Makalah kuliah umum Universitas Negeri Manado 19 September 2013____________________________________________

SISTEM PENILAIAN HASIL BELAJARDI PERGURUAN TINGGI

Djemari Mardapi *)

Dosen Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta

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A. Pendahuluan

Setiap program studi di perguruan tinggi menentukan standar kompetensi lulusan, yaitu

kemampuan yang dimiliki para lulusannya. Berdasarkan standar kompetensi lulusan kemudian

ditetapkan standar isi, standar pendidik, standar proses pembelajaran, dan standar penilaian.

Standar isi berisi materi ajar yang harus diberikan kepada peserta didik untuk mencapai standar

kompetensi lulusan. Cara pemberian bahan ajar kepada peserta didik mengacu pada standar

proses pembelajaran. Untuk merancang dan melaksakan proses pembelajaran yang tepat

diperlukan pendidik yang memiliki kompetensi seperti yang tercantum pada standar pendidik.

Pencapaian pembelajaran dapat diketahui melalui kegiatan penilaian. Cara penilaian yang

dilakukan mengacu pada standar penilaian. Pencapaian standar kompetensi lulusan juga

ditentukan oleh oleh standar pembiayaan, standar sarana prasarana pendidikan, dan standar

pengelolaan. Jadi standar satu dan lainnya saling terkait, yang semuanya disebut dengan standar

nasional pendidikan.

Makalah ini akan membahas dua standar nasional pendidikan, yaitu standar proses

pembelajaran dan standar penilaian pendidikan. Pelaksanaan standar ini mudah dimanipulasi, di

ubah-ubah sesuai dengan kemampuan dan keinginan pendidik. Pemilihan strategi atau metode

mengajar ditentukan bagaimana peserta didik belajar. Sistem penilaian juga memegang peran

penting, karena menentukan bagaimana peserta didik mengajar. Oleh karena itu dua standar ini

akan dibahas berurutan.

B. Proses Pembelajaran

Keberhasilan peserta didik melaksanakan proses pembelajaran ditentukan oleh bagaimana

peserta didik belajar. Paling sedikit ada lima teori yang membahas tentang bagaimana peserta

didik belajar. Lima teori belajar tersebut adalah behaviorism, cognitivism, constructivism, social

learning, dan cultural learning. Liam teoriini akan dibahas dengan singkat.

Behaviorism merupakan teori belajar yang memiliki pengaruh banyak, berlaku secara

luas, dan dinyatakan sebagai teori yang saintifik (Jordan, Carlile, & Stack: 2009). Menurut teori

ini, belajar sebagai perubahan behavior yang relatif permanen sebagai hasil dari pengalaman,

dan perubahannya dapat diamati. Perubahan ini dapat diketahui bila dilakukan pengukuran.

Teori belajar yang menekankan pada peran pengalaman dalam menguatkan atau melemahkan

ikatan stimulus-respons (Thorndike 1911). Ikatan timulus-respons bisa diperkuat dan bisa

diperlemah. Sistem penghargaan merupakan penerapan teori dalam memperkuat ikatan

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stimulus dan respons. Sebagai contoh apabila ada mobile phone berbunyi, orang akan melihat

mobile phone miliknya untuk mengetahui apakaha miliknya yang berbunyi. Jadi teori ini

menekankan pada hubungan stimulus-respons. Teori ini yang menurunkan domain kognitif,

domain afektif dan domain psikomotor.

Proses pembelajaran ditentukan oleh kemampuan guru dalam memberi stimulus. Peserta

didik akan memberi respons terhadap stimulus, dan hal ini terjadi pada internal peserta didik.

Tindakan guru dsan respons peserta ini disajikan pada Tabel 1.

Tabel 1. Internal proses dan peristiwa pembelajaran

No Teacher action No Learner response

1. Gaining learner’s attention 1. Reception and attentiveness

2. Stating session objectives 2. Knowing what to expects

3. Reminding what was done before 3. Stimulation of long term memory

4. Highlighting key feature 4. Perceiving what is important

5. Structuring learning 5. Creating links and association

6. Encouraging activity 6. Performing

7. Providing feedback 7. Learning awareness

8. Evaluating progress 8. Strengthening

9. Enhancing attention and signaling future learning

9. Gaining learning overview

Teori belajar ke dua adalah Cognitism, yaitu teori belajar yang menekankan pada proses

mental. Pakar teori ini meyakini bahwa belajar merupakan hasil dari pengorganisasian dan

pemerosesan informasi secara efektif (Jordan, Carlile, & Stack: 2009). Teori ini memiliki lima

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basik proses, yaitu sensasi, persepsi, atensi, pengkodean, dan memori. Sensasi berarti proses

melalui simuli yang berasal dari eksternal yang diingat sangat singkat dalam sensory register

sebelum dipindahkan ke proses lebih lanjut.

Persepsi adalah pemerosesan stimuli dari lingkungan yang masuk dalam sensory register

sebelum dipindah ke ke pemerosesn berikutnya. Atensi adalah proses kognitif dalam memililih

stimuli melalui memfokuskan konsentrasi pada satu hal dan mengabaikan pada hal yang lain.

Encoding adalah pemberian kode pada stimuli yang terpilih sebagai informasi dengan

mengelolanya dalam bentuk representaisi mental atau skema. Selanjutnaya memori adalah

kemampuan untuk menyimpan dan memanggil informasi. Pada memori dikenal short term

memory dan long term memory (Jordan, Carlile, & Stack: 2009).

Ide utama teori ini adalah: (1) Belajar tidak selalu melibatkan perubahan dalam behavior,

(2) Cognitism fokus pada proses belajar mental internal, (3) Kunci metaphor dalam cognitism

adalah model komputer, (4) berasumsi bahwa informasi diproses dalam bentuk tingkatan

diskrit, (5) Pembelajar secara aktif memproses, menyimpan, dan mengambil kembali informasi

untuk digunakan, (6) Pembelajar mengoranisir dan menafsirkan informsi untuk menghasilkan

pengetahuan.

Teori belajar ke empat adalah constructism, yaitu yang memfokuskan pada apa yang

dilakukan orang terhadapsuatu informasi. Teori ini menjelaskan bahwa belajar adalah proses

aktif dengan mana pembelajar mengkonstruk makna baru. Persamaan dan perbedaan empat

toeri belajar dapat dijelaskan pada Tabel 2.

Tabel 2. Comparing, behaviourism, cognitivism, and constructivism

Theory Mental activity Learning process Role of teachers

Beahviourism Irrelant Stimulus-responseReinforcementExternal event

Control environment and stimuli

Cognitivism Perceptionattentionprocessing

MemorySurface and deep learningEncoding internal event

Applies cognitive principles to facilitate cognitive processes

Constructivism Meaning making Returning schemata Supports meaning-

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and mental constructs internal event

making Challenges existing ideas

Ide utama teori ini adalahL: (1) pengetahuan adlah ditempatkan dan ditafsirkan dalam

konstek social, (2) pembelajar adalah agen aktif dalam menafsirkan dunia, (3) constructism

focus pada membuat makna dan memahami pengetahuan. (4) belajar melibatkan penafsirasn

pengalaman, untuk mengkonstuk makn, (5) konstruk mental bisa dimodifikasi sebagai hasil dari

konfirmasi atau tantangan, (6) orang lain penting dalam formulasi dan modifikasi konstruk

mental

C. Sistem Penilaian

Penilaian merupakan bagian dari kegiatan pembelajaran peserta didik di satuan pendidikan.

Penilaian merupakan kegiatan menafsirkan hasil pengukuran yang berupa angka atau sekor

menjadi bentuk lain untuk tiap iidividu. Peniliaian berfokus pada presasi individu. Valuasi

penafsiran hasil pengukuran yang memiliki tujuan untuk mengetahui hasil belajar pesemenilairta

setelah megikuti kegiatan pembelajaran. fproses pemeblajran . Peranan penilaian menurut

Harlen, Gipss, Broadfoot & Nutnall (Pollard, edited, 2011:283) adalah sebagai umpan balik bagi

pendidik dan peserta didik akan kemajuan belajar yang dicapai. Umpan balik yang berupa hasil

penilaian yang bemanfaat bagi pendidik untuk memperbaiki proses pembelajaran, dan bagi

peserta didik untuk memperbaiki cara belajar yang yang leboh baik. r.sisecara langsung dapat

digunakan untuk meningkatkan kualias proses pemblajaran. mempengaruhi kualitas

pengalaman belajar peserta didik, apabila pendidik memanfaatkan eumpan balik tersebut untuk

perbaikan dalam menentukan strategi pembelajaran peserta didik. Asesmen yang bertujuan

memperbaiki proses pembelajaran disebut sebagai asesmen formatif atau assessment for

learning. Penilaian formatif ini dilakukan pendidik secara kontinu di kelas dengan tujuan untuk

meningkatkan kualitas pembelajaran.

Peranan penilaian yang ke dua adalah untuk mengetahui performans peserta didik sebagai

individu. Penilaian ini menurut Harlen, Gipss, Broadfoot & Nutnall (Pollard, edited, 2011:285)

tidak banyak pengaruhnya terhadap perbaikan pembelajaran pada peserta didik, karena dilakukan

di akhir tahun belajar di satuan pendidikan, Namun apabila hasil penelitian dianalisis dan

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digunakan untuk perbaikan proses pembelajaran pada tahun berikutnya, maka asesmen sumatif

ini memiliki pengaruh terhadap kualitas pendidikan. Hal ini ditegaskan oleh Horn, Wolf, and

Velez 1992) bahwa hasil penilaian nasional bisa digunakan untuk mengubah proses pembelajaran

di kelas.

Kemampuan berpikir peserta didik dapat dijelaskan dengan hirarti sesuai dengan tingkat

komplesitas permasalahan.

Examples of Activities that Promote Higher Order Thinking

Examples of Activities: Science

Apply a Rule: The student could be asked to explain why a shotgun "kicks" when fired. His response would include a statement to the effect that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction (Newton's Law of Motion), and that the "kick" of the shotgun is equal to the force propelling the shot toward its target. The faster the shot travels and the greater the weight of the shot, the greater the "kick" of the gun.

Examples of Activities that Promote Higher Order Thinking

Examples of Activities: Science

Apply a Rule: The student could be asked to explain why a shotgun "kicks" when fired. His response would include a statement to the effect that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction (Newton's Law of Motion), and that the "kick" of the shotgun is equal to the force propelling the shot toward its target. The faster the shot travels and the greater the weight of the shot, the greater the "kick" of the gun.

Classify: Given several examples of each, the student could be asked to classify materials according to their physical properties as gas, liquid, or solid.

Construct: The student could be asked to construct a model of a carbon atom.

Define: Given several types of plant leaves, the student could be asked to define at least three categories for classifying them. NOTE: Defining is not memorizing and writing definitions created by someone else -- it is creating definitions.

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Demonstrate: Given a model of the earth, sun, and moon so devised that it may be manipulated to show the orbits of the earth and moon, the student could be asked to demonstrate the cause of various phases of the moon as viewed from earth.

Describe: The student could be asked to describe the conditions essential for a balanced aquarium that includes four goldfish.

Diagram: The student could be asked to diagram the life cycle of a grasshopper.

Distinguish: Given a list of paired element names, the student could be asked to distinguish between the metallic and non-metallic element in each pair.

Estimate: The student could be asked to estimate the amount of heat given off by one liter of air compressed to one-half its original volume.

Evaluate: Given several types of materials, the student could be asked to evaluate them to determine which is the best conductor of electricity.

Identify: Given several types of materials, the student could be asked to identify those which would be attracted to a magnet.

Interpret: The student could be asked to interpret a weather map taken from a newspaper.

Locate: The student could be asked to locate the position of chlorine on the periodic table. NOTE: To locate is to describe location. It is not identification of location.

Measure: Given a container graduated in cubic centimeters, the student could be asked to measure a specific amount of liquid.

Name: The student could be asked to name the parts of an electromagnet.

Order: The student could be asked to order a number of animal life forms according to their normal length of life.

Predict: From a description of the climate and soils of an area, the student could be asked to predict the plant ecology of the area.

Solve: The student could be asked to solve the following: How many grams of H2O will be formed by the complete combustion of one liter of hydrogen at 70 degrees C?

State a Rule: The student could be asked to state a rule that tell what form the offspring of mammals will be, i.e. they will be very similar to their parent organisms.

Translate: The student could be asked to translate 93,000,000 into standard scientific notation.

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Examples of Activities: Mathematics

Apply a Rule: Given a pair of equations such as 2 + 4 + 7 = 13, and 7 + 2 + 4 = ___, the student could be asked to apply a rule that would give him the solution to the second equation of the pair without adding the factors. His response should include a statement to the effect that the same numbers are to be added in each equation, but in different order (analysis) and that the order of addition makes no difference in the solution of the equations. Therefore, the sum of both equations is the same.

Classify: Given a series of numbers drawn at random from 1 - 1000, the student could be asked to classify them into categories of even divisibility by 2, 3, 4, and so on.

Construct: Given a straight edge, compass, and paper, the student could be asked to construct an equilateral triangle.

Define: Given an assortment of various kinds of coins, the student could be asked to define some categories into which the coins could be classified. His response would include definitions such as, "All of the pennies, all of the nickels, all of the dimes, etc., could be put in separate piles. Or all the coins containing silver could be put in one pile and those that don't into another pile."

Demonstrate: Given a sufficient number of concrete objects and an equation such as 3 x 4 = 12, the student could be asked to use the objects to demonstrate that multiplication is repeated addition. His response would include placement of twelve objects in three groups of four each, or four groups of three each. He may also be asked to describe how the demonstrations show repeated addition.

Describe: The student could be asked to describe a method of determining a number of groups of five objects in a collection of 45 objects. The response would include a statement that groups of five members would be counted out and then the number of groups could be counted. The student may also be asked to demonstrate the process he described.

Diagram: The student could be asked to graph the equation y = 2x2 - x + 3.

Distinguish: Given pairs of numbers, one number of each pair a prime number, the student could be asked to identify the prime number in each pair.

Estimate: Given multiplication examples with three-digit numerals in both the multiplier and multiplicand, the student estimates the products to the nearest thousand.

Identify: The student could be asked to point to the numeral ninety-four on a numeration chart.

Interpret: Given a bar graph showing the per unit cost of food products when purchased in various size packages, the student interprets it by stating the lowest and highest per unit cost and by describing the relationship between increased package size and per unit cost of the product.

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Locate: The student could be asked to locate a particular desk in his classroom by stating the row it is in and the ordinal position from the front of the room. "John's desk is the fourth one from the front, in the second row, from the east wall."

Name: What is the name of this collection of objects? Answer: "A set." What is the name of this type of equation? Answer: "A quadratic equation."

Order: Given a number of objects of different lengths, the student orders them from lesser to greater length.

Predict: The student could be asked to predict the next term in an increasing arithmetic series such as 2, 5, 9, 14 ____.

Solve: The student could be asked to solve the following: 2 + 3 = ____. In this example, the type of operation is clearly indicated. Or, he could be asked to solve the following: "Jimmy, John, Bill, and Sam each had three marbles. John gave Bill two of his marbles. How many marbles did Jimmy and Sam have together then?" In this example, the operation to be performed is not specified, and extraneous factors are introduced.

State a Rule: In response to the question: "Why is the sum of two numbers no different if the order of adding them is reversed?" The student answers: "Because of the commutative principle," or "Because the order makes no difference in addition."

Examples of Activities: Social Studies

Apply a Rule: Given population data that illustrates the principle that the standard of living decreases if population increases without corresponding increase in production, the student could be asked to analyze the data to tell and tell how he is able to determine what effects changing population will have upon the standard of living.

Classify: Given photographs of various people and definitions of racial classes, the student could be asked to classify the photographs according to the races of the people portrayed.

Construct: Given appropriate materials, the student could be asked to construct a model of a city water system.

Define: Given a filmed or taped situation in which several forms of communication are portrayed, the student could be asked to define several categories of communication. His response could include definitions for verbal, non-verbal, pictorial, visual, auditory, or any of several other classes or categories of communication.

Demonstrate: The student could be asked to demonstrate the use of calipers to determine the measurements for obtaining cephalic indices. Or he could be asked to demonstrate use of a compass to determine direction.

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Describe: The student could be asked to describe the culture of a particular Indian tribe. Diagram: The student could be asked to diagram the steps involved in the passage of a bill though the legislature.

Distinguish: Given the names of ancient Greek and Roman gods paired according to function, the student could be asked to distinguish between them.

Estimate: Given the day of the year and the latitude, the student could be asked to estimate the length of daylight at a particular place.

Identify: Given the name of one of the U.S. presidents, and photographs of several, the student could be asked to identify the picture of the one which was named.

Interpret: Given a bar graph that shows production of steel in the U.S. during the last fifty years, the student could be asked to interpret the graph. His response could include references to times of production increases or decreases, total amount of decreases or increases, and differences in production between the years.

Locate: The student could be asked to locate, in time, the first battle of the American Revolution.

Measure: Given a string and a globe with a scale of miles, the student could be asked to measure the scaled distance between any two given points.

Name: The student could be asked to name the factors that contribute to natural population increases.

Order: Given the names of the declared wars in which the U.S. has engaged, the student could be asked to order them according to the time of occurrence.

Predict: The student could be asked to predict the type of economy that could be supported in described geographic regions.

Solve: Given tables of prices and costs, the student could be asked to solve problems related to the law of diminishing returns.

State a Rule: In response to the question: "What controlled the inheritance of family property in the European Middle Ages?" the student would respond with a statement that indicated that property was inherited by the eldest son.

Adapted from "Examples of Behavioral Verbs and Student Activities" by Dr. Bob Kizlik

Higher order thinking skills include critical, logical, reflective, metacognitive, and creative thinking. They are activated when individuals encounter unfamiliar problems, uncertainties,

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questions, or dilemmas. Successful applications of the skills result in explanations, decisions,

performances, and products that are valid within the context of available knowledge and

experience and that promote continued growth in these and other intellectual skills. Higher order

thinking skills are grounded in lower order skills such as discriminations, simple application and

analysis, and cognitive strategies and are linked to prior knowledge of subject matter content.

Appropriate teaching strategies and learning environments facilitate their growth as do student

persistence, self-monitoring, and open-minded, flexible attitudes.

This definition is consistent with current theories related to how higher order thinking skills

are learned and developed. Although different theoreticians and researchers use different

frameworks to describe higher order skills and how they are acquired, all frameworks are in

general agreement concerning the conditions under which they prosper.

Assessment

Valid assessment of higher order thinking skills requires that students be unfamiliar with the

questions or tasks they are asked to answer or perform and that they have sufficient prior

knowledge to enable them to use their higher order thinking skills in answering questions or

performing tasks. Psychological research suggests that skills taught in one domain can

generalize to others. Over long periods of time, individuals develop higher order skills

(intellectual abilities) that apply to the solutions of a broad spectrum of complex problems.

Higher Order Thinking Skills Page 3

Three item/task formats are useful in measuring higher order skills: (a) selection, which

includes multiple-choice, matching, and rank-order items; (b) generation, which includes short-

answer, essay, and performance items or tasks; and (c) explanation, which involves giving

reasons for the selection or generation responses.

Classroom teachers recognize the importance of having students develop higher order skills

yet often do not assess their students’ progress. Several performance-based models are available

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to assist them in teaching and assessing these skills. Comprehensive statewide assessment of

higher order skills is feasible but would be expensive. Florida and a number of other states now

incorporate the measurement of higher order skills in their statewide assessments.

Major Concepts

Several major concepts relevant to the higher order thinking processes are to follow, based

on three assumptions about thinking and learning. First, the levels of thinking cannot be

unmeshed from the levels of learning; they involve interdependent, multiple components and

levels. Second, whether or not thinking can be learned without subject matter content is only a

theoretical point. In real life, students will learn content in both community and 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.

Context

The level of thinking depends upon the context, with a real-world situation offering multiple

variables to challenge thinking processes. Going through a cafeteria line and making decisions

about types and amounts of food one should eat requires a much more sophisticated thinking

process than counting carbohydrates and fats in a classroom (Crowl et al., 1997). Successful

higher order thinking depends upon an individual’s ability to apply, reorganize, and embellish

knowledge in the context of the thinking situation.

Metacognition

The self-correcting nature of thinking is called “metacognition.” Metacognition includes

awareness of one’s thinking processes, self-monitoring, and application of known heuristics and

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Higher Order Thinking Skills Page 12

steps for thinking. One’s success with metacognition depends, in part, on a belief in one’s ability

to get smarter as well as the beliefs of others, such as teachers, in one’s ability (Crowl et al.,

1997).

Procedural Knowledge

Procedural knowledge sometimes is misunderstood as a higher order thinking skill. While it

may be a prerequisite for higher order thinking, it actually is a type of knowledge—specifically,

knowledge of rules and their application (Crowl et al., 1997). The ability to recite a rule or set of

procedures is “information learning”; the ability to apply a rule or procedure to a routine single-

variable situation is “application.” Neither of these capabilities involves higher order thinking.

Instead, applications of procedural knowledge that also involve analysis and synthesis of two or

more concepts would be considered higher order thinking. Examples include

“constructing map projections and grids, writing clear and concise case reports,

calculating the fixed overhead costs for a project, designing spreadsheets, drawing

conclusions about the impact of social reform on the universality of social programs,

and establishing meaningful relationships with coworkers” (Huot, 1995, p. 2).

Comprehension

Comprehension, a part of lower order thinking skills, is integral to higher order thinking

skills development. In fact, some research and teaching strategies focus on comprehension as if

it were within the higher order domain. While it is an important prerequisite, it is not a higher

order thinking skill. Comprehension remains the process by which individuals construct

Higher Order Thinking Skills Page 13

meaning from information and form new “schemata” through specific activities (Crowl et al.,

1997), including, but not limited to,

• generating and answering questions that demand higher order thinking about old and

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new ideas;

• confronting conflicting ideas and information, problems, or dilemmas;

• exploring and making discoveries;

• conducting systematic inquiries;

• summarizing, reciting, and discussing new ideas and their relationships;

• relating new understandings to other concepts;

• applying new ideas and information in basic problem-solving activities; or

• reflecting and verbalizing about cognitive processes involved in comprehension.

Creativity

Although some references do not explicitly include creativity as higher order thinking, it

cannot be unmeshed from the process. The very act of generating solutions to problems requires

the creative process of going beyond previously learned concepts and rules. Creativity involves

divergent and convergent thinking to produce new ideas (Crowl et al., 1997). Its place in the

network of higher order thinking skills was well articulated in Pasteur’s observation that “chance

favors only the prepared mind” because “only a trained mind can make connections between

unrelated events, recognize meaning in a serendipitous event,” and produce a solution that is both

novel and suitable (cited in Crowl et al., 1997, pp. 192–193).

Higher Order Thinking Skills Page 14

Major features of creativity are listed below.

• Creativity involves the consistent use of basic principles or rules in new situations, such

as Benjamin Franklin’s application of conservation and equilibrium (Crowl et al.,

1997); Picasso’s creation of “Guernica,” resulting from sketches and modifications of

previous work; Watson and Crick’s discovery of the DNA double helix structure; and

Edison’s invention of an electric lighting system (Weisberg, 1995).

• Creativity involves discovering and solving problems. Innovative approaches are used

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to accurately evaluate shortcomings, and actions are taken to remedy those weaknesses

(Crowl et al., 1997).

• Creativity involves selecting the relevant aspects of a problem and putting pieces

together into a coherent system that integrates the new information with what a person

already knows (Sternberg & Davidson, 1995; Crowl et al., 1997). In a basic sense, it

involves a series of decision-making choices between “two or more competing

alternatives of action,” each having “several pros and cons associated with it” (Crowl et

al., 1997, p. 169).

• Creativity overlaps with other characteristics, such as “intelligence, academic ability,

dependability, adaptiveness, and independence” and can “evolve within each of the

seven intelligences” (Crowl et al., 1997, pp. 195–196).

• Creativity requires many of the same conditions for learning as other higher order

thinking skills. The learning processes are enhanced by supportive environments and

deteriorate with fears, insecurities, and low self-esteem. Creativity deteriorates with

extrinsic motivation, restraint on choice, and the pressure of outside evaluation (Crowl

et al., 1997).

Higher Order Thinking Skills Page 15

Insight

Insight is the sudden unexpected solution to a problem (Schooler, Fallshore, & Fiore, 1995).

Complexity seems to be the spark for solving problems through insight. Noninsight solutions

require using rules, while insight solutions require problem-solving and cognitive strategies as

defined by Gagné, Briggs, and Wager (1988). From another perspective, noninsight solutions

require comprehension and application, while insight solutions require analysis, synthesis, and

evaluation as defined by Bloom (1956). Other research on higher order thinking also applies

directly to the concept of insight as follows:

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• Insight involves many of the same features as creativity, including examining all factors

that could be causing a problem, searching for a new way to state the problem, finding

alternative approaches, persevering, taking risks, applying broad knowledge, and

recognizing analogies (Schooler et al., 1995).

• Playfulness, creativity, and an ability to unify separate elements are major parts of

insight. Causes of impasses include failure to recognize relevant cues or patterns,

overemphasis on irrelevant cues, underemphasis of relevant cues, and searches in the

wrong spaces (Schooler et al., 1995).

• Dimensions of learning support insight in (1) both pattern recognition and reasoning

(Schooler et al., 1995), (2) the second dimension of acquiring and integrating diverse

knowledge, (3) the third dimension of extending and refining knowledge through

purposefully widened observation and reasoning, (4) the fourth dimension of making

choices among alternatives, and especially (5) the fifth dimension of developing

productive habits of mind with systematic control of reasoning and scientific methods.

Higher Order Thinking Skills Page 16

A study by Beyth-Maron (cited in Cotton, 1997) found that critical thinking underscores

the ability to make good choices.

• As with creativity, the “emotional tone of the person solving problems” affects insight

(Sternberg & Davidson, 1995, p. xi). Metacognition and cognitive strategies, such as

persevering, address the attitudes and habits of mind involved in insight (Gagné, Briggs,

& Wager, 1988; Sugrue, 1994). Motivation and fear of failure influence risk taking and

persevering (Legg, 1990).

Intelligence

In the past decade, intelligence has been defined more broadly (Crowl et al., 1997; Kauchak

& Eggen, 1998; Kirby & Kuykendall, 1991). Intelligence is

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• no longer limited to the idea of a single ability or global capacity to learn, adapt, and

think rationally;

• inclusive in its general and specific abilities to embrace general knowledge,

comprehension, thinking, and problem solving;

• multidimensional in mental processes involving convergent and divergent thinking; and

• multilevel, including linguistic-verbal, logical-mathematical, spatial, musical, bodily-

kinesthetic, interpersonal, and intrapersonal abilities that influence one’s approaches to

problem solving and thinking.

Problem Solving

A problem is “a situation in which the individual wants to do something but does not know

the course of action needed to get what he or she wants” (Crowl et al., 1997, p. 160). The

process of problem solving requires “a series of successive decisions, each of which depends on

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the outcomes of those that precede it” (p. 189). In a review of research and reports, King,

Rohani, and Goodson (1997) have identified 31 problem-solving tasks, from problem finding

through evaluation.

Critical Thinking

Some researchers and scholars use the terms “critical thinking” and “higher order thinking”

interchangeably, while others define “critical thinking” as a form of higher order thinking. Some

use the terms “critical thinking” and “problem solving” interchangeably; yet for others, critical

thinking is a form of problem solving. Still others define “critical thinking” as a part of the

process of evaluating the evidence collected in problem solving or the results produced by

thinking creatively (Crowl et al., 1997; Lewis & Smith, 1993). Critical thinking is a particular

domain that has been defined in detail through Gubbins’ Matrix of Critical Thinking (cited in

Legg, 1990), Facione, P. (n.d.), and the McREL Institute (Marzano, R. J., and others. 1992).

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Critical thinking also has been described in the following ways:

• goal-directed, reflective, and reasonable thinking, as in evaluating the evidence for an

argument for which all the relevant information may not be available (Cotton, 1997;

Crowl et al., 1997; Facione, 1998; Lewis & Smith, 1993; Patrick, 1986)

• an essential component in metacognitive processes (Crowl et al., 1997)

• analysis, inference, interpretation, explanation, and self-regulation; requires inquisitive,

systematic, analytical, judicious, truth-seeking, open-minded, and confident dispositions

toward critical-thinking processes (Facione, 1998)

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• the disposition to provide evidence or reasoning in support of conclusions, request

evidence or reasoning from others, and perceive the total situation and change one’s

views based on the evidence (Cotton, 1997)

Theories Related to Learning and Higher Order Thinking Skills

No one has yet explained the process of thinking much better than Dewey (1933), who

described it as a sequenced chaining of events. According to Dewey, this productive process

moves from reflection to inquiry, then to critical thought processes that, in turn, lead to a

“conclusion that can be substantiated” (p. 5) by more than personal beliefs and images. Thought

can straighten out entanglements, clear obscurities, resolve confusion, unify disparities, answer

questions, define problems, solve problems, reach goals, guide inferences, shape predictions,

form judgments, support decisions, and end controversies.

According to Dewey, thinking does not occur spontaneously but must be “evoked” by

“problems and questions” or by “some perplexity, confusion or doubt.” The observations or

“data at hand cannot supply the solution; they can only suggest it” (p. 15). Furthermore, it is this

“demand for the solution” (p. 14) that steadies and guides the entire process of reflective

thinking; the “nature of the problem fixes the end of thought, and the end controls the process of

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thinking” (p. 15). Dewey’s conceptualization parallels current discussion and research about

problem solving and metacognitive strategies and the importance of teaching students to think

about their own thinking processes (Kauchak & Eggen, 1998). As students become aware of

their thinking processes, they realize how their own personal makeup can play a role in how they

make their choices and interpret situations (Jacobs, 1994; Tversky & Kahneman cited in Ohio

State University, n.d.; Kahneman, Slovic, & Tversky, 1982). Factors such as culture, experience,

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preferences, desires, interests, and passions can radically alter the decision-making process

(Kahneman et al., 1982). Nevertheless, with time and more experience in systematic thinking,

individuals and groups can develop the principles to guide decision making so that “a certain

manner of interpretation gets weight, authority” as long as “the interpretation settled upon is not

controverted by subsequent events” (p. 126).

The following section provides explanations of the work of key learning theorists,

practitioners, and researchers in the field of thinking and learning. Researchers and teachers

choose from a variety of frameworks for learning, with each framework approaching learning

from simpler to more complex stages. However, the frameworks are artificial—they are only

meant to be a means of defining the thinking/learning process; they can in no way capture the

intricacies of the thinking process. “The boundaries separating the forms of complex thinking

are sometimes blurred and somewhat artificial, often reflecting the particular interest of

individual investigators” (Crowl et al., 1997, p. 170).

Piaget

According to Piaget, the developmental stages are the key to cognitive development.

School-age and adolescent children develop operational thinking and the logical and systematic

manipulation of symbols. As adolescents move into adulthood, they develop skills such as

logical use of symbols related to abstract concepts, scientific reasoning, and hypothesis testing.

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These skills are the foundation for problem solving, self-reflection, and critical reasoning (Crowl

et al., 1997; Miles, 1992). Recent research shows that children perform certain tasks earlier than

Piaget claimed, vary in how rapidly they develop cognitively, and seem to be in transition longer

than in the cognitive development stages (Crowl et al., 1997). However, research also shows that

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biological development, together with instructional techniques, affects the rate of movement

from one stage of learning to the next.

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