Development of Ill-Structured Problem-Solving Skills Instrument Based on Local Socio-Scientific Issues (SSI) on the Topic of Environmental Pollution

This study aimed to develop an instrument for assessing high school students’ ill-structured problem-solving skills using local socio-scientific issues (SSI) for the topic of solution chemistry. The development of the instrument consisted of 4 stages: (1) preliminary study, (2) item development, (3) expert judgment, and (4) tryout. The research subject for the tryout included 68 senior high school students (16-18 years old). The instrument entailed 45 items and 5 ill- structured problem texts integrated using local SSI on the topic of solutions chemistry (e.g., solution concentration, acid- base neutralization reaction, weak acid-base ionization equilibrium, and the principle of buffer solution in human blood). The integrated local SSI context consisted of environmental issues (e.g., textile industry waste, acid mine drainage, fish feed residue due to floating net cages, and coal power plants emissions) and society-health concerns (the pros and cons of alkaline water). Each ill-structured problem consisted of 9 questions (7 multiple-choice and 2 essay questions) based on 4 stages of the ill-structured problem-solving process, i.e., (1) problem representation, (2) generating and selecting solutions, (3) making justifications, and (4) monitoring and evaluating solutions. The expert judgment was carried out by a chemistry educator and two experienced chemistry teachers. The results indicated that the instrument is very feasible. The stage of tryout in this study aimed to examine the readability, item difficulty index, and reliability of the instrument. The tryout results stated that the students’ ill-structured problem-solving instrument has very high reliability (Cronbach’s Alpha coefficient=0.878). Therefore, the instrument developed in this study can be employed as an assessment tool to improve students’ skills in solving ill-structured problems encountered in their daily life for achieving their scientific literacy.

This study aims to determine the effectiveness of Socioscientific Issue (SSI)-based petroleum materials integrated with the eLSMAWAR website on students’ scientific literacy during the COVID-19 Pandemic. However, it still targets the achievement of 21st-century skills, namely scientific literacy competencies. Scientific literacy is needed as a skill that can answer the demands of the 21st-century era, as a problem solver that is competitive, innovative, creative, collaborative, and has character. This research method uses Research and Development (R D), which refers to Borg and Gall’s development model. The instrument used in this study was an expert validation sheet filled in by a validator which was useful for knowing whether it was feasible or not to develop. Students are given ten descriptive questions on a 1-4 Likert scale to determine the effect of teaching materials on scientific literacy. The data obtained were analyzed by descriptive quantitative. Expert validation resulted in an average percentage of 87% on material, presentation, language, and legibility aspects. For the validation of chemistry educators, the mean score of CVI for the language aspect and legibility is 0.80; the material aspect is 0.86; for the presentation, aspect is 0.84. This means that based on chemistry experts and educators, the criteria for SSI-based petroleum materials integrated with the eLSMAWAR website are appropriate/valid and very suitable for use. The scientific literacy test results obtained an N-Gain of 0.66, which means that the SSI-based teaching materials integrated with the eLSMAWAR website are quite effective in improving students’ scientific literacy. The research concludes that the teaching material based on Socioscientific Issue (SSI) integrated with the eLSMAWAR website on students’ scientific literacy with three indicators of scientific literacy is following the demands of the implementation of 21st-century skills.

Dealing with socioscientific issues in the classroom provides an appropriate context to concentrate on several components of scientific literacy that were related to higher-order thinking skills. Hence, it is important to use an appropriate assessment instrument using socioscientific issues because it presents a contextual problem that is relevant to students' daily lives. This study aimed to develop a valid and reliable instrument to measure higher-order thinking skills (HOTS) using the context of socioscientific issues on buffer solutions, acid-base titrations, and colloids. The test instrument developed consisted of 40 items (35 multiple-choice items and 5 essay items) with 9 socioscientific issues texts related to the topics. The test items met the three cognitive domains according to Revised Bloom's Taxonomy: (1) C4-Analyzing (15 questions); (2) C5-Evaluating (15 questions); and (3) C6-Creating (10 questions). The research subjects for trial out consisted of 70 senior high school students from 5 schools in East Java. The development of the instrument used the Borg and Gall model which consists of 4 stages: (1) preliminary study; (2) item development; (3) expert judgment; and (4) trial out. The expert judgment was carried out by two chemistry lecturers and two chemistry teachers. This study showed that the instrument is declared worthy of construct validity. The data in the form of written responses were analyzed by two raters with internal consistency (Cohen's Kappa coefficient) of 0.73. Based on the difficulty level index, found that 5 items (12%) were very difficult; 18 items (45%) were difficult; and 17 items (43%) were moderate, while the results of the discriminatory analysis showed that 10 items (25%) were very good; 24 items (60%) were good; and 6 items (15%) were sufficient. The results of analyses trial out data revealed that the test instrument had high reliability (Cronbach's Alfa coefficient = 0.89). The development of the higher-order thinking skills (HOTS) test instrument with the context of socioscientific issues can be used as an assessment tool in improving students' higher-order thinking skills (HOTS) to enhance their scientific literacy.

Multiple pedagogical research have shown that guided inquiry-based learning increases students' scientific literacy. The Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) conducted a study of scientific literacy between 2000 and 2015, and their findings show that students in Indonesia still have a low level of scientific literacy compared to other OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development) countries. flat. Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development) countries. Thus, we set out to investigate whether or whether introducing the Local Socioscientific Issues (SSI) approach from the OE3C Instructional affected students' scientific literacy. A non-blinded pre-post experimental design was adopted for this study's quasi-quantitative method. Correlations between Local Socioscientific Issues (SSI) and OE3C Instructional methods and cyan enhancement. literacy were found in an analysis of obtained data using SPSS Version 26. Consequently, OE3C Instructional may be used to include the Local Socioscientific Issues (SSI) method into elementary school science instruction with the goal of improving students' scientific literacy.

In this study, the relationship between pre-service teachers' critical thinking dispositions and their attitudes towards socioscientific issues was examined. Relational survey method, which is one of the quantitative research approaches, was used in the research process. 813 pre-service teachers from science, mathematics, preschool, psychological counseling and guidance, social sciences, classroom teaching, and fine arts departments studying at education faculties in state universities in the Black Sea Region of Turkey participated in the research. Critical thinking disposition and attitude scales were used as data collection tools in the research. The findings were examined by considering the variables of gender, class level, knowledge about socioscientific issues and the department of education. In the analysis of the data obtained, the results for each scale were first divided into groups as low, medium and high scores. Variables with two categories were analyzed using the independent samples t-test, and variables with more than two categories were analyzed using the ANOVA test. Then, multiple linear regression analyses were performed. Hayes's (2018) regression model number 1 was used to confirm the research results and to support it with advanced statistics. As a result of the research, it was determined that the pre-service teachers with low and medium critical thinking dispositions also had low attitudes towards socioscientific issues and sub-variables did not make a significant difference. At this point, some suggestions can be made to pre-service teachers with a low and medium level of critical thinking disposition. It can be ensured that they participate in project activities on socioscientific issues during the training process. It can be ensured that courses within the scope of critical and analytical thinking are taken. It has also been determined that the pre-service teachers with high critical thinking disposition have high attitudes towards socioscientific issues, and there is a significant difference in terms of the variables of the department, grade level and having knowledge about socioscientific issues.

The Socio-Scientific Issues (SSI)-based learning approach has been recognized as an effective method in science education to develop students' essential skills. This study aims to explore the impact of SSI learning on six key skills: scientific literacy, critical thinking, problem-solving, social awareness and responsibility, argumentation, and collaborative and communicative skills. This research method uses the PRISMA guideline to review relevant literature. Articles were obtained from the Scopus database with the keywords "socio-scientific issues," "socioscientific issues," and "science education" which were limited to publications from 2014 to 2024. The results of the analysis of 46 articles showed that SSI-based learning can improve students' scientific literacy through the context of global issues, such as climate change and renewable energy, which provide a deeper scientific understanding. This learning also hones students' critical thinking skills by encouraging evaluation of evidence and analysis of multiple perspectives. In addition, the SSI approach encourages problem-solving skills by inviting students to find innovative solutions to environmental and health issues, as well as increasing their social awareness and responsibility. Students also develop argumentation skills through discussions and debates, as well as collaborative skills through SSI-based projects. In conclusion, SSI learning not only enriches students' scientific understanding but also prepares them with essential skills to face global challenges in the modern era.

This study aims to analyze the trends, patterns, and dynamics of research on students' scientific literacy in relation to critical thinking skills in science learning through a bibliometric approach. The research seeks to identify dominant topics, international collaboration networks, and contributions from institutions and countries, as well as to explore the integration of scientific literacy with critical thinking skills in educational contexts. Data were collected from the Scopus database using keywords "students' scientific literacy and critical thinking skills", resulting in 68 articles after a rigorous screening process based on publication year (2019–2024). The analysis employed descriptive bibliometric methods, utilizing tool VOSviewer for mapping collaboration networks and research focus areas. The findings reveal a significant increase in publications, particularly in 2022 and 2024, Citation trends indicate that publications from 2019 had the highest impact, with 184 citations. International collaborations were dominated by countries with advanced education systems, such as the United States, Norway, and Taiwan, while developing countries like Indonesia and Malaysia showed active. Key research themes project-based learning (PjBL-STEM), socio-scientific issues, and the integration of local and spiritual values in science education.The study concludes that scientific literacy and critical thinking skills are increasingly recognized as essential competencies in education, with innovative pedagogical approaches playing a pivotal role in their development. The results provide valuable insights for researchers, educators, and policymakers to enhance curriculum design and teaching strategies. Future research should focus on specific contexts and interdisciplinary approaches to further explore the relationship between scientific literacy and critical thinking skills.

Against the background of the limitations of learning media in facilitating the learning needs of students, as well as the importance of critical thinking skills and science literacy in facing global challenges. The independent curriculum is an approach designed to meet the learning needs of students flexibly, but still requires the active role of teachers in conveying essential concepts, so the development of SSI-based e-LKPD is expected to be an effective learning innovation to develop students' critical thinking skills and science literacy. The purpose of the study is to measure the effectiveness of SSI-based e-LKPD on environmental pollution materials on students' science literacy and critical thinking. The use of the liveworksheet application is used for interactive learning media. This type of research is quasi-experimental design with the one group pretest-posttest design method. The research was conducted in grade VIII of junior high school in Tanggamus district with a total of 128 students. Data analysis uses n-gain test and t-test. The results of the analysis obtained an n-gain of 33 in the control class and 53 in the experimental class. This value is in the range of 40-55 with the category of less effective. Furthermore, the results of the t-test showed a significant difference between the control and experimental classes (p<0.05); reject H0, thus that SSI-based e-LKPD is effective in improving critical thinking skills and science literacy of junior high school students.

The lack of critical thinking skills among students is one of the causes of Indonesia's low science literacy score in PISA 2022. Socio Scientific Issues (SSI) learning can improve these skills by linking renewable energy material through real issues. With the SSI approach, this E-LKPD is expected to make physics learning more interesting and relevant through daily life, so that students can be more actively involved in the learning process and develop their critical thinking skills. This study aims to determine the results of material and media expert validation of E-LKPD and determine student readability of E-LKPD. The research method used is R&D (Research and Development) with the 4D research model, namely define, design, develop and disseminate. E-LKPD was developed in digital form through liveworksheet and validated by material experts, media experts, and tested for readability by students. The results of the material expert validation resulted in a percentage of 92.9%, which was categorized as very feasible; and the results of the media expert validation resulted in a percentage of 89.7%, which was also categorized as very feasible. The student readability test of the E-LKPD of 91.3% was classified as high.

Chemistry education has tasks to guide students to be future employment within the field of science and enginerring and also to provide societies with many opportunity for chemistry-related career. However, there are some challenges faced by chemistry education, such as lack of transferable skills of chemistry graduates, education reform on the need for scientifically literate citizens and for reducing the shortage in participation and interest of young people in science and engineering. One possible way to solve such challenges is that we could use socio-scientific issues (SSI) as a context to be integrated in a chemistry instruction. Through socio-scientific issues related chemistry, both scientific literacy and transferrable skills could be enhanced. This paper discuss potency socio-scientific issues in developing the skills and how to incorporate it in the instruction.

Socio-scientific concerns have emerged as a prominent focus in contemporary chemistry education research. This study aims to analyze the trends used in socio-scientific issues in chemistry learning based on the results of research that has been carried out. This study uses a meta-analysis research design. This meta-analysis uses Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA). Data was acquired from the Scopus and Google Scholar databases utilizing scholarly publications from esteemed worldwide journals with the Scopus Q1-Q3 classification. Conduct an article search utilizing the title and keywords "Socio-Scientific Issues," "Socio-Scientific Issues Approach," or "Socio-Scientific Issues in Chemistry Learning," covering the last decade from 2015 to 2025. The results indicated that the database had a total of 10,982 articles, from which 35 articles were selected for examination. The results of the review found that: a) socio-scientific issues in chemistry learning have a very dominant relevance to case-based learning, namely inquiry (20.57%), PBL (10.29%) and PjBL (5.14%); b) the application of socio-scientific issues in chemistry learning is more dominant towards the aspects of argumentation, problem-solving, critical thinking and creative thinking. Consequently, the tendency in chemistry education on socio-scientific issues underscores case-based learning that prioritizes contextual difficulties. Keywords: chemistry, learning, socio-scientific issues.

Socio-scientific issues demonstrate the relationship between science, technology, and society by considering currently unresolved questions. The problem of plastics and their pollution is just one example with important implications for the planet. The aim of this paper is to revisit socio-scientific issues and see them as a way of developing citizens’ critical thinking skills through chemistry education. In light of the problems posed by plastics, we present evidence tested with Spanish grade-8 students of how critical thinking skills can be developed through chemistry education in terms of the vision of chemistry, understanding acquisition, a holistic approach to problems, critical analysis of information, argumentation, decision making, personal autonomy, and communication. This study also presents some examples of how progress in the development of critical thinking by students has been evaluated.

Socioscientific Issues (SSIs) are real-world topics that integrate science content with societal relevance. This study aims to integrate SSIs into basic chemistry education—specifically chemical kinetics—by developing an Electronic Student Worksheet (E-LKM) that enhances conceptual understanding through contextualized issues. The E-LKM was developed using the 4D model: Define, Design, Develop, and Disseminate. The development process employed Flip Builder software to create an interactive, digital format that simulates an engaging e-book. Expert validation was conducted with two subject-matter experts through construct validation. Revisions were made based on detailed feedback. A small-scale trial was also conducted involving 13 students to assess usability and comprehensibility. Validation results indicated strong validity, with scores of 0.90 (content aspect) and 0.91 (media aspect). The trial revealed the need for clearer, more accessible language. Revisions included the integration of contextual news and simplified explanations to enhance student comprehension. The final version of the E-LKM successfully aligned with SSI syntax and pedagogical principles. The validated E-LKM effectively supports the teaching of chemical kinetics by engaging students with relevant, real-life issues. The integration of SSIs through interactive media fosters critical thinking and contextual learning. The findings confirm that the developed E-LKM can serve as an effective instructional tool in SSI-based chemistry education.

This research was conducted agains the background of the low critical thinking of students in Indonesia which can be overcome by the socio scientific issues (SSI) approach by the socio scientific issues (SSI) approach by connecting science with socisl issues such as climate change. With the SSI approach, E-LKPD makes learning more interactive, increases student involvement and overcomes teacher-centered learning. The purpose of this study was to determine the development process of interactive E-LKPD based on socio scientific issues (SSI). The research method used is R&D with 4-D research model modified with the define, design, and development stages. This research has developed an interactive E-LKPD based on socio scientific issues (SSI) on climate change material to facilitate students’ critical thinking in digital form through the help of the liveworksheets website which is categorized as very feasible. The results of material expert validation obtained a percentage of 93.8% which was categorized as very feasible and the results of media expert validation obtained a perentage of 82.2% which was also categorized as very feasible. Student responses to the E-LKPD readability test was 90.8% which was classified as high.

Biology education emphasises producing scientifically literate students, mastering biological knowledge, and developing critical thinking. However, in reality, biology instruction only focuses on academic achievement in the Indonesian biology curriculum. Previous research has found that scientific inquiry is a practical approach to improve academic achievement and scientific literacy. Interactive socio-scientific inquiry (ISSI) was developed based on a distinctive inquiry approach. The ISSI uses socio-scientific issues as a learning context and uses digital technology as an interaction platform. This research used a quasi-experimental design with a pre-test-post-test non-randomised control group involving 196 tenth-grade students. The findings revealed substantial differences in learning outcomes between ISSI students with conventional and classroom discussion teaching methods. The ISSI students have significant enhancements in scientific literacy, biological knowledge, and critical thinking. These findings suggest the utility of using socio-scientific issues (to be criticised and resolved) and digital technology (with its interactive involvement as a learning interaction platform) to complement inquiry in biology teaching. The ISSI is an alternative method to support biology teaching in becoming more creative and encourages secondary school students to be more critical in learning content.