LEARNER PREFERENCES AND ACHIEVEMENT UNDER DIFFERING AMOUNTS OF LEARNER PRACTICE

This study examined the effects of program mode (i.e., a lean program version containing a basic amount of learner practice us. a full mode containing expanded practice) and learner preference (matched or unmat ched)for amount of practice on the achievement, time-in-program, and a ttitudes of university under-graduate students. Subjects completed a 1 0-item Likert-type prequestionnaire to indicate the amount of practice they preferred, then were randomly assigned to either the type of pro gram they preferred or to the opposite type. Subjects who used the ful l version of the instructional program scored significantly higher on the posttest than those who used the lean version. Matching subjects t o their preferred amount of practice did not yield a significant achie vement difference over assigning subjects to their less-preferred amou nt. Subjects preferred the lean version of the program over the full o ne, even though the full version produced better test performance.