Methods of Developing Creative Thinking through Mathematical Problem-Solving Techniques

This study evaluates various problem-solving methods and their contribution to the development of creative thinking in young schoolchildren and as a specific objective the identification of the most effective methods in the development of creative thinking. Twenty-eight second-grade students participated in the study, which was divided into four groups, depending on the methods used to solve mathematical problems. Each group used different problem-solving techniques to solve mathematical problems: the method of mathematical logic, the method of visual representations, a teamwork method of decomposition and reassembly (used by computer scientists when developing new software), and a teamwork method of solving problems through games. The Torrance test (Technical and Normative Manual) was used to evaluate creative thinking - verbal form A (for testing) and form B (for retesting). After obtaining the scores, they were entered into the SPSS program - Statistical Package for Social Sciences. Results show that the methods used to solve mathematical problems play a significant role in the development of creative thinking in young schoolchildren and that mathematical games have the greatest impact on the development of creative thinking in young schoolchildren.