Teaching Resources

Linking Library Content in Canvas

A wide array of learning materials is available through the 354 databases the UWM Libraries licenses. These materials—including journal articles, video and e-books—are part of the collection of affordable learning materials the UWM Community can share with students. The UWM Libraries can support faculty in the process of identifying stable links to content and CETL can assist with linking to library licensed content in Canvas. 

 Linking to licensed content is preferred in most scenarios

• Linking to content allows the UWM Libraries to track the real use of content when assessing journal and database usage
• Linking gives students the option to use the html version of an article when it is available; many databases offer audio recordings of the articles and html is ideal for use with screen readers
• Linking allows students to view course materials in the context in which they are disseminated; gives them practice reading database and catalog records; and introduces them to the value and process of scholarly publishing

​A PDF copy of a resource may be preferred for some learning scenarios such as providing an access copy for students who do not have consistent connectivity or adding a copy to the Canvas file manager that students can annotate in Hypothesis. The UWM Libraries Interlibrary Loan Office can assist with locating and scanning documents for Canvas. 

1. Click on the title of a source in your search results to open the item record.

2. Under the the Send To section of the record, click on Permalink. 

3. A box with an off-campus access URL l will appear below the Send To section of the page. Copy the link and to share with students. 

1. Click on the title of a source in your search results to open the item record.

2. Click on the Permalink icon in the Tools menu on the right side of the item record page. 

3. A box with an off-campus access URL will appear at the top of the page. Copy the URL and to share with students.

1. Click on the title of a source in your search results to open the item record. Then, select the Abstract/Details tab at the top of the page.

2. Scroll down to the bottom of the item record until you reach the Document URL field (NOT the URL in the DOI field).

3. Use your cursor to highlight the URL text, and copy the off-campus access URL to share with students.

1. First, click on the title of a source in your search results to open the item record.

2. Copy the DOI URL on the left side of the page.

3. Then, open the Off-Campus URL Generator, and paste this URL into the the box titled: Stable URL from e-journal, database, or e-reserves

4. Click on Generate URL, and copy the text in the box labeled Off-Campus URL to share with students.