Looking for something to read that isn't directly related to your studies? The Popular Reading Collection at the W.A.C. Bennett Library (Burnaby) contains hundreds of fiction and non-fiction books.

You can also check displays at all three Library locations for featured titles. And browse Selected New Books (and other items in the Library's collection) by SFU department to find the latest materials by (broad) topic.

See interactive floor maps from IT Services.

Under SFU Policy R30.03 Intellectual Property Policy, students own the copyright in the works they create, so you may only copy and distribute such works with their permission. The University does have the right to make copies of student works for academic purposes, but this right does not extend to making them available online. Accordingly, you should ask students in advance whether they give permission for their work to be posted online and keep written records of the permissions given. However, you may be able to use the work in certain ways under fair dealing or another exception in the Copyright Act - see the Copyright and Teaching Infographic for details and limits.

While there may be good reason to upload articles to the LMS, it is important to consider that doing so may mean that your students do not have the most recent version of the article. It is not unusual for publishers to make corrections or changes, such as adding supplementary material, to articles after initial publication. If such changes are made after a copy has been uploaded they will not be reflected in that copy. A direct link is the best way to ensure access to the most recent version of an article. Linking to the article also allows the Library to track use and obtain data about the importance of a particular journal to the campus.

That said, the licenses for some e-journals provided by the Library allow instructors to upload articles into secure learning management systems (LMS) such as Canvas. In the library catalogue, look in the "Access It" section and click "Show license" to see the details about what is permitted for that specific resource.

Making Readings Available to Students describes several different ways to make required and supplementary readings available to students online and suggests the pros and cons of each option. Each option has specific benefits along with specific cautions, including copyright compliance. 

While uploading and linking to articles in the LMS may be permitted by the licenses, it is important to remember that licenses generally do not permit you to upload to a website, or create links on a website, that is not part of the University’s secure network, and that is open to the world at large. None of the licenses that the Library has with publishers allows for uploading to, or linking from, websites that allow access without authentication. 

Hoping to take photographs or film in the Bennett Library? We'll try to support you if we can. 

Making a request

Please get in touch as early as possible, ideally two weeks in advance.

Email Profile widget: owner name (Profile widget: owner email) with the following information: 

• Are you an SFU student, SFU faculty or staff, or member of the general public?
• Proposed dates and times of filming/photographing
• Duration of film or photo shoot
• Proposed location(s) within Bennett
• Number of people in your crew
• Dialogue or silent

We will respond and let you know if approved, or if other permissions are required. 

Note that the shoot should not disturb or include other students using the Library.

To print from one of the Library's laptops, see How do I print from this notebook? in the Library's Laptops: Frequently asked technical questions.

The RADAR framework is a system for heping students evaluate the relevance, reliability, and quality of any resource.

 Relevance

Does the source relate to your topic or answer your research question? Does it meet the requirements for the assignment? Have you looked at a variety of sources before determining this is the one you will use?

 Authority

Is the author known as an expert in the field? Does the author work for a reputable institution, e.g. a university, research center or government? Does anyone cite this author/work? Does the author rely on other well-cited works? Is there contact information, e.g. a publisher or email address?

 Date

Has the information been revised or updated? Does your topic require current information, or will older sources work as well? If older, is this a seminal or landmark work? Are the links functional?

 Appearance

Was the work published by a peer-reviewed journal, academic press or other reliable publisher? Was the information reviewed by an editor or a subject expert before it was published? Do the references support the author's argument? Are the references properly cited? Can you verify any of the information in another source? Does the source look professional? Are there advertisements, typographical errors, or biased language?

 Reason

Why was the information created? Appropriate information sources are created: to educate by spreading scholarly information; sometimes but not always to persuade the reader; never to entertain or sell something.

More about the RADAR method

See: J. Mandalios, “RADAR: An approach for helping students evaluate Internet sources,” J. Inf. Sci., Vol. 39, no. 4, pp. 470-478, 2013.

The SFU Library supports students and community members who are looking for English as an Additional Language materials with books and other materials including:

IELTS (International English Language Testing System) and TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language)

Search the Library Catalogue for IELTS or TOEFL to find print and ebooks. You can also find more information about IELTS and TOEFL testing at SFU. 

Grammar and readers

For writing and grammar, browse search the Library Catalogue for subjects such as:

• English Language Textbooks for Foreign Speakers
• English Language Rhetoric [writing]
• English Language Grammar

For reading practice, search the Library Catalogue for:

• Readers (Adult)

Resources at a basic reading level for assignments

The Canadian Points of View Reference Centre is an online resource with different perspectives on more than 100 key topics.

The Amazing Stories series of books is a collection of easy readers (written for ages 11-14) on Canadian topics.

More help

 The Student Learning Commons (SLC) also supports learning for English as an Additional Language students through a range of resources and services.

How do I register for an S&P Capital IQ account?

To register from on or off campus:

1. go to the CapIQ's database description
2. click on "register with a valid SFU email address"

 Note: Set up this account with a password different from your SFU computing ID.

Access steps

1. Always enter the database via the Connect link.
2. Confirm you are a current SFU researcher: 
   • Enter your SFU username and password (access to S&P Capital IQ is restricted to current students, faculty and staff at Simon Fraser University).
3. Log into your CapIQ account:
   • On CapIQ login screen, enter your S&P Capital IQ username (your SFU email address) and password.

Troubleshooting help

Access issues?

Registration issues?

Related FAQs

More help

If you're still encountering issues after trying the above tips, contact S&P Capital IQ support by email at support.CIQ@spglobal.com.

Personal privacy notice for Scholars Portal books

Some ebooks in the Scholars Portal Books collection require you to obtain an Adobe ID and an Adobe-compatible e-reader in order to download and read the ebook.  Your use of the Adobe ID and any Adobe-compatible e-reader is voluntary. Please be advised that the personal information you disclose to Adobe or any Adobe-compatible e-reader is stored on servers located in the United States of America.

When you use these services, no personal information about you is collected by or for Simon Fraser University. Canadian privacy laws do not apply to personal information you provide directly to Adobe or an Adobe-compatible e-reader. You may wish to review the Adobe Privacy Policy before using the service as well as the Privacy Policy of your chosen Adobe-compatible e-reader, such as Bluefire or Kobo.

What is Scholars Portal books?

Scholars Portal Books is a platform developed by the Ontario Council of University Libraries to distribute ebooks.  The SFU Library has purchased a collection of ebooks from the Canadian Association of University Publishers/Association des Presses Universitaires Canadiennes and access to these ebooks is provided through Scholars Portal Books.  

How to borrow / checkout Scholars Portal books

Some ebooks on the Scholars Portal platform are limited to 1 simultaneous user and contain Digital Rights Management (DRM) applied by the publisher of the ebook. In order to read these ebooks, SFU Authorized Users need to have:

1. An Adobe ID. Please review the Personal Privacy Notice for Scholars Portal Books. 
2. An Adobe-compatible ebook reader for your computer and / or mobile device.

After you click on "Borrow this Ebook" - Scholars Portal will provide links to obtain an Adobe ID as well as links for compatible ebook readers.  

Transferring Scholars Portal ebook files to your chosen ebook reader

After you have obtained an Adobe ID and set up an Adobe-compatible ebook reader, click on the red bar that says: Read this book offline in Adobe Digital Editions.

Frequently asked questions

How long do I get to keep the ebook?

3 days.  You can return the ebook within your reader at any time by right-clicking on it and choosing "returned borrowed item." There is no penalty for not returning an ebook, but it does make it available to someone else sooner. If you do not return the ebook, it will automatically expire and be removed from your reader after the loan period. 

Can I read an ebook on multiple devices?

Yes. All devices must be associated with the same Adobe ID. However, the e-readers are not cloud storage and you will need to download the file to the other devices. No more than 6 devices can be associated with your personal Adobe ID.

Can I renew an ebook I've checked out?

You cannot renew a Scholars Portal ebook. Once an ebook has expired, it will need to be checked out again from the Scholars Portal Books website.

What if an ebook has already been checked out?

The expected return date will display at the bottom of the book cover.

Why can't I read these ebooks on Adobe Acrobat Reader?

The publisher of these ebooks have applied Digital Rights Management (DRM) which requires a different type of Adobe-compatible reader in order to manage the DRM rights. Adobe Acrobat Reader pdfs do not contain DRM. 

 Are there any printing or copying limits?

You can only print or copy 20% of any ebook or a single chapter at any one session.

Some ebooks do not allow any printing or copying at all. These ebooks will contain the phrase "Viewing rights only" on the library's catalogue link.  

Can I read these books on a SFU library computer? 

Ebooks that say "single user checkout" in the library's catalogue or if you see an orange "Borrow this Ebook" link on the cover cannot be checked out and read on SFU library computers. 

Ebooks that say "unlimited user access" in the library's cataloge or display an orange "Read this Ebook" link on the cover can be read on SFU library computers since these titles do not require a checkout to read/view online.