Strengthening Literacy and Higher-Order Thinking Skills Among Elementary School Students Through the Implementation of Problem-Based Learning

Abstract

This community service activity was motivated by the need to strengthen literacy and higher-order thinking skills in Indonesian language instruction for elementary school students. The activity aimed to improve the literacy and higher-order thinking skills of sixth-grade students at Krapyak Godean Public Elementary School in Sleman through the implementation of Problem-Based Learning (PBL). The activity involved 24 students and was carried out through the stages of preparation, problem-based learning implementation, mentoring, and evaluation. The activity was evaluated using a 20-question written test and classroom observations, employing instruments that had been validated by two experts. The success of the activity was analyzed descriptively based on students’ average scores and the percentage of learning objectives achieved. The evaluation results showed a consistent improvement in students’ abilities. The average score increased from 64.58 at the beginning of the study to 72.50 after the first phase and reached 80.21 in the subsequent phase. The percentage of students who met the learning objective criteria also increased from 20.83% at the beginning of the study to 54.17% and then to 79.17%. These results indicate that the implementation of PBL provides a learning experience that encourages student engagement in understanding problems, thinking critically and creatively, and collaborating in the Indonesian language learning process. This activity contributes to strengthening students’ literacy and higher-order thinking skills through meaningful, student-centered learning experiences.