Why is Reasoning and Problem Solving important to teach in modern Primary Education?

‘Problem Solving is when the individual uses their mathematical knowledge and reasoning to close the gap between the givens and the goal’ (Haylock, 2006, pp. 317-318).

Problem Solving is a huge part of life and is a fundamental skill required in all areas of work and general life. It is spoken about a lot during university and throughout many careers. Consequently, I believe it is vital that problem solving, along with reasoning is taught within primary education. Particularly as problem solving is one of the most important aspects of maths (Ernest, 2000).

Cotton (2016) believes that teaching problem solving within primary education has many other benefits besides the obvious skill of being able to solve a problem. Problem solving also builds children’s confidence and independence, develops their collaborative learning and allows children to focus on how learning and maths can be used, giving mathematics more meaning which enthuses and excites them. Giving meaningful contexts to mathematical problems is not only important to motivate children to want to find the answer (Yemm and Endersby, 2005), it is also essential for development and application of knowledge, as meaningful context makes more sense to children and allows them to feel more actively involved in their work (Haylock and Thangata, 2007).

Additionally, giving meaningful contexts to problems may make the problems seem less challenging, as it is more

interesting. According to Cotton (2016), children may find problem solving difficult if they do not speak to others about the problem, not being secure with strategies to solve the problem, or simply not reading the problem carefully. I believe that making the problem more interesting and relatable will help with these issues and make problem solving easier. Another technique to problem solving is using the ‘RUCSAC’ method – Read, Understand, Choose, Solve, Answer and Check. This is seen across many schools and provides support when answering problem solving questions, verified some children from St Nicholas Primary School in Wales and my own brother who attends a primary school in England. These conversations with children from different schools, in different countries, show the widespread use of this method, which is proving to be effective and approved.

Another benefit of problem solving is it allows children to recognise and apply prior knowledge, promoting development of their mathematical skills (Cotton, 2016), however, not only does it extend their mathematical learning, problem solving activities also extend general thinking processes and provide a stimuli for development of many other learning pathways (Hutchinson, 2013) and this is particularly important as it links to the National Literacy and Numeracy Framework. From year 1, all the way up to year 6, the framework states that children should be able to ‘ transfer mathematical skills to a variety of contexts and everyday situations’ and this is a very big part of problem solving, as stated previously.

Solving a problem would not be achievable without reasoning. The Welsh Government (2014) stated that reasoning requires learners to decide on what skills they need to use and apply them, give mathematical explanations for their choices and reflect on their outcome. This process must be supported by teachers and other practitioners for it to be successful. Teachers need to encourage children to try different options, whilst challenging them to think about what needs to be done.

To conclude, I think it is very important that problem solving and reasoning is taught within primary education with the correct support provided by teachers. Wenke et al. (2005, cited in Hutchinson, 2013) argue that problem solving is an activity unrivalled in the extent to which it has shaped our culture, showing how important problem solving is in our modern society, and for these reasons, problem solving is and will continue to be a large focus of primary mathematics.

References

Cotton, T. (2016) Teaching for Mathematical Understanding. London: Routledge.

Ernest, P. (2000) ‘Teaching and Learning Mathematics’, in: Koshy, V., Ernest, P. and Casey, R. Mathematics for Primary Teachers. London: Routledge, pp. 3-20.

Haylock, D. (2006) Mathematics Explained for Primary Teachers. 3^rd edn. London: Sage.

Haylock, D. and Thangata, F. (2007) Key Concepts in Teaching Primary Mathematics. London: Sage.

Hutchinson, N. (2013) ‘Problem Solving’, in: Taylor, K. and Woolley, R. Values and Vision in Primary Education. Maidenhead: Open University Press, pp. 79-90.

Learning Wales. (2014) National Literacy and Numeracy Framework. Available at: http://learning.gov.wales/resources/browse-all/nlnf/framework?component=numeracy&year=6938362_2&selectedYear=col_10&lang=en (Accessed:  18^th March 2018).

Welsh Government. (2014)  What is Numerical Reasoning?. Available at: http://learning.gov.wales/docs/learningwales/publications/140228-what-is-numerical-reasoning-en.pdf (Accessed: 18^th March 2018).

Yemm, C. and Endersby, F. (2005) Maths Problem Solving, Year 5. Dunstable: Brilliant Publications.