FAKTOR-FAKTOR KESULITAN BELAJAR SISWA PADA MATA PELAJARAN ILMU PENGETAHUAN SOSIAL (IPS) KELAS VIII DI SMP N 3 SLEMAN

Abstract

This study aims to investigate: (1) students’ learning difficulty factors in the Social Studies subject in Grade VIII of SMP N 3 Sleman in terms of the internal aspects, and (2) students’ learning difficulty factors in the Social Studies subject in Grade VIII of SMP N 3 Sleman in terms of the external aspects.

This was a descriptive study using the quantitative approach. The research population comprised all students of Grade VIII of SMP N 3 Sleman in the 2015/2016 academic year with a total of 193 students. The research sample, consisting of 133 students, was selected by the Harry King nomogram.  The sample from each class, consisting of 22 students, was selected by means of the proportional random sampling technique. The data were collected through a questionnaire and documentation. The validity was assessed by expert judgment and the reliability by the Alpha formula. The data were analyzed by calculating the scores of the students’ learning difficulty factors of the questionnaire.

The results of the study are as follows. (1) Regarding the students’ learning difficulty factors in terms of the internal aspects in the Social Studies subject in Grade VIII of SMP N 3 Sleman, the lowest score is the readiness, caused by the facts that they do not learn the Social Studies materials adequately when there is a class in the following morning, they are not self-confident, they do not review the previous materials, and they do not understand the materials they learned before. (2) Regarding the students’ learning difficulty factors in terms of the external aspects in the Social Studies subject in Grade VIII of SMP N 3 Sleman, the lowest score is the community factor, caused by the facts that they do not have enough discussions with their peers in the surroundings about the Social Studies learning, they do not do many activities related to the Social Studies learning in the surroundings where they live, and they do not have enough discussions with students from other schools about the Social Studies learning and problem solving.

Keywords: Learning Difficulty Factors, Social Studies