ABSTRACT
This chapter aims to test the hypothesis that the learning and retention of unfamiliar but meaningful verbal material can be facilitated by the advance introduction of relevant subsuming concepts. This hypothesis is based on the assumption that cognitive structure is hierarchically organised in terms of highly inclusive concepts under which are subsumed less inclusive subconcepts and informational data. There are four types of advance organisers that can be used prior to instruction, namely expository, narrative, skimming, and graphic organisers. The experiment that Ausubel carried out was designed to determine if and how well learners would learn from a 2500-word article about something the learners knew little or nothing about. The chapter deals with the metallurgical properties of carbon steel and the participants were students of educational psychology.
