<![CDATA[The ability to solve mathematical word problems is an important skill that students need to possess because it is closely related to conceptual understanding and problem-solving abilities. However, field observations indicate that many students still experience difficulties in solving mathematical word problems. This study aimed to describe students' difficulties in solving mathematical word problems and to identify the factors causing these difficulties among Grade III students of SDN Banjarbendo. This research employed a qualitative approach with a descriptive qualitative design. The research participants were 25 students of Grade III at SDN Banjarbendo. Data were collected through observation, interviews, and documentation, and were analyzed using the Miles and Huberman model. The analysis of students' difficulties was based on Newman's theory, which consists of five stages: reading, comprehension, transformation, process skills, and encoding. The findings revealed that students experienced difficulties at all stages of Newman's theory. The most dominant difficulties were found in the process skills and encoding stages, while the fewest difficulties were found in the reading stage. The factors causing these difficulties consisted of internal factors, including lack of understanding of word problems, low accuracy, lack of self-confidence, low learning interest, and limited study habits at home, as well as external factors, including an unconducive classroom environment, the dominant use of lecture-based teaching methods, and limited learning media. These findings indicate that students' difficulties in solving mathematical word problems are influenced by various interrelated factors. ABSTRAK Kemampuan menyelesaikan soal cerita matematika merupakan salah satu kemampuan penting yang perlu dimiliki siswa karena berkaitan dengan pemahaman konsep dan pemecahan masalah. Namun, fakta di lapangan menyatakan bahwa masih banyak siswa yang mengalami kesulitan dalam menyelesaikan soal cerita matematika. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mendeskripsikan kesulitan siswa dalam menyelesaikan soal cerita matematika serta mengidentifikasi faktor-faktor penyebabnya pada siswa kelas III SDN Banjarbendo. Penelitian ini menggunakan pendekatan kualitatif dengan jenis penelitian deskriptif kualitatif. Subjek penelitian adalah siswa kelas III SDN Banjarbendo dengan jumlah 25 siswa. Data dikumpulkan melalui observasi, wawancara, dan dokumentasi, kemudian dianalisis menggunakan model Miles dan Huberman. Analisis kesulitan siswa mengacu pada teori Newman yang meliputi tahap membaca (reading), memahami masalah (comprehension), transformasi (transformation), keterampilan proses (process skills), dan penulisan jawaban akhir (encoding). Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa siswa mengalami kesulitan pada seluruh tahapan Newman. Kesulitan yang paling dominan ditemukan pada tahap keterampilan proses dan penulisan jawaban akhir, sedangkan kesulitan paling sedikit ditemukan pada tahap membaca. Faktor penyebab kesulitan tersebut terdiri dari faktor internal, yaitu kurangnya pemahaman terhadap soal, rendahnya ketelitian, kurangnya kepercayaan diri, rendahnya minat belajar siswa, dan kurangnya kebiasaan belajar di rumah, serta faktor eksternal berupa kondisi kelas yang kurang kondusif, penggunaan metode ceramah yang dominan, dan keterbatasan media pembelajaran. Hal ini menunjukkan bahwa kesulitan siswa dalam menyelesaikan soal cerita matematika dipengaruhi oleh berbagai faktor yang saling berkaitan.]]>
