Research Projects for the Teachers

Here at RCS, we have hundreds of undergraduates, and dozens of Masters performers, but we also have students taking either a PGCert or an MEd in Learning and Teaching in Higher Arts Education.  That means doing a research project.  And then there are the PhD students, too.

New students are introduced to our e-resources, but unless you've taken a close look, you maybe won't realise that some e-journals are specifically aimed at researchers.

Here's the link that takes you to Research, Education and Guidance journals.  There are about 30 titles, so do take time to browse. For a start, Research in Drama Education must surely be useful to quite a few of our postgrads!



If you find a journal that's right up your street, do let the rest of your class know!


AND A LITTLE EXTRA
We recorded a presentation about getting the most from our library catalogue and e-resources. You will find it here:-

• via the Portal:- https://portal.rcs.ac.uk/shared-docs/karen-mcaulay-library-resources/ 
• and on YouTube: https://youtu.be/Aa87ctLRMZU?hd=1  

What Will You Be Learning During Independent Learning Week?

Then (the old Athenaeum Library)

And now (the Whittaker Library)

Here at the Whittaker Library at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, we can't predict how busy it might be in the library next week.  It's our Independent Learning Week - will students be learning independently in the library, or elsewhere?!  (Staff might be doing some independent learning, practising or writing, too. We know someone who is!)

Staff and students are reminded that we're still open, and if you're not coming into the Conservatoire, you can still access virtually all our electronic resources. If you're off-campus, then you usually need to select RCS from a range of institutions, before using your usual staff/student login.

Everything - databases, e-journals, and e-books - is available via our library website, here.  Additionally, many e-books are catalogued into the main catalogue system, so you'll find them just by checking the catalogue.  Find the book, click on the link and use the login procedure outlined above, and you're off. Easy-peasy.

If you're puzzled about any RCS e-resource, or struggling to find resources for a vital piece of work, students and staff are warmly encouraged to contact the library.

• Library website:    https://www.rcs.ac.uk/about_us/libraryandit/ 
• Library catalogue: http://capitadiscovery.co.uk/rcs/
• Did you know we have Library Chat facilities on the catalogue homepage?  We man it at peak times - give it a try!

Journals on Film, TV and Cultural Studies - Lucky RCS Students!

Did you know?  Our library subscription to Edinburgh University Press journals gives our staff and students access to no less then ten different journals on film, television and cultural studies.

On site, colleagues will find themselves already logged in to the website here.  Off-campus, you'll need to log in by Shibboleth.  (That means picking the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland from a list of institutions, and then using your normal login.)

Journal of British Film and Television, anyone?

Singers, Do You Act? Interesting article about variety theatre

  'When Singing Was Acting: Song and Character in Variety Theater'

 Staff and students at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland can read a new article by Gillian M. Rodger, entitled 'When Singing Was Acting: Song and Character in Variety Theater' - it's in the latest edition of Musical Quarterly (Spring-Summer 2015).

Our registered staff and students can read it online using the Conservatoire's subscription to Musical Quarterly. Access it via our library website, using our institutional login.

The whole journal is about Tin Pan Alley; it's well-worth a look:-
CONTENTS

• “Making Songs Pay”: Tin Pan Alley’s Formula for Success / Daniel Goldmark
• Hogan’s Tin Pan Alley: R. F. Outcault and Popular Sheet Music / Keir Keightley
• When Singing Was Acting: Song and Character in Variety Theater / Gillian M. Rodger
• Richard Rodgers: Collaborator / Charlotte Greenspan
• My Father’s Musical Time Capsule: On Tin Pan Alley Songs (1920–50), Sheet Music, and the American Dream That Got Away / Rose Rosengard Subotnik
• Arlen’s Tapeworms: The Tunes That Got Away / Walter Frisch

Digital Knowledge comes in many shapes and sizes - try Sage Journals

This week there's a reminder from one of our e-journal providers, Sage Journals, that  there's loads of information just waiting for staff and students of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland.  It's accessible 24:7 through the library website, and also via Moodle and Mahara. 

Sage's message:-

"Did you know that thanks to your librarian, you and your colleagues have access to hundreds of highly downloaded and cited articles, all available on the award-winning SAGE Journals platform?"

Search now across SAGE Journals (you'll need to login if you're off-campus.  Choose the Conservatoire from the list of colleges and universities, then use your usual RCS login.)

If you like Sage Journals, you'll love Sage Knowledge.  We blogged about it earlier this week - why not take a look, here?

Digital Knowledge is More than Journals!

For example, we were reminded by the big international academic publisher, Sage, that we have access to Sage Knowledge - and this is in addition to all the journal content that we can draw upon.  Maybe you aren't signed up to Sage, though, so let's share what we've got ... starting with the message they sent ...

http://knowledge.sagepub.com/

"You have access to SAGE Knowledge eBooks

"Thanks to your library at Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, you and your colleagues have access to SAGE Knowledge. SAGE Knowledge is the ultimate social sciences digital library for students, researchers, and faculty. It includes an expansive range of SAGE eBook and eReference content, including scholarly monographs, reference works, handbooks, series, professional development titles, and more.

"You have access to 5 SAGE Knowledge collections which include in-depth coverage of the following subject areas: Business, Management, Education, Sociology, Psychology, Health, Social Care.

"Start exploring the key titles in your area of interest now! Learn more about SAGE Knowledge in this video."

Think about it - do you need business skills as a creative artist?  Do you need to brush up on teaching skills or the psychology behind learning?  Are you managing a project?  Working in the community?  Interested in music or drama therapy?

http://knowledge.sagepub.com/

Sage Knowledge functionality is developed in partnership with faculty, librarians, and students - and that means:-

• User-friendly interface
• Full text HTML display
• Book portal pages
• Table of contents navigation
• Email Chapter Link and Share features for social sites
• Ability to change text size easily
• Chapter print and PDF download options
• Citation options including export to End Note, RefWorks and other citation manager software

Access this expansive range of eBook content now! 

Approaches to Critical Artistry - We have Web Resources to help your Research!

24:7

Royal Conservatoire of Scotland Students! Do you have to research a topic for your Critical Artistry module?
 
The Whittaker Library has lots of web resources* online - we subscribe to specialist websites on your behalf - websites and electronic journals. Find them via the Library Mahara pages or HERE on the RCS website:- http://www.rcs.ac.uk/about_us/libraryandit/databases/ 

Most things are accessible anywhere, any time - use your RCS login if you're off-site.  The subject librarians can recommend the best web resources for you.  They can also show you how to find e-books on the library catalogue.  You can use them without coming into the library at all - 24:7.
 
*Web resources, Electronic resources, E-resources - call them what you like!  They're specialist websites that we subscribe to - they aren't freely available on the web except to subscribers.

If you're interested in critical artistry, you might like to visit Rachel Kennedy's blog, where she writes about approaches to critical artistry.  Click here, and again here.

Sometimes You Need Information Immediately

... And our new Whittaker Library website helps you do just that.  There are various pages depending on what you're looking for - our opening hours, our electronic databases, electronic journals, and more.

Of course, our contact details are also there, so don't hesitate to get in touch if you need more info about anything.

http://www.rcs.ac.uk/about_us/libraryandit/

Information Knows No Boundaries
 
Besides all the digital, online media, we have still got tons of sheet music, recorded music and DVDs, books and plays, and the staff here will always help you find your way around the catalogue.

We are the Whittaker Library at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, here to help our performing arts community access the info they need for their teaching and learning.