Sixty-four 8-year-old children were divided into fast and slow learner groups and trained on a tactile simultaneous discrimination task. Selective attention was measured in terms of percentage contact time per trial to the relevant dimension. Inter- and intracouplings per trial were also recorded. A multivariate analysis was carried out to examine the role of component factor scores, obtained from a component curve analysis of both the instrumental responses and percentage touching time per trial, and selected cognitive variables in differentiating between the fast and slow learner groups. Percentage touching time factor scores and a memory factor were found to be significant, but there was not significant differences between the groups in the number of couplings made. The results had implications for theories on the role of cognitive activities involved in human learning. (Author)