Proceedings 19th Triennial Congress of the IEA, Melbourne 9-14 August 2015

EBooks as course literature in ergonomics and human factors a

a

Lars-Ola Bligård , Cecilia Berlin a

Department of Product and Production Development, Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg, SWEDEN This paper concerns how to use electronic books (eBooks) as course literature, whether eBooks can replace the traditional paper book, and what to consider when using eBooks as course literature? The presented study is based on four MSc courses that used eBooks as course literature. The students’ points of view were investigated with a survey, while the course examiners were interviewed. The result shows that eBooks have advantages like being free for the students and easy to access thought the internet (via the University Library), and disadvantages like being harder to read on the computer/tablet screen and harder to get an overview of the content compared to paper books. The main reflection from the authors is: since ergonomics and human factors are an interdisciplinary subject, eBooks give a better opportunity to combine multiple sources for the particular type of application area that is interesting in a specific course. Practitioner Summary: To make eBooks as course literature a successful enterprise, the study indicates the following two main recommendations: Be very careful in the selection of literature, since the format makes it more difficult for the student to scan the contents and get an overview. For the same reasons, provide the students with clear reading guidelines. Keywords: ERGONOMICS AND HUMAN FACTORS, ELECTRONIC BOOK, LITERATURE, EDUCATION

1. Background In many courses at university level one fundamental element is the course literature, often in the form of a paper text book. Courses based on a well-suited book generally succeed in achieving a good match between course content and book content. In our area, ergonomics and human factors, we see two main problems with traditional paper text books. The first is that it can be hard to find one book that covers the diverse subjects in the course, so you therefore often need more than one book if you do not want to limit the course content. This stems from the fact that the research area is relatively young and basic content is still evolving. The second problem is in the relation to the students. The books in our area are often rather expensive, which means that the students hesitate to buy them, especially if they require more than one book. The books can sometime also be hard to retrieve and if they do have good subject coverage, many are heavy to carry around (which may be quite ironic in an ergonomic course). In recent years more books have been published also as electronic books (eBooks), and libraries have increased the free accessibility – for example, Chalmers library subscribes to them. One feasible solution to the problems stated above is therefore to use eBooks instead of paper books. Then you as a teacher more easily can select parts from different books, and the students have easy and free access to the literature on computers and tablets. 2. Questions and objectives This paper presents a study regarding the use of eBooks as course literature at university level. The research questions were if eBooks can replace the traditional paper book, and what to consider when using eBooks as course literature. The chosen approach was an empirical study with the objectives to (1) study students’ reactions and attitudes towards eBooks as course literature, (2) study teachers’ relation to the use of use eBooks as course literature, and (3) develop a short guideline for how to use eBooks as course literature.

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Proceedings 19th Triennial Congress of the IEA, Melbourne 9-14 August 2015

3. Theory A good starting point is always a definition - eBooks are defined by Oxford Dictionary (2013) as an "electronic version of a printed book which can be read on a computer or a specifically designed handheld device." This means that eBooks are not specifically designed for digital media, but can currently be taken to mean a paper book that is readable on a screen or tablet. The uses of eBooks as course literature have been reported in some research papers. In literature reviews from (Anuradha and Usha, 2006, Croft and Davis, 2010, Lam et al., 2010, Wong et al., 2011, Lam et al., 2009, Martinez-Estrada and Conaway, 2012, Muir and Hawes), a number of pros and cons with eBooks that are relevant for this study are described; these are compiled in Tables 1 and 2. Issues regarding hardware and software of computers and readers are not considered here, as well as the question if students are aware of the existents of the eBooks. Table 1. The advantages with using eBooks as course literature found in the literature.

Advantages Ability to access information anytime and anywhere Easy do to full-text searching Possibility to include multimedia information and reference linking Possible to highlight, annotate, underline and bookmark Cheaper than ordinary paper books, some free on internet or library Allow many people to access the same book at the same time Alloy user to safe many books on same device Easy to carry around and travel with, and save space in bookcase Do not suffer from wear and tear or theft Provided adjustable backlighting, enables users to read comfortably in poor lighting conditions Table 2. The disadvantages with using eBooks as course literature found in the literature.

Disadvantages Problems with printing and downloading People are used to reading printed books and do not want to change the habit Readability of digital text on small screens Hard to navigate in eBooks of some format In a study at a Indian university (Anuradha and Usha, 2006) 37 % of the respondents were very satisfied with their use of e-books, 55 % were somewhat satisfied and 8 % were unsatisfied. The main disadvantages were that e-books were perceived as hard to read and browse, and that students were used to reading printed books and did not want to change their habit. In a study at a university in Canada, 53 % preferred eBooks over paper books and 30 % the opposite (Croft and Davis, 2010). The rest were not sure. In a study in United States, 72% of the students preferred to read eBooks compared to paper books (Martinez-Estrada and Conaway, 2012). In contrast, a study in Hong Kong suggested that eBooks are not yet a useful and practical tool for learning at university (Lam et al., 2009). This was due to the fact that there was no enjoyment in reading an eBook and that it was hard to comprehend digital text. The interesting thing was that the students initially were positive to eBooks, but after having used them over 12 weeks, their opinion changed. 4. Method The study contained four parts: (1) a survey study with students about using eBooks (2) a discussion with course examiners about using eBooks (3) reflection about the use of eBooks in ergonomics and human factors and (4) creation of guidelines for using eBooks as course literature. The survey study with a

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Proceedings 19th Triennial Congress of the IEA, Melbourne 9-14 August 2015

questionnaire were done in five courses in which eBooks were used as course literature, as listed in Table 2. The courses ran between 2012 to 2014 at Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden. Table 3. University courses in the study.

Course Human factors and ergonomics for engineers Ergonomics design for all Production ergonomics and work design

Credits 7,5

Year 2012 2014

7,5

2012

7,5

2013

Cognitive Ergonomics

7,5

2014

Description A basic course with focus on provide knowledge and understanding of the field of human factors engineering, including methods and tools for human centred design An advanced course in ergonomics focusing on users with cognitive or functional limitations A basic course in the planning, organization and operation of industrial assembly processes with safe, effective and economic use of human and material resources An advanced course in ergonomics focus on the cognitive process in experts operators and how to design for that type of users

Examiner First author Colleague Second author First author

The survey consisted of a questionnaire with 10 questions. The number of questions was limited to 10 since a free web-site was used. Questions 1-8 hade Likert-scale answers, whereas questions 9 and 10 had free-text answers. The questions are listed below in Table 4. Table 4. Questions in the questionnaire.

Question 1. To use eBooks as course literature has in general worked 2. To use eBooks as course literature has affected my study result 3. eBooks have made the course literature 4. eBooks have made the literature content 5. eBooks have influenced me to use the course literature 6. I think the lecture materials related to the eBooks 7. I read the course literature eBooks 8. eBooks should be used as course literature

Scale Very well Very badly Very positively Very negatively Much easier to access – Much harder to access Much easier to take in and understand Much harder to take in and understand Much more than paper books Much less than paper books Very well Very badly Only on computer/tablet Only on printed paper For all courses Not for any course

9. The main advantages of using eBooks as course literature are: 10. The main disadvantages of using eBooks as course literature were: The questionnaire was sent out via email to the students a week after they had finished the course, and one reminder were sent out one week after the initial email. A web-questionnaire tool was used to collect the answers from the students. A reflective discussion was made with the examiners of the courses in the study using a simple procedure. The first author had initial discussions about eBooks with a colleague (examiner for Ergonomics design) and then with the second author. The discussion was based on six questions, as listed below in table 5.

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Proceedings 19th Triennial Congress of the IEA, Melbourne 9-14 August 2015

Table 5. Questions for examiner discussion regarding use of eBooks as course literature.

Question What do you see as the main advantages with eBooks as course literature? What do you see as the main disadvantages with eBooks as course literature? Why did select to use eBooks in the course? Did you change anything in learning outcomes or course content when deciding to use eBooks? Did it go as expected? What are your thoughts on using eBooks in future courses? The results from the survey and the discussion were then integrated with the found literature to support a recommendation on using Ebooks as course literature in general and specifically for the field of ergonomics and human factors. Finally, a guideline for the use of eBooks as course literature was created. 5. Results

5.1

Questionnaire

The questionnaire was sent out to 140 students participating in the five courses and 43 answers were collected, Table 6. The response rate varied from 19% to 55% between the courses. Table 6. Rate of participation.

Course Ergonomics design for all Human factors and ergonomics for engineers Production ergonomics and work design Cognitive Ergonomics Human factors and ergonomics for engineers Total

Year 2012 2012 2013 2014 2014

Students 33 15 47 23 22 140

Answers 10 3 9 9 12 43

Rate 30% 20% 19% 39% 55% 31%

Table 7 to 14 shows the combined results from the quantitative part of the survey. No significant differences could be identified between courses and years, so the combined results are presented. The results shows that the students think that the use eBooks as course literature has in general worked well or very well, that the literature have been easier to access, and that the use of eBooks has affected their study result positively. In general they do not think that the use of eBooks has made the material easier to take in and understand, or that they have use the material more. Finally, they think that eBooks would be suitable for most courses. Table 7. Question 1: To use eBooks as course literature has in general worked.

Very well 20,8%

Well 41,7%

OK 20,8%

Badly 4,2%

Very badly 2,1%

Table 8. Question 2: To use eBooks as course literature has affected my study result.

Very positively 4,2%

Positively 43,8%

Not affected 39,6%

Negatively 2,1%

Very negatively 0,0%

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Proceedings 19th Triennial Congress of the IEA, Melbourne 9-14 August 2015

Table 9. Question 3: EBooks have made the course literature.

Much easier to access 43,8%

Easier to access

Not affected

Harder to access

37,5%

6,3%

2,1%

Much harder to access 0,0%

Table 10. Question 4: EBooks have made the literature content.

Much easier to take in and understand 0,0%

Easier to take in and understand

Not affected

Harder to take in and understand

18,8%

39,6%

6,3%

Much harder to take in and understand 0,0%

Table 11. Question 5: EBooks have influenced me to use the course literature.

Much more than paper books

More than paper books

4,2%

33,3%

To the same extent as paper books 37,5%

Less than paper books

Much less than paper books

14,6%

0,0%

Badly

Very badly

14,6%

0,0%

Mostly on printed paper

Only on printed paper

2,1%

2,1%

For a few courses 4,2%

Not for any course 0,0%

Table 12. Question 6: I think the lecture materials related to the eBooks.

Very well

Well enough

4,2%

33,3%

Not important that they relate 37,5%

Table 13. Question 7: I read the course literature eBooks.

Only on computer/tablet

Mostly on computer/tablet

39,6%

27,1%

On both printed paper and computer/tablet 18,8%

Table 14. Question 8: EBooks should be used as course literature.

For all courses 25,0%

For most courses 37,5%

Does not matter 25,0%

Table 15 and 16 show the combined and compiled results from the qualitative parts of the survey. The results for the individual courses and the actual quotes can be found appendix C. The students state that the main advantages of using eBooks as course literature are that it is cheaper than paper books and more accessible and available (including the advantage to not carry a heavy book). Other prominent advantages are that they are searchable and environmentally friendly (“save trees”). Regarding the main disadvantages of using eBooks as course literature, the most negative was the difficulty to read texts on the computer or tablet screen. Other disadvantages related to the electronic distribution limitations, e.g. not being possible to download and the need to access internet through the campus network.

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Proceedings 19th Triennial Congress of the IEA, Melbourne 9-14 August 2015

Table 15. Question 9: The main advantages of using eBooks as course literature are.

Answer Easier access Cheaper Better availability Searchable Not carry book Environmentally friendly More convenient Possibility to read on computer etc Feel more free to mark in text Easier to copy text Easier to study Easier to follow up on reference lists

Number of students 22 18 8 8 6 2 2 1 1 1 1 1

Table 15. Question 10: The main disadvantages of using eBooks as course literature are.

Answer Harder to read on the screen Not always possible to download Harder to comment and highlight Harder to get overview Can be hard to access outside campus DRM makes it harder to read Harder to access Dependent on internet Harder to get a grasp of the content The time it takes to print it Not so easy to bring Not working links People maybe don't read it properly Easier for teachers use to a lot of eBooks (over information) There has to be good reading instructions. Distracted by the tablet/computer

Number of students 14 6 5 3 2 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Since there was only a 33% response rate it cannot be said with certainty that the result reflects the whole complexity of students’ preferences. But the fact that the responses were similar across courses increases the credibility of the result.

5.1

Discussion with examiners

Below is a summary of the discussion with the examiners. What do you see as main advantages with eBooks as course literature? All examiners stated that the main advantages were that the eBooks were free for the students through the Chalmers Library and easy to access via the Internet. Other seen advantages were less need for printing books (saves trees) and that the students did not need to carry around heavy books. What do you see as main disadvantages with eBooks as course literature? The examiners identified two main disadvantages with eBooks, both related to the format. The first was the difficulty and fatigue of reading long texts on the screen, and that the students already spend a lot of time with their computers. The second was that a text on a limited screen makes it harder to get an overview of material and find lines of thought throughout the book. It made it more difficult for students to explore books for information.

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Proceedings 19th Triennial Congress of the IEA, Melbourne 9-14 August 2015

Why did you select to use eBooks in the course? Two different reasons came up during the discussions. The first was that a specific book had been selected and then it was discovered that the book was also available as an eBook. The eBook was then selected based on the advantages mentioned above. The second was that there were no suitable books for the course and eBooks were selected to make it easy to combine chapters from many different sources, which had not been practically possible with paper books. Did you change anything in learning outcomes or course content when deciding to use eBooks? No common adjustments were reported here. Some of the courses were planned from the beginning to use eBooks and it was also mentioned that the use of multiple eBooks meant that the examiner did not need to adapt the course content as much as with a single book (which is often the case with a paper book). Did it go as expected? The examiners said that the used eBooks worked as expected beforehand, but it was clear that new unexpected effect of eBooks emerged during the courses (mentioned in disadvantages). The examiners also said that the courses will be improved in the future to make better use of eBooks. What are your thoughts on using eBooks in future courses? The examiners agreed that there will be more use of eBooks in the future and that they very likely will continue using eBooks. One important point of view was that there is no intrinsic value in the eBook format, and that the most important thing is to find good course literature. If the literature exists as an eBook, it is a bonus. It was also said that the use of eBooks made it more important to have reading guidelines since the format of an eBook was perceived to be harder to understand for the students.

6. Discussion and recommendation

6.1

General use of eBooks

When comparing the empirical results with the literature, they match quite well both for the quantitative and qualitative parts. This indicates that there are great advantages of using eBooks as course literature, but also major disadvantages with eBooks. The hypothesis from the introduction that a teacher more easily can select and combine parts from different books, and that the students have direct and free access of the literature on computers and tables, can be considered to be confirmed by this study. The main reported disadvantage is the problem with reading texts (especially long texts) on the computer or tablet screen, and that it can be harder to get a good overview of the contents of the book. This is often nothing that a teacher can do anything about, but you have to consider this factor when planning a course with eBooks. Hopefully, new technical solutions will make the reading of eBooks easier in the future. The result from the discussion with the examiners stated that there was no intrinsic value in selecting eBooks as course literature; rather, is the content that plays the crucial role. It is not possible to compensate quality with quantity, nor to increase the amount of literature because eBooks are free and easy accessible for the students. Rather, the opposite applies when using eBooks – the teacher needs to be more clear to the students about what parts of the literature are relevant for the course, because it is more difficult to scan the material for relevant parts (especially if students do not know the relevant key words). The problem with electronic distribution is something that a teacher can consider when selecting the eBooks to be used in the course. Here it is preferable to choose books that can be downloaded as PDF-files, to increase accessibility. PDF files also make it easier to search the material with keywords and to transfer it to other media.

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Proceedings 19th Triennial Congress of the IEA, Melbourne 9-14 August 2015

6.2

Use of eBooks in ergonomics and human factors subjects

Ergonomics and human factors is a multidisciplinary field that combines a number of specialist areas. The content of a course in ergonomics and human factors could range from covering only one specialist area to covering the system perspective in the field (and the combination). Finding a single book that appropriately covers the content of an ergonomics and human factors course has been experienced by the authors as very hard. eBooks therefore offer a better opportunity to combine different sources for the particular types of application areas that are interesting in a specific course. Using eBooks in the teaching of ergonomics and human factors can also facilitate the overall system perspective, again by making it easier to combine different sources that combine methods, application areas and systems-theoretical perspectives. Furthermore, the teacher is not limited to a single author’s interpretation of the content of the field, but rather importantly, having too many different eBooks can be frustrating for students. In one examiner’s experience, students felt that each new author’s writing style and structure took some getting used to, a process which did not support their learning. A slightly ironic observation is that there is an ergonomic tradeoff in choosing eBooks over paper books. On the one hand, students are less physically loaded with heavy books to carry around, but the cognitive clues offered by the weight, thickness and the possibility of easy overview scanning in a paper book, are all eliminated by the screen format.

6.3

Recommendations when using eBooks as course literature

To sum up, eBooks have some disadvantages that need to be considered when using them as course literature. But the main conclusion from the study is that if there is suitable electronic literature available, teachers should promote the students to use it. The results clearly showed that when they are mindfully implemented, eBooks work well as course literature. To make the use of eBooks as course literature successful the study indicates the following main recommendations: Be extra careful in the selection and presentation of literature, since the format makes it more difficult for the student to scan the contents and get an overview. Provide the students with clear reading guidelines (for the same reasons as above). Provide the students with direct links to relevant parts of the eBooks, for easy access and to avoid the difficulty in scanning on a digital medium - especially if many different eBooks are use within in the same course. Be moderate with the number of eBooks, since a temptation with eBooks is that it is easier to make a long literature list. But remember, eBooks do not improve readability for the students, just the accessibility. EBooks that can be downloaded as PDFs are preferable. They can be downloaded to the students’ own computers and they can make their own notes in them. A final remark is that this study’s empirics is based on four courses whose examiners voluntarily had chosen to use eBooks as course literature. It can be presumed that the examiners have a positive attitude towards eBooks and that there existed eBooks that were suitable for their courses. This may affect the generalizability of this study. But the result from the student survey showed that under the stated circumstances, eBooks worked well.

References ANURADHA, K. T. & USHA, H. S. 2006. Use of e-books in an academic and research environment: A case study from the Indian Institute of Science. Program, 40, 48-62. CROFT, R. & DAVIS, C. 2010. E-books revisited: Surveying student e-book usage in a distributed learning academic library 6 years later. Journal of Library Administration, 50, 543-569. LAM, P., LAM, J. & MCNAUGHT, C. 2010. How usable are eBooks in an mLearning environment? International Journal of Continuing Engineering Education and Life-Long Learning, 20, 6-20.

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Proceedings 19th Triennial Congress of the IEA, Melbourne 9-14 August 2015

LAM, P., LAM, S. L., LAM, J. & MCNAUGHT, C. 2009. Usability and usefulness of eBooks on PPCs: How students' opinions vary over time. Australasian Journal of Educational Technology, 25, 30-44. MARTINEZ-ESTRADA, P. D. & CONAWAY, R. N. 2012. EBooks: The Next Step in Educational Innovation. Business Communication Quarterly, 75, 125-135. MUIR, L. & HAWES, G. The Case for e-Book Literacy: Undergraduate Students' Experience with e-Books for Course Work. The Journal of Academic Librarianship. OXFORD_DICTIONARY_ONLINE. 2013. Methodology [Online]. Oxford: Oxford University Press Available: http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/e-book?q=ebook [Accessed 2013-03-17]. WONG, K., LIONG, C., LIN, Z. X., LOWER, M. & LAM, P. Year. EBooks as teaching strategy - Preliminary investigation. In, 2011. 1343-1352.

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