AS PART OF A PROJECT TO IMPROVE PROGRAMED INSTRUCTION BY GIVING THE STUDENT MORE FREEDOM OF CHOICE AND RESPONSBILITY FOR LEARNING, THIS FIELD-TYPE EXPERIMENT EXPOSED 178 STUDENTS IN 7 GRADE 5 AND 6 CLASSES TO LINEAR (L), AND SELF-DIRECTED (SD) PROGRAMS, AND NO-PROGRAM (NP) INSTRUCTION IN GEOGRAPHY. (SELF-DIRECTION ALLOWS THE STUDENT MAXIMUM FREEDOM IN SEQUENCE, EXTENT, AND METHOD OF STUDY.) ALSO VARIED IN THE DESIGN WAS A LIST OF PREMOTIVATING QUESTIONS GIVEN 2 CLASSES BEFORE THEY BEGAN THE PROGRAMS. STUDENTS IN BOTH L AND SD GROUPS REPORTED LITTLE DIFFERENCE IN ACTUAL STUDY PROCEDURES, THUS EXPLAINING A RESULT OF NO DIFFERENCES IN EFFECTIVENESS OF THE 2 PROGRAMS ON THE CRITERION ACHIEVEMENT TEST, AND IN MEAN STUDY TIME. THE PREMOTIVATING QUESTIONS HAD A NEGATIVE EFFECT, AND TEACHERS REPORTED A NEED FOR MORE VARIETY IN STUDY ACTIVITY, IN REFERENCE TO THE NP GROUP. THE AUTHORS POINT OUT THAT GIVING STUDENTS FREEDOM TO USE PROGRAMED MATERIALS IN ANY WAY THEY PLEASED DID NOT DETRACT FROM LEARNING. (LH)