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Beta Content Test: Library Help in Canvas

Library Help in Canvas

Library Help is activated automatically for every course in Canvas. To make sure your guides show up you will need to tag them with the appropriate course code.

Tag your guides

In order for guides to show up in Canvas, they must be tagged with the course code (ex FINC201).

Just including the 4 letter department code and the three digit course number will be sufficient for most guides and will ensure they they can be used semester after semester.

So, at a minimum, something like LIBX201 will work MOST of the time.

Add tags by clicking on the edit icon next to Tags in the LibGuides admin

Tag a single guide for multiple courses

If your guide is to be used for multiple courses, for example ARTH301, ARTH145, and ARTH265, then you can add those three tags to your guide.

If you want to set up a guide as the default guide for any course that doesn't have it's own guide (and you don't want it to default to the subject page) then just use the four letter department code (ex. ARTH). This guide will only show on courses that don't have a corresponding guide specifically tagged for it. For example, if we have three guides, each tagged with their own course (ARTH301, ARTH145, or ARTH265 ) they will show up for ARTH301, ARTH145, and ARTH265 respectively. However, ARTH200 will receive the ARTH guide since there is no guide tagged for ARTH200.

Advanced tagging

For courses with multiple sections and instructors there are ways to tag them as well by using either the section number or instructor's last name in the tag.

  • FINC301-THOMAS
  • FINC301-04

Tag priority chart

When you really need to tailor a guide to a specific section or instructor, Library Help will search in the following order:

  1. Tags with full term code: (e.g. 202120LIBX201-02)
  2. Tags with course number and instructor (e.g. LIBX201-THOMAS)
  3. Tags with course number followed by section number (e.g. LIBX201-01)

Typically just the course number (department code and course) is used and will reach all sections of a particular course. (e.g. LIBX201)

When you do not need a guide tailored to a specific course, Library Help continues on if it did not find a prior match:

  1. Tags with just the department code (e.g. LIBX)
  2. No results will default to the LibGuides subject page mapped to the department. (e.g. THEO and MDIV map to Religion.)

Test your guides

You can test your guides by going into the Link Creator and entering a course code.

Then click on the Preview link.

Note that Canvas passes additional information such as whether the class is in the DFC and who the instructor is, so advanced options are not available, but for most courses this should work.

If, after tagging your guides, you have additional questions please reach out to Chad.

Help for instructors

Library Help is automatically enabled for all courses in Canvas.

If an instructor disabled it and needs to re-activate it the instructions are on the Library's Canvas Help Page.

Your Librarian

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Chad Kluck
he/him
Contact:
O'Shaughnessy-Frey Library | LIB 207
651-962-5416
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