Verbal and Numerical Abilities of Students in Senior High School in Wajo Regency, South Sulawesi, Indonesia
Keywords:
Psychotest, Gender, Senior High SchoolAbstract
Verbal and numerical abilities are fundamental skills of a student in Senior High School. However, the research regarding the verbal and numerical abilities specifically in Wajo Regency using psychological tests is minimal. This study aims to determine the profile of verbal and numerical abilities of new students at senior high school (SMAN) in Wajo Regency and a description of the academic abilities of male and female students. The population in this study were all students of SMAN Wajo Regency with specific characteristics, namely sitting in class X, not having cognitive impairment, able to read and operationalize basic mathematics. In this study, the sample that the researcher successfully collected was 991 students. Data collection used a psychological test with two subtests, namely verbal ability and numerical ability. Data were analyzed by descriptive statistics and processed using SPSS version 21.0. This study indicates that the medium category dominates the verbal and numerical abilities of high school students in Wajo Regency. Female students have better verbal skills on synonyms and word analogies. On the other hand, male students are more capable to analyze opposite words. In numerical ability, female students have better abilities in numbers while boys are better at arithmetic and geometric. Statistically, there is no difference in the verbal ability of male and female students.
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