Traditional reading gives way to MOOCs, e-learning

Whether one wants to learn about emotional intelligence at the workplace, or do some deep reading on COVID-19, turn to online learning.


Online learning tools have become a way of like especially as the world turns digital at a pace never seen before.

"With the world transforming into all things digital, reading habits have evolved. Traditional reading habits have changed with more people being inclined towards electronic/digital content. The British Council's online-library caters to need of the ‘always online' and ‘on-the-go' generation," Antonius Raghubansie, Head India, Teaching and Cultural Centres, British Council, told IANSlife.

With thousands of e-books, journals, magazines, award-winning films, audiobooks, preparatory material for IELTS, documentaries and other online resources, the British Council Library, through its digital offering, says it wants to prepare its students for new global challenges.

The online library was introduced in 2011, and complements its physical centres and libraries in Delhi, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chandigarh, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mumbai and Pune.

How can online learning resources help in the face of a pandemic like COVID-19?

"At the British Council, health and safety of students and the communities in which we operate is of paramount importance to us. During these uncertain times of the rapidly evolving COVID-19 situation across the country, we are committed to continue the learning, reading and recreational experience for our students and library members.

"We are adapting to an alternate model of online classes and learning resources. As we familiarise ourselves to social distancing norms, we hope that the new approach will prepare our students for global challenges with 21st-century skills. The online learning material will prevent any roadblock in the learning process of students, will ensure that they are engaged and have ample resources available to learn from," Raghubansie said.

He also commented on how e-learning helps widen the reader base.

"With changing reading habits and increasing inclination for online knowledge resources, online learning has become the preferred option for many these days. British Council is consistently adding resources to its online library, catering to needs of not just our members but even people at large looking for digital learning material," he said.

Apart from its online resources and virtual classrooms, British Council has on offer "a pool of exciting and interactive online learning resources to improve English grammar, vocabulary and build knowledge across subjects" - available free of cost for anyone ranging from young learners to working professionals.

Many of the resources and massive open online courses (MOOCs) are available online on futurelearn.com and britishcouncil.in

The online library membership is available at Rs 1800 per year. IANS