As part of the cultural events held at the Baghdad International Book Fair, and in response to the call of the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, the American University of Iraq- Baghdad (AUIB) organized a seminar on “The University Library and its Research and Educational Services in the Digital Environment.”
At the seminar, the Dean of Libraries at AUIB, Dr. Imad Bachir, highlighted AUIB’s ongoing efforts at integrating library services directly into classrooms by means of discovery tools. Most recently, the University has been integrating textbooks into the Learning Management System (LMS) Canvas, with a vision to integrate further library services, such as searching specific databases and various e-resources, as well as providing access via links appearing in course descriptions and other academic material. Integrating library services into classroom instruction, using relevant discovery tools, is foremost among AUIB Libraries’ objectives to further enhance university education through transition to a digital teaching and learning environment.
The Dean of Al-Mansour University College, Prof. Sabah Kallow, also contributed to the seminar, elaborating on strategies used in searching and retrieving information from Open Access databases. Prof. Kallow stressed the importance of utilizing these databases in circumstances where accessing subscribed databases is too costly, especially for universities with limited library budgets.