According to a 2024 study conducted for the Italian Publishers Association by Talents Venture, titled “Study Habits at the University” for exam preparation, more than four in ten Italian students surveyed about the materials used reported doing without books and digital editorial products, rendering notes, their own or those of colleagues, summaries downloaded from the web, lecture recordings, slides, handouts, quizzes and the instructor’s exercises sufficient…
At the same time, as emerged from a meeting held on the occasion of the Turin Book Fair 2025, the reluctance of university students to study from books (preferring, as noted, notes, slides, online materials) is one of the causes of the crisis in educational publishing.
Despite these premises, as shown by a new study, conducted again by Talents Venture for AIE, which involved 463 faculty members from 34 universities, regarding the most effective tool for learning, according to 88% of the interviewed faculty, the textbook remains the reference medium. The study, titled From Fragile Knowledge to Critical Knowledge – University Publishing, Quality and Innovation, will be presented on September 23, in Rome, on the occasion of a conference promoted by the Italian Publishers Association.
For those who wish to participate, registration is required by September 21. The event will address topics such as the evolution of study practices, the quality of university education, the role of editorial content, and the development of human capital.
Publishers and the Academic World in Dialogue
Starting at 10:30, in the Igea Hall of the Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana Treccani, publishers, institutions, representatives from the academic world, politics and business will discuss changes in students’ study habits, the evolution of teaching materials, and the strategic role of university publishing in the quality of education.
The morning session, moderated by the Rai journalist Eva Giovannini, will be opened by greetings from Federico Mollicone, president of the Culture, Science and Education Commission of the Chamber of Deputies, and Innocenzo Cipolletta, president of AIE.
A Round Table on University Publishing and Its Future Goals
Beginning with the intervention of the president of AIE’s Professional Academic Group Maurizio Messina, who will outline the challenges and opportunities of university publishing, the round table University Publishing and Institutions: a discussion on strategies and goals for the sector’s future will follow, featuring Massimo Miscusi, General Director for Health Specializations, Doctorates and other post-university training at the Ministry of University and Research, Cristina Rossello, esteemed member of the European Union Policies Commission of the Chamber of Deputies, Alfredo D’Attorre, head of the University Department of the Democratic Party, and editors Andrea Angiolini, Editorial Director and CEO of Il Mulino and Teresa Massara, Sr. Associate Publisher, Global Products of McGraw Hill Professional Group.
Following that, a discussion will involve, in addition to President Messina, Riccardo Di Stefano, Vice President for Education and Open Innovation at Confindustria, Alessandra Petrucci, Rector of the University of Florence and CRUI Delegate for Teaching, and Eliana Viviano, Director of the Economic Structure Service of the Bank of Italy.
The conclusions will be entrusted to the Minister of University and Research, Anna Maria Bernini.
