The study focuses on Higher-Order Thinking Skills (HOTS) in science education, a core competency emphasized in modern curricula but often poorly assessed in classroom practice. By designing and testing a structured assessment framework aligned with analysis, evaluation, and creation, the research provides concrete evidence that assessment design plays a decisive role in shaping how students think and learn.
Why Higher-Order Thinking Skills Matter
Science education is no longer limited to recalling formulas or definitions. Students are expected to interpret data, evaluate evidence, and design solutions to real-world problems. International education benchmarks, including those promoted by the OECD, increasingly position higher-order thinking as a key indicator of learning quality.
Despite this shift, classroom assessments frequently remain focused on low-level cognitive tasks. Many tests labeled as “HOTS” merely increase question difficulty without changing how students are asked to think. As a result, students may score well yet still struggle with reasoning, argumentation, and scientific decision-making.
In Indonesia, this gap is particularly visible at the junior high school level. Teachers often report difficulties in translating HOTS concepts into practical assessment tools. Sofyan’s study addresses this challenge by offering a clear, validated, and classroom-tested assessment framework designed specifically for science learning.
How the Research Was Conducted
The study applied a research and development approach combined with a quasi-experimental design, ensuring that the assessment framework was not only well-designed but also effective in real classrooms.
Key elements of the research included:
- Participants: 60 eighth-grade students from a state junior high school in DKI Jakarta, divided into an experimental group and a control group.
- Assessment design: The innovative framework was developed through needs analysis, expert validation, and revision. It focused on measuring students’ ability to analyze, evaluate, and create based on scientific concepts.
- Implementation: The experimental group was assessed using the innovative framework, while the control group continued with conventional science assessments.
- Data analysis: Student performance was analyzed using descriptive statistics and independent sample t-tests to compare learning outcomes between groups.
This design allowed the researcher to isolate the effect of assessment innovation on students’ thinking skills.
Clear Improvement in Student Thinking Skills
The results show a consistent advantage for students assessed using the innovative framework.
- The experimental group achieved an average HOTS score of 78.40
- The control group recorded an average score of 68.15
The difference of more than 10 points was statistically significant, confirming that assessment design directly influenced students’ cognitive performance. Students exposed to the innovative framework demonstrated stronger reasoning, deeper conceptual understanding, and greater ability to construct scientific arguments.
Statistical testing reinforced these findings, with significance values well below the accepted threshold, indicating that the improvement was not due to chance.
Valid, Practical, and Classroom-Ready
Beyond effectiveness, the study also evaluated whether the assessment framework was feasible for everyday use.
Expert validation by science education lecturers and experienced teachers rated the framework as “very valid” in terms of content, structure, and language. Student feedback further confirmed its practicality.
Students reported that:
- Instructions were clear and easy to follow
- Questions were relevant to what they learned in class
- Assessments encouraged them to think more deeply, not just remember facts
This combination of validity and practicality is crucial, as many assessment innovations fail because they are too complex or disconnected from classroom realities.
Assessment as a Tool for Learning
One of the study’s central insights is that assessment does more than measure outcomes—it shapes learning itself. When students know they will be assessed on reasoning and creativity, they engage differently with science content.
As Ahmad Sofyan of UIN Jakarta ethically paraphrases, assessments aligned with higher-order thinking indicators help guide students’ cognitive processes, making learning more meaningful and conceptually grounded. Rather than testing what students remember, the framework reveals how they think.
This perspective positions assessment as an instructional strategy, not merely an administrative requirement.
Implications for Teachers and Policymakers
The findings have practical implications for multiple stakeholders:
- Teachers gain a ready-to-use assessment model that aligns with HOTS-oriented curricula and supports deeper learning.
- School leaders can use the framework to standardize assessment quality across classes.
- Policymakers receive empirical evidence supporting assessment reform as a pathway to improving science education outcomes.
The study also highlights the need for professional development that helps teachers design and apply thinking-based assessments consistently.
Looking Ahead
While the results are strong, the research was conducted in a single school over a limited time period. Future studies are encouraged to test the framework across different regions, subjects, and grade levels. Integrating digital or AI-based assessment tools could further enhance scalability and long-term impact.
Author Profile
Ahmad Sofyan
Lecturer and researcher in science education
Universitas Islam Negeri (UIN) Jakarta, Indonesia
Expertise: science education assessment, higher-order thinking skills, and curriculum evaluation
Source
Article title: Innovative Assessment Frameworks for Measuring Higher-Order Thinking Skills in
Science Education
Journal: Asian Journal of Applied Education
Year: 2026
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