Even though we live in a digital world I still love reading paper books. This post has been floating around with me for a while and the idea for it came from a post by Ryan Tracey called ‘5 papers every learning professional should read’.
This post is pretty much the same but with books instead of papers. I’ve chosen each book because they’re easy to read (over a period of time rather than one sitting), they provide useful strategies that you can implement and they provide a great reference that I go back to.
I’ve listed them here in no particular order:
eLearning and the Science of Instruction by Ruth Colvin Clark and Richard E. Mayer
One of the first books I read when I started in eLearning and over time I’ve discovered that anything written by Ruth Colvin Clark is well worth a look. What I like about this book is the theory (working memory, cognitive load and related principles) is explained in a straightforward way and there’s practical examples based on research of what can be done to improve eLearning design.
Design for How People Learn by Julie Dirksen
This one also has a good mix of evidenced-based theory and ideas that can be implemented into your own designs. It looks at learning from a wide perspective – how we process and store information, how to design for skills and for knowledge as well as motivation and the learning environment. I’ve got the first edition but there’s a second edition now available.
The Accidental Instructional Designer by Cammy Bean
This book written by someone who started out much like I did – transitioning into the role of instructional designer. There were many times throughout the book that I related to Cammy’s experiences. She covers a lot of ground – different skills of an ID, working with SME’s, ideas for gaining attention, writing, visual design and meaningful interactivity – that includes avoiding what she calls ‘clicky-clicky bling-bling’.
Visual Design Solutions by Connie Malamed
Graphic design is a skill that I’ve had to work on (and continue to work on). This book is chock full of ideas to improve the visual element of your modules and looks at how to organise screen objects, working with images, typography and using imagery to enhance explanation and as part of storytelling.
Show Your Work by Jane Bozarth
The practice of showing your work is about making the stuff in your head, the ‘how-to’, visible for others to see and use. Find out more about what it means to show your work and see the many, many real examples shared by folks from all walks of life.
What do you think? What books would you add?
Comments
13 responses to “5 Books Every eLearning Professional Should Read”
Excellent selection, Matt.
I would add…
– Revolutionize Learning & Development by Clark Quinn
– Disruptive Learning by Shannon Tipton
– Brain Rules by John Medina
– Humble Inquiry by Edgar Schein
– The Really Useful EdTechBook by David Hopkins
Thanks for these suggestions Ryan, Clark Quinn’s book is very good. The others I’ll need check out!
Good list, my adds would be Innovative Performance Support (Gottfredson & Mosher) and Immersive Learning (Pagano).
Thanks for stopping by William and for your suggestion, I’ll check it out 🙂
Thanks for the list Matt and the additional recommendations Ryan. I’m an accidental instructional designer and was just looking for some books to add to my professional library. I love paper books even more now I spend most of my day on the computer!
Thanks Sarah! I think that’s why I still love paper books too!
Here’s my list of books released this year I think are worth a read. Not all are strictly the domain of L&D but are very relevant.
Michael Allen’s Guide to eLearning, Second Edition: I also have the first edition. I think it’s worth the upgrade. Very practical ideas, highly readable, and best of all it’s based on the science of how people learn.
Stretch, How to future proof yourself for tomorrow’s workplace: Karie Willyerd and Barbara Mistick. The title says it all, a very good read
.
Leadership BS: Jeffrey Pfeffer. This is the best leadership book I’ve read (though it’s depressing). This came out late last year but I’ll let it slip into the list. I have a more nuanced approached when engaing manager and executives.
Deep Work, Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World: Cal Newport. This book is about what’s required to reach elite performance, namely deep concentration. He puts the boot into social media and suggests to quit Twitter and Facebook. This runs counter to the social learning movement and community (which I also think is quite overhyped and forced, I don’t go as far as the author though).
Thanks for the suggestions Ben, much appreciated and I’ll be checking them out.
Thanks for the list!
Julie Dirksen’s book is actually really very good – I recommend looking into 2nd edition as there are 3 chapters added. Also, since recently I’ve got into the topics of interaction and experience design, I’d recommend this classic position: About Face: The Essentials of Interaction Design by Alan Cooper, currently the latest edition is I think 4th.
Thanks for the recommendations Nikos, I’ve got the 2nd edition of Julie’s book on order and I’ll check out About Face as I’m keen to learn more about interaction and experience design.
[…] Dieser Blogpost ist im Wesentlichen eine deutsche Übersetzung des Orginalposts von Matt Guyan. […]
[…] Dieser Blogpost ist im Wesentlichen eine deutsche Übersetzung des Orginalposts von Matt Guyan. […]
[…] posted a list of 10 journals every e-learning professional should read in response to my list of 5 Books Every eLearning Professional Should Read which was in response to his 5 papers every learning professional should read (this feeling […]