What are Mathematical Problems?

Emam Hoosain

Agugusta State University

Augusta, GA 30904

Introduction
The importance of problem solving in the K - 12 mathematics curriculum is well

documented. One of the most recent documentations is the Principles and Standards for

School Mathematics (National Council of Teachers of Mathematics [NCTM] 2000). In

this publication, problem solving is listed as one of the five Process Standards. “Problem

solving is an integral part of all mathematics learning, and so it should not be an isolated

part of the mathematics program” (NCTM, 2000, p. 52). Since problem solving has been

accorded such prominence, it is necessary to have an understanding of what a

mathematical problem is. After all, mathematical problems existed since the time of the

ancient civilizations.

Several definitions of 'problem' have been put forward; yet it seems that mathematics

educators are far from agreement on the meaning of this term. Schoenfeld (1992), for

example, thinks that the term 'problem' has had multiple meanings. Mathematics

educators have used several terms to refer to mathematical problems. Some of these are

routine, non-routine; single-step, multi-step, and real-world; textbook, non-textbook. In

some cases, it is clear what is meant by some of these terms; in other cases it is not. In

this article I will examine some definitions of 'mathematical problem'.

Definitions

Bruner (1961) cited the work of Weldon who claimed that one needs to consider

'troubles', 'puzzles', and 'problems' when defining a problem. A 'trouble' is a circumstance

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or situation which makes one upset and uncomfortable. A 'puzzle' has a nice tight form,

clear structure, and a neat solution. A problem is a puzzle placed on top of a trouble.

Funkhouser (1990) referred to this definition as “lighthearted”, and Shulman (1985)

called it his “favorite epigram.” I think Bruner’s citation is interesting.

According to Kantowski (1977), "An individual is faced with a problem when he

encounters a question he cannot answer or a situation he is unable to resolve using the

knowledge immediately available to him. He must then think of a way to use the

information at his disposal to arrive at the goal, the solution of the problem" (p. 163).

The author differentiates between a problem and an exercise. In the case of a problem,

an algorithm which will lead to a solution is unavailable. In an exercise one determines

the algorithm and then does the manipulation. Mervis (1978) defines a problem as "a

question or condition that is difficult to deal with and has not been solved" (p. 27).

Lester (1980) says that "A problem is a situation in which an individual or group is

called upon to perform a task for which there is no readily accessible algorithm which

determines completely the method of solution" (Quoted in Lester, 1980, p. 287 from

Lester, 1978).

Buchanan (1987) defines mathematical problems as "non-routine problems that

required more than ready-to-hand procedures or algorithms in the solution process" (p.

402). McLeod (1988) defines problems as "those tasks where the solution or goal is not

immediately attainable and there is no obvious algorithm for the student to use" (p. 135).

According to Blum and Niss (1991), a problem is a situation which has certain open

questions that "challenge somebody intellectually who is not in immediate possession of

direct methods/procedures/algorithms, etc. sufficient to answer the question" (p. 37).

Thus a problem is relative to the individuals involved; that is, what is a problem for one

person may be an exercise for another. For example, the task 2 + 3 may be a problem for

a pre-schooler but not for a middle-schooler.

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 A common element in the definitions of Kantowski, Lester, Buchanan, McCleod,

and Blum and Niss is that there is no known algorithm to solve a problem. The problem

solver has to design a method of solution.

In Becoming a better problem solver 1 (Ohio Department of Education, 1980), it is

stated that a mathematical problem has four elements:

1. A situation which involves an initial state and a goal state.

2. The situation must involve mathematics.

3. A person must desire a solution.

4. There must be some blockage between the given and desired states (p. 5).

This definition has an affective component (the desire to find a solution) which is absent

in the previous definitions.

Kilpatrick (1985) defines a problem as "a situation in which a goal is to be attained

and a direct route to the goal is blocked" (p. 2). In a similar way, Mayer (1985) claims

that a problem occurs when one is faced with a "given state" and one wants to attain a

"goal state."

The preceding three definitions refer to initial and goal states in a problem situation.

The other definitions do not refer explicitly to goals.

Polya (1985), the father of problem solving, identified two categories of problems:

1. Problems to find, the principal parts of which are the unknown, the data, and

the condition.

2. Problems to prove which comprise a hypothesis and a conclusion.

Blum and Niss (1991) also identified two kinds of mathematical problems. There are

applied mathematical problems in which the situation and question belong to the real-

world (outside of mathematics); and there are pure mathematical problems which are

embedded entirely in mathematics. These appear to be similar to Polya’s categories.

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Teachers’ Conceptions of a Mathematical Problem

Studies have been done into teachers’ conceptions of a problem. For example,

Thompson (1988) found that 5 of the 16 teachers whom she studied conceived a problem

as "the description of a situation involving stated quantities, followed by a question of

some relationship among the quantities whose answer called for the application of one or

more arithmetic operations" (p. 235). The teachers’ responses implied that a problem has

an answer, usually a number, and there is a unique procedure to obtain that answer.

Thompson (1988) found that teachers had varying conceptions of problems. For

example, some teachers gave 'story' or 'word' problems as examples of problem tasks.

Students’ Conceptions of a Mathematical Problem

There were also studies into students’ conceptions of a problem. For example, Frank

(1988) conducted a study with 27 mathematically talented middle school students to

investigate their beliefs about mathematics and how these beliefs influence their problem-

solving practices. She used a questionnaire, interviews and observations. She found that

students believed that mathematical problems must be solvable quickly in a few steps and

that mathematical problems were routine tasks which could be done by the application of

known algorithms. They perceived non-routine problems as "extra credit" tasks.

Students believed that if a problem could not be solved in less than 5 to 10 minutes, either

something was wrong with them or the problem. The goal of doing mathematics was to
obtain "right answers." Students focused entirely on answers which to them were either

completely right or completely wrong.

Spangler (1992) used open-ended questions to assess students' beliefs about

mathematics and found that students do have beliefs about certain aspects of
mathematics. Some of her findings concurred with those of other researchers, e.g., Frank

(1988).

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 Spangler (1992) found that one of the common beliefs among students was that a

mathematical problem has only one correct answer. Students were not prepared to accept

that a problem could have different answers, all being correct. They indicated that they

preferred one method to multiple methods for solving a problem because they did not

have to remember much. Students admitted that they could obtain the correct answer to a

problem without understanding what they were doing. Students rarely checked to see if

their answers made sense in the context of the given problem. They verified their

answers with the teacher or by checking the text and they are not inclined to look for

multiple solutions or to generalize their results.

Mtetwa and Garofalo (1989) identified the following unhealthy beliefs which

students have about mathematics and mathematical problem solving:

1. In mathematical word problems the relative size of numbers is more important

than the relationships between the quantities which they represent. For example,

numbers which are to be subtracted are usually close in size, and numbers which

are to be divided are not close in size and are evenly divisible. They claimed that

teachers and textbooks help to perpetuate these beliefs.

2. Computation problems must be solved by using a step-by-step algorithm. This

is a consequence of the instructional practices of teachers.

3. Mathematics problems have only one correct answer. The consequence of

such a belief is that students fail to recognize/consider/accept other valid and

reasonable answers. They contend that such a belief could develop from textbook

answers and classroom experiences.

There is some degree of consistency between teachers’ and students’ conceptions

of a problem. For example, they believe that a problem has one correct answer which is

usually obtained by a step-by-step procedure.

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Summary

The essence of these definitions is that a problem is a task or experience which is

being encountered by the individual for the very first time and, therefore, there is no

known procedure for handling it. The individual has to design his/her own method of

solution drawing upon the various skills, knowledge, strategies, and so forth, which have

been previously learned. What the individual does in the process of working towards a

solution is referred to as problem solving; so the emphasis is not on the answer but on the

processes involved. From this perspective many routine word problems which appear in

textbooks are mistakenly designated as problems. They are not; they are merely

exercises. A problem is relative to the individual; what may constitute a problem for one

person may not be a problem for another because he/she might have encountered it

before. Teachers and students have similar conceptions of a problem and these

conceptions are sometimes inconsistent with the literature.

REFERENCES

Blum, W. & Niss, M. (1991). Applied mathematical problem solving, modelling,

applications, and links to the other subjects--state, trends and issues in mathematics
instruction. Educational Studies in Mathematics, 22, 37-68.

Bruner, J. (1961). The act of discovery. Harvard Educational Review, 31, 21-32.

Buchanan, N. K. (1987). Factors contributing to mathematical problem-solving

performance: An exploratory study. Educational Studies in Mathematics, 18(4), 399-
415.

Frank, M. L. (1988). Problem solving and mathematical beliefs. Arithmetic Teacher,

35(5), 32-34.

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Funkhouser, C. (1990). Mathematical problem solving: A review of the literature. (ERIC
Document Reproduction Service No. ED 324 217) or SE 051 596.

Kantowski, M. G. (1977). Processes involved in mathematical problem solving.

Journal for Research in Mathematics Education, 8(3), 163-180.

Kilpatrick, J. (1985). A retrospective account of the past twenty-five years of research

on teaching mathematical problem solving. In E. A. Silver (Ed.), Teaching and
learning mathematical problem solving: Multiple research perspectives (pp. 1-15).
Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Lester, F. K. (1980). Research in mathematical problem solving. In R. J. Shumway

(Ed.), Research in mathematics education (pp. 286-323). Reston, VA: NCTM.

Mayer, Richard E. (1985). Implications of cognitive psychology for instruction in

mathematical problem solving. In E. A. Silver (Ed.), Teaching and learning
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McLeod, D. B. (1988). Research on learning and instruction in mathematics: The role of

affect. In E. Fennema, T. P. Carpenter, & S. J. Lamon (Eds.), Integrating research on
teaching and learning mathematics (pp. 60-89). Madison, WI: Wisconsin Center for
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Mervis, D. (1978). Problem solving and the child. School Science and Mathematics, 78,
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Mtetwa, D. & Garofalo, J. (1989). Beliefs about mathematics: An overlooked aspect of

student difficulties. Academic Therapy, 24(5), 611-618.

National Council of Teachers of Mathematics. (2000). Principles and Standards for

School Mathematics. Reston, VA: NCTM.

Ohio Department of Education. (1980). Becoming a better problem solver 1 & 2.

Columbus: Ohio Department of Education.

Polya, G. (1985). How to solve it (2nd ed.). Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.

Schoenfeld, Alan. (1992). Learning to think mathematically: Problem solving,

metacognition, and making sense in mathematics. In D. A. Grouws (Ed.), Handbook
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Shulman, L. S. (1985). On teaching problem solving and solving the problems of

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Spangler, D. A. (1992). Assessing students' beliefs about mathematics. Arithmetic
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Thompson, A. G. (1988). Learning to teach mathematical problem solving: Changes in

teachers' conceptions and beliefs. In R. I. Charles & E. A. Silver (Eds.), The teaching
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