How to respond to "solve this equation" in a basic algebra class If it's acceptable practice on math.se, I'd like to really only ask this question of math educators as opposed to students or mathematical researchers.  Some researchers will undoubtedly think the whole question is not worthy of consideration, and some students will not understand the issue. But if you really have something to contribute, please do.
Imagine yourself teaching a basic algebra class: maybe to grade schoolers or to high schoolers, or in my case, to adults ages 18 and up in a community college. You will encounter "problems" like the following, where for now I am intentionally leaving out words:
$$2x+3=6-x$$
The "answer" to a question like this somehow communicates that $1$ is the only solution, that $x$ needs to equal $1$, that the solution set is $\{1\}$, or $\{x\mid x=1\}$, etc.
Some of my colleagues feel that if the task was to "solve this equation", that "$x=1$" is not an acceptable final response from a student. They say that "$x=1$" is an "equivalent equation" to the original equation, because it has the same solution set. They say that to "solve this equation", to the exclusion of other ways a student might respond, is to write a set as part of an English statement. They are happy with: "The solution is $1$", "The solution set is $\{1\}$", or "The solution set is $\{x\mid x=1\}$". But they are emphatic that "$x=1$" or "The solution to the equation is that $x=1$" cannot count as appropriate responses. Answers like these don't get full credit on their exams.
This matters because we are creating a library of higher quality online problems (for WeBWorK) and we need to set a standard for how the solutions should be entered. I am opposed to having answer blanks where the student merely enters a number. So for example I am opposed to having something like "The solution is __." appear on screen and the student only fills in the number. This trains the student that those words don't matter; they don't have to write them and they won't generally pay them any attention. We could program the question to understand a whole sentence, but there are too many issues with alternatively worded correct sentences, not to mention poor spelling. Remember, these responses are to be automatically evaluated.
I support making the students have to enter "$x=1$", because it is a whole statement. And if they enter something simpler, like "$1$", it is an easy matter to shoot back an automated message that their response is not the form we are looking for. And I counter the idea that "$x=1$" has to be interpreted as an "equivalent equation" by saying that sometimes "$x=1$" is an assertion (aka an assignment) rather than an equation to solve; I'm asserting that $x$ has to equal $1$ for the equation to be true.
So my question to this community, assuming you support my position, is: can you help me make better arguments for my case? I suppose to stay within math.se guidelines, I will say that I am open to being just plain wrong, and definitive mathematical vocabulary expertise can be used to prove it.
 A: If they are happy with "The solution set is $\{x\mid x=1\}$", they should also be happy with $\{x\mid 2x+3=6-x\}$" which is equivalent. 
If the above $x=1$ answer is not acceptable for some of your collegues, but many students are doing it as I guess it's happening, they should first think about what they did wrong: in this case write a question stating clearly that they want the student performing two tasks. Putting the equation in some canonical form with the variable isolated on the left side, secondly states that they know that the result is a set. Outside pedantic mathematic, the second part is irrelevant, and it is disputable that may even be seen as a secondary goal of the exercise. 
Which student could believe a corrector is so dumb the corrector may ignore that the result is a set ? If The result is say $x = 11$, should the student also state that he is using base 10 arithmetic ? If the base could possibly be binary it could be ambiguous.
A: This question reminds me of how I could be given the exact same word problem in Grade 2 and again in Grade 7.  The difference in getting the same problem is that what is required to justify my answer is wildly different between these grades.  In Grade 2, it is enough to just work out the number that is the right answer that a teacher accepts without challenge while in Grade 7 the same problem requires stating a variable, formulating an equation and solving it, not unlike what you have as a given problem here.  There is something to be said for understanding how to justify an answer which could be a proof, counter-example, or something else to demonstrate an understanding of a concept and its use on some level.
Thus, I'd be tempted to consider what kind of formality are you expecting and would you want to be feeding someone the ideas of how to go through these kinds of problems.  Thus, I'd suggest bringing in Mathematical constructs and setting a bar for what kinds of answers are reasonable.  Otherwise you may run into people that want to claim what may otherwise seem ridiculous.
A: A lot of the previous answers seem to have overlooked the importance of making it clear to the user what format the answer needs to be in. If you just have a blank which will accept only "x=1", a lot of students will correctly solve the equation, enter "1" or {1} as their answer, and become very frustrated when the system doesn't accept it. By attempting to force students to enter an answer in a specific (unspecified) format, you are not only engaging in the same sort of "hyperpedantry" you want to avoid, but also causing a lot of unnecessary frustration. 
After having tutored a lot of students who had to use this sort of online homework system, it is my belief that the best system is one in which the amount of information that the student has to enter is minimal, to ensure that they get credit for correctly solving the equation. Hence I would recommend the text "x=" followed by a blank, which accepts the answer "1". Perhaps even put reminder text which says something like "enter a single number". 
Automated problem checkers are not the best venue for testing pedantic sort of things, e.g. the format of answers (as you describe), whether the student remembers a "+C" in integral calculus, whether the student remembers to include units, etc. They should be used only to assess whether the student can actually solve the problem.
A: To put it bluntly, those of your colleagues who don’t accept ‘$x=1$’ as a solution don’t speak English. That sort of hyperpedantry accomplishes nothing beyond making students think that mathematics is all about invoking the right (incomprehensible) magic formula(s). I’ll go so far as to say that I think it excessive pedantry to object to $x=\frac12\left(1\pm\sqrt5\right)$ as an answer to a question asking for the solution(s) to $x^2-x-1=0$.
It would be another matter if the question were written The solution set is __: that question clearly calls for a set. In that case, however, the script should accept $\{1\}$, $\{x\in\Bbb R:x=1\}$, $\{x:x=1\}$, $[1,1]$, and any other reasonably straightforward variant, but not $x=1$, $1$, or the like.
