Students’ analytical thinking skills and chemical literacy concerning chemical equilibrium

Abstract

This study aims to determine students’ analytical thinking and chemical literacy skills concerning the chemical equilibrium concept. This research was conducted in three state senior high schools in Yogyakarta using the survey method. The study was conducted at the end of the presentation of chemistry equilibrium learning material (formative test). Participants were selected through the stratified random sampling technique based on school rankings (high, medium, and low) in the national examination results. The participants were 212 students in class XI who had studied chemical equilibrium. The study employed the Integrated Assessment – Analytical Thinking and Chemical Literacy (IA-ATCL) instrument, comprising 20 multiple open-ended options. The IA-ATCL is an instrument developed based on the integration of three indicators, namely indicators of understanding of chemical equilibrium, indicators of analytical thinking skills, and indicators of chemical literacy. The IA-ATCL has 12 integrated indicators. Data were analyzed using quantitative descriptive analysis. The results showed the highest percentage for students’ analytical thinking and chemical literacy skills as being able to distinguish the meaning of equilibrium concerning the phenomenon of a chemical equilibrium reaction, and the lowest percentage as being able to distinguish the quantitative relation between the reagent and reaction in solving the problem of the chemical equilibrium reaction.