Page 416 - Istenič Andreja, Gačnik Mateja, Horvat Barbara, Kukanja Gabrijelčič Mojca, Kiswarday Vanja Riccarda, Lebeničnik Maja, Mezgec Maja, Volk Marina. Ur. 2023. Vzgoja in izobraževanje med preteklostjo in prihodnostjo. Koper: Založba Univerze na Primorskem
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onora Doz, Mara Cotič, and Maria Chiara Passolunghi
updating represents the ability to replace outdated and irrelevant informa-
tion with new and correct information. In a recent study, Passolunghi and
colleagues (2022) explored the role of inhibition and updating in solving one-
step and two-step consistent and inconsistent problems in a sample of fourth
and fifth graders. The authors found that inhibition was a significant predic-
tor of performance in both consistent and inconsistent problems, even after
controlling for students’ reading comprehension and intelligence. Indeed, to
successfully solve a word problem one must inhibit all the nontarget and ir-
relevant linguistic and numerical information extrapolated from the text and
retain in memory only the solution-relevant elements. In contrast, solvers’
inability to properly suppress irrelevant information may generate an inade-
quate representation of the problem and therefore reflect a higher number
of errors. Consistent with these findings, Passolunghi and Siegel (2001, 2004)
showed that children with poor problem-solving ability had an impairment
in inhibitory processes. However, findings from Passolunghi et al. (2022) also
showed that in more complex problems (two-step inconsistent problems)
inhibition could lose its relevance in favour of updating abilities. Updating is
a more complex cognitive skill since it involves both inhibition of no longer
relevant information and its substitution with new information. The updat-
ing skills would be particularly important in inconsistent problems where
the mathematical operation evoked by the relational term must be firstly
processed, but then inhibited and replaced with the opposite operation. It
could be therefore speculated that lexical inconsistency and the problem’s
difficulty may increase the demand on the solver’s ability to update and in-
tegrate information in order to create a logical mental representation of the
problem.
Taken together, constructing a coherent mental representation of the sit-
uation described in the problem is the heart of successful problem solving.
If solvers do not sufficiently engage in the cognitive processes when solv-
ing an inconsistent problem (e.g. do not inhibit and update inconsistent lan-
guage) or do not construct a mental representation at all (e.g. rely on the
direct-translation approach), they will most likely solve the word problem in-
correctly (Schumacher and Fuchs 2012).
How to Enhance Children’s Word Problem Solving Skills?
Keyword Strategy
For many decades a very popular method to support children’s problem-
solving abilities has been the keyword strategy (Kwok et al. 2022). This method
helps to link the language in word problems to the mathematical oper-
416
updating represents the ability to replace outdated and irrelevant informa-
tion with new and correct information. In a recent study, Passolunghi and
colleagues (2022) explored the role of inhibition and updating in solving one-
step and two-step consistent and inconsistent problems in a sample of fourth
and fifth graders. The authors found that inhibition was a significant predic-
tor of performance in both consistent and inconsistent problems, even after
controlling for students’ reading comprehension and intelligence. Indeed, to
successfully solve a word problem one must inhibit all the nontarget and ir-
relevant linguistic and numerical information extrapolated from the text and
retain in memory only the solution-relevant elements. In contrast, solvers’
inability to properly suppress irrelevant information may generate an inade-
quate representation of the problem and therefore reflect a higher number
of errors. Consistent with these findings, Passolunghi and Siegel (2001, 2004)
showed that children with poor problem-solving ability had an impairment
in inhibitory processes. However, findings from Passolunghi et al. (2022) also
showed that in more complex problems (two-step inconsistent problems)
inhibition could lose its relevance in favour of updating abilities. Updating is
a more complex cognitive skill since it involves both inhibition of no longer
relevant information and its substitution with new information. The updat-
ing skills would be particularly important in inconsistent problems where
the mathematical operation evoked by the relational term must be firstly
processed, but then inhibited and replaced with the opposite operation. It
could be therefore speculated that lexical inconsistency and the problem’s
difficulty may increase the demand on the solver’s ability to update and in-
tegrate information in order to create a logical mental representation of the
problem.
Taken together, constructing a coherent mental representation of the sit-
uation described in the problem is the heart of successful problem solving.
If solvers do not sufficiently engage in the cognitive processes when solv-
ing an inconsistent problem (e.g. do not inhibit and update inconsistent lan-
guage) or do not construct a mental representation at all (e.g. rely on the
direct-translation approach), they will most likely solve the word problem in-
correctly (Schumacher and Fuchs 2012).
How to Enhance Children’s Word Problem Solving Skills?
Keyword Strategy
For many decades a very popular method to support children’s problem-
solving abilities has been the keyword strategy (Kwok et al. 2022). This method
helps to link the language in word problems to the mathematical oper-
416
