OUTDOOR LEARNING’S INFLUENCE ON CRITICAL THINKING IN ELEMENTARY SCIENCE EDUCATION: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW IN INDONESIA
Abstract
Critical thinking has become an essential competency in the 21st century, particularly in elementary science education. Outdoor-based learning is widely considered an effective approach to foster students' critical thinking through authentic, real-world experiences. This study systematically investigates the effect of outdoor-based learning on critical thinking skills in elementary science using a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) with the PRISMA protocol. Literature searches were conducted across Google Scholar, ERIC, Scopus, Science Direct, and Springer Nature Link databases, covering publications from 2022 to 2026. From 741 identified articles, eight met the established inclusion criteria. The synthesis findings consistently show that outdoor-based learning significantly improves students' critical thinking skills, as reflected in N-Gain scores. The predominant critical thinking dimensions that developed were interpretation, analysis, inference, and explanation. The effectiveness of this approach is shaped by the implemented learning model, the quality of instructional activity design, and the teacher's role as a facilitator. These findings confirm that outdoor-based learning is highly relevant to the Merdeka Curriculum, particularly in cultivating the Pancasila Student Profile through the development of critical thinking dispositions.
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.29100/eduproxima.v8i4.10405
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