ETHNOMATHEMATICS, CULTURE AND MEANINGFUL LEARNING: CONTRIBUTIONS TO MATHEMATICS EDUCATION

Abstract

This article aims to analyze the relationships between ethnomathematics, culture, and meaningful learning, highlighting contributions of this perspective to mathematics education. This is a qualitative bibliographic study based on books, scientific articles, and official documents related to ethnomathematics, mathematics education, and schooling. The study draws mainly on the work of Ubiratan D’Ambrosio, Sandra Maria Nascimento de Mattos, and Pedro Carlos Pereira, Saddo Ag Almouloud, and Gabriela dos Santos Barbosa, while also considering the Brazilian National Common Curricular Base (BNCC). The analysis focuses on the relationship between mathematical knowledge and meaning, the appreciation of students’ cultural knowledge, and the contextualization and flexibility of teaching practices. The findings indicate that recognizing knowledge developed within families and communities can bring school mathematics closer to students’ experiences and support more inclusive and meaningful educational practices. The discussion also shows that ethnomathematics can question hierarchies among forms of knowledge and encourage dialogue between academic and cultural knowledge. It is concluded that this perspective offers relevant pedagogical possibilities, although a bibliographic study cannot establish causal relationships between contextualization, student interest, and school retention.