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This study describes a program designed at Stanford University in the computer-assisted instruction (CAI) of reading, which has been used by children in kindergarten through grade three. The program is an adjunct to classroom instruction, stressing the decoding aspect of reading and leaving the communication aspect to the teacher. The report presents the rationale for the program; a description of how individualized instruction is affected by the program; a discussion of the various strands in the program--reading readiness, letter identification, sight word vocabulary, spelling patterns, phonics, comprehension, and language arts; a description of the digitized audio system of the program; a discussion of how CAI can be scheduled with other class activities; and a discussion for the teacher of how to read the computer's reports of the students' progress. The authors conclude that CAI can free the teacher for more creative types of instruction and that this program is a feasible and economical way to raise the national level of reading. (Author/DI)

A computer-assisted course on programing, consisting of a set of 50 lessons, was developed for and is now being used by National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) personnel. The course is intended for students at about the junior college level with no experience in mathematics beyond high school algebra and with no previous introduction to computer programs. The programing language taught in the course is AID (Algebraic Interpretative Dialogue), a high-level algebraic programing language with extensive interactive (or conversational) abilities. The results of the use of the course with NASA personnel and with other students have been extremely encouraging: student motivation has been high; and performance, good. Appendices include: the student manual, AID documentation, an outline of AID lessons, excerpts from the coder's manual, and a sample coded problem. (MF)

This paper describes three models of learning theories, derives optimal presentation strategies for the models, and compares the effectiveness of the strategies in two computer assisted instruction experiments. The three models described are: 1) the linear, or response-insensitive model, in which the error probability for a given item depends on the number of times it has been presented; 2) the all-or-none model, in which the error probability for a given item depends on the number of times it has been answered correctly; and 3) the random-trial increments (RTI) model, which is a compromise between the linear and the all-or-none model. One of the computer assisted instruction experiments reviewed compared the strategy derived from the linear model with the all-or-none strategy and found that the all-or-none strategy accounted for significantly higher scores on both immediate and delayed posttests. The second experiment compared all three strategies, and found the RTI strategy to be most effective. The paper recommends the formulation of other learning models which would take into account different variables. (RT)

A lengthy and detailed description is given of a computer-based curriculum for initial reading, with emphasis on reading as decoding. The initial curriculum, prepared for a school in Cupertino, California, was closely linked to the three basal reading texts then being used in the district's primary classrooms and was programed as three separate series. A description of the hardware used and of the curriculum structure is given. A major evaluation has not yet been completed, but preliminary results showed gains by students who used the Computer Assisted Instruction (CAI) over those who did not use it and also more gains for boys than for girls in the CAI program. References are included. (NH)

Data suggested that computer instruction benefits both girls and boys, but that it is relatively more effective for boys. (Authors)

A discussion of the computer-assisted instruction program in initial reading at Stanford University. The program consists of eight parts or strands that help the students learn the alphabet, a sight-word vocabulary of 700 words, spelling patterns within words, phonetic structures and comprehension of semantic categories and sentences. (Author)