Conceptual Cognition and Problem Solving Styles Essay

The article â€Å"Thinking† found in the Northeastern University Website presents insights regarding conceptual cognition and problem solving skills. It claims that although people may have similar concepts, we differ from each other by our conceptual cognition and problem solving styles. To elaborate, the author cites how people define concepts. It shows that people have similar concepts of things especially those perceived by sight. For instance, features including two eyes, four legs, two ears, one tail, barking, sharp teeth, etc., would definitely pertain to a dog. Likewise, a photo of a child smiling is an indication of a happy child, not a sad one. However, there are also some concepts in our society that have changed a bit but not entirely. Although they are modified through time, a certain degree of people’s cognition of the original concept remains the same. Take for example, marriage. In the past, the concept of marriage is limited to a man and a woman, but now the concept allows man to man marriage, so although the concept is altered a bit, the concept of togetherness and commitment still holds truth. Concepts are arranged into hierarchies. For instance, a bedroom is smaller than a house, and a block is smaller than a neighborhood. Applying it in the school context, there are students under one teacher, and there are teachers under one director, etc. Similarly, in the corporate scene, there are subordinates and supervisors. Moreover, concepts are formed by definition and prototype. We learn concepts as the environment define them for us. For instance as children, we were familiarized by our parents with the things in the house, such as a table and a chair. Later on when we went to our neighbor’s, we realized that tables can be in different forms or colors, but the role they play remains the same. Through definition and prototype, we obtain similar concepts of things around us. The issue of cognition is not much of a problem but problem solving styles are. The three methods to solve a problem include: trial and error, algorithms, and heuristics. In trial and error, one is bound to use more effort and time to arrive at the right answer. This method requires several trials and shortcuts, and does not guarantee giving the right answer. The second method is algorithm. An algorithm is a step-by-step procedure usually involving computations. Unlike trial and error, it is methodical and guarantees arriving at the correct answer. However, since it requires a procedure, it is more time consuming than the other. The third method used to solve a problem is heuristics. This method requires â€Å"speculative formulation†¦as a guide in the investigation or solution of a problem.† (Answers.com, n.d.). It posits that the background of the matter, ie religion, society be investigated upon in order to arrive at a conclusion. Although this method is not accurate and does not guarantee a definite answer, it leads to a certain conclusion or information related to the problem. Each of the methods has its own advantages and disadvantages. When combined, the three methods will help one arrive at a valid answer. For instance, when conducting research, it is not enough to present statistics of people experiencing a specific problem. One needs to dwell on observations, surveys, interviews, etc. to obtain a full view of the situation. Applying this to the classroom scenario, students should be taught how to apply and combine the three methods in order to facilitate problem solving tasks. Particularly, when teaching research, teachers should incorporate teaching and application of the three methods so that students will not only have options but arrive at definite and valid conclusions for their study. References Algorithm. Retrieved 5 August 2008, from http://www.answers.com/topic/algorithm Heuristic. Retrieved 5 August 2008, from http://www.answers.com/heuristic