Purpose: The study was conducted to determine the effects ot organizational aids upon concept acquisition and retention of meaningful verbal materials. Two organizational aids, 250 words in length, were developed as specified by Ausubel: one in prose form one in question form, each containing a generalized synopsis of an accompanying 2,500-word learning passage. It was hypothesized that an organizer, placed either before or after the learning passage, would differentially benefit the four treatment groups when compared with control groups on the criterion test. In order to determine the relative function of other classroom variables contributing simultaneously to the learning process, factorial analysis of covariance was chosen as the statistical test tor the experimental design (5 x 2 x 2). Variables under consideration were verbal I.Q. levels, reading comprehension levels, retention levels, and feedback or no feedback
