Productive Failure

In most situations, we tie accomplishment with success: winning, positive outcomes, and finding solutions. But in learning, a key component in achievement is failing.

Productive failure is an idea identified by Manu Kapur, a researcher at the National Institute of Education in Singapore. The philosophy builds on the learning paradox, wherein not arriving at the desired effect is as valuable as prevailing, if not more. This is not the emotional impact, rather, the neurological impact.

Kapur stated that the accepted model of instilling knowledge - giving students structure and guidance early and continuing support until the students can get it on their own - might not be the best way to actually promote learning. Although that model intuitively makes sense, according to Kapur, it's best to let students flounder by themselves without outside help.

Kapur conducted a trial with two groups of students. In one group, students were given a set of problems with full instructional support from teachers on-site. The second group was given the same problems but received no teacher help whatsoever. Instead, the second group of students had to collaborate to find the solutions.

The supported group was able to solve the problems correctly, while the group left to itself was not. But without instructional support, this second group was forced to do deeper dives into the problems by working together. They generated ideas about the nature of the problems and speculated on what potential solutions might look like. They tried to understand the root of the problems and what methods were available to solve them. Multiple solutions, approaches, and angles were investigated that ended up providing a three-dimensional understanding of the problems.

The two groups were then tested on what they had just learned, and the results weren't even close. The group without teacher assistance significantly outperformed the other group. The group that did not solve the problems discovered what Kapur deemed a "hidden efficacy" in failure: they nurtured a deeper understanding of the structure of the problems through group investigation and process.

The second group may not have solved the problem itself, but they learned more about the aspects of the problem. Going forward, when those students encounter a new problem on another test, they were able to use the knowledge they generated through their trial more effectively than the passive recipients of an instructor's expertise.

Consequently, Kapur asserted that the important parts of the second group's process were their miscues, mistakes, and fumbling. When that group made the active effort to learn by themselves, they retained more knowledge needed for future problems.

Three conditions, Kapur said, make productive failure an effective process:

* Choose problems that "challenge but do not frustrate."

* Give learners the chance to explain and elaborate their processes.

* Allow learners to compare and contrast good and bad solutions.

Struggling with something is a positive condition to learning, though it requires discipline and a sense of delayed gratification. This runs counter to our instincts. How can we, so to speak, let failing work for us?

Chances are you'll come across a moment or two of defeat in your process, along with the temptation to give up. You may even sense this before you start, which can lead to crippling anxiety that can hover over your work.

Expect but don't succumb to frustration.

Anticipating frustration in advance is just good planning - but you also have to plan how to deal with it. Sketch out a plan or idea on how to alleviate frustration when it happens - most often, this will be taking a break from the situation to recharge and getting some momentary distance from the problem. Quite often, the mere act of pausing allows for objectivity to seep in, letting you see the hang-up more clearly. But in any case, it will abate the most immediate anxieties you're feeling and give you the chance to approach the issue from a more relaxed frame of mind.

It's a matter of being comfortable with a state of mental discomfort and confusion. This can be akin to juggling ten balls in the air at once and not being sure when you can place them down.

Learning mode is different from results mode, and they have entirely different measures of success. When you want to learn, you are just looking for an increase in knowledge - any increase is successful learning. Reframe your expectations to make the learning as important as the result - more important, if possible.

Explicit and static knowledge, such as facts and dates, don't necessarily benefit from this. They don't need to. But transmitting deep and layered comprehension cannot just be plugged into the brain. It must be manipulated and applied, and failure is inherent in that process. In a way, failures function similarly to the types of quesitons we discussed in an earlier chapter, where they slowly allow you to triangulate knowledge and understanding based on what's not working and what's not true.

In the end, failure acts as a blueprint for our next steps. It is a test run that didn't go as planned and thus allows you to rectify pinpointed matters for the future.

For example, let's say you're planting a vegetable garden, noting the steps and techniques you use along the way, and when it's time to harvest, some of your plants don't come out the way they are supposed to. Is it because you used the wrong soil? Use your resources to find why that soil was wrong and what it needs to look like. Was the failed plant too close to another? Learn techniques for maximizing placement within a small space.

Hidden in all of this is the fact that living to avoid failure, even in just learning, leads to a very different results than someone who actively seeks success. One approach wants to limit exposure and risk, while the other is focused on the end goal no matter the cost. Failure doesn't have to be your friend, but it will be your occasional companion, like it or not. With that in mind, it probably makes more sense to embody the approach that is about taking more risk.