How can a teacher help Aman who is struggling with complex problems develop…

Concept

Problem-solving is a skill that develops only when the learner does the cognitive work themselves. A constructivist teacher acts as a facilitator and scaffolder: the role is to nurture the learner's own thinking, encourage divergent generation of possible approaches, and create a safe space where trying, erring and revising are part of learning - not to remove the difficulty or supply the result.

Application

Aman is struggling with complex problems. To build his problem-solving ability the teacher should activate his own reasoning rather than do the thinking for him:

• Invite him to brainstorm and generate several possible ideas or strategies, so he learns to explore multiple paths before committing to one.

• Let him test his ideas, make mistakes and refine them - productive struggle is how the skill is internalised.

Encouraging brainstorming and idea generation keeps the thinking with the learner, which is exactly what strengthens problem-solving over time.

Why the others are not the goal

• Telling a learner to abandon a problem removes the very practice that builds the skill and teaches helplessness instead of persistence.

• Discouraging experimentation and risk-taking shuts down the trial-and-revise process through which strategies are discovered.

• Handing over the answers gives a short-term result but transfers none of the reasoning, so the learner remains dependent and the skill never forms.