A second classification of science concerns learning. Readers may have been thinking about formal courses in the school system or in universities. Yet most learning in our society occurs in informal settings. Not all learning occurs in classes.
In informal learning plans may be at the discretion of the learner, with no established curriculum. Informal learning may be by television, radio, books, or computers, and it may occur in public museums, libraries, private homes, on a street corner, or under a tree. Thus, someone on an airplane reading a book about real estate, in preparation for passing a real estate license exam, is engaged in informal study. Science is also studied in this manner.
The computer-based learning material described in this report could serve in either a formal or informal setting. We do not wish to ignore informal learning situations. Although the Scientific Reasoning Series offers a sizable amount of learning material, twenty hours for the average user, we have not developed a ``course.''