IMPASSES IN MATHEMATICAL PROBLEM SOLVING: TYPOLOGIES AND RESOLUTION MECHANISMS IN PRODUCTIVE STRUGGLE

Source abstract

ABSTRACT Productive struggle is a cognitive process in which students engage with challenging mathematical tasks, experience a temporary cognitive impasse (the stuck phase), and eventually find a way forward without immediate direct teacher assistance. This study presents a systematic literature review of primary studies on productive struggle published between 2019 and 2026, with particular attention to impasse phases and their resolution mechanisms. Following the PRISMA 2020 protocol, literature was searched across Google Scholar, ERIC, DOAJ, and official journal repositories. Of 76 initially identified articles, 39 studies met the inclusion criteria. Narrative thematic synthesis focused on three areas: 1) the methodological landscape and contextual distribution of research, 2) the typology of impasses and related mathematical task-design features, and 3) teacher facilitation dynamics in impasse resolution. The findings show a dominance of qualitative methods (61.5%), middle school student participants (35.9%), and limited research in culturally contextualized educational settings. The study highlights implications for designing contextualized geometry tasks under Indonesia’s Kurikulum Merdeka, particularly through the integration of ethnomathematics. ABSTRAK Productive struggle merupakan proses kognitif ketika siswa terlibat dalam tugas matematika yang menantang, mengalami kebuntuan kognitif, dan berupaya menemukan jalan keluar tanpa bantuan langsung dari guru. Penelitian ini menyajikan systematic literature review terhadap studi primer mengenai productive struggle yang diterbitkan pada periode 2019–2026, dengan perhatian khusus pada kebuntuan yang dialami siswa dan mekanisme penyelesaiannya. Mengikuti protokol PRISMA 2020, penelusuran literatur dilakukan melalui Google Scholar, ERIC, DOAJ, dan repositori jurnal resmi. Dari 76 artikel yang teridentifikasi pada tahap awal, sebanyak 39 studi memenuhi kriteria inklusi. Sintesis tematik naratif difokuskan pada tiga aspek, yaitu: 1) lanskap metodologis dan distribusi kontekstual penelitian, 2) tipologi kebuntuan dan karakteristik desain tugas matematika yang berkaitan, dan 3) dinamika fasilitasi guru dalam penyelesaian kebuntuan. Hasil menunjukkan dominasi metode kualitatif (61,5%), partisipan siswa sekolah menengah pertama (35,9%), serta masih terbatasnya penelitian dalam konteks pendidikan berbasis budaya. Penelitian ini menyoroti implikasi bagi perancangan tugas geometri kontekstual dalam Kurikulum Merdeka, khususnya melalui integrasi etnomatematika.