THIS STUDY, PART OF A SERIES INVOLVING A VARIETY OF COURSE CONTENT AND TRAINING CONDITIONS, COMPARED PROGRAMED INSTRUCTION WITH CONVENTIONAL INSTRUCTION TO GAIN INFORMATION ABOUT THE GENERAL UTILITY OF PROGRAMED METHODS. THE PERFORMANCE OF 200 NAVY TRAINEES TAKING 26 HOURS OF CONVENTIONAL INSTRUCTION IN ELECTRICAL CALCULATIONS, DIRECT CURRENT CIRCUITS, AND DIRECT CURRENT METERS WAS COMPARED WITH THAT OF 200 TRAINEES TAKING 19 HOURS OF PROGRAMED INSTRUCTION ON THE SAME CONTENT. RESULTS INDICATED THE FOLLOWING--(1) THE BASIC ELECTRONICS STUDENTS LEARNED A RELATIVELY LARGE BLOCK OF PROGRAMED MATERIAL TO ABOUT THE SAME DEGREE BUT IN MUCH LESS TIME THAN WAS REQUIRED BY CONVENTIONAL INSTRUCTION--(2) THE CONSTRUCTED RESPONSE EXAMINATION, PREPARED FOR PROGRAMED INSTRUCTION PURPOSES, WAS SATISFACTORILY RELIABLE--(3) THE CONVENTIONAL AND PROGRAMED INSTRUCTION GROUPS DID NOT DIFFER SIGNIFICANTLY IN PERFORMANCE--(4) THE "90/90 PERFORMANCE LEVEL" OF PROGRAMED MATERIAL DECREASED AS A FUNCTION OF THE AMOUNT OF MATERIAL TESTED AT A GIVEN TIME. (THE DOCUMENT INCLUDES TWO REFERENCES, TABLES AND APPENDIXES, AND A DISTRIBUTION LIST.) (AUTHOR/LY)