EFL Students’ Perceptions of the Teacher's LOTS and HOTS Questions in Teaching Reading Procedure Text through Deep Learning Approach
Keywords:
LOTS questions, HOTS questions , deep learning , reading procedure text , students' perceptionAbstract
Higher Order Thinking Skills (HOTS) and Lower Order Thinking Skills (LOTS) questions play a central role in shaping how English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students engage with reading texts, yet Indonesian classrooms and textbooks are still dominated by LOTS questions that emphasize recall rather than critical thinking. This study examined eleventh-grade students' perceptions of the LOTS and HOTS questions implemented within the Deep Learning approach in teaching reading of procedural texts. A descriptive qualitative design was employed, involving twenty-three students at SMAN 4 Tuban. Data on students' perceptions were collected through a Likert-scale questionnaire and semi-structured in-depth interviews with seven selected students. The collected data were analyzed by calculating the questionnaire percentages to identify perception trends, followed by data reduction, data display, and conclusion drawing of the interview transcripts to corroborate the quantitative findings. The findings reveal a highly positive student perception, categorized into three aspects: first, students showed high interest and motivation in learning procedural text through questioning; second, the gradual integration of LOTS and HOTS questions significantly helped students comprehend the text and relate it to real-life contexts; third, despite the positive responses, students perceived HOTS questions as a considerable cognitive challenge, requiring teacher scaffolding to alleviate anxiety when formulating independent opinions. The study concludes that students perceive the integration of LOTS and HOTS questions within the Deep Learning framework as an effective and engaging method to enhance reading comprehension and critical thinking, acknowledging the challenges inherent in higher-order cognitive demands.
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