Academic stress, self-efficacy, and digital literacy as determinants of vocational students' critical thinking
Abstract
Abstrak: Penelitian ini dilatarbelakangi oleh tuntutan kompetensi abad ke-21 pada era Industri 4.0 yang mengharuskan siswa Sekolah Menengah Kejuruan (SMK) menguasai kemampuan berpikir kritis. Kemampuan tersebut belum optimal akibat tingginya tekanan akademik serta belum matangnya literasi digital dan keyakinan diri. Penelitian ini bertujuan menganalisis pengaruh stres akademik, efikasi diri akademik, dan literasi digital terhadap berpikir kritis, serta pengaruh literasi digital terhadap efikasi diri akademik. Metode kuantitatif korelasional diterapkan pada 106 siswa program keahlian manajemen perkantoran yang dipilih melalui teknik penarikan sampel acak berstrata. Data dikumpulkan menggunakan kuesioner tertutup dan dianalisis dengan pemodelan persamaan struktural berbasis varians. Hasil analisis membuktikan bahwa stres akademik berpengaruh negatif dan signifikan terhadap berpikir kritis. Sebaliknya, efikasi diri akademik dan literasi digital berpengaruh positif dan signifikan terhadap berpikir kritis. Literasi digital juga berpengaruh positif dan signifikan terhadap efikasi diri akademik. Sekolah dan guru disarankan mengelola beban tugas guna menekan stres akademik serta mengintegrasikan pembelajaran berbasis masalah untuk mendorong kemandirian analitis siswa.
Kata kunci: beban kognitif; keterampilan abad ke-21; pemodelan persamaan struktural; pendidikan vokasi; tekanan belajar
Abstract: This study responds to the 21st-century competency demands of the Industry 4.0 era, which require vocational high school students to master critical thinking. In practice, this competence remains suboptimal because of high academic pressure and underdeveloped digital literacy and self-belief. The study analyzes the effects of academic stress, academic self-efficacy, and digital literacy on critical thinking, as well as the effect of digital literacy on academic self-efficacy. A quantitative correlational method was applied to 106 office management students selected through stratified random sampling. Data were collected using closed-ended questionnaires and analyzed with variance-based structural equation modeling. The results show that academic stress has a significant negative effect on critical thinking, whereas academic self-efficacy and digital literacy have significant positive effects on it. Digital literacy also exerts a significant positive effect on academic self-efficacy. Schools and teachers are advised to manage the academic workload to reduce academic stress and to integrate problem-based learning to foster students' analytical independence.
Keywords: 21st-century skills; cognitive load; learning pressure; structural equation modeling; vocational education
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