Productive Failure

Praise for Productive Failure

“Productive Failure perfectly defines the power and science of learning from failure; a must-read for anyone looking to transform their game, not just in sport, but in all walks of life.”

—Kapil Dev, India’s first Cricket World Cup Winning Captain

“This book reveals the transformative power of Productive Failure through compelling narratives, insightful research, and practical strategies. Manur Kapur shows how embracing failure is a critical tool for progress, innovation, resilience, and triumph.”

—​John Hattie, Melbourne Laureate Professor Emeritus, Chief Academic Advisor, Corwin, technical advisor to i-Ready Assessment, and co-director of Hattie Family Foundation

“It’s a truism these days that you have to fail to succeed. To learn from failure, we need a wise guide like Dr. Manu Kapur, who shows us that failure is the secret recipe of success. With his expert guidance, Dr. Kapur demonstrates how to fail productively in ways that move you forward instead of setting you back. Grounded in solid research and filled with practical advice, Productive Failure is a pleasure to read.”

—Dr. Keith Sawyer, professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and author of Learning to See: Inside the World’s Leading Art and Design Schools​

“A stunning book that goes to the heart of deep learning, both in theory and in practice. An eye opener about powerful ways to achieve mastery learning through exploration and conceptual play. This, for me, goes to the heart of how I learned as a kid. I was also fortunate enough to be mentored and challenged within this approach throughout most of my formal education. I was totally entranced on reading this incredibly mind shaping book both as a teacher and then later, as a research director. A must read for everyone interested in learning and growth!”

—John Seely Brown, former chief scientist, Xerox Corporation, and director, Xerox PARC (Palo Alto Research Center), author, and learning innovation guru

“At a time when there is concern regarding the quality of outcomes in education, fresh approaches to learning and teaching are much needed. Productive Failure brings new and applicable thinking to values first espoused by Socrates, relating to the importance of failure in our learning journeys. Manu Kapur’s timely research, detailed in this captivating book, encourages us to design for failure, to start with the problem rather than being fed the solution. It is affirming to all of us who have experienced failure and have thereby grown stronger.”

—Sue Cunningham, President and CEO, Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE)

“An accessible mix of science and practice, Manu Kapur’s carefully crafted argument about the value of Productive Failure is relevant in two important ways. First and foremost, it concretizes a fundamental human truth: deep learning and meaning making require engaged struggle with the issue at hand—a struggle that is immensely enriched by embracing failure. And beyond its universal educational implications, the book is also of special relevance today, when in all fields, the promise of generative AI could easily lure us into thinking that we now have tools to skip the struggling phase.”

—Etienne Wenger-Trayner, social learning theorist at Social Learning Lab, Sesimbra and author of Communities of Practice

“This book speaks to me variously as a leader, civil engineer, academic, researcher, educator, sportswoman, volunteer, fundraiser that we learn considerably more from our failures than our successes. Manu makes it truly productive and impactful, in stimulating deep learning and understanding, and in promoting critical thinking.  It has universal appeal. It is life-changing. I wish I had known much more, and earlier, in my career!”

—Professor Dame Sarah Springman, FREng, former rector, ETH Zurich, principal, St Hilda’s College, Oxford