Enhancing Critical Thinking Skills and Writing Skills through the Variation in Non-Traditional Writing Task

Abstract

The research aims to identify the impacts of embedding non-traditional writing
 tasks within the course of modern physics conducted to the students of Physics
 Education and Physics Study Programs. It employed a quasi-experimental method
 with the pretest-posttest control group design. The used instruments were tests on
 conceptual mastery, tests on critical thinking skills, and a rubric of writing
 assessment. The data were analyzed by determining the percentages of average
 normalized gains, Cohen’s d, and correlational analysis. Based on the results of
 data analysis, it is found that the different treatments in the non-traditional writing
 tasks given to the students of the Physics Education and Physics Programs have the
 following impacts: 1. There was a significant difference in the increased
 conceptual mastery and critical thinking skills; 2. There was a difference in the
 writing quality of the students of the Physics Education and Physics Program; 3.
 There was a correlation between writing quality and conceptual mastery with a
 high degree relationship and there was a correlation between writing quality and
 critical thinking skills with a low degree relationship; 4. Increased conceptual
 understanding was influenced by the writing domain.