Building Reading Lists Linkable from Blackboard Course Sites with RefWorks

• Introduction
• Advantages of Using RefWorks to Build Course Reading Lists Linkable from Blackboard
• How to Build Reading Lists with RefWorks and Link Them from Blackboard?
• Tips
• Enquiry

[ Library Resources for Web-based Teaching ]

Introduction

Very often, you find useful journal articles/books/documents to recommend to your students when you are searching in an online database or in the Library Catalogue. Many of these materials may be accessible online so you may want to provide links to the online full text in your course reading lists as well. In the past, providing a hyperlinked course reading list in your Blackboard course site involves many manual steps:

1. looking for useful references in online databases and the Library Catalogue
2. copying the citations to a document/web page
3. capturing and creating links to the online articles, if available, or to the Library Catalogue records
4. uploading the reading list(s) to your Blackboard course site

Now, with the release of the Blackboard building block for RefWorks, instructors can produce online reading lists with simple clicks and minimum input of text, combining the power of RefWorks and SFX.    [view introductory movie]

Advantages of Using RefWorks to Build Course Reading Lists Linkable from Blackboard

1. You can combine the tasks of searching for useful references for your students, organizing the references found by topic, providing access to catalogue records of Library materials reserved for your course or to online articles while complying with license agreements into a streamlined and simple sequence. It's easy and convenient!
   
   
2. You can flexibly assign individual Course Reserve items to different topical folders (as opposed to the alphabetical listing by title of all Library materials reserved for your course in the "Course Reserve" section of the Library Catalogue)
   
   
3. You do not need to capture any OpenURL links to online articles or the link to Library Catalogue records yourself for the reading list.
   
   
4. By using the SFX buttons in the RefWorks record, your students can easily check for the "current availability" of full text of the references and be linked to them, if available. Unlike direct links to online articles, the SFX full text links are compatible with the access control employed by the Library and hence, your students will not be denied of access when the links are accessed off campus.
   
   
5. You and your students can generate and print bibliographies of the recommended readings in your preferred citation style at any time you/they like using RefWorks.
   
   

How to Build Reading Lists with RefWorks and Link Them from Blackboard?

Step 1 - Create a RefWorks account for your Blackboard course site

• How to create a RefWorks account
  
  
• There is no limit on the number of RefWorks accounts that you can create. Hence, you can create a RefWorks account for each course you teach.
  
  
• You are recommended to find a systematic way to name the RefWorks accounts for the courses you teach so as to make them easily identifiable.
  
  

  For example:

  Registered Name	BCH1000 Readings	BCH2000 Readings
  Login name	bch1000	bch2000

  
  

• You are recommended to create a read-only password for the link to the RefWorks database in your Blackboard course site.

Step 2 - Get references into topical folders in the RefWorks database

1. Add references to your RefWorks database by any of these 3 ways:
   • directly exporting references from an online database/Library Catalogue
   • importing a text file of references
   • entering references manually

   For the general procedures of getting references into RefWorks, refer to the relevant RefWorks Tutorials (Flash movie demonstration plus practice)

   For tutorials on direct export of references and help pages on importing text files from specific Library databases and the Library Catalogue, click on the corresponding links in the "Importing References from Library E-Resources into RefWorks" page.

2. Put references into topical folders

Step 3 - Create a link in Blackboard course site to the RefWorks Database

• How?

Tips

• You may add notes about individual reference to the RefWorks records   [ How? ]
  
  
• You might have requested the Library to reserve some library materials for your course. These reserved materials can be located in the "Course Reserve" section of the Library Catalogue. However, the "Export to RefWorks" button is not available in this section of the Library Catalogue. Nevertheless, records of Course Reserve materials can still be directly exported to or manually added to RefWorks.
  [ How? for Reserve (Semi-closed) items / for Closed Access Collection items / for Electronic Reserve items ]

Enquiry

Enquiries about linking to reading lists built with RefWorks from your Blackboard course site can be directed to lbwbt@cityu.edu.hk or 3442-6402.