Your ability to quickly and effectivley solve problems will have a great impact on you and your school life / job. Being able to Problem solve is an invaluable skill and one that it is worthwhile sepnding a while mastering.

What exactly is a "problem"
Although some of you may think that you are really good at problem solving (especially the NCO’s), It is in these situations that complaciency can take hold and mistakes are made.

Traditional thoughts about exercises that involve problem solving has created many general misconceptions such as:

• No trial and error attempts or playing around are allowed.
• There is only ever one right way to do a problem.
• You can not change a problem to make it easier.
• Problem solving is a step by step process that always proceeds in a linear and logical manner.

Well that’s all rubbish!

 

So how do we become better problem solvers?
The first step in improving your problem solving abilities is to become aware of the way we solve problems. One of the simplest ways of improving your problem solving skills is to apply the following six steps in your problem solving approach. It is important to realize that these stages are not linear and that expert problem solvers usually bounce back and forth between stages.

1. SWITCH ON:

• If it is a written problem then read the question aloud.
• Mentally prepare yourself to solve the problem and overcome the initial anxiety and panic you may be experiencing. Believe in your ability to solve the problem or in other words "psyche up" . But remember, be confident not cocky.
• Learn to gain confidence in your abilities to solve questions by applying your problem solving techniques frequently.

2. ANALYSE:

• Reread the problem again. Even when time limits are an issue, do not worry about spending a bit of time on rereading. Research has shown that successful problem solvers spend two to three times longer reading an initial problem statement than unsuccessful problem solvers.
• Look for clue words. A simple way to do this is to highlight the key phrases and THE KEY PHRASE on your notes. Cross out unimportant and irrelevant information. It may be helpful to divide the problem statement into smaller parts such as:
  a) The objective, goal, decision to make, or feature.
  b) The situation, condition or context.
  c) The constraints: on the inputs, on the solution and on the process we can use.
  d) The criteria by which we will judge an acceptable answer.
• Analyze the given information and determine what needs to be solved (i.e. understand the problem).
• If you are able, visualize the problem (by constructing a drawing, or model).
• Interpret the problem in light of your own knowledge and experience.
• List the known and unknown variables.
• Use your own style to understand the question. The above are some "optional" activities that you may want perform during this stage. People do not go through this stage the same way. Use your preferences from the above list. Remember that the main goal of this section is to classify the given information into different categories: the goal, the givens, the constraints and the criteria.

3. EXPLORE:

• In this stage you play around with the problem statement, background subject knowledge and experience. Try to discover the real problem without committing to a solution method.
• Identify and make reasonable assumptions within the specified constraints. (especially about unknowns)
• Create mental images and identify the main goal (where possible put the problem in the context of your own experiences and knowledge).
• Estimate a “ballpark” answer prior to proceeding to actually solving the problem.
• Create a series of options or hypothesis of how to solve the problem elaborated more in the plan stage. (brainstorm)
• Ask questions such as "what is the most important information? What am I trying to do? What does the question mean in the grand scheme of things? What is the simplest way of looking at the problem?"
• You must learn to identify issues and define problems carefully. Unsuccessful problem solvers spend most of their time doing while successful problem solvers spend most of their time thinking of what to do. Therefore be very careful and meticulous about defining your goals.

4. PLAN:

• Decide on a strategy and map out steps to be taken.
• Determine a method to monitor your progress.

 

5. CARRY OUT THE PLAN:

• Follow the steps and be careful with all your order of magnitude calculations and signs.
• Be aware that as things progress you may need to re-evaluate your plan and carry out – “On the fly” modifications to steps 2, 3 and 4

6. ASSESS

• Interpret and evaluate the solution. Check your work and compare your answer with your estimate.
• Look back and decide what was done.
• Finally, check to see if you've answered the question asked! Beware that many teams come up with really good solutions to problems and carry them out in all the right ways, but when they re-read the question, they haven’t actually answered the problem they were set.