Libraries Week takes place between 7th – 12th October 2019. This year’s campaign is focused on celebrating the role of libraries in the digital world. Over the course of the week we’ll be introducing you to different teams within the Library and explore how they use technology to support our community.
Today’s post focuses on the Library’s role in developing the digital skills of staff and students across the University and the Trust. Read on to find out more about the range of training on offer in the Library.
Meet the trainer
Fiona Graham is our IT Trainer and has over 18 years experience in delivering training for St George’s University staff and students as well as St George’s Trust staff.
Her aim is to provide hands-on training and guidance for various Microsoft Office applications and equip our community with the practical digital skills needed in the workplace. From helping students draft essays in Word, to supporting staff with plotting data in Excel, Fiona plays a vital role in improving the digital literacy of the St George’s community.
How do we support our users?
Free Microsoft Office 365
St. George’s Information Services has made Office 365 and Microsoft Office 2016 available free for all students and staff to use on personal devices.
Office 365 is an online set of apps designed to allow you to work anywhere on multiple devices. As it is cloud-based, you can upload, access and edit your work quickly and easily, share your work with others and collaborate using the various apps in one place with internet access. It can be used on Microsoft Windows, Mac, Android and iOS devices for all your study and communication needs, with 1 TB of storage space.
As well as well-known applications like Word and Excel, Office 365 also provides access to collaborative tools like Planner, Yammer and Teams that are perfect for sharing in the workplace, or for group assignments and case-based learning
All current SGUL students and staff can download free copies of the desktop version of Microsoft Office 2016 on up to 5 personal devices, with access provided for the duration of their course or employment at St George’s. See our Microsoft Office FAQs here for download instructions.
Improving digital literacy
Providing access to these tools is just the first step, we also want to support you to use them effectively, and transform the way you work, learn and teach.
As we mentioned in our introductory post, digital literacy skills are vital in a digital world. Research shows that people with good IT skills earn 3-10% more than those without and that digitally competent and confident citizens are far more likely to lead healthier, happier, more productive and satisfying lives.
To help you get the most out of MS Office, there are a whole suite of training sessions are available to all St George’s students and staff, including the Faculty of Health, Social Care and Education. Sessions can also be arranged for NHS Trust staff.
Find out more by visiting the IT Training and Digital Skills pages of the Library website or contact Fiona Graham directly:
Phone: 020 8725 5662 (ext. 5662)
Email: ittraining@sgul.ac.uk
Get connected, get creative and learn new skills
Besides our bookable sessions, there are other opportunities to get face-to-face support with Microsoft Office
Visit the MS Office Drop-in Clinic
When? Tuesdays and Thursdays 11am – 1pm
Where? Main computer room, 1st floor Hunter wing
Book 1-2-1s or group training
Email ittraining@sgul.ac.uk for more information
Online Training for Office 365
If you can’t make it to a session, or prefer to learn at your own pace, there are a number of useful online resources to help you get started with Microsoft Office:
Office 365 Basics – video training
Office 365 Training Portal
Office 365 Training Centre
St George's Library blog 