Analysis of Mathematical Critical Thinking Ability based on Students' Ability Level

Analyzing and testing mathematical critical thinking skills based on the ability level of class VIII students of junior high school is the aim of this research. By understanding the level of students' abilities, educators can determine students' mathematical critical thinking abilities and develop appropriate teaching strategies to improve students' abilities. This study uses a qualitative descriptive research method. This research was conducted at one of the junior high schools in Cipatat, West Bandung Regency with heterogeneous abilities of 8 students. This research uses data collection techniques by providing mathematical critical thinking ability questions on SPLDV material which consists of 5 essay test questions based on the following indicators: (1) Checking the completeness of problem solving steps. (2) Look for alternative solutions to problems. (3) Identify spldv equations with certain characteristics. (4) Choose the best way to solve the problem from alternative ways of solving it. (5) Identifying the adequacy of data on a problem. In this study, the results of the analysis have shown that students at a high level of ability can check the completeness of problem solving steps, students with a medium level of ability have little difficulty in identifying spldv equations with certain characteristics, and students with a low level of ability have difficulty finding alternatives problem solution.