Once the write-up is finished, do not close your exercise book. There is one last stage — the one that distinguishes those who learn from those who merely hand in.
In brief — Three things to do at the end
- Check the result. Does it make sense? Is it consistent with the data? Substitute the solution back into the equation or into the hypotheses: does everything work out?
- Reflect on the method. What was the key idea? At which point did you understand how to proceed? Is it a move you could reuse in the future?
- Try to extend it. What if you changed a piece of data? What if the rectangle were a square? What if the triangle were not isosceles? Does the result still hold? Which hypothesis is truly necessary?
Links
Topics: Working method
Concepts: Problem solving · Checking the result