PERAN MOTIVASI BELAJAR DALAM MEMEDIASI PENGARUH PROJECT-BASED LEARNING BERBASIS ISU SOSIAL LOKAL TERHADAP KEMAMPUAN BERPIKIR KRITIS SISWA DALAM PEMBELAJARAN IPS

Rusdiyana Tugy (Universitas Halu Oleo)
Nanik Hindaryatiningsih (Universitas Halu Oleo)
La Ode Safarudin (Universitas Halu Oleo)

SOCIAL : Jurnal Inovasi Pendidikan IPS
Vol. 6 No. 3 (2026)

The low analytical reasoning skills of students due to the dominance of monotonous and teacher-centered conventional teaching are the background of this research activity. These operational problems trigger the sluggish attention of junior high school students in interpreting sociocultural problems around them. The main focus of this scientific study is to detect the mediating role of learning motivation variables on the influence of Project-Based Learning based on local social issues in boosting students' critical thinking skills in Social Studies learning. This quantitative research path applies an explanatory research design through proportional random sampling of 251 active students. Primary field data collection was collected through a closed Likert scale questionnaire technique, which was then analyzed using structural equation modeling Structural Equation Modeling-Partial Least Square (SEM-PLS). Quantitative data from empirical testing revealed a direct effect of the project-based model on critical thinking with a significant positive value with a path coefficient of 0.412. In line with that, the indirect effect coefficient through the mediating variable recorded a significance figure of 0.534. The main conclusion of the study confirms that learning motivation has been proven to convincingly carry out a partial mediation function in strengthening the acceleration of students' spatial problem solving. This instructional pattern is highly recommended for curriculum practitioners as an essential curative strategy to create a contextual and meaningful learning ecosystem. ABSTRAK Rendahnya ketajaman penalaran analitis siswa akibat dominasi pengajaran konvensional yang monoton dan berpusat pada guru melatarbelakangi kegiatan penelitian ini. Masalah operasional tersebut memicu kelesuan perhatian siswa sekolah menengah pertama dalam menafsirkan problem sosiokultural di sekitarnya. Fokus utama kajian ilmiah ini adalah mendeteksi peran mediasi dari variabel motivasi belajar terhadap pengaruh Project-Based Learning berbasis isu sosial lokal dalam mendongkrak kemampuan berpikir kritis siswa pada pembelajaran Ilmu Pengetahuan Sosial. Jalur riset kuantitatif ini menerapkan desain explanatory research melalui penarikan sampel secara proportional random sampling terhadap 251 siswa aktif. Pengumpulan data primer lapangan dihimpun lewat teknik angket kuesioner skala Likert tertutup, yang selanjutnya dianalisis menggunakan pemodelan persamaan struktural Structural Equation Modeling-Partial Least Square (SEM-PLS). Data kuantitatif hasil pengujian secara empiris menyingkap pengaruh langsung model berbasis proyek terhadap berpikir kritis bernilai positif signifikan dengan koefisien jalur 0,412. Selaras dengan itu, koefisien pengaruh tidak langsung melalui variabel mediasi mencatatkan angka signifikansi sebesar 0,534. Simpulan utama penelitian menegaskan bahwa motivasi belajar terbukti secara meyakinkan menjalankan fungsi mediasi parsial dalam memperkuat akselerasi pemecahan masalah spasial siswa. Pola instruksional ini sangat direkomendasikan bagi praktisi kurikulum sebagai strategi kuratif esensial untuk melahirkan ekosistem belajar yang kontekstual dan bermakna.