REALISTIC MATHEMATICS EDUCATION MODEL TO IMPROVE MATHEMATICAL PROBLEM-SOLVING: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW

Abstract

When modern knowledge enters ethnic minority households in rural China, it collides with entrenched local codes. The kitchen table becomes a charged arena of cognitive negotiation. Using cognitive dissonance theory and constructivist grounded theory, this study draws on interviews and sustained observation in 15 households in southwestern China.Findings trace a three-phase negotiation: first, dissonance is tacitly calibrated; then, interactive strategies emerge—senior authority, practical demonstrations, uneasy compromises; finally, external knowledge is recontextualized, reordering family hierarchies and reshaping learning culture.This work re-specifies dissonance dynamics at the household level, challenging top-down transmission models. Interventions that bypass household dialogue risk failure; effective change must engage with the kitchen table on its own terms