THE CURRENT DEBATE OVER THE READING SKILLS NECESSARY FOR SCIENCE LEARNING IS DISCUSSED. IN THE PAST, THE TEACHING OF READING WAS BASED ON THESE TWO MAJOR CONSIDERATIONS--THE RECOGNITION OF MEANINGS OF INDIVIDUAL WORDS AND THE ORGANIZATION OF THE WORD STIMULI RECEIVED FROM THE PRINTED PAGE INTO MEANINGFUL PATTERNS. THE RESURGENCE OF THE INVESTIGATION OF THE THEORY AND PRINCIPLES OF LEARNING IS CHARACTERIZED. SOME CURRENT PROBLEMS ARE THAT RESEARCH IN PERCEPTION RELATING TO READING HAS NOT DEALT ADEQUATELY WITH THE INFORMATION EXPLOSION, WITH THE POPULATION SIZE AND TYPE, OR WITH PROBLEMS ARISING FROM MODERN COMMUNICATION. CURRENT ASSUMPTIONS FOR TEACHING ARISING FROM PRIOR RESEARCH ARE PRESENTED. PREDICTIONS CONCERNING THE ROLE OF THE BOOK AND OF ELECTRONICS TECHNOLOGY AND SUGGESTIONS FOR RESEARCH AND STUDY ARE OUTLINED. THIS PAPER WAS PRESENTED AT THE INTERNATIONAL READING ASSOCIATION CONFERENCE (SEATTLE, MAY 4-6, 1967). (BK)