Needs Analysis for the Design of E-LKPD for Dynamic Fluids Based on Inquiry Learning Using Google Sites Integrated with Local Wisdom to Improve Students' Critical Thinking Skills

Abstract

Google Sites-based digital learning materials (E-LKPD) are an innovative form of digital instructional resources with the potential to support the development of students’ critical thinking skills in the subject of dynamic fluids. The novelty of this study lies in the integration of three elements into a single instructional material design: the Inquiry Learning framework, the Google Sites platform, and the context of local wisdom in the city of Bukittinggi—an approach that has not been extensively examined in combination in previous similar studies. This study aims to describe the results of the needs analysis and the initial design of the dynamic fluids E-LKPD. This study employs a descriptive method using both quantitative and qualitative approaches, focusing on the needs analysis phase and the development of the initial product design, without covering the full product development or testing phases. The research subjects in the needs analysis phase consisted of 23 eleventh-grade students in Phase F and two physics teachers at Candung State High School 1. Data were collected through critical thinking skills tests, teacher interviews, analysis of teaching materials, and student characteristic questionnaires, and were then analyzed using quantitative and qualitative descriptive methods. The results of the needs analysis indicate that students’ critical thinking skills, overall, fall into the “very low” category, with achievement ranging from 36% to 43% across the five indicators, and the lowest achievement—36%—on the “analyzing evidence” indicator. The instructional materials used by teachers also did not fully implement a learning syntax that encourages active inquiry and were not integrated with local wisdom or interactive digital media. Based on these findings, a dynamic fluid-based E-LKPD (Electronic Worksheet) grounded in Inquiry Learning was designed, comprising six stages: orientation, problem formulation, hypothesis formulation, data collection, hypothesis testing, and conclusion formulation. This E-LKPD integrates the potential of Bukittinggi’s local wisdom—such as Jam Gadang, Ngarai Sianok, and the traditional rice field irrigation system, and is presented online via the Google Sites platform. The design produced at this stage has the potential to serve as the basis for testing the validity and practicality of the product in subsequent research phases, while its potential to enhance students’ critical thinking skills still needs to be further demonstrated through product development and testing in the next phase.