Representational pictures relate to better word problem-solving performance only with relatively simple tasks, with the largest effects for first-position-of-the-unknown problems¶
Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · reviewr3·q2
Currency · newest study 2026 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person
Subclaims¶
Reading the evidence codes
q is the design tier, i the impact, n the sample, and the kind with its r
the rigour judged within that kind: what each code means.
This claim: no standardized effect is recorded in observations/ for it yet, so no benchmark reading is possible.
q2 i? Across the reviewed studies, positive effects of representational pictures occurred for relatively simple word problems, and the largest effect sizes came from a study using only first-position-of-the-unknown problems. → Terhi Vessonen 2026
Evidence¶
Terhi Vessonen 2026¶
Terhi Vessonen, Heidi Hellstrand, Pirjo Aunio, Anu Laine. (2026). Pictures in Mathematical Word Problems: A Systematic Review on the Role of Task and Student Characteristics. Educational Psychology Review. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-025-10112-5
q2 · i? · review · r3
Systematic review synthesis of 14 studies of representational pictures in elementary word problems. The review reports that positive effects ranged from g = 0.09 to 2.70 and that "the largest effect sizes for pictures were in a study that utilized word problems that only included the first position of the unknown".
"the largest effect sizes for pictures were in a study that utilized word problems that only included the first position of the unknown and no other task characteristics that would increase tasks' demandingness (Van Lieshout & Xenidou-Dervou, 2018)."
Discussion¶
Learner Variables¶
- Problem Solving — outcome: instruction changes it
Related Claims¶
- Cognitive skills are the most probable student characteristic to modify picture effects: low math performers do better without representational pictures, low reading-comprehension students better with them — related
- Informative pictures relate to poorer word problem-solving performance, with negative effects from g = −1.08 to −0.08 — related
- Representational pictures show consistently null effects for word problems with demanding characteristics such as rational numbers, probabilistic reasoning, or realistic considerations — related
- Decorative pictures show consistently null effects on elementary schoolers' word problem-solving performance regardless of task characteristics — related
- Minor rewording of structurally identical change problems raises children's success from 36% to 55% — related
Page metadata
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
type |
claim |
id |
representational-pictures-help-simple-word-problems |
title |
Representational pictures relate to better word problem-solving performance only with relatively simple tasks, with the largest effects for first-position-of-the-unknown problems |
description |
Representational pictures relate to better word problem-solving performance only with relatively simple tasks, with the largest effects for first-position-of-the-unknown problems |
status |
review |
evidence_strength |
moderate |
newest_evidence |
2026 |
generated |
by process:wiki-ingest on 2026-10-19 |
trust |
unverified — no one has confirmed this page's content |
sources |
1 — terhi-vessonen-2026 |
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