In 1954, Skinner published a paper entitled "The Science of Learning and the Art of Teaching." In this document, he described methods for automating instruction to improve human learning in a school setting. It served as the beginning for programmed instruction as an art.
Programmed Instruction works as a self-instructional package that presents a topic in a carefully planned sequence and requires the learner to respond to questions or statements by filling in blanks, selecting from a series of answers, or solving a problem. Immediate feedback occurs after each response and student work at their own pace. The program can be incorporated into books, teaching machines, or computers. Here's an example of a programmed text:
Those who support programmed instruction stress that it can improve classroom learning, presenting even the most difficult subjects in small steps so that all student can succeed. It was Skinner who proposed the use of TEACHING MACHINES designed specifically for this purpose.
Skinner pointed out why teaching were needed in the classroom. The lengthy time between responses and their reinforcements is all too common. The Behaviorist accepts the premise that the immediacy of reinforcement is an important variable in learning. Returning test papers two weeks after an examination would be a serious instructional problem. A second serious problem concerns the relative infrequency of the use of reinforcement in many classrooms. Finally, there is a lack of organized instructional sequence when teaching complex skills. Teachers may not carefully arrange material to suit their instructional objectives. Skinner believed that teaching machines addressed these concerns. Here is another example of a programmed instruction lesson:
| Sentence to be Completed | Word to be Supplied |
| 1. The important parts of a flashlight are the battery and the bulb. When we turn on a flashlight, we close a switch which connects the battery with the ________ | Bulb |
| 2. When we turn on a flashlight, an electric current flows through the fine wire in the ________ and causes it to grow hot. | Bulb |
| 3. When the hot wire glows brightly, we say that it gives off or sends out heat and ________ | Light |
| 4. The fine wire in the bulb is called a filament. The bulb lights up when the filament is heated by the passage of a(n) ________ current. | Electric |
| 5. When a weak battery produces little current, the fine wire, or ________, does not get very hot. | Filament |
| 6. A filament which is less hot sends out or gives off ________ light. | Less |
| 7. 'Emit' mean 'to send out.' The amount of light sent out, or emitted, by a filament depends on how ________ the filament gets. | Hot |
There are some excellent Web pages dealing with the subject of Programmed Instruction. The following are the best of those available:
Quote from
B.F. Skinner on Programmed Instruction
The Center for
Programmed Instruction
Sample Programmed
Instruction Software Available for Downloading. Title of the Software:
World Wide Web Tutorials (90k)