Cognitive Framing: A Case in Problem Posing

We analyse a student's creative expression in problem-posing situations. The findings suggest that a fine but significant difference in creative behaviour at an interval of one year (from 11 to 12 years old) indicates a passage from cognitive variety to small incremental changes, under the constraints of a strong cognitive frame. We found a specialization of the student's creative behaviour in the direction of specific mathematical creativity, a process accompanied by the weakening of the ability to engage spontaneously in intuitive explorations. This conclusion may nuance the phenomenon known in the literature as the 4th grade slump in creative thinking.