The study compared the effects of two instructional strategies for teaching the programming language, Logo, on the problem solving skills of third graders. The two strategies are the guided discovery approach, a student-directed learning environment with the teacher as a facilitator, and the direct instruction approach, with specific teacher-directed activities being used to teach direct transfer of problem solving skills. The relationship of two cognitive styles--field dependence and field independence--and the development of problem solving skills through the two different teaching methods were analyzed. The subjects were 49 third-grade students in three existing classrooms. Ten weeks of instruction in Logo was given to two treatment groups, with a third group receiving no instruction. Data analysis showed that Logo instruction does improve problem solving skills, with both instructional methods improving skills at the same rate. The degree of students' field dependence did not effect their ability to gain problem solving skills by either method. The text is supplemented by six tables and appendixes provide supporting materials. (76 references) (Author/EW)