Incorporating critical thinking and English as a medium of instruction for elementary school students
Abstract
Incorporating critical thinking and English as a medium of instruction for elementary school students
This case study aims to find out how teachers of the International Class Program at an elementary school in Malang incorporated critical thinking (CT) pedagogy in teaching subjects with English as a Medium of Instruction. Eighteen teachers filled in an online questionnaire, and two of them were interviewed. Analysis of one pre-recorded video for English class (lasted for 13 minutes) and one video of Math class delivered through Zoom meeting (lasted for 29 minutes) was done to investigate how teachers triggered students’ thinking in the classroom practice. Also, an analysis of three lesson plans was done to dig further information about teachers’ teaching practices. The findings indicated that the teachers have practical knowledge of CT pedagogy from reading and workshops that were not necessarily focused on CT. Textbooks were mainly used to guide the teachers’ teaching, supported by audio-visual media. Questions primarily were used to trigger students’ higher-order thinking by connecting the texts with the students’ experiences in real life. Despite the implicit policy of CT, the teachers have implemented CT strategies in the International Class Program. Overall, the teachers have played as more knowledgeable others that facilitated the students’ learning to think critically. However, they were not confident whether the teaching material they were developed supported CT pedagogy implementation. Thus, the study findings revealed their need for supervisors to evaluate the content of teaching material and practical guidance to conduct thinking routines for the young learners in the subjects with English as a medium of instruction.
Keywords: pedagogy, critical thinking, elementary school, case study, Indonesia
Menggabungkan berpikir kritis dan bahasa Inggris sebagai bahasa pengantar pembelajaran bagi siswa sekolah dasar
Studi kasus ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui bagaimana guru Program Kelas Internasional di sebuah sekolah dasar di Malang memasukkan pedagogi berpikir kritis dalam mengajar mata pelajaran dengan bahasa Inggris sebagai bahasa pengantar pembelajaran. Delapan belas guru mengisi kuesioner online dan dua dari mereka diwawancarai. Analisis satu video yang dipersiapkan guru untuk kelas bahasa Inggris (durasi 13 menit) dan satu video kelas Matematika yang disampaikan melalui Zoom meeting (durasi 29 menit) dilakukan untuk memeriksa bagaimana guru memicu pemikiran siswa di kelas. Analisis ketiga RPP juga dilakukan untuk menggali informasi lebih lanjut tentang praktik mengajar guru. Temuan menunjukkan bahwa guru memiliki pengetahuan praktis tentang pedagogi berpikir kritis yang dipelajari dari membaca dan lokakarya yang belum tentu terfokus pada berpikir kritis. Buku teks lebih banyak digunakan untuk memandu pengajaran guru, didukung dengan penggunaan media audio visual. Pertanyaan banyak digunakan sebagai strategi untuk memicu berpikir tingkat tinggi siswa dengan menghubungkan teks dengan pengalaman siswa dalam kehidupan nyata. Meskipun kebijakan berpikir kritis tersirat, guru telah menerapkan strategi berpikir kritis dalam Program Kelas Internasional. Temuan lain menunjukkan bahwa pola asuh di rumah dan pengalaman siswa tinggal di luar negeri berkontribusi pada keterampilan dan disposisi berpikir kritis siswa. Secara keseluruhan, guru telah berperan sebagai orang lain yang lebih berpengetahuan yang memfasilitasi pembelajaran siswa untuk berpikir kritis. Namun, mereka tidak yakin apakah bahan ajar yang dikembangkan mendukung penerapan pedagogi berpikir kritis. Dengan demikian, temuan mengungkapkan kebutuhan mereka akan pengawas untuk mengevaluasi isi bahan ajar dan bimbingan praktis untuk melakukan rutinitas berpikir untuk pelajar muda dalam mengajar mata pelajaran dengan bahasa Inggris sebagai bahasa pengantar.
Kata kunci: pedagogi, berpikir kritis, sekolah dasar, studi kasus, Indonesia
Full Text:
PDFReferences
Ab Kadir, M. A. (2017). What teacher knowledge matters in effectively developing critical thinkers in the 21st-century curriculum? Thinking Skills and Creativity, 23, 79-90. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.tsc.2016.10.011
Anderson, L. W., Krathwohl, D. R., Airasian, P. W., Cruikshank, K. A., Mayer, R. E., Pintrich, P. R., Raths, J., & Wittrock, M. C. (Eds.). (2001). A taxonomy for learning, teaching, and assessing: A revision of Bloom’s taxonomy of educational objectives. Addison Wesley Longman, Inc.
Bart, W. (2010). The measurement and teaching of critical thinking skills. [Paper presented at the invited colloquium]. Center for Research on Educational Testing, Tokyo, Japan.
Bok, D. C. (2006). Our underachieving colleges: A candid look at how much students learn and why they should be learning more. Princeton University Press.
Bonney, C. R., & Sternberg R. J. (2011). Learning to think critically. In R. E. Mayer & P. A. Alexander (Eds.), Handbook of research on learning and instruction (pp. 166-196). Routledge.
Borg, S. (2006) Teacher cognition and language education. Continuum.
Bouygues, H. L. (2018). The state of critical thinking: A new look at reasoning at home, School, and Work. Reboot Foundation.
Cortazzi, M., Pilcher, N., & Jin, L. (2011). Language choices and ‘blind shadows’: Investigating interviews with Chinese participants. Qualitative Research, 11(5), 505-535. doi:10.1177/1468794111413225
Davies, M., & Barnett, R. (2015). Introduction. In M. Davies & R. Barnett (Eds.), The Palgrave handbook of critical thinking in higher education (pp. 1-25). Palgrave Macmillan.
Delamin, C., & Spring, J. (2021). Teaching critical thinking skills. Routledge.
Egege, S., & Kutieleh S. (2004). Critical thinking: Teaching foreign notion to foreign students. International Education Journal, 4(4), 75-85.
Facione, P. A., & Gittens C. A. (2013). Think critically. Pearson.
Flage, D. E. (2004). The Art of Questioning: An Introduction to critical thinking. Pearson.
Ilyas, H. P. (2015). CT: Its representation in Indonesian ELT textbooks and education. University of York.
Johnson, K. E. (2009). Second language teacher education: A sociocultural perspective. Taylor & Francis.
Kagan, D. M. (1992). Implication of research on teacher belief. Educational Psychologist, 27(1), 65-90.
Kang, J. S. (2014). Teaching young learners in English as a second/foreign language settings. In M. Celce-Murcia, D. Brinton, M. & M. Snow, Ann (Eds.), Teaching English as a second or foreign language (pp. 550-568). National Geographic Learning.
Krathwohl, D. R. (2002). A revision of Bloom’s Taxonomy: An overview. Theory Into Practice: Revising Bloom’s Taxonomy, 41(4), 212-218.
Kurniaman, O., Noviana, E, & Munjiatun. (2020). The ability of critical thinking of elementary school students using a graphic organizer instrument. JMIE, Journal of Madrasah Ibtidaiyah Education, 4(2), 206-216. http://dx.doi.org/10.32934/jmie.v4i2.166
Lai, E. R. (2011). Critical thinking: A literature review. Pearson’s Research Report.
Manalo, E., Kusumi, T., Koyasu, M., Michita, Y., & Tanaka, Y. (2015). Do students from different cultures think differently about critical and other thinking skills? In M. Davies & R. Barnett (Eds.), The Palgrave handbook of critical thinking in higher education (pp. 295-316.) Palgrave Macmillan.
Masduqi, H. (2006). Critical thinking skills and meaning in English language teaching, TEFLIN Journal, 22(2), 185-200.
Mehta, S. R., & Al-Mahrooqi, R. (2014). Can thinking be taught? Linking critical thinking and writing in an EFL Context. RELC Journal, 46(1), 23-36.
Movafagh, S. A., & Tahriri, A. (2014). EFL learners’ attitudes towards critical thinking instruction. Modern Journal of Language Teaching Method (MJLTM), 4(3), 45-53.
Patton, M.Q. (2015). Qualitative research and evaluation methods. 4th ed. Sage.
Paul, R., Binker A. J. A., Martin, D., Vetrano, C., & Kreklau, H. (1989). CT Handbook: 6th – 9th Grades: A Guide for Remodelling Lesson Plans in Language Arts, Social Studies, & Science. Sonoma State University, Center for CT and Moral Critique.
Penguatan Pendidikan Karakter (Character Education Reinforcement). (2021, January 15). Pelajar Pancasila. The website of Penguatan Pendidikan Karakter: https://cerdasberkarakter.kemdikbud.go.id/?page_id=2817
Peraturan Direktur Jenderal Guru dan Tenaga Kependidikan Kementerian Pendidikan dan Kebudayaan Nomor 3928/B/Hk/2020. (2020). Rencana Strategis Direktorat Jenderal Guru dan Tenaga Kependidikan Tahun 2020-2024. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1p6RbXqHje-I8__S47jtG952lcXVdRgGE/view
Peraturan Menteri Pendidikan dan Kebudayaan Nomor 22 Tahun 2016. (2016). Standar Proses Pendidikan Dasar dan Menengah. http://repositori.kemdikbud.go.id/4790/1/Permendikbud_Tahun2016_Nomor022.pdf
Pinter, A. (2006). Teaching young language learners. Oxford University Press.
Pohl, M. (2000). Learning to thinking, thinking to learn: Models and strategies to develop a classroom culture of thinking. Hawker Brownlow Education.
Prayatni, I. (2019). Teaching English for young learners. Jurnal Ilmiah Pendidikan Profesi, 4(2). DOI: https://doi.org/10.29303/jipp.v4i2.90
Ritchhart, R. (2015) Creating cultures of thinking: The 8 forces we must master to truly transform our schools. John Wiley & Sons, Incorporated.
Ritchhart, R., Church, M., & Morrison, K. (2011). Making thinking visible. Jossey-Bass.
Saadé, R. G., Morin, D., & Thomas, J. D. E. (2012). Critical thinking in E-learning environments. Computers in Human Behavior, 28(5), 1608–1617. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2012.03.025
Saldana, J. (2013). The coding manual for qualitative researchers (2nd ed.). Sage.
Shaheen, N. (2016) International students’ CT-related problems areas: UK university teachers’ perspectives. Journal of Research in International Education, 15(1), 18-31.
Sidiq, Y., Ishartono, N., Desstya, A., Prayitno, H.J., Anif, S., & Hidayat, M.L. (2021). Improving elementary school students’ critical thinking skill in science through HOTs-based science questions: A quasy-experimental study. Jurnal Pendidikan IPA Indonesia, 10(3), 378-386. doi: 10.15294/jpii.v10i3.30891
Sun, R. C. F. N., & Hui, K. P. (2012). Cognitive competence as a positive youth construct: A conceptual review. The Scientific World Journal, 2012;2012:210953. doi: 10.1100/2012/210953
Tous, M. D., Tahriri, A., & Haghighi, S. (2015). The effect of instructing critical thinking through debate on male and female EFL learners’ reading comprehension. Journal of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 15(4), 21-40.
Undang Undang Nomer 14 Tahun 2005. (2005). Guru dan Dosen. https://peraturan.bpk.go.id/Home/Details/40266/uu-no-14-tahun-2005
Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind in society the development of higher psychological processes. Harvard University Press.
Vygotsky, L. S. (1987). The collected works of L. S. Vygotsky problems of general psychology, including the volume thinking and speech (1st ed.). NY Springer US.
Widodo, H. P. (2012). Pedagogical tasks for shaping EFL college students’ writers’ critical thinking and self-voicing. International Journal of Innovation in English Language Teaching, 1(1), 87-99.
Woods, D. (1996). Teacher cognition in language teaching. In M. H. Long & J.C. Richards (Eds.), The Cambridge applied linguistics series (pp. 89-112). Cambridge University Press.
Zohar, A., & Barzilai, S. (2015). Metacognition and teaching higher order thinking (HOT) in science education: Students’ thinking, teachers’ knowledge, and instructional practices. In R. Wegerif, L. Li, & J. Kaufman (Eds.), Routledge international handbook of research on teaching thinking (pp. 229-242). Routledge.
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.17977/um015v50i12022p17
Refbacks
- There are currently no refbacks.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
