Evaluating Teachers' Work in Developing Higher-Order Thinking Skills Instruments for Economics Education in High School - A Case Study

Aug 29, 2026

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This study evaluates teachers’ capability to develop Higher Order Thinking Skills (HOTS) questions needed to assess students’ critical thinking in high school economics. Using a case study design, the research examines the integration of HOTS items into end-of-year summative exams for tenth-grade students at Muhammadiyah High School 1 in Sragen, Indonesia. Data are collected through interviews, observations, and documentation with teachers, school leaders, and students. Results show a stronger emphasis on Lower Order Thinking Skills (LOTS) and Moderate Order Thinking Skills (MOTS), indicating insufficient HOTS question formulation. Recommendations include targeted professional development, mentoring, and sustained support to embed HOTS in summative assessments and improve learners’ critical thinking outcomes.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages17

Reading Time43 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Education and the need for HOTS

HOTS, MOTS, and LOTS concepts

Challenges in curriculum integration

Research focus and methods

Case study approach

Data collection methods

Evaluating Teachers' Work in Developing Higher-Order Thinking Skills Instruments for Economics Education in High School: A Case Study Dhany Efita Sari 1*, Ameliya Aquilera 1, Surya Jatmika 1, Suranto Suranto1, Nadia Fauzi Asila2, Brilliani Brilliani 2 1Faculty of Teacher Training and Education, Universitas Muhammadiyah Surakarta, Indonesia 2Faculty of Economics and Business, Universitas Sebelas Maret Surakarta, Indonesia * [des576@ums.ac.id](des576@ums.ac.id) Abstract. This study assesses teachers' ability to create Higher Order Thinking Skills (HOTS) questions, which are necessary for evaluating students' critical thinking abilities. The study uses a case study research methodology to investigate the incorporation of HOTS into end-of-year summative exams in Economics for tenth-grade students at Muhammadiyah High School 1 in Sragen, Indonesia. The methodology consists ofa variety of qualitative methods, including interviews, observations, and documentation. Interviews were performed with one economics teacher, one school principal, one vice principal in charge of curriculum, and three students to learn more about the end-of-year assessments, specifically the development of HOTS questions. The findings indicate a predominant emphasis on Lower Order Thinking Skills (LOTS) and Moderate Order Thinking Skills (MOTS) . This highlights a significant deficiency in teachers' HOTS question formulation, warranting guidance. Recommendations include targeted professional development for teachers in crafting HOTS questions and the implementation of mentoring programs. Ongoing support and resources are essential for seamlessly integrating HOTS into end-of-year summative assessments, fostering improved student critical thinking outcomes. Keywords: assessment, higher order thinking skills, high schools, economics education 1 Introduction Education plays a pivotal role in the advancement of human civilization, serving as a key indicator of the Human Development Index (HDI) . HDI, based on life expectancy, literacy rates, average years of schooling, and purchasing power parity, underscores the significance of learning in human development. However, contemporary global education tends to reduce rationality to "rationally without reason," producing graduates often described as "cheerful robots" devoid of creative energy and detached from societal and self-realities (Chasanah, 2019a) . In 2021 the Government of the Republic of Indonesia through the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research and Technology (Kemendikbudristek) carriedout curriculum © The Author(s) 2025 H. J. Prayitno et al. (eds.), Proceedings of the 5th International Conference on Education for Al (ICEDUALL 2024), Advances in Social Science, Education and Humanities Research 904, [https://doi.org/10.2991/978-2-38476-386-3_23](https://doi.org/10.2991/978-2-38476-386-3_23) reform at the primary and secondary education level (Herlandy et al., 2024) . One of these curriculum programs is Merdeka Belajar. The Merdeka Belajar program, introduced by the Indonesian Ministry of Education and Culture, aims to enhance the meaning of education and simplify the learning process, emphasizing improvement rather than replacement of existing programs (Purnomo et al., 2022, 2023) . This initiative aligns with the global shift towards education systems fostering critical and creative thinking skills, particularly Higher Order Thinking Skills (HOTS) (Fitriani, 2019) . HOTS skills (Higher Order Thinking Skills) refer to high-level thinking abilities that involve problem solving, analysis, synthesis, evaluation, and creativity (Ishartono et al., 2021; Saputro et al., 2021) . Therefore, it is important for students to be able to improve critical thinking skills based on HOTS (Sidiq et al., 2021; Sulistyanto et al., 2022a) . HOTS, MOTS, and LOTS are concepts related to learning and thinking skills. HOTS, or Higher Order Thinking Skills, encompass analysis, evaluation, and creation,

FAQs

What does the study evaluate about teachers’ work?

The study evaluates teachers’ ability to create Higher Order Thinking Skills (HOTS) questions for assessing students’ critical thinking.

How was the case study conducted?

The research used a case study methodology with qualitative methods including interviews, observations, and documentation.

What did the findings reveal about the distribution of question levels?

The results indicate a predominant emphasis on Lower Order Thinking Skills (LOTS) and Moderate Order Thinking Skills (MOTS), with deficiencies in teachers’ HOTS question formulation.

Aug 29, 2026

Uploaded by Gelato