Developing Critical Thinking Skills of Grade 7 Students through a 5-Step Learning Approach on Surrounding Weather

Abstract

The purposes of this research were: 1) to examine the critical thinking skills of grade 7 students after receiving instruction using a 5-step learning approach; 2) to compare the students’ critical thinking skills against a 70% proficiency benchmark; and 3) to investigate the students' attitudes toward the 5-step learning approach. The research participants were selected using a purposive sampling method from class number 1 of grade 7 students at Na Chaliang Pittayakom School (N=37) in Phetchabun Province. The research instruments included: 1) seven lesson plans on surrounding weather delivered through the 5-step learning approach, collectively rated as highly suitable; 2) a test on students’ critical thinking skills with a reliability score of 0.93; and 3) a 5-point Likert scale assessing students’ attitudes toward the 5-step learning approach (IOC=1.00). The data were analyzed using means   (), standard deviation (S.D.), and a one-sample  t-test to compare the students’ performance after receiving such instruction against the predefined benchmark. The results showed that: 1) the critical thinking skills of grade 7 students were at a good level across all aspects; 2) the students’ performance after receiving instruction using the 5-step learning approach exceeded the 70% proficiency benchmark, statistically significant at p<0.05; and 3) the students generally exhibited high satisfaction with the 5-step learning approach.