The Effect of Example and Non-Example Strategies in Integer Calculations on the Reasoning Competence and Conceptual Understanding of Fourth Grade Elementary School Students

This study aims to: (1) examine the effect of applying the Example Non-Example instructional strategy on students’ reasoning competence and conceptual understanding in mathematics; (2) determine the effect of the Example Non-Example strategy on students’ reasoning competence in mathematics; and (3) analyze the effect of the Example Non-Example strategy on students’ conceptual understanding in mathematics. The research employed a quasi-experimental design. The population of the study consisted of fourth-grade students at SD Negeri Rejosari, under the coordination of the Wonoboyo District Education and Culture Office (Koorwil Dindikpora), Temanggung Regency. The sample was selected using random purposive sampling, resulting in class IV A being assigned as the experimental group (10 students) and class IV B as the control group (11 students). Data collection techniques included observation and testing. Data analysis was conducted using hypothesis testing methods, including paired sample t-tests and independent t-tests. The findings revealed that the use of the Example Non-Example strategy had a statistically significant effect on both reasoning competence and conceptual understanding of positive integer operations among fourth-grade students at SD Negeri Rejosari, Wonoboyo District, Temanggung Regency, as indicated by a significance value (p = 0.000 < 0.05). Significant differences were also found based on hypothesis testing using t-tests, with t-values of 14.375 and 4.113 respectively, both exceeding the critical t-table value of 2.228 (df = 10). Based on these results, all null hypotheses (H₀) were rejected, and the alternative hypotheses (Hₐ) were accepted.