Learning Contexts and Creative Attitudes in Mathematics: Evidence from Local Instruction Theory through Problem- Based Learning

Abstract

This study examines the relationship between students’ perceptions of a Local Instruction Theory (LIT) implemented through Problem-Based Learning (PBL) and their creative attitudes in junior high school mathematics. Drawing on a social-educational perspective, the study treats creative attitudes as an affective dimension of learning that can be shaped by the interaction of instructional design, peer discussion, teacher facilitation, and students’ opportunities to explore and justify alternative solutions. A quantitative correlational design was used with 24 junior high school students in Medan, Indonesia, selected purposively because they participated in a five-week LIT-PBL learning program. Data were collected using a 20-item student-response questionnaire and a creative-attitude scale. The reported validity coefficients were 0.79 for the student-response instrument and 0.76 for the creative-attitude scale, while intraclass correlation coefficients were 0.783 and 0.824, respectively. Descriptive results showed a mean studentresponse score of 67.13 and a mean creative-attitude score of 79.88 on a 0– 100 scale. Simple linear regression indicated a statistically significant positive relationship between students’ responses to LIT-PBL and creative attitudes, R = .623, R² = .388, F(1,22) = 13.976, p = .001. Thus, students’ responses to the LIT-PBL learning context accounted for 38.8% of the observed variance in creative-attitude scores in this sample. The findings are interpreted as evidence of a meaningful association rather than a causal effect because the study used a single-group correlational design and did not include a comparison group. The study contributes to educational psychology and mathematics education by showing how a context-responsive, problembased classroom can provide social and instructional conditions that support students’ willingness to explore ideas, communicate alternative solutions, and engage with challenging mathematical problems.