Research On Problems And Countermeasures In The Cultivation Of Mathematics Problem Solving Ability In High-grade Of Primary School

The concept of "problem solving" was proposed in the 1980 s in the United States.Since then,researchers worldwide have been conducting extensive and deep research on problem solving.At the same time,educators in China are also deeply aware of the importance of cultivating students' problem solving skills in accordance with the development needs of the country,recognizing it as one of the key goals of the current mathematics curriculum.However,because of the impact of exam-oriented education in the practical teaching process,many teachers only pay attention to the procedures and results of problem solving and neglect the cultivation of students' problem solving abilities,which hinders the implementation of the goals and ideas proposed in the new curriculum.Therefore,it is urgent to study the development of mathematical problem solving in primary school mathematics.First,this study surveys and analyzes the literature on mathematical problem solving and mathematics ability cultivation at home and abroad,focusing on the upper grades of primary school.After that,the study summarizes the cultivation of mathematical problem solving abilities in three aspects: concept definition,theoretical foundation,and educational value.Second,teachers and students of Haikou S Primary School participated in the present research study,which seeks to understand the current situation of the cultivation of mathematical problem solving abilities in the upper grades of primary school,using a variety of methods such as questionnaire surveys,interviews,and classroom observations.The result shows that teachers pay more attention to the cultivation of students' abilities to analyze and solve problems in the upper grades of primary school but pay less attention to the cultivation of students' abilities to discover and pose problems.Furthermore,five problems are identified on the basis of data analysis of the current mathematical problem solving abilities in the upper grades of primary school:(1)Superficial understanding of problem solving theories and overemphasis on test scores;(2)Lack of creativity in problem design and active classroom atmosphere for question posing;(3)Unproductive group cooperation and deviational teacher role-playing;(4)Overemphasis on the fixed model for problem solving and lack of training in mathematics reasoning;(5)Lack of cultivation in problem solution validation and the use of reflection on problem solving.The reasons behind the above problems are briefly analyzed.Finally,several proposals are made based on the research findings to address the currentissues in problem solving education:(1)Transforming the role of mathematics teachers and adopting multiple evaluation schemes;(2)Design reai-world situations for problem sloving;(3)Organizing group cooperation and exploration using pedagogically meaningful strategies;(4)Paying more attention to the training of mathematical reasoning;(5)Cultivating a mindset for validation and reflection in problem solving.These focal strategies are expected to enhance the teaching practice.Implications for future research are also presented.