The Effect of the Structural Analytic Synthetic (SAS) Method on Improving Beginning Reading Ability among First-Grade Students at SD Negeri 3 Sekarteja

This study aimed to examine the implementation of the Structural Analytic Synthetic (SAS) method and its association with the improvement of beginning reading ability among first-grade students at SD Negeri 3 Sekartela. A quantitative approach with a pre-experimental One-Group Pretest-Posttest Design was employed. The participants were 31 first-grade students selected through saturated sampling. Data were collected through observation, documentation, multiple-choice tests, and performance tests of beginning reading ability. The instruments were tested for validity and reliability. Data were analyzed using the Shapiro-Wilk normality test and Paired Sample t-Test. The results showed that the mean score of the multiple-choice test increased from 59.35 in the pretest to 72.26 in the posttest, with a gain of 12.903 points, while the mean score of the performance test increased from 57.74 to 67.90, with a gain of 10.161 points. The Paired Sample t-Test results showed a significance value of 0.000 < 0.05 for both instruments, with t-values of 7.138 and 7.158 at df = 30, respectively. These results indicate a significant difference in students' beginning reading ability before and after the implementation of the SAS method. However, because this study used a one-group pretest-posttest design without a control group, the observed improvement cannot be attributed solely to the SAS method; other factors, such as student maturation and practice effects, may also have contributed. Therefore, the SAS method can be considered as an alternative approach to improve beginning reading ability among first-grade elementary school students, although further research with a control group is needed to confirm these findings.