Development of a Project-Based Assessment Instrument for Critical Thinking and Patriotism Values in Elementary Schools

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.32332/elementary/v12.i1.12599

Keywords:

assessment, critical thinking, patriotism values, project-based learning

Abstract

Conventional assessment practices in elementary schools often separate cognitive evaluation from character development, thereby limiting the measurement of students' competencies in a holistic manner. This study addresses the need for an authentic assessment instrument that integrates critical thinking skills and patriotism values within Pancasila Education. The study aimed to develop a project-based assessment instrument that is feasible, practical, and effective for fifth-grade students. Using the 4D Research and Development model (Define, Design, Develop, and Disseminate), the study involved validation by content and assessment experts, practicality questionnaires administered to teachers and students, and a quasi-experimental Nonequivalent Control Group Design. The participants consisted of fifth-grade students at SD N 1 Kadipiro, divided into an experimental group (n = 28) and a control group (n = 32), with a total of 60 participants. Data were analyzed using t-tests, N-gain analysis, and ANCOVA. The results indicated a high level of feasibility, with content expert validation reaching 90% and assessment expert validation reaching 97%. The instrument was also found to be highly practical based on user responses. ANCOVA results revealed significant differences between the experimental and control groups in terms of critical thinking skills (F(1, 57) = 196.13, p < 0.001) and patriotism values (F(1, 57) = 444.44, p < 0.001), with the experimental group demonstrating better outcomes than the control group. In conclusion, the developed project-based assessment instrument is feasible, practical, and highly effective, providing an innovative solution for implementing comprehensive and authentic assessment in elementary education.

References

Antony, M. K., Pradana, S. P., Ramadhan, A. N., Dewiyeti, S., & Hidayati, E. (2025). Empowering future innovatogradrs: Harnessing project-based learning and AI to enhance analytical thinking, creativity, and collaboration skill in exploring the circulatory system SMAN 1 Magelang City. Jurnal Penelitian Pendidikan IPA, 11(7), 813–821. https://doi.org/10.29303/jppipa.v11i7.11004

Dwijayanti, N. M. A., Ariawan, P. W., & Gunartha, I. W. (2022). Pengembangan instrumen penilaian keterampilan berpikir kritis dan berpikir kreatif berbasis google form. Jurnal Ilmiah Pendidikan Citra Bakti, 9(1), 219–229. https://doi.org/10.38048/jipcb.v92.682

Faridli, E. M., Narimo, S., & Fauzati, E. (2025). Strengthening integrity through project-based civic learning: Evidence from higher education. Journal of Cultural Analysis and Social Change, 10(3), 1275–1285. https://doi.org/10.64753/jcasc.v10i3.2584

Ginting, L. C. B., Murron, F. S., Fitriani, A. D., Mufliva, R., Rahmawati, E., & Somantri, M. (2025). Development of comic character as a media to foster caring and responsibility for children. International Research Journal of Multidisciplinary Scope, 6(1), 1451–1462. https://doi.org/10.47857/irjms.2025.v06i01.02470

Grad, J. M., & van der Zande, I. S. E. (2022). Cultivating global citizenship through higher education: A reflection on the development from civic to global engagement. Education Sciences, 12(11), Article 766. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci12110766

Ho, Y. R., Chen, B. Y., & Li, C. M. (2023). Thinking more wisely: Using the Socratic method to develop critical thinking skills amongst healthcare students. BMC Medical Education, 23(1), 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12909-023-04134-2

Ismail Gani, Ilham Eryk Pratitis Robinson, Rheina Pu Tri Faylia, & Hendra Setyawan. (2022). Kualitas empirik soal pilihan ganda pendidikan jasmani sekolah dasar di Yogyakarta. EDUKASIA: Jurnal Pendidikan Dan Pembelajaran, 3(2), 235–242. https://doi.org/10.62775/edukasia.v3i2.245

Jinseo Park & Ah Jeong Hong. (2025). Engagement scale. Preliminary Manual, Version, 1. Seul National University, Department of Education.

Maryani, I., Astrianti, C., & Erviana, V. Y. (2021). The effect of the STEM-PjBL model on the higher-order thinking skills of elementary school students. Sekolah Dasar: Kajian Teori Dan Praktik Pendidikan, 30(2), 110-118. https://doi.org/10.17977/um009v30i22021p110

Maulinda, D. (2021). Problem-based learning, character education approach, and the impacts on the students’ entrepreneurial attitudes and critical thinking skills. Edukasi: Jurnal Pendidikan Dan Pengajaran, 8(2), 97–105. https://doi.org/10.19109/ejpp.v8i2.9956

Mita, M., Manfaat, B., & Izzati, N. (2023). Pengembangan instrumen penilaian berbasis proyek untuk membentuk kreativitas motorik matematik siswa SMP pada pokok bahasan transformasi geometri. Teorema: Teori Dan Riset Matematika, 8(2), 269-282. https://doi.org/10.25157/teorema.v8i2.12111

Mota, F. B., Cabral, B. P., Braga, L. A. M., & Lopes, R. M. (2025). Mapping the global research on project-based learning: A bibliometric and network analysis (2014–2024). Frontiers in Education, 10. Article 1522694. https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2025.1522694

Ningsi, A., & Shaleh, S. (2024). Problematika penerapan asesmen berbasis HOTS (Higher Order Thinking Skills) di sekolah dasar. SAP (Susunan Artikel Pendidikan), 8(3), 447-453. https://doi.org/10.30998/sap.v8i3.20998

Omoyibo, P. E., & Odili, P. J. N. (2025). Bridging innovation and inclusion : evaluating digital tools , equity , And predictive validity in non- cognitive assessment for 21st-century learners. International Journal of Innovative Psychology & Social Devlopment, 13(4), 368–377. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17968068

Pupik Dean, C. G., Grossman, P., Enumah, L., Herrmann, Z., & Kavanagh, S. S. (2023). Core practices for project-based learning: Learning from experienced practitioners in the United States. Teaching and Teacher Education, 133, Article 104275. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2023.104275

Putri Nuraini Sari, Wuri Wuriyandhani, & Rahayu Condro Murti. (2024). Improving critical thinking abilities on HOTs questions through PjBL model for students of elementary school teacher education. Jurnal Iqra’ : Kajian Ilmu Pendidikan, 9(2), 327–352. https://doi.org/10.25217/ji.v9i2.3824

Slantcheva-Durst, S. (2025). Graduate students’ civic orientation: Applying and testing an instrument. Discover Education, 4(1), Article 134. https://doi.org/10.1007/s44217-025-00514-6

Steel, A. (2022). Re-Thinking assessment in law. Legal Education as a Subversive Activity, (pp. 78–99). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003175216-7

Trikoili, A., Georgiou, D., Pappa, C. I., & Pittich, D. (2025). Critical thinking assessment in higher education: A mixed-methods comparative analysis of AI and human evaluator. International Journal of Human–Computer Interaction, 41(24), 15570–15583. https://doi.org/10.1080/10447318.2025.2499164

Yufrizal, H. (2021). The impact of project based-CLIL on students’ english proficiency. Journal of Education and Learning (EduLearn), 15(1), 11–18. https://doi.org/10.11591/edulearn.v15i1.15692

Yulianto, M. I., Majid, I. A., Cahyono, H., & Sunarto, S. (2023). Installation of the character of love for the country through the study: Study of Indonesian labor children in Malaysia). QALAMUNA: Jurnal Pendidikan, Sosial, Dan Agama, 15(2), 543–552. https://doi.org/10.37680/qalamuna.v15i2.2395

Downloads

Published

2026-06-25

Issue

Vol. 12 No. 1 (2026): Elementary: Jurnal Ilmiah Pendidikan Dasar

Section

Articles

License

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

 
All articles in the Elementary can be disseminated on condition that still include the identity of the article and the source of the article (Elementary). The publisher is not responsible for the contents of the article. The content of the article is the sole responsibility of the author.
 
Authors who publish this subject agree to the following terms:
 
First, Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right from first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
Secondly, the authors are able to enter into a separate, or an acknowledgment of its initial (eg, post-institutional repository or publish it in a book) publication in this journal.
 
Third, the authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to the citation of published work.