For introductory biology students with low topic-specific prior knowledge, problem-solving-first (PS-I) outperformed instruction-first (I-PS) on a near-transfer test¶
Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · causalr3·q3
Currency · newest study 2025 · checked against its sources 2026-10-20 (automated, 1 of 1 entry) · not reviewed by a person
Subclaims¶
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q3 i? Introductory biology students randomly assigned to PS-I scored significantly higher than I-PS students on the near-transfer post-test, controlling for prior knowledge. → Cheng-Wen He 2025
Evidence¶
Cheng-Wen He 2025¶
Cheng-Wen He, Logan Fiorella, Paula P. Lemons. (2025). Does Instruction-First or Problem-Solving-First Depend on Learners' Prior Knowledge? Educational Psychology Review. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-025-09993-3
q3 · i? · causal · r3
Randomized classroom experiment with 367 introductory biology students assigned to I-PS (n=183) or PS-I (n=184), analyzed with non-parametric Quade ANCOVA controlling for prior knowledge test score. The results indicated that "significantly outperformed the I-PS students" on near transfer, supporting the productive failure hypothesis.
"the PS-I students ( M=6 .34,SD = 4.21 ) significantly outperformed the I-PS students ( M=5 .07,SD = 3.76 ) on the near-transfer test, F(1,365) = 7.18 , p = .008"
Discussion¶
Related Claims¶
- For biochemistry students with relatively higher topic-specific prior knowledge, instruction-first (I-PS) outperformed problem-solving-first (PS-I) on a near-transfer test — reports the opposite
- Order of worked examples and problem solving had no significant effect on application and transfer scores in experimental design or graphing — related
- No significant interaction between condition and pre-test knowledge on learning outcomes in either topic — related
- Productive Failure Improves Conceptual Learning — a broader claim this one bears on
- Example-first conditions outperformed problem-first conditions on an immediate circuit test — related
- In Experiment 2, I-PS students outperformed PS-I students on problem-solving, idea generation, and embedded video quizzes — related
- Prior knowledge strongly predicts post-test application and transfer scores in both topics — related
- In Experiment 1, I-PS students solved the initial problem better but PS-I students learned more from the subsequent instructional video — related
- The relationship between learners' prior knowledge and the optimal instructional sequence may not be straightforward — related
- Case-based learning improves exam performance — related
- Neither instructional sequence produced significant far-transfer effects in either experiment — related
- A biology learning chatbot system had a positive impact on grade 7 students' biology learning achievement in a quasi-experiment — related
- PF students scored significantly higher than DI students on near transfer (butterfly effect problem) — related
- Conceptual feedback significantly reduces the effect of prior knowledge on achievement — related
- DI-PS significantly outperformed PS-DI on the two supplier-reasoning problem-solving criteria (d = .60 and d = .64) — related
Page metadata
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
type |
claim |
id |
ps-i-beats-i-ps-near-transfer-low-prior-knowledge |
title |
For introductory biology students with low topic-specific prior knowledge, problem-solving-first (PS-I) outperformed instruction-first (I-PS) on a near-transfer test |
description |
For introductory biology students with low topic-specific prior knowledge, problem-solving-first (PS-I) outperformed instruction-first (I-PS) on a near-transfer test |
status |
review |
evidence_strength |
moderate |
newest_evidence |
2025 |
source_checked |
2026-10-20 |
generated |
by process:wiki-ingest on 2026-10-19 |
trust |
unverified — no one has confirmed this page's content |
sources |
1 — cheng-wen-he-2025 |
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