Digital Learning Materials 2021 Trend Report

We wanted to know – so we asked college students and faculty how they use digital materials in their courses.

What we learned:

Students want to save time! They value eBooks and adaptive courseware for their time-saving features and mobile accessibility. Faculty want ease of integration with their learning management systems, and embedded adaptive technology courseware.

More than half of instructors think digital technology has helped improve student grades (59%) and helped them to teach new concepts (51%).

Nearly half of students say digital learning technology influences which classes they take – an increase from about 40% in a similar survey in 2017.

41% of student respondents said they are currently taking a course that uses Inclusive Access to deliver their digital materials by the first day of class. Students who have used Inclusive Access like it. 67% say they prefer acquiring materials via Inclusive Access, with the top benefits being convenience and first-day access.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, we saw big increases in student use of ebooks, adaptive courseware, and affordable delivery models like Inclusive Access. With data like this, we can continue to improve our platforms and better help students succeed in their courses.” Michael Ryan, President, McGraw Hill Higher Education