Do you have a problem?

“…when faced with a situation, we start out with some guess.” (Polya 158)

When my father died putting my education in jeopardy, I was left guessing too about the future course of my life. Our family was debt-ridden, my elder brother’s marriage was about to end, and we didn’t have enough income to support the all of us as well as my education. It became increasingly difficult to delve on things other than monetary.

In retrospect, I found that the shift of mental energy from non-monetary to monetary assisted my mind to think mathematically; I was not at that time conversant with the argument that mathematical mind deals with any problem in an organized manner. It was much easier to deal with scarcity of resources than the loss of my father, and to cut down on my expensive whims than suffering the grief of my mother.

Most of us, indeed, are not familiar with the systematic problem-solving techniques. But we do solve most of our problems, not necessarily with a systematic approach, but by hit and trial which is not much different from the way a mathematician works. “Mathematical facts are first guessed and then proved…” (Polya 160).

As for the identification of a problem and, to an extent, the resolution of it, we are driven more by the values that we have inherited. Definition of a problem is modified by the value system.

Several lines of cognitive theory and research point toward the hypothesis that we develop habits and skills of interpretation and meaning construction through a process more usefully conceived of as socialization than instruction. (Resnick 39)

In a comparatively well-off locality, the lack of a good living standard may become a problem that needs some action. Lack of societal activities necessitated by financial constraints may be commented upon in an extrovert social environment (in a school, for instance), forming a perception of a problem in the mind of the person. But if the person works in a local store, where she/he has to deal with customers as per the store’s guidelines, she/he may never perceive it as a situation requiring some correction.

At my school, I had classmates who were more prosperous than me. Their ostentation did affect my self-esteem, and realizing it, I shifted to another with humbler population after high school. The move helped me monetarily as well.

Recognition of a problem, not denial, is a prerequisite to its solution. Identification of social roots of a problem is equally important, as it not only aids in the corrective planning, but also sometimes reassures one that it is a situation that needs to be altered and not necessarily the self.

  

Works Cited

Polya, G. (1954). Mathematics and Plausible Reasoning (Volume 1, Induction and Analogy in Mathematics, Volume 2, Patterns of Plausible Inference). Princeton: Princeton University Press.

Resnick, L. (1989) Treating Mathematics as an Ill-Structured Discipline. In R. Charles & E. Silver (Eds.), The Teaching and Assessing of Mathematical Problem-Solving, pp. 32-60. Reston, VA: National Council of Teachers of Mathematics.