A teacher wants to improve the problem-solving skills of her students. Which…
2016
A teacher wants to improve the problem-solving skills of her students. Which of the following approaches would be most effective?
- A.
Demonstrating the solution to all types of problems
- B.
Giving them a variety of problems to solve and encouraging reflection
- C.
Asking them to memorize the steps for solving standard problems
- D.
Allowing them to use trial and error without guidance
Attempted by 15 students.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: B
Key idea: students develop problem-solving skills by actively working on varied problems and reflecting on the strategies they use.
Provide a variety of problems that differ in context and complexity to build flexible thinking and transfer of strategies.
Encourage reflection so students evaluate which approaches worked, why they worked, and how to adjust strategies for new problems.
Why some other approaches are less effective: simply demonstrating solutions or asking students to memorize steps promotes passive or rote learning and does not build adaptability; allowing trial and error without guidance can lead to inefficient practice and reinforce misconceptions.
Practical implementation: model strategies briefly, then provide guided practice with varied problem sets, timely feedback, and prompts for reflection (such as explaining reasoning or comparing approaches).