Effect of Learner Characteristics on Instruction with Productive Failure in High School Mathematics

Abstract

Recently, “productive failure,” as an educational approach, has garnered increasing attention in the field of learning science. Studies have demonstrated that productive failure can more effectively foster conceptual knowledge and facilitate knowledge transfer than traditional instructional methods. However, insufficient research has been conducted on the relationship between the effectiveness of productive failure instruction, student engagement, and learner characteristics. This study aimed to elucidate the relationship between the effectiveness of instruction via productive failure, student engagement and attitudes towards mathematics, and students’ beliefs about failure. To fulfill the study objective, we implemented productive failure instruction for 147 first-year high school students. We investigated the impact of attitudes towards mathematics and beliefs about failure on learning outcomes and engagement. The findings reveal a significant positive correlation between confidence in mathematics and the learning effects of productive failure. Furthermore, a significant positive correlation was observed between attitudes towards mathematics, possibility of utilization failure, and engagement in productive failure. The results are discussed considering this study’s limitations and future research directions.