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Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 17, 2026

Problem-Solving Before Instruction (PS-I): A Protocol for Assessment and Intervention in Students with Different Abilities

Problem-Solving Before Instruction (PS-I): A Protocol for Assessment and Intervention in Students with Different Abilities

Published on: September 11, 2021

A test of the testing effect: acquiring problem-solving skills from worked examples.

Tamara van Gog¹, Liesbeth Kester

¹Institute of Psychology, Erasmus University Rotterdam, Rotterdam, The Netherlands. vangog@fsw.eur.nl

Cognitive Science

|November 6, 2012

Summary

Testing after studying worked examples did not improve long-term learning of problem-solving skills. Studying worked examples alone led to better retention than testing, challenging the generalizability of the testing effect in this context.

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Area of Science:

Cognitive science
Educational psychology

Background:

The testing effect, where retrieval practice enhances long-term retention, is a well-established cognitive finding.
Its applicability to complex skills like problem-solving remains underexplored, despite the importance of problem-solving in STEM education.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate whether the testing effect extends to the acquisition of problem-solving skills using worked examples.
To compare the long-term retention of problem-solving skills following study-only versus study-and-test conditions.

Main Methods:

Forty students were divided into two groups: one group studied worked examples (SSSS), and the other studied worked examples followed by solving an isomorphic problem (STST).
Performance was assessed via immediate (5 min) and delayed (1 week) retention tests.

Main Results:

Immediate retention test performance was similar between the SSSS and STST groups.
On the delayed retention test, the SSSS group significantly outperformed the STST group.

Conclusions:

The findings suggest that the testing effect may not apply to learning problem-solving skills from worked examples.
Relying solely on studying worked examples might be more effective for long-term retention of problem-solving abilities than incorporating retrieval practice in this manner.