iSkills in Hilary Term: refresher induction, Open Access, Referencing, Online Resources for Historians

The timetable for iSkills workshops in Hilary Term is now available. The following may be of particular interest to Historians:

Bodleian Libraries Refresher Induction  Wednesday 11th Jan (15:00-15:30) – Thursday 12th January (10:30-11:00)  – Friday 13th January (13:30-14:00)

iSkills: Keeping up to date with research (Wed. 8 Feb 1.30-3pm)

iSkills: Online Resources for Historians (Wed. 1 March 2-3.30pm)

Open Scholarship: Fundamentals of Open Access (Tuesday 10th Jan 14:30-15:30)

Open Scholarship: Your thesis, copyright & ORA (Tues 31 Jan. 2.30-3.30pm)

Open Scholarship: Playing in the open: Getting familiar with Creative Commons licences (Thurs 23 Feb 2-3.30pm)

Referencing: Choosing and using software for referencing (Fri 27 Jan. 9.30am-12.30pm)

Referencing: EndNote (Introduction to) (Wed 22 Feb 2-4pm)

Referencing: RefWorks (Wed 15 Feb 10.30am-12pm)

Referencing: Zotero (Tues 21 Feb 10.30-11.30am)

The full list of iSkills workshops can be found on the iSkills webpage.

Maps and Mapping for Historians

Sheldon Tapestry Map of Oxfordshire

Sheldon Tapestry Map of Oxfordshire

Wed. 12 Feb. 3-4pm, Bahari Room, Weston Library

Please assemble by 2.55pm at the latest at security point, Parks Road entrance, having stored any bags in £1 lockers first.

Digital mapping with Geographic Information Systems (GIS) is widely used both in academia and commercially. The first part of the talk will focus on how GIS can be useful for Historic research with examples of how students can incorporate their own data onto a map and create interactive web maps which can help tell a story in engaging and novel ways.

Presenter: Heidi Clough

The second part of the class will focus on the Bodleian map collection which houses 1.5 million maps. From the Universe to the ground beneath our feet and from Ambridge to Zanzibar we have maps of everywhere, and all these maps are available for study. We have in our collections the oldest single sheet map of the Country as well as one of the most important agriculture maps with the plan of the field systems around Laxton from 1635. These and other beautiful and important maps are on display in our Talking Maps exhibition.

Tour leader: Stuart Ackland

Please note that there is limited availability. Email Isabel.holowaty@bodleian.ox.ac.uk if you are interested.

 

Researching Archives training session

NEW SESSION ADDED! This session will also run Tue 25 Feb, 2-3.30pm.

Are you looking to level up your researching skills? Want to start your archival research and don’t know when to start? This session, run by Weston Library Senior Archivist Lucy McCann is for you!

Fri 28 February, 2-3.30pm

Lecture Theatre, Weston Library

This session provides an introduction to using archives for research and will cover

  • defining archives
  • archival arrangement
  • the practicalities of working with archival material
  • finding relevant archives
  • archives in the Bodleian, the University and further afield
  • web archives

No need to book. Just turn up.

Ecclesiastical History Sources for Postgraduates sessions

We are pleased to announce two sessions of interest to Postgraduates studying ecclesiastical history:

Ecclesiastical History for postgraduates: Introduction to using the Special Collections at the Weston Library

Thurs 30 Jan, 11am-1pm, Horton Room, Weston Library (make sure you store your bags in £1 lockers first)

This session will provide a practical introduction to using special collections at the Bodleian Libraries. We will outline the nature of the main Bodleian collections and explain how to find research material using online and printed finding aids. (This will include practical exercises for which a laptop will be useful.) We will end with the practicalities of ordering and handling manuscripts and how to cite them in your work.

Presenter: Matthew Holford (Tolkien Curator of Medieval Manuscripts) and Mike Webb (Early Modern Curator)

Please note that there is limited availability. Email Isabel.holowaty@bodleian.ox.ac.uk if you are interested.

Ecclesiastical History for postgraduates: Digital resources

Thurs 13 Feb, 11am-1pm, Horton Room, Weston Library (make sure you store your bags in £1 lockers first)

A two hour seminar during which key online resources relating to church history, covering largely Christianity from medieval to early 20th century, will be demonstrated. The resources include bibliographical and reference tools, digital source materials and how to keep up-to-date with new publications. Presenters: Isabel Holowaty (History Librarian) and Hilla Wait (Theology & Philosophy Librarian)

Please note that there is limited availability. Email Isabel.holowaty@bodleian.ox.ac.uk if you are interested.

 

Gale Ambassador Scheme – Deadline extended to 15th July!

The deadline for Gale’s Ambassador Scheme has been extended to Monday 15th July!

Don’t know what the Ambassador Scheme is? See our blog post here!

This is a paid opportunity to gain experience with a Global Publisher, working with such resources as the Times Digital Archive, Eighteenth-Century Collections Online and State Papers Online. Apply today at the Gale Ambassadors Site

Trinity Term Training – Help for your Thesis

We have an extra-busy term of information skills training, aimed at helping second years prepare to research their Theses over the Long Vacation.

Everything kicks off on Thursday of 1st week, with the annual Thesis Fair held at Exam Schools from 2-4pm. Bringing together academics, librarians, archival experts and subject specialists, the Thesis Fair is the ideal opportunity to take stock and make connections before you begin your research – more details can be found on the Thesis Fair Libguide Page There’s something for everyone!

Bodleian iSkills logoThe Fair should get you ready for a hugely varied iSkills programme through the rest of term – ranging from courses on Online Sources for Historians and US History (2nd week), a new course on Resources for Modern Global History, and News Sources from 17th-20th Centuries (3rd week), African and Commonwealth Sources, and Medieval Studies (4th week), and an Introduction to UK Parliamentary and Government Materials (6th week).

History Faculty Library Staff will also be running their popular Research Skills for your Thesis workshop on Wednesday of 5th week, showcasing their tips and tricks for getting the most out of your searching – with opportunities to try out searches for your own topic and brainstorm research ideas. A companion session on Wednesday of 6th week, Researching Archives, will outline how the nature of different archives and their administration influences the discovery and use of themm, as well as introducing some key finding aids and key archival collections in the Weston Library and in the UK.

Full details and booking information for these and many more courses to help you with your thesis can be found on the Information Skills Libguide.

Visual History Archive workshop (USC Shoah Foundation, Centre for Advanced Genocide Research)

Tuesday February 26, 2019 2pm–4pm

Ho Tim Seminar Room University of Oxford China Centre (Dickson Poon Building, Canterbury Road)

No booking required!

The Visual History Archive® is USC Shoah Foundation’s online portal that allows users to search through and view more than 55,000 video testimonies of survivors and witnesses of genocide. Initially a repository of Holocaust testimony, the Archive has expanded significantly to also include survivor and witness testimony from other genocidal events: the Armenian Genocide (1915-1923), the Nanjing Massacre (1937), the Genocide Against the Tutsi in Rwanda (1994) and the Guatemalan Genocide (1978-1996) as well as more recent testimonies relating to the Anti-Rohingya Mass Violence (August-October 2017).

This 2 hour workshop run by the USC Shoah Foundation will provide hands-on training on how to use the Visual History Archive, introducing students, librarians, staff, and faculty to the archive’s history, collections, interface, and search engines that are the key to unlocking the research and teaching potential of the archive. Learn about watching interviews and get tips how successfully to navigate the many testimonies.

USC Shoah Foundation Logo

USC Shoah Foundation

Reader Survey 2019

Reader Survey 2019

Reader Survey 2019

A little survey, a BIG result

Between 21 January – 18 February we are inviting all members of the University of Oxford and Bodleian Libraries cardholders to complete our short online reader survey. This enabled us to assess user satisfaction and expectations of our libraries, collections and library services.

The survey seeks feedback on a number of areas including the provision of information resources, the libraries as a space for study, how staff interact with readers, information skills and support, and overall satisfaction with library support for research, teaching and learning.

We  are using a standardised survey tool (LibQual+) for our Reader Surveys, although it has been customised to make it relevant for Oxford. LibQual+ is used by over 1,200 academic libraries worldwide and therefore enables us to benchmark our performance against comparative institutions. Find out more about LibQUAL+.

Take the 10-minute Reader Survey here.

If you have any questions about the Reader Survey 2019, please look at our FAQs or email Frankie Wilson at survey@bodleian.ox.ac.uk

Survey is open from 21 January – 18 February 2019 – All completed entries can enter into a draw to win one of ten £50 Amazon vouchers!

All the fun of the Research Fair! Nov 1 2018

All new History Graduates are invited to this year’s Graduate Research Fair, Thursday 1st November (4th Week), 2-4pm at Exam Schools!

Come and get hints, tips and advice from some of Oxford’s librarians, archivists and academics about how best to make use of Oxford’s resources for your thesis. We will have specialists from Bodleian Special Collections, Legal History, Biographical Sources (including the ODNB and History of Parliament), College Libraries and Archives, American Studies, East Asia, South Asia and Middle East Studies, Latin American Studies, the John Johnson Collection, Visual Sources and Resources, as well as Brookes Archives and Special Collections and the Oxfordshire History Centre. This year we are also delighted to welcome the Institute for Historical Research, Senate House Library, and The National Archives, as well as Gale Cengage and the Bibliography of British and Irish History. We will also be hosting the ever-popular Tips from a Graduate stall – come and speak to someone who has survived at least part of the Oxford graduate study programme and get tips on how to navigate your time here.

No booking required for this event – just come to Exam Schools and dive straight in!

Poster for Graduate Research Fair 2018

Graduate Research Fair 2018

Thesis help for 2nd year Historians

Panicking CatIs the thought of researching and writing your Thesis over the summer giving you sleepless nights? Don’t know where to begin with defining your subject, finding your sources, or finding primary source material?

DON’T PANIC!

Don't Panic

We have History-specific events for you in Trinity Term to help you out!

Thesis Fair, 26 April, 2-4pm at Exam Schools

This highly popular event has Librarians, Academics, Information Skills advisors, Subject Specialists and lots more – covering many different subjects and aspects of your Thesis prep. Come and talk to dedicated specialists and find out what there is on offer in Oxford and further afield!
If you are in a college beginning letters B-N, please come at 2pm; all other colleges should try to come at 3mp – but if you can’t make it during your time slot, just come when you can.

Research Skills for your Thesis, 2-4pm, History Faculty Lecture Theatre, George St.
This 2-hour session is designed to equip history graduates with key information skills in order to make best use of electronic information and discovery resources. A range of databases, e-journals and web portals will be explored as well as advanced features in SOLO and tools for literature searches. Time for hands on practice will be included. 
Book now (SSO required)

There is also a full iSkills timetable running this term – details and booking links can be found on the iSkills Libguide.