It can seem discouraging at times to my students, but when approached with a question I will a lot of times answer with another question. Many times, this will spur the logical thought process needed to solve said problem.
One of the classes I instruct has a power point that talks about the same angle. this design approaches the problem by giving direction on asking general questions first and then narrowing the field to very specific questions to enable them to verify.
yes Wayne, In lab I usually answer questions with questions, I tell my students at the beginning of the course that this is what I am going to do. They usually already know the answer, they don't have enough confidence or simply haven't given the problem enough thought to realize the answer. I do let them know when they have responded correctly, it really boost their confidence when they figure something out for themselves
Anthony,
I really like your analysis on how to develop problem solving skills. The steps you list and how students need to work through them are right on in terms of internalizing how much is know by students and how they can pull this knowledge out. Our educational system operates on more of a dependency model so the students want to make sure they can give the answer they think the instructor wants or what will help them past the next test. Career advancement is dependent on the ability to a thinker and problem solver. The question each student has to answer is "Am I willing to invest in myself the time and effort it takes to be a critical thinker?".
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Rebecca,
This is such a good approach because this is what they will be doing when they are in the workplace. No body there will give them the answers. They are going to have to work through getting the answers themselves based upon their abilities to problem solve.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I support the development of problem solving skills in the students by not giving them the answers. I ask questions to get them to think about the problem form a differnt perspective. I let them tell me what they think is the answer and praise them when they are right. I will rephrase the question if the student answers incorrectly.
Some answers are common sense. If you break down the problem or task at hand your mind can guide you through tuff questions. I ask the student what their conflict is with the question or task is. I tell them I'm not going to answer it for you (unless they truly don’t know) but if it’s something I know we have answered before or done before, I let them think on it. Let's talk about it, stop and think about the question in parts and as a whole. I tell them to repeat the question. Stop half way sometimes, think about it, and then ask it again. I ask them how they would handle this. Most people over think questions and sometimes put too much thought and all they need is the confidence to say or do the answer. Sometimes an orange is just an orange and one plus one is two. If you make the student understand they have the knowledge with-in them, they, in turn will complete more questions on their own and work towards harder ones in the future. They also might become more engaged in class and become the ones who want to answers your questions at hand. The thinkers will be the winners in the end. The followers just listen and follow, never letting their own inner power help them.
Ray,
This is a good way to give them a lot of experience with different outcomes and approaches. These experiences are really going to help them once they are out in the field and have to make decisions on their own.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
Some ways to develop problem solving skills in students is to incorporate essays and short answer questions rather than just multiple choice where they can guess. I really enjoy reading their answers to these types of questions as well as projects and discussions. They have an opportunity to put things in their own words and if they can explain it then they have a greater understanding of the topic. They have to decide which data is relevant, come to their own conclusions on the topic, and not just recopy information that was in the book.
I like to give my students situatuations where there are multiple answers and then help them work out which is the best answer for the situation I put them in
Patrick,
You are asking them to think, explore options and then find solutions and this is a critical part of the problem solving skill development process. Keep up the good work.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
most of the time when a problem arise I ask the students to find a solutions of the problem, by making researches, or swaping products or techniques.. to be able to achieve their goal.
yes, that is a grea way to develop problem solving skills and social skills and many times to suddenly realize when they give examples that they are smarter and more creative problem solvers then they once thought:)
Ben,
This wait time can be some of the most valuable time they invest in their career development. This is a good strategy to use with them and hopefully they will make it a part of their problem solving approach.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
When I have discussions I advise my students to take 3 seconds to think about their answer before answering.
Chanel,
I think this is a good way to encourage the development of problem solving skills. The more we can do this the more engaged our students are going to be.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I believe that it is not always leading them straignt to the answer but asking questions that will lead themselves to the answer. It is a way that gets the student thinking and they coming up with an answer on their own.
Jennifer,
Your last sentence says it all in terms of what the students should take away from a course like yours. They need a wide variety of experiences and exposures that will enable them to develop their critical thinking skills which will help them to become problem solvers.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
I think providing a safe environment for the student to "fail" as well as succeed in problem solving is very important. This way the student is open to critical thinking and finds it OK if they are "off the mark". That gives me the opportunity to lead them in further discussion and promote furhter problem solving. It is much more difficult to assess if the student is not getting the information if they are not partaking in problem solving due to fear of making a mistake. Many great discoveries have been made by making a "mistake"! I encourage "thinking out of the box". They need to practice problem solving to hone their problem solving skills.
Jaye,
I use them a lot in my classes and they really get students involved. They like to work together to come up with solutions and share why their solutions are the best. Great discussions come out of these case studies. I know you are going to like the results you get from using case studies and/or scenarios.
Gary
Gary Meers, Ed.D.
