Skip to Main Content

*Kaufman Library 101: Course Reserves

 

Course reserves are free for our students to use within the library! This includes our anatomy models and any other resources faculty may put on reserve. This page answers some frequently asked questions about course reserves and offers some extra information for faculty members. ðŸ“–

Frequently Asked Questions

What are course reserves?

Course Reserves are print or electronic items selected by faculty for use in a specific course. Reserve items may include books, book chapters, journal articles, DVDs, professor's notes, sample quizzes, and/or other materials required for course work. These items are set aside for short term use inside the library (usually two hours) and are available at the library circulation desk.

How do I put items on course reserve? 

Only GGC faculty may put materials on course reserve for student use. If you wish to place materials on course reserve, please submit the electronic Course Reserve Request Form and drop off any physical items at the library circulation desk.

Notes:  

  • Please allow 7 business days for library staff to process new reserve items. You will receive an email when your items are ready for student use.
  • Complete bibliographic citations must accompany all excerpts submitted for course reserve, with the exception of instructor-created materials.
  • Items obtained via Interlibrary Loan or GIL Express cannot be placed on course reserve.
  • Any textbook copy that has been received by you from a publisher for evaluation purposes, at no cost to you, either labeled “Instructor’s Copy” or contains other language restricting its use to review purposes only can no longer be accepted. This language may be found on the back cover of materials or as a ribbon across the front cover.
  • Any textbook copy labeled “Not for Resale,” received at no cost to you as well as any current textbook, may only be placed on Course Reserve for up to three weeks at the beginning of the semester, providing time for students to purchase their own individual copies.  Please pick up the textbook(s) you placed on Course Reserve after the three week period.
  • Please note that Kaufman Library is unable to purchase textbooks.
  • Remember to review and retain a Fair Use Checklist for your records. The library reserves the right to refuse any course reserve request that infringes on Fair Use.

Links and Relevant Resources:  

Substitutes for Course Reserve (Faculty Use)

Open Educational Resources (OERs) and Licensed Educational Resources (LERs) are excellent substitutes. “Open Educational Resources are teaching, learning, and research materials that are either (a) in the public domain or (b) licensed in a manner that provides everyone with free and perpetual permission to engage in the 5R activities (retain, reuse, revise, remix, redistribute)” (Creative Commons, n.d.). LERs include articles, e-books, images, reports, statistics, streaming media, etc., that are located within the subscription-based and purchased databases and e-books that Kaufman Library makes available to the GGC community.

A variety of sites provide search help for OERs, including OERs that are peer-reviewed. Many OERs are licensed under Creative Commons, which allows for the 5Rs mentioned above so that a particular OER can be adapted to meet specific instructional needs. Some OERs are open access textbooks, with content written by subject experts, making them freely available to replace required textbooks that have a price attached. Kaufman Library has created a guide to help locate available OERs, such as open-access textbooks, and provides information on Creative Commons licensing. Affordable Learning Georgia maintains a repository of OERs created through its Textbook Transformation grant program.

Materials in the public domain are often part of digitized collections made freely available by libraries, museums, learned societies, etc., and many feature primary source materials. Some materials in digital collections may still fall under copyright restrictions but can be used for teaching and research under Fair Use.

Library liaisons stand at the ready to collaborate with you to make using OERs and LERs a transformative pedagogical experience. Not only can the library liaisons collaborate with you to locate and evaluate the plethora of resources available, but can also work together to “remix” existing materials to make the content interactive and engaging for students.

If the material you have on Course Reserve is what you need, there are two possible options. If the book is available in e-format, the Library will explore the possibility of purchase. Please complete the Material Purchase Request form, but note that the e-format may not allow unlimited simultaneous users. If there is not an e-version, but this is still something you need for your course, please consider selecting a small portion after determining if it falls within Fair Use. If you deem it fair use, Kaufman Library will then digitize this portion for you to add to your D2L course.

Kaufman Library looks forward to working with you as we all make needed adjustments for the coming semester. Please contact your Library liaison or the Access Services Department if we can assist.

Reference

Creative Commons. (n.d.). What we do: Program area: Open education. (n.d.).https://creativecommons.org/about/program-areas/education-oer/