“Dressed up” word problems are related to reality as well. However, in these problems, the reality-related mental activities are much simpler than in modelling problems since the simplified real model is already given from the beginning by the description of the problem.
When constructing such problems, a certain mathematical topic is “dressed up” with
reference to reality, and all the data that are necessary for finding the solution are given in the text (and no other data). So students do not need to make assumptions about missing data or about selecting relevant data while solving such problems. However, it is wellknown (see the survey Blum, 2011) that making assumptions is one of the most relevant cognitive barriers for students when solving modelling problems. The validation of the real result is also much easier since it is mainly limited to checking the mathematical part, and several “modelling loops” are unnecessary here. These characteristic differences in the solution processes make it possible to perceive differences between both kinds of problems both for teachers and for students.