<![CDATA[Critical and creative thinking are designated as core competencies in the Indonesian curriculum, yet student attainment in both domains remains low, and project-based learning is frequently proposed as a remedy. Existing meta-analyses have synthesised the two skills separately, so it remains unknown whether project-based learning benefits one more than the other. This study estimates the pooled effect of project-based learning on critical and creative thinking within a single meta-analytic model and tests whether the two effects differ. Following PRISMA 2020, searches of OpenAlex and Crossref for open-access publications from 2015 to 2026 identified 194 records, screened down to 15 effect sizes from experimental, quasi-experimental, and one-group pre-experimental studies at the primary and junior secondary levels. Effects were computed as Hedges' g and pooled with a random-effects model estimated by restricted maximum likelihood, followed by moderator, sensitivity, and publication-bias analyses. The pooled effect was large, g = 1.57 (95% CI 1.09 to 2.04), with high heterogeneity (I-squared = 88.0%). Effects on critical thinking (g = 1.70) and creative thinking (g = 1.46) did not differ significantly, Q_M(1) = 0.26, p = .610. The only significant moderator was research design, Q_M(1) = 6.90, p = .009: one-group studies reported effects twice as large (g = 2.56) as controlled studies (g = 1.24). Project-based learning strengthens both thinking skills without favouring either, but reported magnitudes are inflated by weak designs, so the conservative estimate of g = 1.24 is the more defensible benchmark.]]>
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