Polya's Problem-Solving Methodology
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Who was George Pólya?
Pólya was born in Budapest, Austro-Hungarian Empire, on December 13, 1887 and passed away on
September 7, 1985, in Palo Alto, California, United States, at the short age of 97.
years.
He was a mathematics teacher from 1914 to 1940 at the School
Federal Polytechnic of Zurich in Switzerland from 1940 to 1953
at Stanford University. He remained as a professor
emeritus of Stanford for the rest of his life and career.
He worked on a wide variety of mathematical topics:
series, number theory, analysis
mathematician, geometry, algebra, combinatorics and
probability.
Polya developed a heuristic methodology to be able to
solve or pose any mathematical problem and the
published in a book titled: How to Pose and Solve Problems
How To Solve It? Published in 1965.
This work covers all the steps to be taken in order to carry out or present in a manner
effective any mathematical problem or everyday life issue.
In summary, the author provides us with the methodology with the following steps to
follow
1. Understand the problem:
Determine the unknown, the data, and the conditions
Decide whether those conditions are sufficient, not redundant or contradictory.
The following questions or inquiries are posed:
What is the unknown?
What are the data?
What is the condition?
Is it the sufficient condition to determine the unknown?
Is it insufficient?
Is it redundant?
Is it contradictory?
Generally, this is one of the most complicated stages to overcome since often
being inexperienced, we tried to interpret and express procedures before verifying if
the same can be done in the nature of the problem
2. Conceive a plan:
The procedures to be carried out and strategies for solving the problem are described.
connecting the data and unknown according to the conditions of the problem.
The problem must relate to similar problems.
It must relate to useful results.
It must be determined whether similar problems or their results can be used.
Practically in the work, Polya recommends that we compare the given problem with one
similar in order to be able to use logical reasoning and build knowledge about
what someone else has done.
The following questions are formulated based on the above:
Have you encountered a similar problem?
Have you seen the same problem posed in a different way?
Do you know of a related problem?
Do you know any theorem that could be useful to you?
Could you state the problem in another way?
Could you rephrase it differently again?
3. Execution of the plan:
We will carry out the procedures and strategies that we have planned in the step
previous and observe the results.
During this stage, it is essential to examine all the details.
It is important to emphasize the difference between perceiving that a step is
correct and, on the other hand, demonstrate that a step is correct.
The difference between a problem to solve and a problem to
demonstrate.
The following questions or inquiries are formulated based on the above:
Can you clearly see that the step or steps you are following are correct?
Can you prove it?
Once a plan is well defined, the next step is to execute it and observe the
results. Of course, the time to resolve it is relative as it depends on the
complexity of the problem.
4. Examine the obtained solution:
In this phase of the process, it is very important to stop and observe what was done.
It is necessary to verify the result and the reasoning followed.
The following questions are formulated:
Is the solution correct?
Does your answer meet the requirements set in the problem?
Do you notice an easier solution?
Can you see how to extend your solution to a general case?
It is at this stage where the resolution of a problem leads to a great discovery.
The author points out that in this phase the aim is to extend the solution of a problem to perhaps
something more transcendent: "Can you use this result or the method in another problem?"
References
George Polya (1965). Cómo plantear y resolver problemas [ttulo original: How To Solve It?].
Mexico: Trillas. 215 pp.
Between Sciences: Dialogues in the Knowledge Society, vol. 3, no. 8, pp. 419-420, 2015