CONCEPTUALIZING SPEECH TEXTS AS A LEARNING MODEL TO FOSTER CRITICAL THINKING SKILLS IN ARGUMENTATIVE WRITING CLASSES AT HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS

Abstract

Critical thinking is essential in higher education, particularly argumentative writing. This study addresses the ongoing challenges students face in integrating critical thinking into academic writing, and examines presidential speeches as authentic learning models. The objectives are to (1) identify the elements of critical thinking in President Joko Widodo’s annual state addresses (2019–2024), (2) elucidate how these speeches can serve as a foundation for students’ argumentative writing, and (3) develop a critical thinking model suitable for higher education writing classes. Employing qualitative content analysis and grounded theory, six speeches were analyzed using the ACER framework: Knowledge Construction (KC), Evaluating Reasoning (ER), decision-making (DM), and Toulmin’s model of Claim, Grounds, and Warrant. The findings indicate that all speeches consistently exhibit a KC–ER–DM sequence, reinforced by clear lexical markers, such as adalah (is), namun (however), and harus (must). This triadic structure closely aligns with the introduction, body, conclusion pattern of academic argumentative essays. Further synthesis reveals that KC corresponds to Toulmin’s Claim/Grounds, ER to Warrant, and DM to Claim-in-action, culminating in the innovative AT Model (ACER–Toulmin) for teaching critical, well-structured argumentative writing to higher education students. This study reframes presidential speeches as authentic, cognitively rich pedagogical texts that demonstrate the full cycle of critical thinking. This provides concrete heuristics and transferable strategies for higher education writing instruction. Limitations include the exclusive focus on one leader and a fixed timeframe, which may affect broader generalization. Future research should test the AT Model with varied leaders, languages, and academic disciplines to enhance its applicability and deepen the understanding of text-based critical thinking pedagogy.