Problem Solving:

Problem:

A thing or a situation that is difficult to understand with or to deal with.

How to solve a problem?

We should look at problem solving as a process with several steps involved that will help you reach the best solution.

Do I Really Need A Problem-Solving Strategy?

No-one had developed complete or adequate problem-solving.

Problem solver's in history of behavioral and learning challenges may not always use good problem-solving skills to manage stressful situations.

Some people use challenging behaviors like talking back, arguing, property destruction, and aggression when presented with challenging tasks or problems.

Others might shut down, check out, or struggle to follow directions when encountering new or unknown situations or problems

So, a method or process or steps to solve a problem, is needed.

The IDEAL Problem-Solving Method is one option to teach people to better approach difficult situations/problems.

IDEAL Problem-Solving Method

In 1984, Bransford and Stein published one of the most popular and well-regarded problem-solving methods.

It’s used both in industry and in education to help various people establish a problem, generate solutions, and move forward quickly and efficiently.

The IDEAL Problem-Solving Method includes:

I – Identify The Problem.(Define your Problem)

There’s no real way to create a solution to a problem unless you first know the scope/depth/boundaries of the problem.

Examples of identifying problems:

• “I have a math exam next week and don’t know how to do the problems.”
• “I can’t access my distance learning tutorial website.”
• “The garbage needs to be taken out, and I can’t find any garbage bags.”
• " I want to find out the total cost of fuel required to travel to a particular destination."
• " I want to calculate the average of two numbers."

D – Define An Outcome(Identify your best possible solution)

The second step in the IDEAL problem-solving process is to define a solution or goal of problem-solving.

Different people can agree that a problem exists but have very different ideas on goals or solutions.

By deciding on an outlined solution first, it can speed up the process of finding out the solutions.

Examples of defining outcomes:

• “I want to do well on my math exam.”
• “I get access to the tutorial website.”
• “The garbage gets taken out before the garbage pickup day tomorrow.”
• "Generalize the solution by realizing that the total cost of fuel depends on how many kilometers to travel, and cost of fuel per liter."
• "To find the average of two numbers add the numbers and divide the result by two."

E – Explore Possible Strategies.(Find out all possible solutions)

Once you have a solution , try to find out other available solutions.

All possible solutions should be on the table during this step.

Examples of possible strategies to solve a problem:

• “I studied the textbook; I ask for math help from a friend of mine; I look up the problems over the internet; I email my teacher.”
• “I called my teacher for the tutorial access; I ask for help from my elder sister; I try to reset my credentials.”
• “I use something else as a garbage bag; I place an online order for garbage bags; I take the garbage out without a bag; I ask a neighbor for a garbage bag; I go shopping for garbage bags.”
• "I searched on internet about the fuel consumption, I asked a travel agent to do it, I asked my friend about it."
• "I searched for answer over the internet, I used a mobile app to do it for me."

A – Anticipate Outcomes & Act(Select the best one and implement it)

Once we generate a list of solutions, the next step in the IDEAL problem-solving model recommends that you review the potential steps and decide which one is the best option to use first.

After evaluating the solutions, the next step is to implement it.

L – Look And Learn(Look back and analyze the solution)

The final step in the IDEAL problem-solving model is to look and learn from an attempt to solve a problem.

Ask questions like “How did that go?” and “What do you think you’ll do differently next time?”

Examples of Look and Learn statements:

• “I didn’t learn the problems from looking at the textbook, but it did help to call a friend. I’ll start there next time.”
• “When I didn’t have access to the tutorial website, resetting my credentials worked.”
• “I ran out of garbage bags because I forgot to put them on the shopping list. I’ll buy an extra box of garbage bags to have them on hand, so I don’t run out next time.”
• "I searched on internet but it worked when i have an active internet coverage I should learn how to find it out myself."
• " I used the mobile app but it provides me with restricted access for 5 numbers only how will I find the average of more than 5 numbers."