PROGRAMMED LEARNING IN CENTRAL AFRICAN CONTEXTS.

Overview & Synopsis

SINCE 1964, THE PROGRAMMED LEARNING CENTRE AT THE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF RHODESIA HAS BEEN INVESTIGATING THE POTENTIALITIES OF PROGRAMED LEARNING FOR CENTRAL AFRICA THROUGH A SERIES OF CONTROLLED EXPERIMENTS USING LOCALLY-WRITTEN AND PUBLISHED PROGRAMS. ASSESSMENT OF THE DESIRABILITY AND USEFULNESS OF PROGRAMS IN TEACHING, AND ASSESSMENT OF THEIR ABILITY TO MOTIVATE AND TO TEACH PROBLEM-SOLVING APPROACHES AND CREATIVITY ARE RESEARCH PROBLEMS OF PRAGMATIC INTEREST DUE TO THE PRESSING NEED FOR TRAINED MANPOWER IN INDUSTRY AND MEDICINE. PROGRAMS DEALING WITH TOPICS SUCH AS SIMPLE CONTOURS, HOW PEOPLE LEARN, AND THE 1802 FACTORY REFORM ACT HAVE BEEN TESTED WITH GENERALLY FAVORABLE RESULTS. TOPICS HAVING EMOTIONAL CONTENT ARE MORE EFFECTIVELY TAUGHT THROUGH DISCUSSIONS, IN WHICH PARTICIPANTS CAN VOICE THEIR OPINIONS, THAN THROUGH PROGRAMS. OTHER LONGER-TERM AND LESS RIGOROUSLY CONTROLLED IN-SCHOOL TRIALS OF PROGRAMS HAVE GIVEN VARYING RESULTS. MUCH RESEARCH IS STILL IN PROGRESS. THE APPENDIX CONTAINS A CATALOG OF HOLDINGS AT THE PROGRAMMED LEARNING CENTRE. AN INDEX IS INCLUDED. (BB)