Agency for Instructional Technology (AIT)

Originally founded in 1962 as the National Instructional Television Library (NITL), AIT operated in Bloomington, Indiana for almost fifty years, creating educational television programming for National Educational Television (NET) and later PBS. The organization prided itself as leader in developing educational material for a television age and believed that evolving televisual technology could, according to one AIT catalogue, “complement traditional teaching by providing ‘field trips’ through time and space, demonstrations, and simulations.” A shift in emphasis from “television” to “technology” in 1984 marked the expansion of AIT to include development of instructional materials for computers and other technologies. The mission of AIT paralleled the various audio-visual instructional activities at Indiana University’s own Audio-Visual Center (AVC) and the NET Film Service, which, through a network of collaborative efforts, produced and distributed educational programming for nearly half a century.     

 

Features from the Agency for Instructional Technology

various video formats like tape and film
Click to read blog

Learn about the digitization process of AIT video and the multiple formats of audio-visual materials being saved for the next generation of researchers.

still from ripples intro
Click for Ripples exhibit

Learn about the history and development of one of AIT's first educational series. Watch full episodes by clicking on the gallery on the exhibit page.

still from Self incorporated title screen showing child
Click to watch the full series

Watch full episodes from this fifteen-part series addressing problems of early adolescence. The program helps younger teens cope with physical and emotional changes.


 

marker from film shoot showing John Allman's name
Watch films from the collection

John Allman was producer and director for educational films from the Agency for Instructional Television/Technology and Communico.

still from John Huston film showing stream and plants
(Public access coming soon!)

John Huston was Cinematographer for films made by the Agency For Instructional Television/Technology and Communico.


 

inside out logo with brown and orange lettering

Watch the full series of this program that explores the complex emotions of children. Share in a child's attempts to deal with everything from bullying to climate change. 

wordsmith title screen with colorful set and geometric shapes

Watch full episodes from the entire 1975 series Wordsmith, with host Bob Smith and a colorful cast of language lovers. The series teaches valuable lessons about words and vocabulary.

It figures title card on a blue background with a line and two arrows

Brush up on math skills with this 28-part series tackling everything from basic arithmetic to complex problem solving equations. See kid-centered learning in real life situations.


 

title screen for trade offs shows a red arrow pointing up and a blue arrow pointing down

Watch the full series of this program designed to improve educational perspectives on economics and confront children ages 9-13 with economic questions and problems.

title screen for bread and butterflies with yellow lettering and a red butterfly

Watch the complete series of this innovative and entertaining program that was designed to help kids ages 9-12 with career choices and vocational development.

Thinkabout title screen with the words "thinkabout" in concentric circles.

Immerse yourself in this sixty-part series that helps 5th and 6th graders become independent learners and improves skills in critical thinking and reasoning skills.


 

title card showing illustrations of the hosts of Teletales showing a man and a grey haired woman

Listen to charming folktales with origins from all over the world (Russia, Germany, Iraq, Hawaii, and Zanzibar) and see illustrations from those stories drawn in real-time.

title card for Your Choice Our Chance showing a blue background and sunrise out of the program title

Early nineties drug abuse prevention program, depicting real-life situations that teach teens and young adults how to situations and influences that lead to drug use.

title card for Give and Take showing blue and red arrows that imply circle movement or equal trade

One of the first of its kind! Using real-world examples and stories to illustrate complex ideas about trade, free-markets, and more, the program teaches grades 8-10 about basic economics.


 

orange font on a black background shows title for series "on the level"

Entertaining series teaching teens how to confront real life problems and process feelings through dramatic scenarios and snappy dialog.

title card for Amigos showing kids and the show's hosts gathered around blocks on a street corner stage

Learn Spanish with Perro Pepe and Senorita Fernandez through 31 lessons geared to elementary school children. There's mucho singing and adventuring! 

american flag background overlaid with united states map and title for program geography in U.S. history

Learn U.S. history through the lens of geographic change and social developments from the nation's past. For middle school grades.


 

Blue background with faint red dots title screen for Math Wise

This program teaches middle and high school math skills and demonstrates how they can be applied to real-world situations. Solve problems related to measurement and graphing.

Shows a illustration of a magician pulling a child out of a hat with the title All About You

Introduces elementary students to the science and functions of the human body. The program emphasizes good health and hygiene and even addresses psychological wellness.

Math Works title screen with bright triangle positioned over graphing squares.

Twenty-eight episodes introducing advanced elementary and middle school learners to basic mathematics. Each episode emphasizes a particular skill or math formula that can be applied to solve real-world problems.


 

title screen for Readit with John Robbins on blue sky background with claymation trees and books around a lily pond

Host John Robbins reads illustrated stories that teach elementary school children important lessons and help them build personal values.

title screen for The Heart of Teaching with word art in the shape of a heart and stills from the program showing faces of students and teachers

Each episode from this series presents dramatizations designed to help teachers deal with problems like frustration, anger, isolation, change and pressure.

arts alive title screen showing painted style text on red grid background

Arts Alive is a 13-part series introducing youngsters to the world of arts performance, entertainment, and appreciation. Hosted by Lynn Swann.


 

global geography title screen

Ten 15-minute video programs in world geography for grades 6-9 in a joint project of the National Council for Geographic Education and the National Geographic Society.

titles screen for in other words in orange stylized font against a white background

A twelve part program of 15 minute episodes on language arts designed to increase the ability of students to communicate effectively in their own lives.

title screen for drawing with Paul Rigler. Shows a half drawn woman's head and Paul Rigler's signature

Paul Rigler teaches basic drawings techniques in the technical and creative process, walking viewers through everything from perspective drawing to cartooning.


 

Title card for Watch Your Language showing a diamond with a road sign design

Language arts program that uses dramatic storytelling and vocabulary applications to teach about words and their meaning.

Title card for Applied Communication shows an orange and blue-lined graphic

Teaches strategies and techniques for communicating in business settings and every day workplace situations.

Title card for Looking From the Inside/Out in red handwritten text style with psychedelic background

Meaningful conversations about emotions in this program that helps upper elementary school students process feelings. 


 

Solve it title screen showing graphics of math tools, like rulers, protractors, calculators.

Learn everyday mathematical skills in dramatic segments that use real-life situations and on the job scenarios to teach ways to solve common problems.

Shows title screen for American Legacy in white letters with red outline and depicts a forest scene in the background.

Join host John Rugg as he reviews historical sites and events from America's past. Episodes are organized by U.S. region to teach geography lessons to middle grades.

Title screen for You, Me, and Technology showing yellow lettering and three dimensional graphic plane.

Explores a range of technological innovations and contextualizes them with critical questions about human communication, ethics, and other social concerns.


 

title screen for well well well with slim goodbody, depicting title in red font and slim in a body suit showing human anatomy

This energetic program focuses on health and wellness for children in kindergarten and the primary grades. Hosted by educational TV favorite Slim Goodbody (John Burstein). 

Shows a television screen depicting the title screen for the write channel.

Series of fifteen lessons designed to help teach sentence combining techniques to third and fourth grader. that features animated character R.B. Bugg and his editor Red Green played by Beverly Todd.

Title screen for Measure metric, shows the title in white font with an image of a man on a city street walking around with a measuring tape

Program with eleven fourteen-minute episodes each one about a different aspect of measurement using the metric system. Shows how measurement can be applied to a variety of real-life situations. 


 

title screen for Understanding Taxes in yellow tax on a blue background

Uses dramatizations to highlight teenagers' firsthand experiences with the effects of taxation and to explain the reasons for taxes.

Understanding Taxes title screen with white text and multicolor geometric background

Uses dramatizations to highlight teenagers' firsthand experiences with the effects of taxation and to explain the reasons for taxes.

just for me title screen with multicolor text on a yellow legal pad background

Just for me is a program designed to help teachers and parents aid children in dealing with the peer pressures of drugs and alcohol use.