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Visible Learning™
Visible Learning MetaX™
Version 1.4 – Updated February 2026

Clear goal intentions

Overview

  • Influence: Clear goal intentions
  • Domain: Teaching Strategies
  • Sub-Domain: Learning intentions
  • Potential to Accelerate Student Achievement: Potential to accelerate
  • Influence Definition: When students link clear goal intentions to "implementation intentions"—or plans to overcome expected obstacles—they are more likely to achieve their goals.

Evidence

  • Number of meta-analyses: 5
  • Number of studies: 335
  • Number of students: 62,027
  • Number of effects: 359
  • Weighted mean effect size: 0.52
  • Robustness index: 4

Meta-Analyses

Meta-Analyses
Journal Title Author Article Name Year Published Variable Number of Studies Number of Students Number of Effects Effect Size
Book Marzano, Gaddy, & Dean What Works in Classroom Instruction 2000 Goal specification 53 NA 53 0.97
Book Guler The Effect of Goal Orientation on Student Achievement 2017 Goal orientation 154 61,191 154 0.35
Journal of Applied Psychology Payne, Youngcourt, & Beaubien A meta-analytic examination of the goal orientation nomological net 2007 Learning goals 47 NA 47 0.24
Journal of Special Education Fuchs & Fuchs Curriculum-Based Assessment of Progress Toward Long-Term and Short-Term Goals 1986 Long vs short term goals 18 NA 96 0.64
Advances in Experimental Social Psychology Gollwitzer & Sheeran Implementation Intentions and Goal Achievement: A Meta-Analysis of Effects and Processes 2006 Goal intentions on achievement 63 836 9 0.72
TOTAL/AVERAGE 335 62,027 359 0.58
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