1.
Ashley Dodsworth
ahd6@le.ac.uk

2.
ž ‘The absence of explicit guidance in the expected use of
technologically enhanced reading lists may inhibit rather than
encourage ‘resource discovery’: the engagement of new media and
the establishment of virtual ‘one-stop’ resource points has invoked
charges of, for example, ‘spoon-feeding’ students. By apparently
obviating the need for students to search for materials, it might
also be regarded as inhibiting student development towards the
condition of ‘autonomous learner’’ (Stokes and Martin 2008)
ž ‘While there is an expectation that students use the reading list as
a directional or guidance device, it is tempered by the view that
students may be overly dependent on such guidance. In the longer
term, this has implications for the desired notional transition by
students from novice to autonomous learners’ (Stokes and Martin,
2008).
ž ‘Golding has mixed feelings about the benefits of the web.
Although he acknowledges that having many journals available
online is helpful, he says that many academics struggle to wean
students off the internet and to recognise its limits and lack of
quality controls’ (quoted in Swain, THES, 2006b).

3.
ž Introduction of
specific E-
Activities designed
to teach and
develop research
skills for
autonomous
research
E-tivity 2: Accessing e-resources
Purpose:
To access e-resources and use a bibliographic database to find articles
from an academic journal.
Task:
1. Watch this tutorial ('Library tips for Distance Learners') on the
Expanded Academic ASAP database. (The tutorial will last approximately
7 minutes 30 seconds, and will open a new browser window.)
2. Discover how to access e-Resources off campus (opens in a new
browser window).
3. Go to your Subject Room. Using an appropriate database choose a
topic relevant to your module and search for articles relating to that
topic. Produce a bibliography containing five articles chosen by you that
are all available through the University of Leicester’s E-link. Refer to the
Course Handbook for details about how to present this bibliography
correctly. Write a short paragraph to accompany your bibliography telling
your colleagues why these particular articles are worth reading and what
they will gain from using your bibliography. Post the bibliography and its
rationale in the E-tivity 2 Forum.
Respond:
Return to the E-tivity 2 Forum and explore a bibliography recommended
by one of your colleagues. Post a reply under this entry giving your
thoughts on the selection of articles that were recommended to you.
How useful and interesting did you find this selection? Could you
recommend an article to add to this bibliography?
Outcome:
You will be able to search the university's databases, identify and
access and evaluate appropriate academic journal articles, and
present the required bibliographic information accurately.
It is important to comply with the word limits and referencing requirements as per the
guidelines detailed in the Course Handbook.
Image taken from BlackBoard, with thanks
to IRDL

4.
ž Problem of Forums
ž Reading lists address this because:
1) Students have to spend less time searching for the weekly
material and so have more time to contribute to discussions
2) Much easier to download and access material, making students
more likely to read the texts
ž As aim is not ‘autonomous learning’ but rather the promotion of
discussion and engagement with those resources, the
disadvantages of reading lists are not a concern

5.
ž Electronic reading lists for undergraduate
courses will be rolled out from September
2014
ž There is not yet a specific activity in place to
(though the exact work on this is still in
progress)
ž Undergraduates are, in general, full time
students

6.
ž Fairness says that if you offer this to one group of
students it's unfair to withhold it from others
ž Campus based students can have similar restrictions
on time
ž Tutors have more face to face interaction with
students over a longer period of time, so it’s easier to
monitor development and promote autonomous
learning
ž Campus based students work and engage online just
as much as their remote /distance learning peers

7.
Electronic reading lists reflect students’
patterns of engagement with material, their
lived reality of studying and, especially for
distance learning, support the skills we are
aiming to promote
We do need to look to the wider context of
how we use reading lists, and examine more
closely their effect on student skill
development, but this is not a reason to
abandon them entirely.

8.
ž Stokes, P. and Martin, L., ‘Reading lists: a study of tutor
and student perceptions, expectations and realities’,
Studies in Higher Education, Vol. 33, Issue 2, (2008), 113 –
125.
ž Swain, H., ‘Makeovers for the guides to essential reading’,
Time Higher Educational Supplement, January 2006a
ž Swain, H., ‘One Step Ahead of the Game’ Time Higher
Educational Supplement, March 2006b