The purpose of this investigation is to conduct preliminary research activities with a view to designing a research proposal related to the impact of problem-posing instruction (for teachers) on the teaching and learning process of problem solving (for high school students). A major goal of this study is to explore the feasibility of examining cognitive and affective changes in student problem-solving behavior resulting from teacher in-service training in mathematical problem posing. An in-depth pilot study will be conducted with a small group of six teachers from three different ethnic communities in New Mexico. One teacher in each school will receive instructional treatment in learning to incorporate a problem-posing dimension into activities designed for classroom problem solving. The other teacher in each school will receive no instructional treatment. During the academic year, all six teachers will be expected to conduct instruction on problem solving. Data on student problem- solving behavior will be collected from the classes taught by the six teachers. The investigator will search for cognitive and affective changes in student problem-solving behavior resulting from the instructional treatment. The study will employ a combination of data collection and analysis techniques using: student records maintained by the six teachers, specially developed problem-solving instruments, and interview instruments.
