Learning principles / Worked examples and explicit instruction

Worked examples and explicit instruction

Worked examples show a problem solved step by step. Explicit instruction means teaching new material directly, with modeling and guided practice.

Items below are tagged by keyword rules when their title or summary mentions this principle. A tag means the item discusses it, not that the item is good evidence about it.

Tracked items (2)

Level 1: Descriptive or exploratoryProvisional (rules only)

Sensemaking of physics equations: Rationale, conceptualization, and core strategies (opens in new tab)

2026-10-03 · arXiv physics.ed-ph · Study (preprint)

In physics instruction, equations are often treated primarily as tools for obtaining numerical results. Yet physicists also use them to describe dependencies, explain why those dependencies hold, predict what happens in new situations, test expressions against physical knowledge, and explore consequences that are not...

Worked examples and explicit instructionField: Instruction and curriculumField: AssessmentField: Literacy
Why this label for Sensemaking of physics equations: Rationale, conceptualization, and core strateg
  • Level 1: Descriptive or exploratory: provisional rules-only grade, pending grader consensus and review: R5 design: descriptive (F3): Descriptive, qualitative, pilot or deployment study with real participants.
  • Preprint: not peer reviewed; capped at Level 3
  • Worked examples and explicit instruction: matched 'explicit instruction'

Provisional label from fixed rules applied to the collected text; research items are re-graded by our review pipeline. Method

Level 1: Descriptive or exploratoryLearners: Higher-ed studentsOutcome: Learning or achievementPreprintResearcher-made measureSmall or impreciseStudy type: Case study / case series

Self-Explanation Tutor for Active Study of CS1 Worked Examples (opens in new tab)

2026-08-25 · arXiv (back catalog) · Study (preprint)

Worked examples are an important part of introductory programming, but reading their expert explanations is passive. Self explanation, students explaining the problem and its solution to themselves with subgoal level analysis, converts passive reading into an active study of worked example, yet it is hard to scale...

Worked examples and explicit instructionTutoring and personalizationField: Cognitive science and learningField: AssessmentField: Literacy
Why this label for Self-Explanation Tutor for Active Study of CS1 Worked Examples
  • Level 1: Descriptive or exploratory: Consensus level confirmed against the methodology.
  • Review status: Confirmed against the published method (AI-assisted review)
  • Grader A: R5 design ceiling: the course deployment reports student revisions and learning evidence without a stated comparison group.
  • Grader B: R4 mixed study, so only the real-learner arm is graded (the LLM-vs-human-rater arm is T); that arm is a single-group course deployment, so R5 sets Level 1
  • Rule version: METHODOLOGY v0.3, pipeline v1, rules rules-v0.4
  • Worked examples and explicit instruction: matched 'Worked Examples'
  • Tutoring and personalization: matched 'Tutor'

Graded blind by two AI graders against our published method. Confirmed against the published method (AI-assisted review) Method