Introduction

The education world is constantly changing drastically to meet the demand of industrial  revolution 4.0. The advancement of technology with a variety of applications based on artificial  intelligence being used, teaching and learning process can no longer be the same as it was  20 years ago. In the era where students are able to get all information from the tips of their  fingers, it is no longer suitable for teachers to conduct lessons solely based on content  knowledge. In the 21st century pedagogy, teachers are expected to teach HOTS elements to  encourage deeper thinking activities among students.

Higher order thinking allows students to think beyond the facts. In this era, we need  people who can think beyond what is written in books. Instead of remembering facts, a person  should be able to use or apply the facts in life. They must be able to understand the facts, infer  them, connect it to other facts, categorise, manipulate and put them together in new ways.  Higher order thinking shifts us from being like a robot; just saying things that’s programmed  without really understanding it to being an all-rounder as we seek new solutions to new  problems. 

Higher Order Thinking Skills in Malaysia 

Higher Order Thinking Skills (HOTS) refers to the ability to apply knowledge, skills and  values in reasoning, reflection, problem solving, decision making, innovating and creating  something new (Ministry of Education, 2013). The Malaysian education system formerly emphasized on the development of a strong content knowledge in students. The exam-oriented  syllabus has led the teachers to apply the approach of memorizing in teaching the students.  However, according to Malaysian Education Blueprint 2013-2025, with the increasing global  recognition, it is no longer enough for a student to leave school with the three Rs (Reading,  writing & arithmetic). The emphasis is no longer just on the importance of knowledge, but also  on developing higher-order thinking skills (Malaysian Education Blueprint 2013-2025) 

HOTS is also introduced in KSSR and KSSM syllabus due to a decline in Malaysian  students’ performance in international assessments like Trends in International Mathematics  and Science Study (TIMMS) and Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA). Both TIMMS and PISA not only test students on content knowledge but also on cognitive  skills. Students should be able to apply their knowledge in real-world settings. That was  something our previous education system lacked.  

The HOTS initiative is an ongoing effort by the MOE to produce balanced human beings responsible for the prosperity of the country. Implementation and cultivation of HOTS can help students perform thinking operations such as making analyses and inferences to  increase their understanding as well as improve their achievement performance. 

Higher Order Thinking Skills in Indonesia 

Indonesia has experienced eleven times of changing or transforming the curriculum since  the country was established (Ilma & Pratama, 2015). The Curriculum 2013 has been introduced  to produce Indonesian citizens with religious tolerance and mental health; it is based on the 

fact that recently, a lot of young generation citizens lack such character, no more tolerance and  empathy for others (Ningsih, 2016). Curriculum 2013 emphasizes greatly in building students’  characters, developing relevant skills based on students’ interests and needs, and developing a  thematic approach that benefits students’ cognitive abilities (Gunawan, 2017). One of the  verses said in Curriculum 2013 is to accomplish the curriculum, the learning methods are based  on the culture’s value of the province, so that the competitiveness and character are built (Ilma &  Pratama, 2015). The development characteristic of Curriculum 2013 emphasizes on the  equality of spiritual, social, curiosity, creativity, and knowledge and psychomotor collaboration  (Gunawan, 2017). 

Curriculum 2013 was also being implemented to solve issues on the PISA low achievements  among Indonesian students. Based on the date collected, it is said that the reading ability of Indonesian students in solving problems is still in the very low level (Ilma & Pratama, 2015). Therefore, the current revision of the 2013 curriculum stresses on thinking skills which is called  with HOTS. In implementing this skill, the 2013 curriculum has proposed some learning  models, such as discovery learning, problem-based learning, project-based learning, and  inquiry learning. (Sada, 2019). 

However, according to Tyas and Naibaho (2021), they still have not been able to achieve  the national education goals due to the changing of curriculum for each change of ministers.  To resolve the problem, the HOTS-based learning model has been introduced by education  personnel to improve and advance education in Indonesia. It is also said that the HOTS-based  learning model is one way of preparing students to face the millennium era and the 4.0  industrial revolution, which is similar to the goals of Malaysia National Blueprint 2013-2025. 

HOTS Issues in Malaysia and Indonesia from Teacher’s Perspective. 

Several studies show that since the implementation of HOTS in both countries, teachers are  facing numerous issues related to it. To begin, in Malaysia, the absence of readiness among  teachers are seen to lead to the application of high-level thinking skills (HOTS) cannot be  implemented during the teaching process even by teachers who have an awareness and  knowledge of the importance of HOTS. According to Suffian (2019), the willingness of  teachers to include HOTS in their lesson includes their skills to teach subject content and their  attitudes towards their responsibility. Generally, teachers do understand that HOTS need to be  infused through lessons for students’ better achievement (Sulaiman, 2017). Teachers are also  aware about HOTS and that this is in line with the aspiration of Malaysian Education Blueprint 

2013-2025. However, low level of teacher readiness towards the implementation of HOTS is  considered as one of the main factors that slows down the initiatives of the Ministry to reform  the education system.  

A reason to that is, there are teachers who are unwilling to shift from their traditional  teaching method. That’s due to lack of understanding and knowledge on HOTS as discussed  above. Teachers who have been teaching long before the implementation of HOTS are not  quite fond of using the new methods (Abu Bakar, 2019). This especially happens to old teachers  who are comfortable in conventional teaching and learning methods. They prefer focusing on  information delivery where they use the chalk-and-talk method to explain that information.  They spoon feed students and prepares them for the major examinations. They probably feel  that at the end of the day, it’s the grades that matters. 

Next is time constraints. To integrate HOTS in lessons may consume more time and effort.  In order to plan a good lesson plan, teacher has to also take account into the contents of title,  students’ level of thinking, the learning outcomes, the questions, the activities which caters all  student’s needs, the teaching aids which goes along and many others in one time frame.  Therefore, due to teacher’s tight schedules and burden of variety of other tasks besides  teaching, teachers are lacking time to appreciate and understand the important facts available  in each of the contents of the title and to build teaching aid (Tajul Ariffin, 2010). This is also  supported by Gunawan, 2019 that there are too many administrations that must be completed  by teachers even in Indonesia whereby teachers find it difficult to spilt time between teaching  and administration work. 

Teachers’ competence is another factor that leads to teachers’ unwillingness in  implementation of HOTS. While some can, there are also teachers who have not mastered the  content and teaching strategies to teach thinking skills to their students. This is probably due  to difficulties generating new ideas from facts and differentiating it into different levels of  thinking. In order for teachers to teach students how to think, teachers should train themselves  first. They need to be well equipped with general knowledge and have continuous learning in  to improve their teaching skills. Furthermore, there are also teachers who are not clear with  HOTS and how to implement them in teaching and learning process (Abu Bakar, 2019). This  is also supported by Kusumastuti, Fauziati, and Marmanto, 2019, that teachers in Indonesia are  still limited in their HOTS trainings.

A study by Gunawan, 2019 in Indonesia also concluded that, teachers do not fully  understand the scientific learning process, which is commonly abbreviated with the acronym  5M such as: mengamati (observe), mengumpulkan informasi (gather information), menanya (ask), mengkomunikasikan (communicate), and mengasosiasi (associate). The implementation  Curriculum 2013 in Indonesia is still said to be not successful as teachers are still not having  their lessons planned according to the curriculum, they are unable to optimise scientific  approach and applying various learning models and also unable to assess students learning  outcomes (Gunawan, 2019). Therefore, the lack of knowledge and exposure of HOTS has  affected teachers’ inability to develop and assess student’s thinking skills and leads to lack of  readiness in HOTS application. 

SUGGESTIONS 

When we discuss on any of the efforts done by the Ministry of Education, it’s the  teacher’s effort in school which determines whether it would or would not be a success. So,  when it comes to teacher’s effort, it can be obtained with constant support and motivation.  Therefore, this would fall in the role of administration in the school to develop an effective and  efficient learning process. The underlying conceptualization assumed that school would  improve if principals were able to create clear academic goals, motivate teachers, and students to work towards those goals, monitor progress, and align teaching and learning activities to  achieve the desired academic outcomes (Hallinger & Heck, 2002).  

The education system is constantly changing through time. It’s difficult for teachers to  keep up with the pace if there are lack or no support in the implementation new teaching  approach. In implementing HOTS, teachers need to be given continuous training and mentoring  by education specialist to ensure an effective teaching process. All teachers need to be provided  with more workshops on the process of designing a syllabus, lesson plan, material  development, and in fact to dissect the curriculum for a start from the experts themselves.  

In addition, more lesson study needs to be conducted as it is proven a professional  development model for educators to teach and learn collaboratively and continually based on the principles of collegiality and mutual learning to develop a learning community among educators (Gunawan, 2019). It is also said lesson study has gained momentum with the  government’s commitment to increase teacher competencies and professional careers. Through  this, teachers are able to build a community where they can learn from each other to improve  their teaching quality and in this case to implement HOTS in their teaching practises. 

Other than that, teachers themselves should keep a positive mindset and always keep  up with technology and new teaching methods. Teachers must also live up to a life-long  education to keep up with new content knowledge, HOTS education and all new teaching  methods. Creative teachers are much need to generate curiosity among students. In order to  build higher order thinking skills among students, teachers themselves should be well equipped  with higher order thinking skills. Teachers must understand and digest that new teaching  strategies need to be tested out, in order to help students of different learning levels to prepare  for the real world.  

Conclusion 

The implementation of HOTS is necessary to be carried out by teachers in teaching and  learning process. Today, there are about 50%, 80% and 75% of questions asked in major  national examination core subjects are designed to measure higher order thinking skills (Abu  Bakar, 2019). The education system needs teachers to be open and practise life-long learning  to improve their knowledge and teaching skills in order to move in line with the aspiration of  the Ministry of Education.  

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Written by Natasha Kaur a/p Mindar Singh