PF design fidelity predicts larger PS-I effects, with four fidelity criteria showing significant subgroup differences¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · quant-synthesis r3 · q4
Currency · newest study 2021 · checked against its sources 2026-10-16 (automated, 1 of 1 entry) · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q4 i? The overall PF fidelity score (percentage of seven criteria implemented) was a significant positive predictor of effect size in meta-regression. → Tanmay Sinha and Manu Kapur 2021

Evidence¶

Tanmay Sinha and Manu Kapur 2021¶

Tanmay Sinha and Manu Kapur. (2021). When Problem Solving Followed by Instruction Works: Evidence for Productive Failure. Review of Educational Research. https://doi.org/10.3102/00346543211019105

q4 · i? · quant-synthesis · r3

Meta-regression within the three-level meta-analytic model on 166 comparisons, using a synthesized PF fidelity score (0–7 criteria as a percentage). The score "was a significant predictor of the effect size (β = 0.0065, p < .001, 95% CI [0.0044, 0.0087])"; the β is unstandardized, so no standardized effect size is reported.

"The overall PF fidelity score (computed as a percentage) was a significant predictor of the effect size (β = 0.0065, p < .001, 95% CI [0.0044, 0.0087])."

Studies bearing on this claim¶

Which features of the attempt and of the instruction after it, and how much time, go with a larger advantage for attempting first? This table gathers the studies behind this claim and the 6 narrower claims that bear on it: 5 distinct studies (2 causal, 1 quant-synthesis, 1 review, 1 theoretical), q3–q4, 1 of 5 with an effect size coded. One row per study, codes as each entry records them; no effect is averaged and no verdict is drawn. Built by scripts/synthesize_claim.py from eval/synthesis/; a row that looks wrong is fixed on the claim it comes from.

Discussion¶

Related Claims¶

• Productive Failure Improves Conceptual Learning — the general claim this finding bears on, with the studies behind it
• For domain-general skills, one meta-analysis finds a negligible effect (g = −0.17) in favour of I-PS over PS-I — related
• In one meta-regression, the PS-I fidelity benefit tended to shrink for interventions spanning only a few hours, a marginal interaction (p = .055) — related
• Practice-problem performance favored PS-I overall, but the advantage was concentrated on the first two worksheets (d = 0.52) — related
• Productive failure before instruction outperforms instruction followed by problem-solving — related
• Emotion dynamics during problem-solving predict learning outcomes in a manner that depends on scaffolding design — related
• The manipulation worked as intended: I-PS students largely succeeded on the problem-solving sheets while PS-I students largely failed — related