A 3-year study with 359 pupils compared individualized reading instruction with basal reading instruction. Twenty-eight first-grade classrooms were paired (individualized and basal), and teachers received prior instruction for working in the experiment. Pupils remained together in their various classes and treatment groups for the 3-year period, but their teachers changed yearly. Data collected included scores on the SRA Primary Mental Abilities Test, the Metropolitan Achievement Test Battery, sociograms, self-concept scales, personal interviews, parent questionnaires, and teacher log books. Results showed that (1) pupils in the individualized group scored significantly higher than did the basal group pupils on eight of 13 standardized achievement tests; (2) the basal group had a greater range of achievement scores than did the individualized group; (3) there were no significant differences between the groups in oral reading ability, in social adjustment, or in attitudes towards reading; (4) children in the individualized group read more than did basal group children in first grade, but this trend was reversed in third grade; and (5) parents of pupils in the individualized group had more positive attitudes toward their children's reading programs than did parents of basal group pupils. Tables and references are included. (VJ)