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Guidelines for Scheduling Class Visits

The following guidelines apply to the scheduling of secondary school class visits and to the referral of individual high school students to the University of Waterloo Library.

  1. Senior secondary classes (Grade 12) only should be scheduled.
  2. Class visits cannot be scheduled during the first 2 weeks of September (our peak orientation time) or during examination periods
  3. Class size should be limited to a maximum of 30 student
  4. Visits must be scheduled well in advance (at least 2 weeks). All visits should be scheduled with Judy McTaggart (jmmctagga@library.uwaterloo.ca)
  5. The visit must be integrated into a specific class assignment. At the time of scheduling, the secondary school liaison will confer with the teacher/librarian to ensure that:
    1. the assignment is appropriate to the university's resources
    2. the topics are searchable
    3. the most useful access tools will be introduced
    4. the student will have been adequately prepared for the visit (see Skills Checklist)
  6. It is desirable that two teachers (or teacher/librarians) accompany the class to supervise and give students assistance. You will be responsible for leading your own building tours and providing assistance to your students. Due to on-going requests for assistance at the UW Library information desks from university students and faculty, it is not possible for UW Librarians at these desks to deal with the impact of a class of secondary students needing help with research questions.
  7. It is essential that high school students possess the basic library skills listed in the Skills Chart Checklist and have been given instruction in how to conduct academic research.
  8. If students wish to become borrowers of the University of Waterloo Library at the time of the class visit, it is necessary that students must have completed the High School Borrower Application Forms and have them signed by the teacher/librarian. The forms must be submitted at least 2 days prior to the class visit to allow adequate time for staff to prepare the necessay documentation.
If you have any queries or concerns, please contact
Library Assistant, Information Services and Resources
Last Updated: August 4, 2004