A cultural approach to problem solving

Resumo

For more than 20 years, our research group has been studying why bright, hard-working students often struggle to solve problems they encounter in undergraduate chemistry courses. Our work has spanned the breadth of the sub-disciplines of chemistry, from organic chemistry to physical chemistry. This paper will begin with a review of some of the general conclusions of this work that revolve around the importance of recognizing the difference between routine exercises and novel problems...