Effects of Choice of Instructional Methods on Verbal Learning Tasks

Abstract

62 children in Grades 2 through 5 were matched on the variables of sex, race, and age. Each member of the matched pairs was randomly assigned to a choice (treatment) or no-choice (control) group. Subjects in the choice group were asked to choose between individualized and group instructional methods; those in the control were assigned the methods by a teacher. Two verbal tasks and measures were administered to all subjects. A 2 (choice) × 4 (age) factorial analysis of variance yielded a significant difference in the predicted direction for choice. The results substantiate current practices.