AbstractSince the arrival of personal computers in 1977, several adult basic and secondary education (ABSE) researchers and practitioners have sought to examine the efficacy of computer‐assisted instruction (CAI) to teach reading in the ABSE setting. A much smaller number have utilized quasi‐experimental methods to compare an experimental (CAI) group to a group using more traditional instructional methods. Twenty‐one studies from 1979 to the present examined adult reading achievement or a closely related variable such as language arts by comparing CAI and non‐CAI groups of adults functioning at levels ranging from non‐readers to GED test‐takers. This study attempts to review this literature both to examine the current status of CAI research with this population and to provide program planners with information concerning the use of CAI. Despite considerable variability in design sophistication and clarity of reporting, ten of the 21 studies found no statistically significant differences between the two methods, five failed to indicate significance, two showed mixed results on differing assessment measures, three showed significance favoring CAI, and one showed significance favoring traditional methods. One important implication is that CAI is a very useful tool with the undereducated adult, but it is no panacea for the adult basic or secondary education student.