Abstract:

The book publishing industry has contributed hugely towards learning through printed books. Printed books have brought knowledge closer to the hands of people [1] and have been used as a primary source in traditional learning for a nearly a century. Unfortunately, some authors [2] argue that the printed book is insufficient as a learning aid. Teachers and faculty members are frequently needed to bring explanations and interpretations of a printed book and to supply learners with additional material from other printed books, journals or online materials. An increased growth in the amount of information available online and the advancement in technology are influencing learners to be more demanding and more knowledgeable about alternatives to traditional reading and learning. As a result, there are big changes appearing in the forms of books and their methods of publishing. The concept of e-books and audio books is emerging with the purpose of providing a better learning experience for its users. The rise of electronic books (e-books) and audio books have impacted and changed the way people live. They influence people’s reading habits and the way they learn. Nonetheless, there has been little research in determining which type of book: printed book, audio book and e-book, contributes to higher learning performance.
The present study consists of two studies. In study 1, the preferred learning styles were explored on a sample of 270 students. In study 2, experiments were conducted on 60 students to examine students’ learning performance from using various books that supported their visual, auditory, read/write or kinaesthetic learning style, or a combination of these approaches. A test was administered regarding their learning performance and this was then compared to their learning styles. Each student was also asked to provide their opinion as to which type of books they preferred and the reasons for this. As a result, it was found that, regardless of a student’s preferred learning styles, students who use books that support multiple learning styles, as in e-books, attained almost 25 percent higher average marks than those who use media that only support a single learning style such as audio books and printed books. Based on the findings, this research suggests e-book as the type of book that learners should use as it promotes higher learning performance.

Keywords:

printed book, audio book, electronic book, learning styles