Since Polya, Wertheimer, and Hadamard's descriptions of qualitative reasoning strategies used by scientists and mathematicians, very little data have been collected on whether these strategies are actually used by experts. This study used video-taped thinking-aloud interviews to examine the problem solving strategies of professors and advanced…

A problem-solving conference used in self-contained classes for behavior disordered high schoolers is intended to provide a structure for handling conflicts and disagreements. Conferences may be called by students or staff members and are designed to produce workable plans of action. The approach develops interdependence, trust, and…

A new way of classifying tasks and problems used in studies with deaf people is presented. It is claimed that this classification system allows for the specification of tasks on which deaf people perform equally well as hearing people and of tasks on which they fail in comparison. (Author)

Fourteen steps are suggested: perceive problem, decode written symbols, formulate general meaning, translate the general message into the mathematical message, determine question(s), gather data, analyze relationships, decide on processes, estimate answers, encode data into mathematical sentences, perform operations, answer questions, and check…

Discusses the nature and role of visualization in the study of mathematics. Also includes a list of seven broad methods (often referred to as the design spectrum) by which individuals solve problems. (JN)

A teacher offers six suggestions for giving students opportunities to exercise their commonsense thinking skills. This allows the teacher to ask rather than tell, listen rather than talk, and allows the children to provide for themselves. (MT)

Impact Problem Solving, an approach to teaching gifted students, concentrates upon relevant skills rather than factual content, and teaches methodology of analyzing and clarifying the nature of problems, collecting the necessary data; thinking of all the possible solutions; and assessing, altering, and testing those suggestions to provide the most…

A step-by-step procedure for teaching students to solve time-lapse problems allows the student to convert what is normally a pure mental process to a systematic paper and pencil activity coupled with a step-by-step thought pattern. (CL)

The steps involved in creative problem solving (CPS) are described, and suggestions are made for incorporating CPS into instruction for gifted and talented students. (CL)

Shows the connections between Sherlock Holmes's investigative methods and mathematical problem solving, including observations, characteristics of the problem solver, importance of data, questioning the obvious, learning from experience, learning from errors, and indirect proof. (MKR)

Presents a design brief to illustrate a simple technique that can be used to teach problem-solving and critical thinking skills. (JOW)

This paper reports the coping strategies characterising self-professed weak copers. In order to do so it examines strategies reported by a subset of a sample of 976 adolescents, as measured by the Adolescent Coping Scale. What is of interest in this investigation are the coping strategies of the most vulnerable adolescent group. Such information…

This report examines the importance and efficacy of oral language, literacy, mathematics, and science preschool curricula and how these curricula can be improved through alignment with research on early childhood development and learning. Detailed, research-driven recommendations are presented for what preschool-aged children should be learning in…

This article focuses on the development and implementation of primary and secondary behavior supports at a schoolwide level. The approach described is consistent with previous efforts to address behavior at a systems level (e.g., G. Sugai, R.H. Horner, & F.M. Gresham, 2002). In this article, we illustrate this process through a school-based…

Introduces the concept of artificial intelligence, discusses where it is currently used, and describes an expert computer system that can be used in the technology laboratory. Included is a learning activity that describes ideas for using intelligent computers as problem-solving tools. (Author/CH)