Implementing the STAD Cooperative Learning Model to Improve Motivation and Social Studies Learning Outcomes among Sixth-Grade Elementary Students

This classroom action research aimed to improve sixth-grade students’ motivation and learning outcomes in social studies on the topic of “struggles to defend Indonesian independence” through the implementation of the Student Teams Achievement Division (STAD) cooperative learning model. The study employed the Kemmis and McTaggart spiral model of classroom action research consisting of planning, acting and observing, and reflecting, conducted in two cycles. The participants were 28 sixth-grade students (14 boys and 14 girls) in a public elementary school in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, who were organized into heterogeneous STAD teams. Data were collected through a learning achievement test, observation sheets of students’ learning activities, and a learning motivation questionnaire. Quantitative data were analyzed descriptively by calculating mean scores, mastery percentages, and normalized gain (N-gain), while qualitative data from observations and field notes were analyzed through data reduction, data display, and conclusion drawing. The results revealed a substantial improvement in students’ learning outcomes, with the mean score increasing from 73.64 in Cycle I to 84.29 in Cycle II, and the percentage of students achieving the minimum mastery criterion rising from 32.14% to 92.86%. The N-gain value reached 0.40 (40.40%), which falls into the medium category. Students’ motivation also increased from 70.2% to 84.48%, and learning activity rose from 62.5% to 82.7%. The implementation of STAD successfully created a more active, collaborative, and enjoyable classroom climate, fostered individual responsibility and teamwork, and strengthened students’ intrinsic motivation. These findings indicate that STAD is an effective instructional model for enhancing cognitive outcomes, social skills, and learning motivation in social studies within the framework of the Merdeka Curriculum.