Course Reserves Now Utilize Service in Canvas, Physical Course Reserves Suspended for Fall 2020

The Fall 2020 semester marks a transition in how the University Libraries handle course reserves. Instructors now have access to a powerful Course Reading List tool called Leganto, which has been integrated into the Canvas environment and enables instructors to quickly and easily add a wide range of course reserves materials directly into Canvas courses.

What is Leganto?

According to the Ex Libris website, Leganto is “a resource list management system [that] makes it easy to create, access, and manage course resource lists. Instructors can build, maintain, and share resource lists that include all material types, librarians can provide resources more efficiently and scale up to support more courses, and students can access all course materials in one place and from any device.”

What does this mean for Baylor instructors?

Adopting the Leganto Course Reading List tool means instructors now have control over the way their students access course reserve materials, -- e-journal articles, e-books, streaming video or audio, websites, and more – through the convenience of the Canvas environment.

Why would I want to use Leganto?

With Leganto, you can create, edit and organize your reading list, search the library catalog, and submit reserve requests to library personnel without leaving Canvas – much simpler than filling out a form or compiling a list into an e-mail. Additionally, at any time during the semester you can easily add resources to your course reading list.

Students will also easily access your reading list within Canvas, where they will see all materials in one place with seamless access to online content on or off campus. You can use Leganto’s analytics and commentary/discussion features to monitor material usage and gain insights into student activity and learning habits. This information can be used to determine the most helpful reading materials for your course.

If you have submitted a reserve list outside of Canvas, library personnel will create and publish the Reading List for you. You can then use the Reading List tool to make any additions or edits.

How do I get started with Leganto’s Course Reading List tool?

To activate the Leganto Course Reading List tool for your courses, follow these steps:

• Enable Leganto from inside any Canvas course by going to Settings > Navigation, enabling Reading List, and saving your new course navigation.

• Go back to your course. Reading Lists is in the menu on the left.

• This opens your reading list, showing availability for books, and links to e-books and articles.

• If you already have items on electronic reserves, they will show up here.

• You can easily add books and articles to your list directly in Canvas, at any time during the semester.

• Students will also find the list through Canvas, where they will see all materials in one place, whether print or online, with seamless access to online content on or off campus.

• When you’re ready to make this reading list available to students, click “Publish.”

• If you’d like, you can arrange the list into sections by week, topic, required, or recommended readings.

What if my course uses 2U?

The Leganto Course Reading list tool is available for your use. Contact Reserves@baylor.edu for additional information.

What about physical course reserves for the Fall?

Another major change to course reserves for the fall semester is the suspension of physical item reserves. Due to extensive quarantine periods needed for any circulating physical items – a minimum of three days, per recent published research – there is no feasible way to make physical items available for course reserves. Instructors who require content only available in a physical form should contact their department liaison librarian for assistance.

How will this change the way I request course reserve materials?

If you are accustomed to placing your reserve requests through the library, please visit our Placing Reserve Requests website for important information.

I have additional questions about Leganto or course reserves. Whom do I contact?

Please send an email to Reserves@baylor.edu or LibraryQuestions@baylor.edu.

Additional Leganto Resources

Introductory videos from the Ex Libris YouTube channel [Watch the videos]

Training materials for instructors (with videos) [Learn more]