The AFOSR research plan calls for fundamental studies in human learning and performance that would provide the foundations for general laws of learning applicable to Air Force problems. The report describes gaps in research that should be eliminated by investigations in specific fields. Studies of individual and group differences in aptitude and…

This paper reviews the biological origins of the critical period hypothesis and the neurophysiological evidence which was initially supplied in support of a critical period for the acquisition of language. Noting the inconclusive nature of neurophysiological evidence, the author suggests that we look to the interplay of affective and cognitive…

This paper examines three ways in which attempts at program evaluation are most often thwarted. The first, fingerpointing, may be either positive or negative. It may be positive by pointing to the individual who is "doing a good job considering--", it may be threatening by expecting too much of any one individual (e.g. "Evaluation should be made…

The bibliography contains annotated references to teaching machines and programed instruction as they relate to efficient learning in military and civilian training, and adaptive learning techniques. The computer generated indexes are Corporate Author Monitoring Agency and Personal Author. (Author/PT)

Although previous research has indicated no significant relationship between sequencing of programed instructional materials and terminal achievement, it is felt that certain conditions might produce such a relationship. In order to test this idea, a hierarchy of word meanings was constructed, in which each definition was dependent on the previous…

This booklet presents guidelines regarding the selection, training, qualifications, and tasks of industrial instructors. The appendix briefly deals with learning processes including the sensory bases of learning, learning theory, instructional methods, stages of training, and instruction principles. (DM)

Six studies were performed investigating the relationship between digit span (DS) capacity and other memory and problem solving tasks: (1) Ss were administered a DS test, an aurally presented mental addition test, a similar multiplication task, and a written timed division test. DS correlated only with the second; (2) Ss were required to…

To gain some insight into the problem of deviant speech development in low income populations, this study investigated the environmental factors that encourage the development of normal speech. Two specific questions were examined in this study: (1) If specific vocalized environmental sounds are presented contiguously with reinforcement, will…

In these lectures, three aspects of the educational experience are discussed: exploration, conversation, and creation. Exploration is the free reaching outward, compelled by curiosity, wonder, and excitement. This is not necessarily associated with formal education, but must be achieved through the discipline of order and precision; such growth…

Forty-eight sentences, which associated eight attributes with six chessmen, were clustered in paragraphs by chessman, by attribute, or by rote group (randomized). One-half of 42 high school graduates were told the conceptual structure of the passage before reading. Subjects read the passages for three 5-minute periods in order to learn the…

This study tested the hypothesis that the memory of meaningful material can be reactivated without relearning by means of hypnotic suggestion. Very susceptible (T) and non-susceptible (UT) subjects were sought from among those who volunteered for the experiment. Two forms of a memory test for connected meaningful material were developed. Each form…

Ten kindergarten and 46 first grade children were given two-choice object discrimination problems, during which a prompt indicated the positive (rewarded) object, P. Guided by the prompt, all Ss subjects displaced P and therefore observed only its reward value; no direct observation was made of the reward value of the negative (nonrewarded)…

This report, Bibliography, is designed to aid the researcher concerned with concept learning. It contains (1) rationale and strategy for compiling a bibliography of articles concerned with concept learning, (2) a definition of the word "concept," (3) a system for classifying articles by their content, (4) a bibliography of relevant articles…

The primary objective of this study was to determine the existence of a relationship between free-recall learning and breadth of categorization, an independent measure of conceptual organization. The relationship between breadth of categorization and more conventional measures of organization was also investigated. Two free-recall tasks…

Young children were studied in tasks that required them to select one object as "different" from another. Children systematically selected maximally similar objects until about 3 years of age, and thereafter performed correctly. Additional data derived from the children's verbal justifications and refusals to select suggested a 4-stage model in…