Mapping the reasoning skill of the students on pressure concept

Abstract

Reasoning skill is one of the high order thinking skill which is needed to accomplish the problems in a logical and coherent way. To measure this skill, the researcher adapted the Lawson's Classroom Test Scientific Reasoning (LCTSR) on pressure concept. There are six aspects related to the reasoning skill that were measured. They are conservation reasoning, proportional reasoning, controlling variables, probabilistic reasoning, correlational reasoning, combinatorial reasoning. The aim of this study is mapping the reasoning skill of the students on answering the test of pressure concept. The research method chosen in this study is descriptive method. This test consist of 12 pairs multiple-choice questions with the pressure content and the reason. The test was employed to 60 students at IX grade of junior high school the academic year 2017/2018. The findings of this study showed that 60% of the students achieved level 1 (concrete operational), 33.3% achieved level 2 (transitional operational) and only 6.7% of them achieved level 3 (formal operational). It means the reasoning skill of the student was low. In order that, mapping the reasoning skill of the student can support the educators to prepare and implement teaching effectively.