Developing a Reading Comprehension Material Using The Herringbone Technique to Enhance Student’s Critical Thinking Skill

Abstract

This research and development (R&D) study aimed to develop a reading comprehension module using the Herringbone Technique to enhance critical thinking skills among eighth-grade students at UPT SMP Negeri 8 Medan. Following Borg and Gall's (2003) nine-step adaptation model, the study systematically developed, validated, and tested instructional materials for narrative text comprehension. The product, titled "Interactive Students' Narrative: A Reading Comprehension Module Using the Herringbone Technique," comprised three units featuring culturally relevant narratives integrated with structured questioning frameworks. Expert validation yielded an average score of 88.3% (highly valid category). Effectiveness testing with 32 students demonstrated significant improvement from pre-test (M=59.84) to post-test (M=82.34), with a normalized gain of 0.72 (high category). Paired-sample t-test results (t=14.83, p<0.05) confirmed statistically significant improvement. Student response questionnaires indicated highly positive perceptions (87.7%). The findings establish that Herringbone-based materials effectively scaffold reading comprehension and critical thinking development, offering a validated instructional resource aligned with the Merdeka Curriculum's emphasis on higher-order thinking competencies.