Lesson Plan: Teaching Teenage Students to Problem Solve

You are probably thinking that we do this all the time. What is arithmetic or math about but problem-solving? Solving for x in -16 = x/4 + 2, an equation borrowed from a Khan Academy video, asks the student to first get rid of the extraneous elements, such as 2. This is done by subtracting 2 from both sides of the = sign so that the impact is balanced. This results in -18=x/4. Next, the instructor looks at the 4 on the right side of the equation and multiplies 4 times x/4, which leaves only x. To honor the demands of equations, the -18 also has to be multiplied by 4, which results in -72 = x.

In math class, following these steps or another series of prescribed and proven steps will always bring a correct response. If only life were that easy. The problems humans face in daily life and society generally arrive more nuanced and complex. Yet, too often textbooks, history books, in particular, posit simplistic rationales for why actions were taken in the past, thereby misleading learners by promoting a belief that annuit cœptis (Providence, or God, favors our undertakings — regardless of the result.) is the appropriate axiom for all contingencies.

Unfortunately, when better minds don’t prevail, the impact of a failure to thoughtfully consider can be devastating; witness the false trail of WMA or weapons of mass destruction that…