Australian higher education has been a promoter for decades of the way in which the digitised library improves accessibility, openness and discovery for students.
Now Chairwoman of the Council of Australian University Librarians, Margie Jantti, has examined shifting attitudes and their effects on the way students in Australia access and utilise university libraries. She has looked at how, alongside the rise in digitalisation of information and knowledge, the internet allows researchers, scholars and students to access university collections from anywhere in the world.
Student learning leans towards digital borrowing
Through data provided by the Council of Australian University Librarians, it’s clear that the way in which students are accessing university libraries in the digital age is changing, with borrowing from physical collections experiencing a steep decline of 60% in the ten years leading up to 2017.
Whilst traditional non-digital written works still have a place, and are arguably more valued now than ever, Jantti looks at the reasons for an increase in digital borrowing and at the learning related benefits of books with the ability to apply geospatial data and a multimedia narrative, amongst other factors.
