PROGRAMMED INSTRUCTION AS A MODEL FOR INFORMATION RETRIEVAL Available to Purchase

Librarians and teachers have essentially the same function—providing information. However, they cannot claim with Dr Johnson: ‘Sir, I have found you an argument; but I am not obliged to find you an understanding.’ Both librarian and teacher should present knowledge in such a way that the inquirer is able to comprehend it. One way is to guide the inquirer into working out ideas for himself. Such guidance involves presenting the information in a coherent sequence of easily assimilated steps, after each of which a question is posed to check that that step has been understood. This is what a good tutor does. This, too, is what Programmed Instruction does.