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Problem Solving as a Basis for Reform in Curriculum and Instruction: The Case of Mathematics

University of Delaware, Newark, DE 19716.

Thomas P Carpenter, Professors of curriculum and instruction and Elizabeth Fennema, Professors of curriculum and instruction

University of Wisconsin-Madison

Karen Fuson, Professor in the School of Education and Social Policy

Northwestern University

Piet Human, Professor of mathematics education, Hanlie Murray, Senior researcher of mathematics education and Alwyn Olivier, Senior researcher of mathematics education

University of Stellenbosch, South Africa

Diana Wearne, Associate professor of educational development

University of Delaware

We argue that reform in curriculum and instruction should be based on allowing students to problematize the subject. Rather than mastering skills and applying them, students should be engaged in resolving problems. In mathematics, this principle fits under the umbrella of problem solving, but our interpretation is different from many problem-solving approaches. We first note that the history of problem solving in the curriculum has been infused with a distinction between acquiring knowledge and applying it. We then propose our alternative principle by building on John Dewey’s idea of "reflective inquiry," argue that such an approach would facilitate students’ understanding, and compare our proposal with other views on the role of problem solving in the curriculum. We close by considering several common dichotomies that take on a different meaning from this perspective

Educational Researcher, Vol. 25, No. 4, 12-21 (1996)
DOI: 10.3102/0013189X025004012


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