Brazilian Studies Use Hill Cipher and Ethnomathematics to Boost Math Teaching

A study from the Federal Institute of Piracicaba (IFPB) examines the Hill cipher as a teaching tool for high‑school matrix concepts. The researchers designed an Excel spreadsheet that simulates the cipher's encoding and decoding processes, allowing students to visualise operations such as determinants, inverses and linear transformations. The analysis concludes that the cryptographic example contextualises linear algebra, reduces abstraction and supports meaningful learning in the secondary curriculum.

Another dissertation investigates holistic evaluation practices in Youth and Adult Education (EJA) at a public integrated education centre in the Rio de Janeiro metropolitan area. Using an ethnomathematics framework, the qualitative research gathers questionnaires, interviews and field notes from thirteen adult learners and their mathematics teacher. Findings show participants often experience interrupted schooling, social vulnerability and informal‑sector work, yet the combination of ethnomathematics and dialogic assessment broadens their mathematical understanding and validates their cultural knowledge.