Welcome to the Library

Welcome to the Library Podcast  (Transcript)

 

Anna  0:06 

Welcome to the library. This is the first of 10 podcasts in the library pathway series, introducing you to library services here at Falmouth University.

 

Each podcast will introduce you to key people within the student and Library Services team who help to introduce you to different aspects of the library, as well as assignment research. We'll talk about the most important things you need to know as a new user of our library, as well as how to engage with information for research and in doing so we hope to ensure that you're ready to successfully complete your first assignment.

 

This week we'll meet and talk with Laura lay head of Library and Archives. But before we do, there are some key pieces of information, I'd like to share with you.

 

Firstly, where can you find us. Well, wherever you are, you can find us online at library.fxplus.ac.uk. Our website provides a gateway to all our resources as well as information about our services and help that's available.

 

The website also signposts resources and services available to students studying with the University of Exeter. And for partnership students studying at a distance.

 

If you're on campus you can find the Penryn Campus Library in the exchange building next to the Stannary and at Falmouth campus you can find the library near the very top of the sites near the wood lane entrance. We have maps and current opening hours information on our library website to help you.

 

In this series of podcasts, we'll be talking about some key content and resources you can find online to use our services online you'll need your it network username and password.

 

If you have problems with your login, then you can email the IT Service Desk at servicedesk@fxplus.ac.uk or you can visit an IT help desk on site if you're on campus. Again, there's more information on the website.

 

In order to use our resources on campus, you will need your student ID card which doubles as your library card when you're on campus.

 

Now I'd like to introduce you to Laura Lay and ask her some questions relating to getting started in the library.

 

Hello, Laura. Firstly, could you please introduce yourself to our audience.

 

Laura  2:29 

Yeah, hi I say I'm the head of Library and Archives, and to manage the libraries on the Penryn and Falmouth campus, and all the library services for University of Exeter students who are based in Cornwall, and Falmouth university students.

 

Anna  2:47 

Thanks Laura, and could you possibly say a few words to introduce the library to new students.

 

Laura  2:54 

Yeah, sure. So the library is both a physical place that you might visit on campus and it's also a huge collection of online resources that have been curated by the librarians and libraries really important for you as a student.

 

In terms of the secondary sources that you might need to support your study so anything that's sort of beyond what you might get in your lecture is where you can do all the independent learning and the research that, that is all part of being at university.

 

Also within the library. There's so much help you can get from the staff or finding resources and how to study. And so you can ask any of us for help, and you've also got a subject librarian who you'll meet during your course as well.

 

Anna  3:44 

Thanks, Laura, that's great. I'm sure there are lots of anxious students during University this year wondering about the student experience in a newly socially distance world and I wondered what reassurances can you offer students about their library experience this year.

 

Laura  4:03 

Yeah, I'd say over the summer this year, and we've been working really hard to make sure that your library experience is, is really excellent, whether you are coming to campus, or whether you're staying at home, and whatever experiences we have during the year in terms of kind of lockdowns and self isolation etc so that everybody gets an inclusive library experience. Our priority has been to make sure that the library resources which are on your resource list so the ones that your module leaders are recommending as far as we could possibly make digital resources so that there's online resources for you these might be ebooks or journey journal articles or scanned chapters from books for example, so making sure that those are all available for you. Thanks Nora. Could you explain to new students some of the different ways they can get help online or on campus. Yeah, sure. So, um, one of the main ways you can get help is through the live chat function so there's a ask the library live chats that you'll find on the library website. But you can also say phonus or email us. If you'd like a little bit more support, and just rather than just a quick question. You can also book an appointment with your subject librarian. So there's a link for that on the website.

 

We also in the libraries, we do have a help desk and you're welcome to come and ask us any questions at the help desk.

 

If you are on campus if you're using the campus library you will find it's changed to how it was last year because we've put in place a lot of safety measures to make sure that we can follow the social distancing guidelines.

 

This will include things like making sure that Li, enabling you to book study spaces so that people can stay two metres apart and we don't have a big queue of people so you know that if you go there, the space that you've booked is ready for you to use. Also within the shelves, we need to make sure that people are following kind of hygiene principles washing their hands etc before they browse the library books, and we probably need to limit the number of people who can go in as well and have a one way read, so that you can make sure that you can be safe and stay two metres away from people while you're searching for books in the library, but we will have those, those those spaces open so you know some courses, and for, you know, for some people, that opportunity to kind of search and browse through the books is really important so we want to make sure that we're where we can that's that's open to people. Oh yeah, I think that's, yeah that's really reassuring thanks.

 

Anna  6:49 

And finally, is there anything you'd like to say to students that are just starting out on their studies.

 

Laura  6:55 

Yeah, I was thinking about this question on it, um, when I, when I started University, and in my very first lecture, I had some really good advice, actually. And that was the being at university and doing university education is not about finding answers. It's about finding questions, if you can think about that. It's really nice and it, and it's actually all about what the library is about because it's about thinking about questions critically thinking. Hmm, what's missing in this or not. And then, you know, the library will, you know, don't you Debbie will provide some answers, but it'll also widen your mind and make you think about lots of questions as well.

 

Anna  7:36 

Thanks.

 

Transcribed by https://otter.ai