Abstract
This study aimed to determine the strategies used in enhancing critical thinking skills of learners in Social Studies in a Private School in Gumaca, Quezon. It determined the profile of the learners in terms of age, sex, and grade level. It also revealed the effects of the following in enhancing critical thinking skills in teaching Social Studies in terms of using of essential question, fostering discussion and debate, integrating current events and issues, and assessing and reflecting. The researcher used descriptive method of research. This study employed quota sampling design. Under this procedure, the researcher considered to used one hundred (100) respondents from the selected Junior High School students in a Private School in Gumaca, Quezon to get the 100% of the respondents. The findings revealed that most of the respondents are within 14 to 15 years old. The female respondents outnumbered the male population. Respondents were Grade 7, Grade 8, Grade 9, and Grade 10. This study revealed that the average mean of 3.93 interpreted as Agree indicated that most of the respondents are agreed on the effects of strategies used in enhancing critical thinking skills in terms of using essential questions. Likewise, the average mean of 4.05 interpreted as Agree, indicated that most of the respondents agreed on the effects of strategies used in enhancing critical thinking skills in terms of fostering discussion and debate. In the average mean of 3.90 interpreted as Agree indicated that most of the respondents agreed on the effects of strategies used in enhancing critical thinking skills in terms of integrating current events and issues. The study also revealed that in the average of 4.05 interpreted as Agree, indicated the most of the respondents agreed on the effects of strategies used in enhancing critical thinking skills in terms of assessing and reflection. Based from the results of the Kruskal Wallis H-test all the null hypothesis of age is rejected which means there is a significant difference on the perceived effects of strategies used in enhancing critical thinking skills of learners in Araling Panlipunan when respondents are grouped according to age. Meanwhile in sex the null hypothesis is accepted which means there is no significant difference on the perceived effects of strategies used in enhancing critical thinking skills of learners in Araling Panlipunan according to sex. In terms of grade level, the null hypothesis is rejected which means there is a significant difference on the perceived effects of strategies used in enhancing critical thinking skills of learners in Araling Panlipunan when respondents are grouped by grade level. From the result of this study, the following were recommended: school administrators may conduct training and seminars for different intervention strategies to integrate current events and issues into the classroom for the learners, parents may monitor their children about using strategies to being aware on current events and issues to apply in the classroom, teacher may provide activities that will involve the learners on integrating current events and issues so that learners will be aware on the current events and issues happening in their surroundings to enhance their critical thinking skills, students may do some practices and be updated on the news aired on television and radio that will improve their awareness on current events and issues, future researchers, they may conduct a parallel study which gives more emphasis on strategies use in enhancing critical thinking skills of learners in Social Studies.
