Supporting Discovery Learning

Armed with a bit of background on theories of learning, I decided to explore how discovery learning, and especially its criticisms, have influenced the design of simulations.  I selected simulations because they are the technology most closely associated with discovery learning.  A lot of teachers use a wide variety of technology, such as probeware and data analysis software, in discovery learning, but much of this technology can just as easily be used for "cookbook" applications in which students are asked to verify information already provided by the teacher or complete an experiment designed by the teacher or a publishing company.  When a simulation is used, it is almost always to have students try and discover the underlying model.

There are a number of scaffolding options that researchers have demonstrated can be effective in supporting discovery learning in simulations.  I found numerous examples of assistance for what could be considered the planning phase of discovery, in which students develop a hypothesis and plan an experiment.  Simple reminders of what makes a good hypothesis or things to keep in mind when planning an experiment can have a significant effect on student learning.  The other scaffolding I saw many examples of was a knowledge base.  In discovery learning, students must build on their prior knowledge in order to develop their own version of the model in the simulation.  Many of the simulations provided a built-in knowledge base which could provide that background when it was needed.  Again, this simple feature resulted in significantly more student learning than the pure discovery condition.  As I select simulations to use in my classroom, these kinds of features will be important to look for.

Many simulations, however, leave out scaffolding in an effort to be as flexible as possible.  This does not mean that my students would not benefit from these sorts of tools.  I could provide similar scaffolding to my students by posing information on a course website to be viewed during a simulation or by leading a class discussion to remind students of key points prior to them working on a simulation.  Many simulations can also be embedded in a webpage, which would allow me to provide supports in the same place where students will access the simulation.  Regardless of the method, the benefits of providing these kinds of scaffolds is clear.