A Comparison of Student Option Versus Program Controlled CAI Training

Abstract : The goals of the study were to compare two instructional strategies for individualizing computer assisted instruction (CAI) training materials and to evaluate the effect of providing a lesson narrative before training. Two types of adaptive instructional strategies were compared: the student selected his own training; and the course program controlled training for the student based on his pretest results. The influence of having the student read a narrative overview of training content before CAI instruction on each lesson was also examined. No significant differences were found between the four experimental conditions in test performance or training time measures. Questionnaire data indicated that students who selected their own training maintained a significantly more favorable attitude toward CAI. In addition, students who had a pre-training narrative available to them felt that it was a valuable aid.