The Influence of Smart Wheel Learning Media on Beginning Reading Skills in Indonesian Language Subjects in Grade I of Elementary School

Abstract

This study aims to determine the effect of using the Roda Pintar (Smart Wheel) media on the early reading ability of first-grade students at  Elementary School (SD Negeri 5 Damar). The background of this research lies in the low level of students' initial reading skills, as some students still struggle to recognize letters, combine syllables, and read simple words.The study employed a quantitative approach with an experimental method using a One Group Pretest-Posttest design. The sample consisted of 21 class IA students selected through purposive sampling. Data were collected through pretest and posttest of early reading, observation, and documentation, and were then analyzed using descriptive statistics, normality tests, and a Paired Sample t-test. The results showed an increase in the average score from 41.43 in the pretest to 71.76 in the posttest. The statistical package for the Social Sciences (SPSS 26) normality test indicated a pretest value of 0.086 > 0.05 and a posttest value of 0.077 > 0.05, suggesting that both data sets were normally distributed. Furthermore, hypothesis testing with SPSS 26 revealed a Sig. (2-tailed) The value of 0.000 < 0.05, indicating that the alternative hypothesis (Ha ) was accepted. Similarly, manual calculation of the hypothesis test showed a t-value of -8.376 compared to the t-table value of 2.086, which also led to the rejection of the null hypothesis (Ho) and the acceptance of Ha . These findings demonstrated that the Roda Pintar media significantly improved students' early reading ability in Indonesian language learning for first-grade students at  Elementary School (SD Negeri 5 Damar).