Support for academic staff
Our Teaching and Learning Support staff consist of School-based teams of Academic Support Librarians and Academic Skills Consultants, and a Student Digital Skills trainer. We have extensive experience in developing online and face to face resources to support students’ academic skills.
The range of academic skills that we support includes:
- Critical thinking
- Information Searching
- Planning and structuring an assignment
- Academic Resilience
- Academic writing
- Referencing
- IT Essentials
and much more…
How we work with academic staff
Consultation on the best way of embedding academic support for your students across programmes and within individual modules at the appropriate time and the appropriate level.
The range of support we offer:
Integrating Skills in Programmes
We offer a digital-first approach for academic, research and digital skills training for students at L3 and L4, with a wide range of academic skills eLearning designed to be integrated directly into your programme via Blackboard. Some of these materials are also suitable for students at other levels and we are currently creating further resources. Your School Library team is available for conversations to discuss ideas and how to integrate skills into programmes – please contact us at the email below.
Embedded bespoke delivery
Face-to-face, online and blended teaching delivery,co-created between us and you, contextualised for your students. Our sessions are designed to engage students through active learning opportunities. Contact us to discuss.
Co-curricular offer
As well as embedded sessions, we offer a wide range of co-curricular workshops and online materials – it can be helpful to make your students aware of these.
Individual support for students
We offer some one-to-one support for students to develop academic writing skills and information searching skills. You are welcome to signpost students who would most benefit to this service, particularly as part of your feedback comments on their work.
Smarthinking
Smarthinking is a writing feedback service provided to us by Pearson Education. For students who would benefit from this additional writing feedback service, you can signpost them to enrol on our dedicated Smarthinking Blackboard site using this form (students simply self-enrol with their University email address). The Smarthinking Blackboard site gives students access to a portal through which they can submit their draft work and view feedback from Smarthinking tutors. To discuss the suitability of Smarthinking access for a full cohort of students, please get in touch.
LinkedIn Learning
The Library hosts LinkedIn Learning, an online education platform with more than 5,000 courses, mainly in the areas of professional development and digital skills. You can use these at any time to supplement your own learning or embed in your teaching. More information and log on details are available on the LinkedIn Learning web page. For support on embedding this in your teaching, please contact us.
Contact us
- School of Arts & Media
- School of Health & Society
- Salford Business School
- Salford Languages
- School of Science, Engineering and Environment
Research, academic and digital skills training
Research skills
We provide information skills sessions for your students at all levels, covering a variety of topics tailored to meet your students’ needs:
- Getting started using the Library
- Researching for your assignments using the Library
- Researching at dissertation level
- Bespoke training for researching using specific resources or information
- Endnote
Academic skills
We offer bespoke design and delivery of study skills support on a range of topics such as:
- Referencing APA Harvard style
- Academic writing including reflective pieces, essays, blogs, reports and dissertations
- Critical analysis (including writing and reading)
- Presentation skills
- Revision and exam techniques
- Effective group work
Digital skills
We help students make the best use of IT and digital resources through face-to-face and online training sessions. Topics include:
- Word
- Excel
- PowerPoint
- Social media
We don't offer...
- Mathscope provides maths and statistics support to students.
- Contact the Wellbeing team for information and advice about counselling.
- To find out more about disability contact AskUS.
- Native English speakers requiring language support should contact Wordscope. Students who have English as their second language should contact LEAP (Learning English for Academic Purposes).
Work with us
The best way to incorporate skills support into your programmes is to:
- make it specific to an assignment
- have a clear learning objective
- time it at an appropriate point of the semester
- schedule the session into the timetable.
The more involved academic staff are in the process, the more successful the learning outcomes. Students are more engaged when sessions are relevant to their needs and co-delivered by tutors. Collaboration between the Library and academics works!
There are a number of ways that we can work with you:
- Design the content
Help us to design the workshop by providing subject-specific material, examples, assignment briefs, sample assignments, etc. that we can incorporate into the session. - Co-deliver the session with us
This works particularly well when we give the skills advice and you provide the discipline-related detail, guidance and examples. - Use our resources
We can assist with designing or providing resources such as PowerPoint slides and handouts that you deliver yourself. You can also use the online resources and choose the student engagement level (i.e. optional, directed, integrated or contextualised).
Ordering materials for your teaching
The Library’s Collections Policy outlines the Library's approach to providing high quality, fit for purpose collections which support the University’s strategic goals for learning, teaching and research.
You are required to order materials for your teaching via the appropriate module on the University's online reading list system, Reading Lists at Salford. Additional materials for wider reading can be ordered via your Academic Support Librarian (see the contact details at the top of the page).
Staff and students can also Request new library items. In response to feedback that more books were needed, the Library has set money aside to buy additional copies of key texts or copies of books not currently in stock.
Decolonise your Reading List
Decolonising reading lists is an integral part of the work of decolonising the curriculum and enables all students to explore and reference different cultural histories and narratives in their work. This approach can also increase a sense of belonging within the University and so ultimately contribute to the work of closing awarding gaps.