I have heard that people learn by the following criteria:  20% by
hearing, 40% by seeing and 80% by doing.  Is this correct?  I am
trying to establish the value of using CD-ROM for sales and marketing
purposes.  If these are correct figures, CD-ROM would be an extremely
valuable advertising tool.

Hello.

From Helena College of Technology:
"How Students Learn:
10% of what they read
20% of what they hear
30% of what they see
50% of what they both see and hear
70% of what they say or discuss with others
80% of what they do or experience personally
90% of what they say and do
95% of what they teach
William Glasser as reported in Kagan & Robertson; Cooperative Learning
Co-op Facilitators? Handbook: Kagan Cooperative Learning and James E.
Stice, Engineering Education, Feb 1987, 77:291-96."
http://www.hct.umontana.edu/studentinfo/instructors/graham/common.htm

From "Orientation and Training for Adult Learners":
"Research indicates that 72 hours after a learning experience, adults
tend to remember 10% of what they READ, 20% of what they HEAR, 30% of
what they SEE, 50% of what they both SEE AND HEAR, 70% of what they
SAY OR WRITE, 90% of what they SAY AS THEY DO A THING. When
introducing new concepts, procedures, information, or principles,
encourage participants to talk about what they are doing during and
after practicing the learning."
Source: Merrill Associates:
http://www.merrillassoc.com/Topics/orientationandtraining.html

These articles might also be relevant to your subject matter:

"Addressing Diverse Learning Styles Through the Use of Multimedia"
hosted by University of Illinois:
http://www.vpaa.uillinois.edu/reports_retreats/tid/resources/montgomery.html

"Learning Theory: Applying Kolb's Learning Style Inventory with
Computer Based Training" hosted by chartula.com
http://www.chartula.com/LEARNINGTHEORY.PDF

Also see:
"Maximising Individual Learning" hosted by Argentum:
http://www.ubp.edu.ar/argentum/traducciones/maximazing.html

search terms: learning, visual, auditory, "what they hear", "what they
see", "kolb's learning"

I hope this helps.

This was the answer I was searching for.  Thank you for you for being
so thorough and so prompt.

I had this old saw stuffed down my throat once too often.
It seemed too pat. Research never comes out to such nice, round numbers.

Finally I found an attribution to a research institute in New York state
where the research report was supposed have come from.
I exchanged emails with a lady there
who said she answers questions about this once a week.

She told me no one there has ever found the source of this assertion.
No one at the research institute ever heard of any research to support it.

I have only my memory to go on now.
The email exchange was about four computers back.
I suggest you keep looking. The answer may not be on the internet.
The source that provided the name of the research institute was in a book.

mjv