what to he in fe students think about ebooks?
DESCRIPTION
Sue Caporn, City of Bristol CollegeTRANSCRIPT
Slideshow Title
What do foundation degree students think of eBooks?
Results of two Plymouth University Help-CETL projects
•Two research projects, funded by Plymouth University, between 2009 and 2011
•Aim of the projects:To find out how FdA/FdSC students use ebooks and what they think of them
Images: Britannia Image Quest
The projects
The students
Foundation degrees:
•12 Early Childhood Studies students•12 Business students•18 Automotive Business students•9 Engineering students
Total of 51 students
Methodology
ebooks workshop, followed by online questionnaire, then follow-up questionnaire two months later Year Two:
Engineering and Automotive students
Year One:Early Childhood & Business students
Key findings: Impact of ebooks workshops
early in the course
After the workshops:90% of all groups said they felt confident about using ebooks
Over 80% said they would change the way they researched
Key findings: Students prefer to access ebooks via the catalogue
Nearly 70% of students in all groups who had used ebooks had accessed them via the library catalogue, rather than each service individually
Key findings of the projects: Technology students more
positive about ebooks
•Over half the Technology students had used more ebooks than print books – none of the Early Childhood / Business students had•Technology students happier to read from the screen•Higher usage of ebooks remotely (60% of Technology students used them mostly from home)
Key findings of the projects: Satisfaction levels high amongst ebook users
•Over 90% of students of all subjects who had used ebooks were satisfied with them•All ebook users said they were likely to use them again
However, some students still need convincing...
•Only half the students of all subjects had used ebooks•Many students prefer print books•Some don’t like eBooks and find them hard to search
Advantages of eBooks
Top three advantages were:
Quick and easy access any time Keyword searching
Convenience – don’t need to go to library / carry heavy books / return
books
“They’re a very good resource to
use and find relevant
information”
Disadvantages of eBooks
Top three disadvantages were:
Hard to search Need computer and Internet access
Prefer print books “I feel I tended to scan through them to find what I needed
instead of reading them like I would a normal book”
Recommendations for LRCs 1
We need to buy both: eBooks when available, but buy print copies in addition
Make eBooks more easily accessible:• through the the catalogue • resource discovery service?• embed in course pages and reading
lists on the VLE
Recommendations for LRCs 2
Promote and deliver eBook workshops / demos to show students how to find and use eBooks
Put pressure on eBook suppliers to make eBooks easier to search and use and more titles downloadable
