The DOI matches its Crossref record; 33 of the 35 references it cites were found in a registry or an index; 1 of the 14 sources its claims cite were checked for support.
The Equivalence of Learning Paths in Early Science Instruction: Effects of Direct Instruction and Discovery Learning
Open accessAbstract
In a study with 112 third- and fourth-grade children, we measured the relative effectiveness of discovery learning and direct instruction at two points in the learning process: (a) during the initial acquisition of the basic cognitive objective (a procedure for designing and interpreting simple, unconfounded experiments) and (b) during the subsequent transfer and application of this basic skill to more diffuse and authentic reasoning associated with the evaluation of science-fair posters. We found not only that many more children learned from direct instruction than from discovery learning, but also that when asked to make broader, richer scientific judgments, the many children who learned about experimental design from direct instruction performed as well as those few children who discovered the method on their own. These results challenge predictions derived from the presumed superiority of discovery approaches in teaching young children basic procedures for early scientific investigations.
Overview
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Verification
Claims the paper makes
7 Own result · 6 No full text of the sources · 6 Own method · 2 Own interpretation · 1 Partly supported · 1 Sources not found · 1 Not checked yet · accuracy not yet measured
The cited sources support only part of this claim — read each source’s verdict below.
In the paper
“When the direct-instruction procedure was adapted from an experimental script to a lesson plan implemented in a classroom setting, mean CVS performance increased from 30% prior to instruction to 96% following instruction (Toth, Klahr, & Chen, 2000).”
§ The Equivalence of Learning Paths in Early Science Instruction Effects of Direct Instruction and Discovery Learning > Abstract
What the sources say
- Partly supportedcites Toth, Klahr, & Chen, 2000 sourceExperimental — accuracy not yet measured
The CVS Performance section reports that mean performance in individual interviews increased from 30% before instruction to 97% after instruction, not 96%. The classroom-worksheet analysis also reports 97% after instruction, but its preinstruction figure is 58%. (LLM, conf=0.90)
plaindirect- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
- Partly supported
A result the paper reports from its own data — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“The results, shown in Table 2, replicated the pattern for the grand poster score: Experts and masters outperformed nonmasters, regardless of the learning paths.”
§ The Equivalence of Learning Paths in Early Science Instruction Effects of Direct Instruction and Discovery Learning > Day 2: Poster Evaluations
plaincorrelational- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
A result the paper reports from its own data — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Table 2 shows that experts, discovery masters, and direct-instruction masters had higher grand poster scores than discovery nonmasters and direct-instruction nonmasters, d 5 0.83.”
§ The Equivalence of Learning Paths in Early Science Instruction Effects of Direct Instruction and Discovery Learning > Day 2: Poster Evaluations
plaincorrelational- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
A result the paper reports from its own data — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Forty of the 52 direct-instruction children (77%) became masters, whereas only 12 of the 52 discovery children (23%) did so, w 2 (1, N 5 104) 5 28.0, p < .0001(with Yates correction).”
§ The Equivalence of Learning Paths in Early Science Instruction Effects of Direct Instruction and Discovery Learning > Day 1: CVS Exploration and Assessment
plaindirectn = 52- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
A result the paper reports from its own data — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Moreover, there were no statistical differences among the grand poster scores for experts, discovery masters, and direct-instruction masters.”
§ The Equivalence of Learning Paths in Early Science Instruction Effects of Direct Instruction and Discovery Learning > Day 2: Poster Evaluations
plain- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
A result the paper reports from its own data — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“We found not only that many more children learned from direct instruction than from discovery learning, but also that when asked to make broader, richer scientific judgments, the many children who learned about experimental design from direct instruction performed as well as those few children who discovered the method on their own.”
- Also stated in: § Day 1: CVS Exploration and Assessment · plain
“direct instruction produced many more masters than did discovery learning.”
- Also stated in: § DISCUSSION · boosted
“these results replicate other studies in which direct instruction was clearly superior to discovery learning in facilitating children's acquisition of CVS”
§ The Equivalence of Learning Paths in Early Science Instruction Effects of Direct Instruction and Discovery Learning > Abstract
boosteddirectn = 112- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
- Also stated in: § Day 1: CVS Exploration and Assessment · plain
In the paper
“Chen and Klahr (1999) demonstrated that direct instruction on CVS led to statistically and educationally significant improvement in children's ability to design simple, unconfounded experiments.”
§ The Equivalence of Learning Paths in Early Science Instruction Effects of Direct Instruction and Discovery Learning > Abstract
What the sources say
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites Chen and Klahr (1999) source
boosteddirect- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Children who became masters via direct instruction were as skilled at evaluating science-fair posters as were discovery-learning masters and experts.”
- Also stated in: § Day 2: Poster Evaluations · plain
“In other words, the grand poster scores of the three groups that achieved high levels of CVS performance via different paths were indistinguishable.”
§ The Equivalence of Learning Paths in Early Science Instruction Effects of Direct Instruction and Discovery Learning > DISCUSSION
plain- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
- Rests on an assumption: The two science-fair posters used in the transfer task are highly imperfect and thus afford wide-ranging evaluations.
- Also stated in: § Day 2: Poster Evaluations · plain
In the paper
“Moreover, students receiving direct instruction were superior to control students on a far-transfer test of experimental design administered 7 months later.”
§ The Equivalence of Learning Paths in Early Science Instruction Effects of Direct Instruction and Discovery Learning > Abstract
What the sources say
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites Chen and Klahr (1999) source
plaindirect- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
A conclusion the paper draws from its own results — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“These results challenge predictions derived from the presumed superiority of discovery approaches in teaching young children basic procedures for early scientific investigations.”
§ The Equivalence of Learning Paths in Early Science Instruction Effects of Direct Instruction and Discovery Learning > Abstract
plainn = 112- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
- It may state two separate claims as one. 6
- Probably not a substantial claim. 9
A result the paper reports from its own data — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“CVS scores for direct-instruction children increased dramatically from exploration to assessment: from 1.0 to 3.1, t(51) 5 10.5, p < .0001,d 5 1.73 (see Fig. 3).Scores for children in the discovery condition also increased, but much less: from 0.6 to 1.5, t(51) 5 5.3, p < .0001,d 5 0.725.”
§ The Equivalence of Learning Paths in Early Science Instruction Effects of Direct Instruction and Discovery Learning > Day 1: CVS Exploration and Assessment
plaindirectn = 104- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
It may state two separate claims as one.
A result the paper reports from its own data — it cites no other source for it, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“The grand poster scores of the two groups who failed to master CVS were also indis-tinguishable, but significantly lower than the scores of the three high-CVS-score groups.”
§ The Equivalence of Learning Paths in Early Science Instruction Effects of Direct Instruction and Discovery Learning > Day 2: Poster Evaluations
plain- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
It may state two separate claims as one.
In the paper
“Finally, most developmental and cognitive theories predict that many of the phenomena associated with discovery learning would make it a relatively ineffective instructional method (Mayer, 2004).”
§ The Equivalence of Learning Paths in Early Science Instruction Effects of Direct Instruction and Discovery Learning > Abstract
What the sources say
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites Mayer, 2004 source
hedgeddirect- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
Probably not a substantial claim.
None of the sources cited for this claim have been checked yet.
In the paper
“Empirical challenges come from studies demonstrating that teacher-centered methods using direct instruction are highly effective (cf.Brophy & Good, 1986;Rosenshine & Stevens, 1986), particularly for teaching multistep procedures that students are unlikely to discover on their own, such as those involved in geometry, algebra, and computer programming (Anderson, Corbett, Koedinger, & Pelletier, 1995”
§ The Equivalence of Learning Paths in Early Science Instruction Effects of Direct Instruction and Discovery Learning > Abstract
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites Brophy & Good, 1986
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
- Not matchedcites Rosenshine & Stevens, 1986
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites Anderson, Corbett, Koedinger, & Pelletier, 1995 source
boosteddirect- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
Probably not a substantial claim.
- Not matched
None of the sources cited for this claim could be matched to a paper in Crossref, so there is nothing to check it against.
In the paper
“CVS mastery is considered a central instructional objective from a wide variety of educational perspectives (DeBoer, 1991;Duschl, 1990;Murnane & Raizen, 1988;National Research Council, 1995).”
§ The Equivalence of Learning Paths in Early Science Instruction Effects of Direct Instruction and Discovery Learning > Abstract
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites DeBoer, 1991
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
- Not matchedcites Duschl, 1990
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
- Not matchedcites Murnane & Raizen, 1988
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
plain- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: fails — The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
Probably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
- Not matched
In the paper
“For children receiving direct instruction, mean performance on CVS increased in the psychology lab from 40% correct prior to instruction to 80% correct following instruction, whereas children in the discoverylearning condition showed no significant improvement.”
§ The Equivalence of Learning Paths in Early Science Instruction Effects of Direct Instruction and Discovery Learning > Abstract
What the sources say
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites Chen and Klahr (1999) source
plaindirect- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
It may state two separate claims as one.
In the paper
“For example, children in discovery situations are more likely than those receiving direct instruction to encounter inconsistent or misleading feedback, to make encoding errors and causal misattributions, and to experience inadequate practice and elaboration.”
§ The Equivalence of Learning Paths in Early Science Instruction Effects of Direct Instruction and Discovery Learning > Abstract
What the sources say
- Not checked — no full text of the sourcecites Mayer, 2004 source
hedgeddirect- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
Probably not a substantial claim. It may state two separate claims as one.
What the paper did — it cites no source for this, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Children from both grades at each school were randomly assigned to either the direct-instruction condition or the discovery-learning condition.”
§ The Equivalence of Learning Paths in Early Science Instruction Effects of Direct Instruction and Discovery Learning > METHOD
plainn = 112- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
Probably not a substantial claim.
What the paper did — it cites no source for this, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“During the assessment phase, the experimenter did not provide any feedback in either condition.”
§ The Equivalence of Learning Paths in Early Science Instruction Effects of Direct Instruction and Discovery Learning > METHOD
plain- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: fails — The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
Probably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
What the paper did — it cites no source for this, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“It is important to note that in our operationalization, the difference between direct instruction and discovery learning does not involve a difference between ''active'' and ''passive'' learning.In both conditions, students were actively engaged in the design of their experiments and the physical manipulation of the apparatus.”
§ The Equivalence of Learning Paths in Early Science Instruction Effects of Direct Instruction and Discovery Learning > METHOD
plain- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
It may state two separate claims as one.
What the paper did — it cites no source for this, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“A different experimenter (blind to training condition) asked all children to evaluate two science-fair posters”
§ The Equivalence of Learning Paths in Early Science Instruction Effects of Direct Instruction and Discovery Learning > METHOD
plain- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
Probably not a substantial claim.
What the paper did — it cites no source for this, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Children's responses were transcribed from audiotape and coded independently by two coders.(There was 83% agreement between coders on what constituted a valid critique.)”
§ The Equivalence of Learning Paths in Early Science Instruction Effects of Direct Instruction and Discovery Learning > METHOD
plain- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: passes — The paper’s conclusions depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
Probably not a substantial claim. It may state two separate claims as one.
What the paper did — it cites no source for this, so there is none to check. The quote shows it is in the paper.
In the paper
“Children were assessed individually, and the order of poster presentation was counterbalanced.”
§ The Equivalence of Learning Paths in Early Science Instruction Effects of Direct Instruction and Discovery Learning > METHOD
plain- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
- Checkable: passes — It can be checked against evidence.
- Load-bearing: fails — The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
- Based: passes — The paper gives a reason why it holds.
Probably not a substantial claim. The paper’s conclusions may not depend on it.
The paper relies on this without support.
The operationalized direct-instruction and discovery-learning conditions adequately represent the two instructional approaches despite the lack of a consistent definition of discovery learning.
“However, at the outset, we faced a difficult definitional problem because nearly 100 years of research (cf.Winch, 1913) had yet to produce a consistent definition of discovery learning.foot_0Therefore, we intentionally magnified the difference between the two instructional treatments in order to provide a strong test of the pathindependent transfer hypothesis.”
The paper relies on this without support.
The two science-fair posters used in the transfer task are highly imperfect and thus afford wide-ranging evaluations.
“An important feature of these posters is that they described highly imperfect experiments, thus affording opportunities for wide-ranging evaluations.”
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
The source backs part of the claim, not all of it — or backs it for a different population, condition or comparison.
In the citing paper
“Discovery learning approaches typically do not have positive academic outcomes when compared with more traditional direct instruction (Klahr, 2004; Mayer, 2004).”
From Montessori education's impact on academic and nonacademic outcomes: A systematic review (2023) · cites this paper as Klahr, 2004
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredThe source backs part of the claim, not all of it — or backs it for a different population, condition or comparison.
In the citing paper
“The work of Klahr and Nigam (2004), discussed earlier, unambiguously demonstrated the advantages of direct instruction in science.”
From Why Minimal Guidance During Instruction Does Not Work: An Analysis of the Failure of Constructivist, Discovery, Problem-Based, Experiential, and Inquiry-Based Teaching (2006) · cites this paper as Klahr & Nigam, 2004
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredThe cited source says what the claim attributes to it.
In the citing paper
“Direct instruction involving considerable guidance, including examples, resulted in vastly more learning than discovery.”
From Why Minimal Guidance During Instruction Does Not Work: An Analysis of the Failure of Constructivist, Discovery, Problem-Based, Experiential, and Inquiry-Based Teaching (2006) · cites this paper as Klahr & Nigam, 2004
The cited source says what the claim attributes to it.
In the citing paper
“Those relatively few students who learned via discovery showed no signs of superior quality of learning.”
From Why Minimal Guidance During Instruction Does Not Work: An Analysis of the Failure of Constructivist, Discovery, Problem-Based, Experiential, and Inquiry-Based Teaching (2006) · cites this paper as Klahr & Nigam, 2004
Citations
Cites
Handbook of research on teaching
Wittrock, M. C. (1986) · Bibliothèque et Archives nationales du Québec (Québec government) · Cited by 10,630
National Science Education Standards
Shea, J. H. (1995) · Journal of Geological Education · doi:10.5408/0022-1368-43.2.102 · Cited by 7,888
Should There Be a Three-Strikes Rule Against Pure Discovery Learning?
Mayer, R. E. (2004) · American Psychologist · doi:10.1037/0003-066x.59.1.14 · Cited by 2,527
Piaget, J. (1976) · Piaget and His School · doi:10.1007/978-3-642-46323-5_2 · Cited by 2,167
Carmichael's Manual of Child Psychology
Sigel, I. E., & Mussen, P. H. (1972) · American Educational Research Journal · doi:10.2307/1161696 · Cited by 2,053
Cognitive Tutors: Lessons Learned
Anderson, J. R., Corbett, A. T., Koedinger, K. R., & Pelletier, R. (1995) · Journal of the Learning Sciences · doi:10.1207/s15327809jls0402_2 · Cited by 1,982
Emerging minds: the process of change in children's thinking
(1997) · Choice Reviews Online · doi:10.5860/choice.34-5984 · Cited by 1,132
Pairwise Multiple Comparison Procedures with Unequal N’s and/or Variances: A Monte Carlo Study
Games, P. A., & Howell, J. F. (1976) · Journal of Educational Statistics · doi:10.3102/10769986001002113 · Cited by 926
All Other Things Being Equal: Acquisition and Transfer of the Control of Variables Strategy
Chen, Z., & Klahr, D. (1999) · Child Development · doi:10.1111/1467-8624.00081 · Cited by 736
Self-citationA history of ideas in science education: implications for practice
(1991) · Choice Reviews Online · doi:10.5860/choice.29-0433 · Cited by 520
Research works printed but not linked: 9
- Duschl R.A., 1990, Restructuring science education
- Klahr D., 2001, Designing for science: Implications from everyday, classroom, and professional settings, 209
- Korpan C.A., 1994, Assessing scientific literacy: A taxonomy for classifying questions and knowledge about scientific research
- Loveless T., 1998, Education policy, 285
- 1995, National Research Council
- Rosenshine B., 1986, Handbook of research on teaching, 376
- 10.1002/(SICI)1098-2736(199601)33:1<101::AID-TEA6>3.0.CO;2-Z · DOI
- Winch W.A., 1913, Inductive versus deductive methods of teaching
- Zimmerman C., 1998, Alberta Journal of Educational Research, 44, 188
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Items 701–800 of 917
24-month-olds use conceptual similarity to solve new problems after a delay
Hayne, H., & Gross, J. (2015) · International Journal of Behavioral Development · doi:10.1177/0165025415579227 · Cited by 2
“…sets of stimuli used in the present experiment is relatively simplistic, on a conceptual level, this analogy is identical to the more complex analogies that can be used by children and adults (Chen, 1999, 2007; Chen & Mo, 2004; Gentner & Medina, 1998; Klahr & Nigam, 2004; Valle & Callanan, 2006).”
ResultProblem-solving in undergraduate mathematics and computer aided assessment
Badger, M. (2013) · University of Birmingham Institutional Research Archive (University of Birmingham) · Cited by 2
Cultural-historical activity theory: A conceptual analysis of curriculum and instruction
Sommerville, C. J. (2005) · Summit (Simon Fraser University) · Cited by 2
Danipog, D. L. (2018) · Minerva Access (University of Melbourne) · Cited by 2
Implementing Universal Design for Learning to Transform Science Education
Fabre-Mitjans, N., & Valverde, G. J. (2026) · Encyclopedia · doi:10.3390/encyclopedia6010024 · Cited by 4
“Open inquiry can overwhelm students, leading to misconceptions or errors in experimentation [63].”
You Only Had to Ask Me Once: Long-term Retention Requires Direct Queries During Learning
Love, B. C., & Sakamoto, Y. (2009) · eScholarship (California Digital Library) · Cited by 2
Westby, C. E. (2018) · Word of Mouth · doi:10.1177/1048395018759556b · Cited by 1
“Others believe that learners do best when they are provided with explicit instructional guidance in which teachers clearly show students what to do and how to do it (e.g., Klahr & Nigam, 2004; Mayer, 2004; Rosenshine, 1986).”
BackgroundDiscovery Learning Effect on Mathemathic Learning
Okwina, D. (2020) · Journal of Asian Multicultural Research for Educational Study · doi:10.47616/jamres.v1i1.12 · Cited by 1
“Klahr & Nigam (2004) argues that discovery learning is a way of teaching that involves students in the process of mental activity through exchange of opinions, with discussions, seminars, reading on their own and trying it themselves, so that children can learn on their own.”
BackgroundUso de Simulação para o Ensino de Estatística Inferencial: o caso do Teorema Central do Limite
Frei, F. (2021) · Revista de Educação Matemática · doi:10.37001/remat25269062v17id491 · Cited by 1
Reuter, T., Weber, A. M., Flottmann, J., et al. (2021) · Journal of Cognitive Education and Psychology · doi:10.1891/jcep-d-20-00002 · Cited by 1
Læreres bruk av spørsmål når elever planlegger et eksperiment
Øyehaug, A. B., Ebbesen, K., Lunde, L., et al. (2023) · Nordic Studies in Science Education · doi:10.5617/nordina.9818 · Cited by 1
Karabulut, H., Gökçe, H., & Kariper, İ. A. (2024) · Innovations in Education and Teaching International · doi:10.1080/14703297.2024.2327833 · Cited by 7
“The importance of discovery learning (Klahr & Nigam, 2004; Pursitasari et al., 2019), students being active in the lesson and learning by doing (Ministry of Education [MoNE], 2018), STEM education (Bybee, 2010; Christensen et al., 2015; Dugger, 2010; Glaroudis et al., 2019; Rao & Dave, 2019;…”
InfluentialJensen, F., Kjærnsli, M., Knain, E., et al. (2024) · Nordic Studies in Science Education · doi:10.5617/nordina.9335 · Cited by 1
Emergent Multiliteracies: Towards an Understanding of the Theory and Pedagogical Practice
Papadopoulos, I. M., & Bisiri, E. (2024) · Έρευνα στην Εκπαίδευση · doi:10.12681/hjre.37458 · Cited by 4
“For instance, mixing baking soda and vinegar to see a chemical reaction encourages children to discuss their observations and draw conclusions (Klahr & Nigam, 2004).”
BackgroundDesigning Feedback for Exploratory Mathematical Activities: A Computational Thinking Perspective
Mumcu, F., Mavrikis, M., Karkalas, S., et al. (2025) · Constructionism Conference Proceedings · doi:10.21240/constr/2025/78.x · Cited by 1
Bridging the Gap in Brazilian Literacy: Kalulu Phonics Provides Gains in 1st Grade Reading
Olalla, C. E. S., Sato, C. M., Valle-Lisboa, J. C., et al. (2025) · Reading Research Quarterly · doi:10.1002/rrq.70044 · Cited by 1
A Remedy against Cognitive Load: Creating Playful Complexity in Activity and Inquiry-Based Learning
Kronsted, C. (2025) · Topoi · doi:10.1007/s11245-025-10307-z · Cited by 2
“…and discovery are inherent biological forms of knowledge, focusing on these forms of knowledge does not teach the student anything new and takes up mental space that the student could have used to process information and build new memory stores (Klahr and Nigam 2004; Kalyuga 2015; Sweller 2018).”
No Evidence for Curiosity‐Driven Information Selection Advantage in Infants’ Novel Word Learning
Bazhydai, M., Wong, M. K. Y., Altmann, E. C., Jones, S. D., & Westermann, G. (2025) · Developmental Science · doi:10.1111/desc.70101 · Cited by 2
“…children in a variety of learning contexts (e.g., Dean and Kuhn 2007; Saylor and Ganea 2018), traditional pedagogical learning environments often ignore children’s natural curiosity, instead highlighting the effects of direct didactic instruction (e.g., in science education; Klahr and Nigam 2004).”
Current obstacles in global STEM education and a possible practical solution to overcome these
Kovács, T., & Hanjra, G. (2025) · Eurasia Journal of Mathematics Science and Technology Education · doi:10.29333/ejmste/17493 · Cited by 1
A Cross-Curricular Approach to the Development of Data Literacy in the Middle Grades
Hooft, M. V. ‘., Swan, K., Cook, D., Stanford, T., Vahey, P., Kratcoski, A., Rafanan, K., & Yarnall, L. (2012) · Middle Grades Research Journal · doi:10.1108/mgrj-09-2012-0003 · Cited by 1
The Impact of Instructional Guidance on Science Learning in Second-Grade Classrooms
Gersib, J. A., Doabler, C. T., Fall, A., et al. (2026) · The Elementary School Journal · doi:10.1086/740636 · Cited by 1
Dziubinski, J. P. (2015) · Research in Post-Compulsory Education · doi:10.1080/13596748.2015.1063276 · Cited by 1
“…despite advocates for direct instructional guidance arguing that there is little room for learners to experiment and that they should be given all the information they need in order to solve problems (Shulman and Keisler 1966; Cronbach and Snow 1977; Sweller 2003; Klahr and Nigam 2004; Mayer 2004).”
BackgroundAn fMRI study exploring cognitive processing during computer-based discovery learning
Dalgarno, B., Kennedy, G. E., & Bennett, S. (2014) · Proceedings of the International Conference on Networked Learning · doi:10.54337/nlc.v9.8975 · Cited by 1
Yidana, M. B., & Lawal, R. A. (2015) · American Journal of Educational Research · Cited by 1
Taş, M. A., & Coşkun, M. K. (2014) · Cukurova University Faculty of Education Journal · doi:10.14812/cufej.2014.002 · Cited by 2
“In a similar vein, Klahr and Nigam (2004) found that students in an explicit teaching group demonstrated more effective learning and made richer scientific judgements.”
BackgroundOn improving educational outcomes for Indigenous Australian students
O’Shea, P., Senadji, B., & Kalyuga, S. (2011) · Cited by 1
Studies Support Rewards, Homework, and Traditional Teaching. Or Do They?
Kohn, A. (2011) · Cited by 1
Estrada, E. D. (2006) · Journal of International Crisis and Risk Communication Research · Cited by 1
Inquiry-based activities using a variety of Pedagogical tools
Smyrnaiou, Z., & Dimitracopoulou, A. (2007) · The Library of Electronic Cyprus Thematic Organized Collections (LYKYTHOS) (University of Cyprus) · Cited by 1
Jiang, Y. (2018) · doi:10.7916/d82z2npw · Cited by 1
“…studies on CVS, students were taught to run controlled trials where only one variable of interest is changed while all other extraneous variables are kept constant, in order to test the effects of the independent variable on a dependent variable (Z. Chen & Klahr, 1999; Klahr & Nigam, 2004).”
BackgroundThe Effectiveness of Inquiry and Computer Based Learning in Remediation of Science Students
Caras, K. (2019) · Digital Commons (Liberty University) · Cited by 1
Addressing Diversity in Indian Science Classrooms
Koul, R. B. (2019) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-981-13-9593-2_7 · Cited by 1
INSTRUCTIONAL SYSTEMS DESIGN (ISD): Theory and Practice in Second Life
Canbek, N. G., Lominadze, T., Manjgaladze, M., et al. (2011) · Turkish Online Journal of Distance Education · Cited by 1
Finding formulas: Does active search facilitate appropriate generalization?
Hallinen, N. R., Sprague, L., Blair, K. P., Adler, R. M., & Newcombe, N. S. (2021) · Cognitive Research Principles and Implications · doi:10.1186/s41235-021-00316-y · Cited by 3
Inquiry-Based Learning in Psychology
Lippmann, M. (2021) · Springer international handbooks of education · doi:10.1007/978-3-030-26248-8_59-2 · Cited by 3
From “Customer” to “Partner”: Approaches to Conceptualization of Student-University Relationships
Maloshonok, N., & Щеглова, И. А. (2022) · University development and administration · doi:10.1007/978-981-16-5852-5_4 · Cited by 1
Inquiry-Based Learning in Psychology
Lippmann, M. (2022) · Springer international handbooks of education · doi:10.1007/978-3-030-26248-8_59-3 · Cited by 2
Tabuzo, A. (2023) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-981-99-5099-7_12 · Cited by 1
Focusing the Search for Creative Outcomes in STEM Education: The Role of Constraints
Tromp, C., & Baer, J. (2024) · Creativity theory and action in education · doi:10.1007/978-3-031-55416-2_2 · Cited by 2
Code Comprehension for Novices with Explicit Instruction
Ribaux, J. (2024) · ACM Conference on International Computing Education Research (ICER) · doi:10.1145/3632621.3671419 · Cited by 1
Liu, K. K., Ye, P., Gan, L., & Wang, X. (2024) · European Early Childhood Education Research Journal · doi:10.1080/1350293x.2024.2427248 · Cited by 1
“Klahr and Nigam (2004), in experiments with third-and fourth-grade children, discovered that more children learned from direct instruction compared to discovery learning.”
Guilmois, C., Rohmer, T., & Popa-Roch, M. (2025) · School Effectiveness and School Improvement · doi:10.1080/09243453.2025.2536485 · Cited by 2
Carbonneau, K. J. (2013) · ProQuest LLC eBooks · Cited by 1
El impacto de la indagación guiada sobre el aprendizaje de la habilidad de diseño experimental
Mauro, F. D., & Furman, M. (2012) · El Servicio de Difusión de la Creación Intelectual (National University of La Plata) · Cited by 1
Investigating the Roles of Assistance in a Digital Storytelling Authoring System
Jumail, J., Rambli, D. R. A., & Sulaiman, S. B. (2011) · Lecture notes in computer science · doi:10.1007/978-3-642-25200-6_20 · Cited by 1
“Supporters of this guided learning or assistance giving position [11], [12], [13] agree that higher assistance example such as direct and tutored condition could lead to better learning results for providing information that child cannot create on their own.”
BackgroundHorpyniuk, P. (2015) · UVic’s Research and Learning Repository (University of Victoria) · Cited by 1
Kuerbis, P. J., Revak, M. D., & 丹波, 哲. (2013) · Journal of Science Education in Japan · doi:10.14935/jssej.37.75 · Cited by 1
Mitchell, T. L. (2017) · ProQuest LLC eBooks · Cited by 1
Propuesta de un marco educativo para una sociedad sostenible
Checa, J. A. S. (2018) · International Journal of New Education · doi:10.24310/ijne1.1.2018.4469 · Cited by 1
The “Mount Your School” Case and the Contribution of Design Thinking in Public Education in Brazil
de Vasconcelos, L. G., & Amoedo, A. (2020) · Smart innovation, systems and technologies · doi:10.1007/978-3-030-55374-6_27 · Cited by 1
New Understandings of Instructional Theory: Finding the Instructional ‘Sweet Spot’
Bentley, B. (2020) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-981-15-6667-7_6 · Cited by 1
Wissiak-Grm, K., & Devetak, I. (2021) · Journal of the Serbian Chemical Society · doi:10.2298/jsc210328071w · Cited by 1
Kopmann, H. (2022) · QfI - Qualifizierung für Inklusion Online-Zeitschrift zur Forschung über Aus- Fort- und Weiterbildung pädagogischer Fachkräfte · doi:10.21248/qfi.75 · Cited by 3
Effects of Guidance on Learning About Ill-defined Problems
An, S., Weigel, E., & Goel, A. K. (2022) · Lecture notes in computer science · doi:10.1007/978-3-031-09680-8_28 · Cited by 1
“In addition to manipulating simulation parameters, adding new components and relationships as we observed in our data likely represents more constructivist learning and discovery learning described in other studies [18][6][20][15].”
BackgroundMethodInquiry-Based Learning in Psychology
Lippmann, M. (2022) · Springer international handbooks of education · doi:10.1007/978-3-030-28745-0_59 · Cited by 1
Effects of Pedagogical Questioning on Singaporean Young Children’s Learning of Novel Categories
Chwee, Y. H. (2023) · Reinvention an International Journal of Undergraduate Research · doi:10.31273/reinvention.v16i2.1220 · Cited by 1
An Investigation into Instructional Support for Data Analysis in High School Science Inquiry
Baker-Lawrence, A. (2000) · doi:10.15760/etd.1534 · Cited by 1
Guest Editorial: Reexamining Inquiry Pedagogy in the Science Classroom
Martin‐Hansen, L. (2011) · The Electronic Journal of Science Education · Cited by 1
Young, L. (2007) · K-State Research Exchange (Kansas State University) · Cited by 1
Bujak, K. R. (2010) · SMARTech Repository (Georgia Institute of Technology) · Cited by 1
Geary, D. C. (2006) · American Journal of Education · doi:10.1086/499000 · Cited by 1
Frasinescu, I. (2018) · Spectrum Research Repository (Concordia University) · Cited by 1
Yu, Y., Landrum, A. R., Bonawitz, E. B., & Shafto, P. (2018) · doi:10.31234/osf.io/7a5f4
Holmes, J. D. (2016) · doi:10.1002/9781118760499.ch5 · Cited by 1
Critical Communities of Practice in Distance American Sign Language Interpreter Education
South, D. (2021) · doi:10.33915/etd.8324 · Cited by 1
Rickels, C. (2022) · doi:10.18297/etd/4015 · Cited by 1
Design Rationale Within Tels Projects to Support Knowledge Integration
Clark, D. B., Varma, K., McElhaney, K. W., & Chiu, J. L. (2008) · Emerald Group Publishing Limited eBooks · doi:10.1108/978-1-60752-942-220251008 · Cited by 1
Développer l'esprit critique par la catégorisation multiple
Scheibling‐Sève, C. (2019) · theses.fr (ABES) · doi:10.70675/05ed011fz5164z41a0zaa07z3f978b0d37a1 · Cited by 1
Courtier, P. (2019) · theses.fr (ABES) · doi:10.70675/42da4bccz458fz4926z892ez2baec0cd1f73 · Cited by 1
Gutkin, J. (2015) · CUNY Academic Works (City University of New York)
de Wilde, E., & Kamphuis, K. O. (2012)
The effects of incorporating technology into the 7th grade science classroom
Kretschmer, K. A. (2012) · Montana State University ScholarWorks (Montana State University)
An investigation into the effects of introducing algebra using a function-based approach
Sterritt, N. (2012) · University of Limerick Institutional Repository (University of Limerick) · doi:10.34961/4446
Small Group Inquiry Science Learning
So, W. M. W. (2011) · SensePublishers eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-94-6091-427-0_7
Jun, Z. (2013) · The HKU Scholars Hub (University of Hong Kong) · doi:10.5353/th_b5177325
Wojtanowski, S. (2011) · University of Minnesota Digital Conservancy (University of Minnesota)
Leren experimenteren op de basisschool: instrueren versus structureren
Egberink, A. (2012)
Building Word and World Knowledge in the Early Years
Neuman, S. B., Pinkham, A. M., & Kaefer, T. (2013) · doi:10.1002/9781118323342.ch15
Feldon, D. F. (2006) · Digital Commons - USU (Utah State University)
Using technology to prepare for future scien tests
Fisher, S. R. (2006) · Holmes Museum Of Anthropology (Wichita State University)
Leren en pedagogische kwaliteit in het studiehuis
Schreuder, P., & van der Werf, G. P. C. (2009) · Bohn Stafleu van Loghum eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-90-313-7977-4_11
When Minimal Guidance Does and Does Not Work: Drill and Kill Makes Discovery Learning a Success
Anderson, J. R., Betts, S., & Brunstein, A. (2018) · Figshare · doi:10.1184/r1/6619157
Making Claims in Papers and Talks
Spellman, B. A., DeLoache, J. S., & Bjork, R. A. (2006) · Cambridge University Press eBooks · doi:10.1017/cbo9780511804632.012
Learner Control, Willingness to Pay and Reservation Wages
Okolo, K. (2014) · Lund University Publications Student Papers (Lund University)
Examining kindergarten teachers' beliefs and practices in science education
Jeong, H. I. (2014) · Texas ScholarWorks (Texas Digital Library)
Kaheru, S. J. M. (2014) · Unisa Institutional Repository (University of South Africa)
The developing psychology of science education
Amsel, E. A., & Johnston, A. (2013) · Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology · doi:10.1016/j.appdev.2013.02.002
Primary school science: implementation of domain-general strategies into teaching didactics
Dejonckheere, P., Keere, K. V. D., Tallir, I., et al. (2013) · The Australian Educational Researcher · doi:10.1007/s13384-013-0119-7
Smith, V. L. (2013) · Digital Commons - University of South Florida (University of South Florida)
Of Birdhouses and Mosaic Cats: Conquering Fears in the Muddle of Inquiry
Starko, A. J. (2011) · LEARNing Landscapes · doi:10.36510/learnland.v4i2.402
“For example, Klahr and Nigam (2004) claim to be comparing direct instruction with inquiry learning.”
BackgroundTECHNIQUES, TACTICS AND STRATEGIES FOR CONCEPTUAL CHANGE IN SCHOOL SCIENCE
Riordan, J. (2014) · Create (Canterbury Christ Church University)
THE IMPACT ON COMPUTATIONAL FLUENCY THROUGH INSTRUCTION IN NUMBER SENSE
Harris, C. (2008) · Holmes Museum Of Anthropology (Wichita State University)
CONCEPTUAL CHALLENGES IN LEARNING OZONE FORMATION FOR COLLEGIATE STUDENTS
Howard, K. E., Chung, S. H., Jobson, B. T., VanReken, T. M., & Brown, S. (2010)
Stimulating Autonomy of FSL Students at Secondary Level Through Inquiry-Based Learning-Mauritius
Curpen, L. (2015) · University of Mauritius Research Journal
Discussing Student Solutions Is Germane for Learning when Providing or Delaying Instruction
Loibl, K., & Rummel, N. (2015) · Education innovation series · doi:10.1007/978-981-287-521-1_13 · Cited by 2
Menekşe, M., & Krause, S. J. (2011)
Metadata
- Authors
- Klahr, D., & Nigam, M.
- Affiliations
- Carnegie Mellon University (US)
- University of Pittsburgh (US)
- Venue
- Psychological Science
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 2004-10
- Volume
- 15
- Issue
- 10
- Pages
- 661-667
- ISSN
- 0956-7976 (ISSN-L)
- 1467-9280
- OpenAlex
- W2139559367
- Cited by
- 977
- References
- 35
- Citations by year
- 2026: 28 · 2025: 31 · 2024: 39 · 2023: 36 · 2022: 41 · 2021: 59 · 2020: 59 · 2019: 45 · 2018: 63 · 2017: 53 · 2016: 64 · 2015: 49 · 2014: 49 · 2013: 50 · 2012: 69
- FWCI
- 115.71
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- doi.org
- Locations
- Psychological Science (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Figshare (submittedVersion)
- KiltHub Repository
- Funders
- Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (R01HD025211)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Education › Science Education and Pedagogy
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Visual and Cognitive Learning Processes
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Developmental and Educational Psychology › Innovative Teaching and Learning Methods
- Keywords
- discovery learning, direct instruction, early childhood science education, elementary school students, experimental design, transfer of learning, scientific reasoning, learning trajectories, teaching effectiveness
- MeSH terms
- Achievement, Child, Female, Humans, Learning, Male, Science, Teaching
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
A language model drew the claims from the paper on 2026-10-11, under version 3 of the claim definition (model deepseek-v4.1-flash, prompt extract-v3).
A second model labelled each claim on 2026-10-11 (model jev-1.13-20260917, definition revision gold-guideline-v0.2).
Cited sources are checked with a language model’s help (gpt-6-sol).
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
