Effects of prior knowledge in learning by problem solving

In learning by solving problem, prior knowledge affects the knowledge acquisition in several aspects: the selection of the information to be processed; the way the learner understands the rules and constraints which allow the search in the problem space; the knowledge domain in which the learner could borrow general concepts in order to generalize the problem representation, and to create general problem solving schemata. Some recent researches that challenge the issues about the way a problem should be introduced in order to enhance the knowledge acquisition by problem solving will be presented and discussed.