National Read a Book Day – Why books aren’t dead!

By Mark Onisk

Today is National Read a Book Day! While many folks have the perspective that books are a thing of the past, Skillsoft’s primary research demonstrates that books are still a preferred modality by multiple generations of learners. Where else can you get in-depth, expert insight, research, and perspective that can be consumed anytime and anywhere? . Fortunately, through an explosion of technology and passion of learning, there are various modalities of books now available to the modern learner.

Book Modalities

There’s still a strong need for books to support specific career functions. A recent Skillsoft research project identified that information workers (IT, developers and engineers) still have a heavy reliance on books, especially when outcomes matter such as for certifications or licensing. Books are highly regarded as foundational support for IT and we often see it coupled with hands-on labs, questionnaires and video-based learning.

Contrary to popular assumptions, statistics show Millennials actually prefer books as a key learning tool. While video-based and micro-learning certainly are making headway in terms of training and upskilling talent, these digital natives rely on books as a credible source of information for their learning needs.

And finally, with the explosion of technology, devices and accessibility the use of audio books has surged. Especially in organizations where workers have less time, audio books enable access to on-the-go training, that’s at the ready on nearly any device at the time that professionals need or want it.

Books as a Foundation for Ongoing Learning

In today’s economy, there’s more of a choice in format for integrating books into an ongoing competency and skill set in successful organizations. With an eye towards continuous learning, L&D professionals are often tasked with not only identifying content but also the modalities in which their learners can learn. There is ample evidence that books continue to drive the success of talent within organizations, and L&D professionals are advised to consider the use of different modalities of books in their overall learning plans.

Not only does Skillsoft offer learners a choice of book formats to help learners on their competency paths, but a modern platform, Percipio, that provides learners with personalized learning paths across 450 learning channels that span Business & Leadership Skills, Digital Skills and IT Skills & Certification. We offer a broad-based solution to support a high performing workforce across entire organizations. We encourage L&D professional to take a look at Percipio and also encourage their learners to embrace books in all its formats!

Mark Onisk is the Chief Content Officer for Skillsoft