Learning from Instructional Television

of schools, by thousands of students, in every part of the United States and in several other countries. Schools and colleges have been able to teach virtually every subject effectively by television. The conclusion is that the average student is likely to learn about as much from a TV class as from ordinary classroom methods; in some cases he will learn more and in some less, but the over-all verdict has been, no significant difference. Pertinent to this conclusion is the evidence presented in two reviews by Kumata (1956, 1960), in the paper by Carpenter (1960), and in the summary of research by Finn (1953). Now that approximately 400 quantitative studies exist in which comparisons of instructional television and classroom teaching have been made, it is time to review that verdict. Do the early conclusions stand up under this massive testing? Under what conditions, for what students, and in what areas of subject matter does instructional television teach best, and in which ones least well? What do teachers and students think of classes by television? What does instructional television do to morale and to motivation?