CATEGORY ANALYSIS OF FIFTH GRADERS’ CRITICAL THINKING ABILITY ON RESPIRATION USING THE RADEC LEARNING MODEL

Abstract

Critical thinking skills are an essential competency that need to be developed early on to face the challenges of the 21st century. This study aims to analyze the categories of critical thinking skills of fifth-grade students on the respiratory system material after the implementation of the RADEC (Read, Answer, Discuss, Explain, and Create) learning model. The research uses a quantitative descriptive method with subjects consisting of 23 fifth-grade students from SD Negeri Sukaratu in Garut City. The research instrument was a written test developed based on Ennis's indicators, including elementary clarification, basic support, inference, advanced clarification, and strategies and tactics. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and categorized into five levels: very good, good, enough, less, and very poor. The research results indicate that the average critical thinking ability of students falls into the sufficient category (mean 67.57), with the largest distribution in the good (34.8%) and very poor (30.4%) categories. Analysis by indicator shows that the majority of students master elementary clarification, but many still struggle with the aspects of inference and advanced clarification. These findings indicate that the RADEC model is effective in encouraging some students to achieve a good level of critical thinking, but reinforcement is needed on the indicators of deduction, definition of terms, and collaborative strategies. The implications of this research emphasize the importance of developing more adaptive and intensive learning strategies to enhance the equitable distribution of students' critical thinking abilities in elementary schools.