. Online and in-person appointments are available.
The Library has many subject and research guides and instruction guides available to help students improve their information skills across a variety of topics. You are welcome to link to our guides in your course materials or embed them in Brightspace. We are regularly developing new guides and instructional materials. Along with our subject research guides, we also have special topic guides that highlight specific topics, such as Artificial Intelligence, Citation Styles, and Open Access.
Students often turn to library staff for assistance with assignments. Please alert the Research Help team of any assignments that involve large classes, particularly when the assignment may draw on limited research resources. Let us know by emailing Nicole Carter, Reference and Research Librarian at nicole.carter@smu.ca.
For suggestions on creating assignments that involve library research, visit our Tips for Developing Research-Based Assignments webpage.
Our librarians can provide information literacy training to your research and teaching assistants. Please contact Heather Sanderson (heather.sanderson@smu.ca / 902-420-5541) or Cindy Harrigan (cindy.harrigan@smu.ca / 902-496-8789) to discuss.
In addition to making individual appointments or group bookings, research and teaching assistants can benefit from the Research Toolkit series. The Toolkit is a series of advanced instruction sessions for research assistants, teaching assistants and graduate students, delivered by librarians. The series typically takes place each May and covers topics such as citation searching, grey literature, finding and using data and statistics, copyright, and more.