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Inductive Teaching and Learning Methods: Definitions, Comparisons, and Research Bases
Author(s) -
Prince Michael J.,
Felder Richard M.
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
journal of engineering education
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.896
H-Index - 108
eISSN - 2168-9830
pISSN - 1069-4730
DOI - 10.1002/j.2168-9830.2006.tb00884.x
Subject(s) - teaching method , mathematics education , computer science , inductive reasoning , discovery learning , deductive method , artificial intelligence , psychology , qualitative research , sociology , social science
Traditional engineering instruction is deductive, beginning with theories and progressing to the applications of those theories. Alternative teaching approaches are more inductive. Topics are introduced by presenting specific observations, case studies or problems, and theories are taught or the students are helped to discover them only after the need to know them has been established. This study reviews several of the most commonly used inductive teaching methods, including inquiry learning, problem‐based learning, project‐based learning, case‐based teaching, discovery learning, and just‐in‐time teaching. The paper defines each method, highlights commonalities and specific differences, and reviews research on the effectiveness of the methods. While the strength of the evidence varies from one method to another, inductive methods are consistently found to be at least equal to, and in general more effective than, traditional deductive methods for achieving a broad range of learning outcomes.