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school experiences, no matter what theorists
conclude, and the concepts and vocabulary they learn
in the prior year will help them learn both higher order
thinking skills and new content in the coming year.
Third, higher order thinking involves a variety of
thinking processes applied to complex situations and
having multiple variables. (King and Rohani, 2012, p.
12).
From the results of this study, it could be seen that
scientific approach is done into several essential
elements namely, observing, questioning,
associating, experimenting, networking, and
communicating. Those stages are implemented
through sequential ways starting from observing
stage as the simple one until communicating stage as
the post activity in this approach. Generally,
concerning on the implementation of learning process
from classroom observation, the learning process is
divided into three main phases namely; opening
activity, whilst-activity, and post activity. Each of the
phases is done through several strategies such as
brainstorming, mind mapping, storytelling, role
playing, and playing game.
In the opening activity, the teachers implemented
some strategies including brainstorming and mind-
mapping. The brainstorming is done through showing
some related pictures to main topic and asking the
students about what they experience related to that
topic. This is similar to what scientific approach
suggested that initial learning should be stated from
observing an object. Observing stage was aimed to
introduce a new knowledge that is going to be
delivered in the learning process. In this phase, the
students were stimulated to recall some of their prior
knowledge. To get in depth knowledge on the object,
asking some questions is essential to generate some
ideas about the object including its structures and
elements. This activity was implemented through
implementing both using closed question and open-
ended question in sequential stage. The teacher
started to give close-questions such as “what” and
“where” aiming to ease students answered the
questions and get familiar with the topic discussed.
Closed-questioned was then followed by open-ended
questions such as how and why in order to stimulate
students deeply thinking about the materials. Such
questions required the students to analyze some
relations among the object being discussed with
others and provide logical reasoning for supporting
their claims. As the students’ understanding about the
material improved, it seemed that students paid
attention to the lesson better. Some students raised
their hands to ask several questions which aimed to
clarify, confirm, or even evaluate their understanding
on the object being discussed. In this case, the
students’ question is regarded as an indicator that the
stage of scientific approach has achieved the second
phase, questioning phase. Meanwhile, in the main
activity, several strategies used such as storytelling
and roleplaying were employed as strategies to
deliver various learning materials in different schools.
Storytelling as one of attractive learning model was
done through several techniques including using
gestures and mimic, repetition of some essential
words, making abstract to concrete, and scaffolding.
In the storytelling process, the teachers several times
stop telling the story and letting their students to guess
what would happen next in the story. students’
response this by producing different predictions, as a
result of their understanding toward some parts of the
story and draw a connection from one event to
another event in the story. In addition, strategy of
making abstract to concrete was also implemented to
help students understand intended meaning of the
story. Some concepts in the story is quite new and
unfamiliar to the students at which the teacher should
elaborate it more through giving several supporting
ideas about it in more simple way, so that the abstract
concepts to be real and tangible in the students’ life.
For example, explaining the concept of being greedy,
rather than giving the direct translation of the words,
providing some practical examples of that attitude in
the real life related to the word were more essential to
understand it to be a concrete thing. By doing so, the
students were trained to think abstract things obtained
through reflecting the practical examples toward their
experience on it. In this process, the associating
thinking of scientific approach was clearly identified
on how the students connect, compare, and contrast
what they have in their experiences to the abstract
concept being discussed.
Concerning on the post activity, generally in this
session the students were given task to create, and
modify the modeled story to be their own version.
The activities were initially done by guiding the
students to evaluate and criticize the characters of the
story based on several characteristics laying on them.
The students tried to create some statements related
to their opinion on the characters which were
stimulated by giving them open-ended questions such
as how if and what if. The students judged the
characters based on some moral values laying on their
social life whether it was good or bad. From the
observation, it is clear showed that the students’
thought related to the teacher questions were various
since the students shared different experience and
knowledge with others about the topic. The students’
ability to give comments and judgment were
Integrating Higher Order Thinking Skills (HOTS) of Young Adolescent Students through Scientific Approach in English Language Learning
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