Critical Thinking Skills and Reading Comprehension of the Junior High School Students of Taway National High School

Abstract

This study determined the levels of critical thinking skills and reading comprehension among 138 Junior High School students of Taway National High School, Ipil, Zamboanga Sibugay, during School Year 2025–2026, examined differences according to selected demographic and reading-related profile variables, tested the relationship between the two variables, and developed an evidence-based instructional enhancement program. Anchored on Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy and related cognitive frameworks, the research employed a descriptive-correlational design. Respondents were selected through stratified random sampling from a population of 214 learners. Data were gathered using a researcher-adapted Critical Thinking Questionnaire covering the six cognitive domains and the Philippine Informal Reading Inventory (Phil-IRI) English Test assessing literal, inferential, and evaluative comprehension. Statistical analyses included frequency counts, percentages, means, standard deviations, independent-samples t-tests, one-way ANOVA, and Pearson product-moment correlation. Findings showed a high overall level of critical thinking skills but a developing level of reading comprehension, with most students at beginning or developing proficiency and evaluative comprehension recording the lowest performance. Most profile variables yielded no significant differences; however, grade level, reading engagement, and parental involvement produced significant differences in selected aspects. A significant positive relationship existed between critical thinking skills and reading comprehension. These results informed the design of the THINK-READ (Thinking through Higher-order Inquiry, Nurturing Knowledge, and Reading Engagement for Academic Development) Instructional Enhancement Program integrating guided reading, higher-order questioning, metacognitive strategies, collaborative learning, and parent engagement. The study contributes to Sustainable Development Goal 4 (Quality Education) by generating localized evidence and a practical intervention that strengthen foundational literacy and higher-order thinking. It supports educational and institutional sustainability by equipping a rural public secondary school with an evidence-based, scalable approach to improve learner outcomes and teacher practice.