By Sobia Ali
Not sure where to start? Baffled by what to do? Don’t worry!
I always require help outside classrooms and tutorials. If you’re struggling with homework and projects, need help with any kind of research and learning materials, where do you go?
Scott Library brings you “The Learning Commons” – a great addition to the library services to support your learning in school. Currently providing 3 kinds of services, I have been able to use just 1 of them.
First of all and my most favored one is the Research service. I have used the research help desk in my first year for a marketing project. I had to research an existing public company, its values and cultures and introduce a new product that the company currently didn’t produce. The expert helped me plan my research, develop research questions, find resources and sort through ideas. I was also taught how to take quality notes, cite sources correctly, and share my findings effectively.
Next is the Learning Skills hub which integrates programs to enable faster learning approaches and balance school and school work. For example, time management skills, classroom and note taking skills as well as strategies to study for exams are few of them. You won’t believe how many students in university have difficulties managing time and I am certainly one of them. And that’s one reason I have never been able to use this service. Have you used a similar service or know of anyone who has? If yes, then is this service in the library or outside? How was your experience?
I am usually confused about where to begin an assignment or where to go when in such a situation. I hope I am not the only one feeling this way. But sometimes the internet doesn’t provide much help. The Writing skills area helps you produce a wide variety of documents including dissertations, theses, organizing essays as well as improving your analytical skills.
These are excellent services that I recommend to anyone who needs. Did you know that these services were free of cost for all students? Most students I meet are not aware of this. Below is a video of the Learning Commons at Scott Library!
Film has been a hot topic in Toronto the past few weeks. A librarian once asked students what they trusted more, what they read in a book or what they saw in a film? More than 50% said they trusted the film more than the text for research. It would seem to make sense, yes? And yet more recently in a futuristic novel I was reading, the character had access to both original film clips from an event in history and written commentary. The person started with the film clips but quickly went on to read about the events noting that she did not have the background knowledge, nor the context, to fully understand the implications of what she was viewing in the film footage. I guess that is why documentaries are so wonderful. They provide both. 
And we have one of the strongest collections of documentaries in Canada in our Sound and Moving Image Library (SMIL). If you do look at a film, be sure to cite it in your essays. Your professor could be very impressed. Do you have a favourite documentary? 
