Teachers' Perceptions in Applying Mathematics Critical Thinking Skills for Middle School Students: A Case of Phenomenology

Abstract

Critical thinking skills are thinking processes with rational decision-making based on the principle of truth. This study aims to determine the teacher's perception in applying the necessary thinking skills of junior and senior high school students in learning mathematics. This research is qualitative research with a phenomenological type of research with an emphasis on individual subjects. Data were collected by conducting interviews with twenty-one mathematics teachers in the South Sulawesi Region. The data analysis technique uses an interactive analysis model based on Miles and Huberman, namely data collection, reduction, presentation, and verification. The study results indicate that teachers' perceptions of applying critical thinking skills in learning Mathematics need support from using models, strategies, or learning approaches, focusing on the subject matter, and knowledge about essential skills of thinking indicators. The teacher's obstacle in applying students' critical thinking skills is the lack of basic understanding of mathematics, interest, and motivation to learn mathematics. In addition, teachers lack planning and time allocation in preparation for learning. Then, efforts by the school to overcome teacher obstacles are to provide motivational support and facilities as well as permission to participate in training related to learning Mathematics. considered essential not essential to be described. The results of the data reduction selected teacher responses that represent the problems in this study as many as eleven teacher responses who teach in high schools with details of nine people in public schools and two other schools with private status. As for the response of teachers who teach in junior high schools, as many as three people with two people in state school status and one in private schools. The results of data reduction show that the difficulty of teachers in applying critical thinking skills of high school students in learning mathematics is the lack of students' knowledge in understanding the subject matter. Another difficulty is the lack of planning and teacher knowledge in applying critical thinking skills in learning.