Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-l7hp2 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-30T15:32:24.289Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Using the Personalized System of Instruction to Teach African History

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 May 2014

Thomas O'Toole
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Extract

Reluctantly and sporadically college and university instructors of African history surveys are discovering that effective teaching is not guaranteed solely by the excellence of our research. Like historians in other specialties we are also discovering that student and administrator evaluation of our teaching, particularly at the lower division survey level, is growing more critical. Unfortunately few of us are prepared to bridge the gap between the specialized approach engendered by our graduate school training and the pedagogical needs of the increasingly heterogeneous audiences we meet in our undergraduate history surveys. This essay is directed toward bridging this gap. Rather than simply presenting a theoretical discussion on the relative merits of this particular approach to undergraduate education, a single sample unit is offered for critical evaluation.

There is a danger that PSI, like many other classroom innovations, might be rejected as simply another fad. Therefore it is necessary to define clearly this teaching/learning technique before demonstrating its direct applicability to undergraduate instruction in African history. PSI applies the principles of behavioral psychology to the college academic environment. This new method of teaching was originally developed in the 1960s by Fred S. Keller, a creative and innovative teacher and researcher in the psychology of learning. Retired from Columbia University, Keller and some colleagues created the system in response to specific needs at the University of Brazilia. Later at Arizona State University and the Center for Personalized Instruction at Georgetown University, Keller continued, enlarged, and improved the system.

Type
Research Article
Information
African Studies Review , Volume 20 , Issue 2 , September 1977 , pp. 101 - 114
Copyright
Copyright © African Studies Association 1977

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Anderson, Jane J. (1969) “Teaching History by the Audio-Tutorial Method.” The History Teacher, 3 (November): 36–41.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Beyer, Barry K. (1971) Inquiry in the Social Studies Classroom: A Strategy for Teaching. Columbus, Ohio: Charles E. Merrill Publishing Company.Google Scholar
Bloom, Benjamin S. (1971a) “Affective Consequences of School Achievement,” pp. 13–28 in Block, James H., Mastery Learning. New York: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston.Google Scholar
Bloom, Benjamin S. (1971b) “Mastery Learning,” pp. 47–63 in Block, James H., Mastery Learning. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston.Google Scholar
Breslow, Elaine G. (1973) “Behaviorism in the Classroom.” Change 5 (April): 52–55.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Brune, Lester H. (1970) “Programmed Instruction for Teaching History.” The History Teacher, 3 (January): 31–35.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bruner, Jerome (1966) “The Growth of Mind.” Occasional Papers no. 8. Cambridge, Mass.: Education Development Center, Inc.Google Scholar
Cook, Donald A. (1974) “PSI: Potentials and Problems.” EPIE Report, 7 (April):7.Google Scholar
Coombs, Jerald A. and Tricano, John. (1971) An Individualized History of the United States, 2 vols. San Rafael, Calif.: Individual Learning Systems.Google Scholar
Cross, Patricia K. (1971) Beyond the Open Door. San Francisco: Josey-Bass.Google Scholar
Doermann, Humphrey (1970) Crosscurrents in College Admissions. New York: Teachers College Press.Google Scholar
Doty, Barbara H. and Doty, Larry A. (1964) “Programmed Instructional Effectiveness in Relation to Certain Student Characteristics.” Journal of Educational Psychology, 55:334–38.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Elton, G.R. (1967) The Practice of History. New York: Thomas Y. Crowell.Google Scholar
Farmer, J., Lachter, A.D., Blaustein, J.J. and Cole, B.K. (1972) “The Role of Proctoring in Personalized Instruction.” Journal of Applied Behavioral Analysis, 5: 401–404.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Fenton, Edwin. (1967) The New Social Studies. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Green, Ben A. (1974) “Fifteen Reasons Not To Use the Keller Plan,” pp. 117–19 in Sherman, J.G., Personalized System of Instruction: 41 Germinal Papers. Menlo Park, Calif.: W.A. Benjamin.Google Scholar
Hause, J.M. (1973) “A Comparison of Two Variables Affecting Student Performance in an Individualized Introductory Psychology Course.” Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Drake University.Google Scholar
Hullfish, H. Gordon and Smith, Philip G. (1961) Reflective Thinking: The Method of Education. New York: Dodd, Mead.Google Scholar
July, Robert. (1974) A History of the African People, 2nd ed. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons.Google Scholar
Keller, Fred S. (1974) “Good-Bye, Teacher…,” pp. 7–14 in Sherman, J.G., Personalized System of Instruction: 41 Germinal Papers. Menlo Park, Calif.: W.A. Benjamin.Google Scholar
Kinderman, P.V. and Chmelynksi, H.J. (1974) “A Slow Paced Personalized Mechanics Course for Educationally Disadvantaged Minority Students.” Unpublished: Carnegie-Mellon University.Google Scholar
The New York Times. (1975) “Managers Mind the University.” June 22:F7.Google Scholar
Nolan, John D. (1974) “The True Humanist the Behavior Modifier.” Teacher's College Record, 76 (December): 335–43.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ruskin, Robert S. (1975) “A Personalized System of Instruction: Basic Components and Current Applications,” pp. 6–13 in Earle, Ralph B. Jr., ed. PSI and Political Science. Washington, D.C.: American Political Science Association.Google Scholar
Schnucker, Robert V. (1974) “Individualized Self-Learning in the Teaching of Western Civilization.” The History Teacher, 7 (August): 524–39.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Schrier, Arnold. (1975) “World History as Historical Survey,” Social Education, 39 (October): 364–66.Google Scholar
Webster, Harold, Trow, Martin H. and McConnell, Robert. (1962) “Individual Differences Among College Freshmen.” pp. 145–65 in Tyler, Fred T., et al, Individualizing Instruction. Chicago: National Society for the Study of Education.Google Scholar
Whitehurst, Carol, and Madigan, Judy. (1975) “Slow Learners in PSI Courses.” Journal of Higher Education, 46 January/February): 55–62.Google Scholar
Wilson, S.R. and Tosti, D.T. (1972) Learning is Getting Easier. San Rafael, Calif.: Individual Learning Systems.Google Scholar