Project-Based Learning

Learning Theories that support Discovery Learning

What is Discovery Learning?

Actively engages students in the learning process

Motivates students to participate
Encourages autonomy and independence
Promotes the development of creativity and problem-solving skills
Provides an individualized learning experience.
 History of PBL
PBL started can be dated to the early Greeks but has grown rapidly in the
twentieth-century due to cognitive psychology.
Socrates modeled how to learn through questioning, inquiry, and critical thinking

PBL learning helps to create independent, autonomous students that are

capable of using higher order thinking, investigative skills, and problem-
solving skills in order to learn things on their own. PBL also helps students
experience adult roles and gain confidence in thinking on their own as self-
regulated learners
Teachers go from sages on the stage to facilitators where teachers
present problem situation and have the students investigate it on their
own.

Over the years, considerable research has been devoted to teaching

approaches like PBL such as discovery learning, inquiry learning, and higher-
order thinking.
Main Theorists
Bruner and Discovery Learning (1967)
People construct knowledge based on prior experiences

Dewey and the Problem-Oriented Classroom

Learning is based on experience and driven by interests. Dewey was a firm advocate for
active experiences that prepared students for life after schooling.
"Education is not preparation for life; education is life itself."

Piaget and Cognitive Development theory (1970)

Rejected the notion of repetitive and rote memorization. Instead, he helped explain how
students make meaning from experiences from different ages. This explains why students
build on their knowledge by asking questions, exploring, interacting with peers, and
reflecting on their experiences.

Vygotsky and The Zone of Proximal Development

Rejected Piagets notion that learning is purely social. Instead, a childs cultural
development is two fold on a social level and an individual level. The social level is called
the Zone of Proximal development (ZPD) where learning takes place under the guidance or
collaboration of others. Only under this guidance can learning mature.
Examples of Discovery Learning

Experiments
Exploration
Simulation-based learning
Problem-based learning
Inquiry-based learning
Webquests
Resources
Becoming a Better University Teacher. (n.d.). Retrieved March 12, 2017, from
http://www.ucdoer.ie/index.php/Education_Theory/Constructivism_and_Social_
Constructivism

"Discovery Learning (Bruner)." Retrieved 20 May 2009 fromLearning-Theories.com:

Knowledge Base and Webliography. Website:
http://www.learning-theories.com/discovery-learning-bruner.html.