THE EFFECT OF PROBLEM-SOLVING STRATEGIES IN MATHEMATICS TEACHING ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF CRITICAL AND CREATIVE THINKING
Keywords:
problem-solving strategies, critical thinking, creative thinking, mathematical creativity, computational thinkingAbstract
Problem-solving strategies in mathematics teaching serve not only to answer tasks correctly but also to develop students’ critical and creative thinking. Although the traditional algorithmic approach teaches students to apply ready-made rules, non-routine and contextual problems encourage them to think from different perspectives, formulate hypotheses, and justify their choices. Developing critical thinking requires opportunities for independent decision-making, argumentation, error analysis, and comparison of solution paths. However, mechanical application of strategies may limit creativity; therefore, open-ended tasks, real-life situations, modelling, problem posing, discussion, and multiple representations should be used. Procedural schemes and algorithms should not replace thinking but should support understanding and strategy selection. In the context of vocational secondary education, the article substantiates the pedagogical potential of a balanced problem-solving environment that combines critical evaluation with creative exploration.
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