International Journal of Instruction July 2021 ● Vol.14, No.

3
e-ISSN: 1308-1470 ● www.e-iji.net p-ISSN: 1694-609X
pp. 519-534
Article submission code: Received: 13/02/2020 Accepted: 26/01/2021
20200213164252 Revision: 31/12/2020 OnlineFirst: 03/06/2021

Effectiveness of Problem-Based Learning Combined with Computer

Simulation on Students’ Problem-Solving and Creative Thinking Skills

Mariati Purnama Simanjuntak

Science Education Study Program, Universitas Negeri Medan, Indonesia,
[email protected]
Juniar Hutahaean
Physics Education Study Program, Universitas Negeri Medan, Indonesia,
[email protected]
Nurliana Marpaung
Science Education Study Program, Universitas Negeri Medan, Indonesia,
[email protected]
Dewi Ramadhani
Physics Education Study Program, Universitas Negeri Medan, Indonesia,
[email protected]

This study is aimed to investigate the effectiveness of problem-based learning

combined with simulation on students’ problem-solving and creative thinking
skills. By employing a quasi-experimental design, this study used essay and
problem-based tests as the instruments to evaluate problem-solving and creative
thinking skills of 192 students. These students were categorized into three groups:
experimental group I (n = 68) receiving instruction using problem-based learning
combined with simulation, experimental group II (n = 60) receiving instruction
with problem-based learning only, and control group (n = 64) receiving instruction
with a conventional method. Using a multivariate analysis of covariance, the
results revealed that problem-solving and creative thinking skills taught by
problem-based learning combined with simulation were significantly improved as
compared to those in experimental group II and control group. In addition, a
positive relationship was identified between students’ problem-solving skills and
their creative thinking skills. Ultimately, this study shows that instruction using
problem-based learning combined with simulation method is much more effective
than using either problem-based learning only or a conventional teaching method.
Keywords: simulation, creative thinking, problem-solving, problem-based learning, skill

Citation: Simanjuntak, M. P., Hutahaean, J., Marpaung, N., & Ramadhani, D. (2021). Effectiveness of
Problem-Based Learning Combined with Computer Simulation on Students’ Problem-Solving and
Creative Thinking Skills. International Journal of Instruction, 14(3), 519-534.
https://doi.org/10.29333/iji.2021.14330a
520 Effectiveness of Problem-Based Learning Combined with …

INTRODUCTION
Effective teaching and learning is imperative to prepare students with competencies and
skills required to acclimate industrial revolution 4.0 in the 21 st century. According to
earlier studies (See, et al., 2015), certain skills that we could obtain from learning
process are creative and innovative thinking, analyzing information, problem-solving,
using media and technology, and life and career skills. Education in industrial revolution
era requires the use of technology such as computer which is expected to shift the
mindset of teaching from teacher-centered to student-centered. Teacher centered
learning involving lecture method, question and answer method, task, and discussion
with the use of blackboard as the only media in learning process has generated the lack
of students’ involvement in teaching and learning, which is known as conventional
learning (Wahyu, et al., 2017). The use of technology in education such as game, virtual
reality, and computer simulation had developed in the past few decades (Makransky,
et.al., 2019; Rutten, et al., 2012; Ulukök & Sari, 2016). Simulation can be used to
enhance teaching and to facilitate students’ active engagement, as they could easily
understand information when learning science illustrated with simulation (Manunure, et
al., 2019). The simulation also could train students’ problem-solving, innovation, and
creativity skills (Vlachopoulos & Makri, 2017). Therefore, simulation is highly
important in teaching and learning process.
This study focused on investigating the development of problem-solving and creative
thinking skills of students taught by problem-based learning (PBL) combined with
simulation, the two sets of skills are fundamental in 21st-century society. Problem-
solving skills refer to a set of cognitive-behavioral activities by which a person attempts
to discover or to develop an effective solution to real-life problems. Problem-solving
steps according to Nezu, et al., (2013) are problem definition, generation of alternatives,
decision making and solution implementation and verification. Problem-solving is a
higher-order thinking skill, which needs creative thinking, critical thinking, and decision
making (Wanya, 2016). In addition, an individual with good problem-solving skills is
able to answer a problem after correctly implementing the solution and evaluating the
reasonableness of the answer (Wanya, 2016). Creative thinking can be described as the
whole set of cognitive activities that individuals use against a specific object, problem
and situation, or an effort towards a particular event and the problem according to an
individual’s ability (Birgili, 2015). Kampylis and Berki (2014) argued that creative
thinking is the process of thinking which allows students to apply their imagination in
order to generate and evaluate their ideas, questions, and hypotheses. Indicators of
creative thinking in research are fluency, flexibility, originality, and elaboration
(Syaibani, et al., 2017). The aforementioned concerns show that it is crucial to develop
new initiatives to foster students’ problem solving and creative thinking skills in
learning science.
Problem statement
Most of Indonesians students' problem-solving and creative thinking skills are relatively
low (Rahmawati & Taylor, 2019). One of the reasons for this fact is the teaching method
dominantly based on teacher-centered which emphasizes only the mathematical formula

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(Sahyar et al., (2017). The teachers frequently teach factual knowledge and rarely
connect a learning topic to problems or phenomena in real-life and do not conduct
experiments to carry out further investigations in a problem-solving process. Mustofa &
Hidayah (2020) argued that teachers should not only teach factual knowledge but also
improve the students’ skills like creative thinking. Mariati, et al., (2017) argued that the
low students’ problem-solving and creative thinking skills might occur because they
were still accustomed to engage with problems process that emphasizes mathematical
formulas rather than connecting the concepts through scientific problems. As a result,
they could not develop their creative thinking skills while solving a given problem. In
addition, when encountering a problem, they lack to focus on the problem, could not
make planning for solutions to the problem, and do not understand how to solve the
problem. Sahyar et al., (2017) and Shisigu et al., (2018) found that the emergence of low
problem-solving skills due to learning process that remains emphasize teacher-centered
instruction in which students are frequently passive in the classroom and engage only if
teachers need their involvement. Commonly, students also exhibit difficulties to
determine which concept was correct and are confused concerning the application of
principles, theories, laws, and formulas to answer and solve physics problems.
Research Focus
One of the teaching methods that can be used to improve students' problem-solving and
creative thinking skills is problem-based learning (PBL). PBL is an effective learning
method that encourages students to learn through authentic problem-solving (Lee et al.,
2017; Marra et al., 2014). The goal of implementing PBL is to help students develop
their creative thinking and problem-solving skills (Sihaloho et al., 2017). The given
problem provides an opportunity for learners to be creative and innovative. The
students’ problem-solving skills who were taught with the PBL method were better than
those taught with the conventional method (Argaw et al., 2017; Sihaloho et.al, 2017).
Some studies also found that the results of implementing PBL could improve students’
the creative thinking skills ( Ersoy & Baser, 2014; Nuswowati et. al., 2017; Siew, et. al,
2015; Ulger, 2016).
Learning is a communication process to deliver information from sources to the
recipients that need media. The use of technology-based learning media has a very
positive impact on the ability and willingness of students to follow the learning process.
One of the technology-based media that has a positive impact on learning is a computer
simulation. Simulation is a representation of a system using the same concept as the
system which is made using computer programming (McHaney, 2009). Computer-based
simulations (CBS) are able to present the dynamics and complexity of certain concepts
that are very difficult to explain using words, equations, or experiments (Jane, et al.,
2017).
Based on the aforementioned concern, simulation is very suitable for teaching and
learning physics, it can help students learn and understand difficult physics concepts.
The nature of physics is mostly an abstract concept that often makes students think
physics is difficult and boring. By using simulation, many difficult physics topics can be
taught easier and more enjoyable, resulting on the improvement of students’

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achievement (Bozkurt & Ilik, 2010). Koray & Abdullah (2013) argued that PBL using
simulation in physics learning could improve students’ ability because it could illustrate
the abstract physical concepts into more concrete representations. In this present study, a
Microsoft Excel spreadsheet simulation with a Visual Basic Application (VBA) is used
because this simulation can illustrate graphs on the screen, show accurate calculations,
and make the learning process more interesting. Tambade (2011) argued that the
simulation programming is efficient. In addition, simulation using spreadsheet media is
very effective in helping students to learn since it provides an opportunity for students to
change the variables.
Combining PBL and simulation is expected as an innovative learning method not only to
improve the student’s problem-solving but also creative thinking skills. The previous
study showed that problem-based learning using computer simulations had a positive
impact on the problem-solving and creative thinking of students (Arias et al., 2020;
Nuswowati, 2017; Sarabando et al., 2014; Siew et al., 2015). Beal & Stevens, 2011
stated that simulations could help students to build scientific problem-solving skills,
especially when the environment is designed to give students some guidelines for
solving problems. Sulaiman, (2013) stated that PBL could be trusted to help the
development of creative thinking skills among students in various fields of education,
especially in learning physics. Sihaloho, et al. (2017) found that creative thinking and
problem-solving skills of students taught with PBL were better than those taught with
conventional learning. Although a few studies have investigated the great impact of
using PBL combined with simulation, the studies recommend expanding similar
investigation in different contexts. Accordingly, this study is aimed to investigate the
effectiveness of PBL models with simulations on students' problem-solving and creative
thinking skills. The research questions in this study are given as follows:
1. Is the implementation of PBL combined with computer simulation effective on
improving students’ problem-solving and creative thinking skills?
2. Is there any relationship between problem-solving and creative thinking skills?
METHOD
Research Design
This study adopted a quasi-experimental design to understand how students learned
science using PBL combined with computer simulation, PBL only and conventional
method. The pretest and posttest were done to examine the effectiveness of three
different methods related to students' problem-solving and creative thinking skills.
Participants
The population of this study were 21 classes with a total number of 740 tenth-grade
students from two senior high schools in Medan. Six classes were selected by cluster
random sampling technique which were 3 classes from each school with a total number
of 192 students, all of whom were taking the physic course, were participated in this
study. These students were randomly assigned into three groups, the experimental
group I (68 students) that received PBL using simulation, experimental group II (60

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students) that received PBL, and one control group (64 students) that received
conventional method. The number of students in each class was ranged from 30-34
students. These students were examined before and after the intervention. The
participants of this study had not previously learned the topics before the intervention.
The experimental group I and II received PBL using computer simulation and PBL only,
respectively, while the control group received conventional instruction, which mainly
adopted a didactic teaching approach with textbooks.
Computer Simulation
Two physic topics (i.e., simple harmonic motion and impulse and momentum) were
selected to be taught during the instructions. A problem-based worksheet was developed
to guide students in solving the problems. The worksheet lists tools, materials,
procedures, and guiding questions. The teacher designed and operated computer
simulations that support students in solving the problem in each worksheet. The
representative of the computer simulations for pendulum oscillation and impulse and
momentum are shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1
Simulation for harmonic motion (top) and impulse and momentum (bottom)

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Intervention
In the experimental group I, the students were guided with five phases of PBL using
computer simulation. The students in experimental II were involved learning process
with only PBL. Students in the control group were taught by the conventional method
(see Table 1).
The initial stage of PBL is to orient students with authentic problems. This stage
provoked students to think of the way that can be done to find solutions for the problem
through the process of investigation. When a problem was presented, students were
required to define the problem in the form of problem clarification.
The second stage is organizing students to learn by making a learning group that
engages collaboration and interaction among the group members to exchange new ideas.
The ideas expressed by each group member could stimulate others to build their ideas
and further improve their creative skills.
In the third stage, students conducted individual and group investigations. They
conducted experiments in groups as the experimental procedure was not given in detail
so that students were required to find alternative solutions for problems and to make
decisions if the solutions had not been or had been solved (fluency and flexibility).
Students with their groups were required to convey their ideas and new ideas
(encouraging originality) based on the given problems and determine the alternative
problem-solving process by thinking about many possible strategies to solve the
identified problems. After students conducted experiments, the results of the
experiments were compared with computer simulations. Based on the simulations,
students would realize whether their solution was aligned with the concept of physic or
not. The simulations are crucial to motivate and make them more active because the
simulations help to visualize an abstract physical concept into more concrete forms,
allowing clearer and more detailed. The computer simulation directs students to solve
problems based on the order of problem-solving process.
The fourth stage is presenting the results. This stage allows students to present their
work in the form of problem-solving process and have a chance to know other
alternative solutions offered by their classmates. The differences of solution from each
student can train the students' creative thinking skills in terms of fluency and flexibility.
Interaction among the groups generates the creation of new ideas (originality).
The fifth stage is evaluating the results of problem-solving process. The results of
problem-solving process obtained by each group were then evaluated for accuracy
through computer simulations and teaching materials provided.

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Table 1
Learning design for three groups
PBL with computer simulation PBL Conventional
Teacher Students Teacher Students Teacher Students
Orienting students with authentic Orienting students with authentic
problems problems
Presents a simple Listening and Presenting a Listening and Introducing Listening teacher’s
problem understanding the simple problem understanding the the topic lecture
problem problem Gives an Understand
example and Learn how to solve
Organizing student to learn Organizing student to learn problem problem
Makes up groups Forming group Making up Forming group Asks Solving the problem
Shares worksheet learning groups learning student to at backbroad
Accepting the Sharing Accepting the solve the
worksheet worksheet worksheet problem at
blackboard
Individual and group investigations Individual and group investigations
Guiding students to Conducting Guiding students Conducting
conduct experiment and write to conduct experiment
experiment the steps to solve the experiment based according to
according to the problem in details on the problem to worksheet
problem to be Watching the be solved at the Discussing the
solved and to take computer simulation worksheet results of the
steps to solve the and finding solution Asking each group observation to get
problem Discussing the results to discuss result of idea to solve
Presents computer of the observation to the observation problem
simulation to guide get idea to solve
students to solve problem
the problem
Asks each group to
discuss result of
their observation
Presenting the work Presenting the work
Asking each group Presenting the results Asking each Presenting the
to present their of the observation group to present results of
observation to other the results of their observation to
groups Comparing results of observation other groups
Presenting the result observation with
obtained by computer simulation
computer simulation
as a comparison
with students’
observation
Evaluating the solution Evaluating the solution
Helping students in Listening to the Helping students in Listening to the
reviewing the steps teachers’ reviewing the steps teacher review the
of problem-solving explanation of of problem-solving problem-solving
and revise the problem-solving and and revise the with the correct
results of students’ explain the results of students’ concepts
observation differences in the observation
results obtained
Making conclusion Listening to the Evaluating Listening and
conclusion the students’ undestanding the
task explanation
Making Listening to
conclusion conclusion
Giving Writing the
assigment assigment

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Instrument and Procedures

The research instruments of essay and problem-based tests were used to measure
problem-solving and creative thinking skills. Before the intervention process, students
were given a pretest to measure their understanding of the concept. In the end of the
intervention, a post-test, an essay, and problem-solving tests, were given to examine the
students’ problem-solving skills and creative thinking skills. The problem-solving tests
consisted of 10 items, developed by Nezu, et.al (2013), wherein each solution follows
the steps of problem-solving including problem definition, generation of alternatives,
decision making, and solution implementation and verification. In addition, the creative
thinking skills tests were measure based on some indicators representing creative
thinking skills such as fluency, flexibility, originality, and elaboration. Each item of the
indicators for problem-solving and creative thinking skills tests has to be completed
within 10 minutes. The grid of test instruments for problem-solving and creative
thinking skills are presented in Table 2 and Table 3, respectively.
Table 2
Grid of test instruments for problem solving skill
No Indicator Sub Topic Items
1 Problem definition Simple pendulum 1 and 5
2 Generation of alternatives Oscillation and spring 2, 3 and 4
3 Decision making Impuls 6 and 7
4 Solution implementation and verification Momentum 8, 9 and 10

Table 3
Grid of test instruments for creative thinking skill
No Indicator Description Sub Topic Items
1 Fluency Generating ideas or Simple pendulum and spring 1 and 2
alternative solution for a oscillation 3
problem. Impulse
2 Flexibility Generating several ideas Spring oscillation 4
with many possible Impulse 5 and 6
approaches
3 Originality Generating new ideas that Spring oscillation 7
never though before Momentum 8
4 Elaboration Generating answers in Simple pendulum 9
details Momentum 10
Data Analysis
A pretest was employed to examine students’ prior problem-solving and creative
thinking skills while a posttest was used to examine the effectiveness of the intervention
in the three classes on problem-solving and creative thinking skills. Quantitative data
collected from the pretest and post-test measuring the problem-solving and creative
thinking skills were analyzed to examine the effect of treatments in the established three
groups. A one-way multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was performed to

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Simanjuntak, Hutahaean, Marpaung & Ramadhani 527

analyze the data. The prerequisite tests including multivariate normality test and
homogeneity test of covariance matrix were done by skewness and Box’s M test (F
(0.177) > p (0.01)), respectively (Putich & Stevens, 2016).
IBM SPSS for Windows was used to analyze the data with a significant level p<0.05.
Percentage of improvement for problem-solving and creative thinking skills were
analyzed by performing the average score of normalized gain (N- Gain):
Posttest average  pretest average
g
Maximum score  pretest average
(Bao, 2006)
The N-gain values (<g>) of <g> ≥ 0.7, 0.3 ≤ <g> < 0.7 and <g> ≤ 0.3 are categorized
into criteria of high, medium, and low, respectively.
FINDINGS
The average value of the pretest and posttest of solving skills and creative thinking are
listed in Table 4. The results showed that the average scores of pretests for problem-
solving and creative thinking skills in those three groups are similar. However, there are
significant differences on average scores for the posttest after the intervention. In
addition, the results showed that there is a significant difference concerning the
percentages of improvement (N-gain) on problem-solving and creative thinking skills
among the three groups. Students in the experimental I group exhibited the highest
percentages of improvement for problem-solving and creative thinking skills were in the
experimental I group (i.e., 56% and 68%, respectively). On the other hand, the lowest
percentages were in the control group (i.e., 33% and 51%, respectively).
Table 4
Descriptive statistics for problem-solving and creative thinking skills
Variable Group Pretest Postest N-gain Criteria
Mean SD Mean SD (%)
Experimental I 52.78 9.63 79.34 8.47 56 Medium
Problem-
Experimental II 52.59 7.83 72.00 7.72 41 Medium
solving
Control group 52.28 6.24 68.25 10.50 33 Low
Experimental I 22.45 13.28 75.00 9.12 68 Medium
Creative
Experimental II 22.06 7.68 70.57 10.81 62 Medium
thingking
Control group 21.92 12.66 61.62 7.33 51 Medium
Table 5 shows the N-gain score for each indicator of problem-solving and creative
thinking skills. The highest scores were in the group implementing PBL combining with
computer simulations while the lowest scores were in the group implementing the
conventional teaching method. Furthermore, concerning students’ problem-solving skills
in the experimental group, the highest N-gain score was identified in the indicator of the
generation of alternatives (83%) while the lowest score was found in the indicator of
solution implementation and verification (39%). Regarding creative thinking skills, the
highest N-gain was on the indicator of the fluency (63%) whereas the lowest was on the
indicator of elaboration (39%).

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Table 5
Improvement for each indicator of problem-solving and creative thinking skills
Indicator PBL using N- PBL N- Conventional N- Criteria
computer gain Criteria gain Criteria gain
simulation % % %
Pretest Postest Pretest Postest Pretest Postest
Problem-solving Skills
Problem 14.22 18.87 80 High 14.47 18.00 64 Medium 14.72 16.97 43 Medium
definition
Generation of 13. 62 18.91 83 High 13.78 17.31 57 Medium 13.78 16.56 45 Medium
alternatives
Decision 12. 75 18.41 78 High 12.53 16.94 59 Medium 13.03 16.41 48 Medium
making

Solution 12. 19 23.16 39 Medium 11.81 19.78 28 Low 10.75 18.31 26 Low
implementation
and verification
Creative Thinking Skills
Fluency 13. 03 23.72 63 Medium 12.78 21.81 52 Medium 12.78 18.22 31 Medium
Flexibility 12. 09 23.06 61 Medium 11.68 20.68 49 Medium 11.91 18.15 34 Medium
Originality 10. 63 14.83 44 Medium 10.47 12.73 24 Low 10.59 13.33 29 Low
Elaboration 8. 72 13.17 39 Medium 8.87 13.31 39 Low 8.63 11.89 28 Low

Multivariate Analysis of Variance (MANOVA)

Multivariate analysis of variance was performed to analyze pretest and posttest of
problem-solving and creative thinking skills. Table 6 shows the relationship between
students’ problem-solving and creative thinking skills. Findings indicated that there is no
significant difference in pretest scores among the three groups on problem-solving and
creative thinking skills. However, there were significant differences in posttest scores of
problem-solving and creative thinking skills (p <0.05).
Table 6
MANOVA on problem-solving and creative thinking skills
Variable df Pretest Postest
F p-value F p-value
Problem-solving 2 0.063 0.939 25.294 0.000
Creative thinking 2 0.037 0.964 35.142 0.000
Further analysis using the post-hoc test in Table 7 reveals that the students in the PBL
group using simulations outperformed than the students in the PBL and conventional
groups implying that there are positive effects of implementing PBL combined with
computer simulations on students' problem-solving and creative thinking skills.

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Table 7
Post-hoc pairwise comparison group on post-test scores
Group Average difference p-value
Problem-solving skills
PBL using simulation vs PBL 7.343 0.000
PBL using simulation vs conventional 11.093 0.000
PBL vs conventional 3.750 0.057
Creative thinking skills
PBL using simulation vs PBL 4.421 0.021
PBL using simulation vs convensional 13.375 0.000
PBL vs convensional 8.953 0.000
Relationship between Problem-solving and Creative Thinking Skills
Based on analysis using SPSS for windows, Table 8 displays an interesting result
showing a positive correlation between problem-solving and creative thinking skills (r
(192) = 0.986, p < 0.01). This indicates that the higher the students' problem-solving
skills are, the higher their creative thinking skills would be. Furthermore, Figure 2
exhibits the correlation of students problem-solving and creative thinking’ scores which
also clearly confirms that students with high problem-solving skills have high creative
thinking skills.
Table 8
Pearson correlation between problem-solving and creative skills.
Problem-solving Creative thinking
Pearson correlation 1.000 0.986**
Problem-solving Sig. (2-tailed) .000
N 192 192
Creative thinking Pearson correlation 0.986** 1.000
Sig. (2-tailed) .000
N 192 192
**Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).

Figure 2
Correlation between problem-solving and creative thinking skills

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DISCUSSION
Our results showed that students taught with PBL using computer simulations have a
significant improvement on students’ problem-solving skills as compared to students
taught using PBL only and conventional methods. The students taught with PBL using
simulation were involved in authentic problems that make them feel curious and think
about how to solve the problems. Instruction using PBL combined with simulations
provides a lot of opportunities for students to collaborate during the experiment
procedures, which have generated more interactions among students and between
students and teachers. van Riesen et al. (2018) argued that experiments can lead students
to construct their knowledge and help them to eventually solve the problems. In this
regard, students become more engaged in such a teaching method as compared to the
conventional method. Further, Eersoy & Baser (2014) stated that knowledge that
students gained from PBL-based learning makes them become the problem-solvers
using a high-order thinking skill. The findings are also consistent with that in Kadir et
al., (2016), in which PBL was suggested as an effective instructional tool for improving
students’ problem-solving skills. It is crucial to note that the students are more directed
at solving problems by involving the computer simulations in teaching and learning.
Ersoy & Başer (2014) found that learning with PBL could make students identify and
solve problems with their ideas and abilities and develop their creative thinking. More
importantly, they worked in groups to identify what they need to learn and to solve
(Savery, 2015). Sahyar, et al., (2017) also showed that PBL could foster students’
higher-order thinking skills such as problem-solving, creative thinking, and critical
thinking skills. Students’ problem-solving skills improve when they are taught using
problem-solving method (Wahyu et al., 2017). Our results also demonstrated that the
creative thinking skills of students taught with PBL using simulation are outperformed
than those taught either PBL only or conventional method. We (authors) argued that this
because the phase of PBL combined with simulation leads students to think creatively in
order to find solutions to the problems. This result was in line with some earlier studies
(Nuswowati, 2017; Siew et al., 2015; Sihaloho, et al. 2017; Ulger, 2016) in which
students are more creative in PBL with simulation group than the conventional group.
Problem-based learning can support the development of creative thinking skills during
the learning process (Birgili, 2015; Ulger, 2016). Gok (2011) stated that students feel
more challenged to do their learning, increase understanding of how theory can explain
physical observations learning with computer simulations. This is supported by several
studies (Arias et al., 2020; Bozkurt & Ilik, 2010; Sarabando et al., 2014) that using
simulation can develop students' understanding of physics concepts. PBL with computer
simulation has a positive impact on students' problem-solving skills and creative
thinking.
Another finding of this study was the significant correlation between student’s problem-
solving and creative thinking skills. From the first phase to the final phase of PBL,
students were required to practice and exhibit their creative thinking skills to think
fluently (fluency) when solving a problem. During this process, students asked many
questions to their classmates and the teacher. They also attempted to answer several
questions that emerged during the problem-solving process. They also express their

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ideas and work faster in solving the given problem-as compared to conventional
learning. Students were trained to showcase authentic thinking to build new ideas and
the solution to problems that were not thought of by others. In accordance to the
aforementioned concerns, Grégoire (2016) also stated that students who have new ideas
could increase their creativity to develop students' original thinking, they should engage
in an opportunity to work with problems that are not clear and open (ill-posed and open-
ended problems). Through these experiences, students would be able to develop their
creative thinking skills. This is reinforced by Arikan (2017) who argued that students
who are able to produce authentic problems have the potential to think creatively.
Creative thinking is needed to train children in solving their problems (Kashani-Vahid,
et al., 2017). In addition, students are also trained to layout their elaboration in more
detail as are required to solve problems through investigation of PBL learning. To arrive
at an expected solution, the students are directed to make detailed problem-solving steps
and would consequently be able to develop their ideas or the ideas of their peers in a
PBL combined with computer simulations group. Based on the description above, we
conclude that there is a positive relationship between problem-solving and creative
thinking skills. This study confirms the claim in the study of Baructu (2017) which
revealed that there is a relationship between problem-solving and creative thinking skills
among nursing students. Students' problem-solving skills increase significantly, as
creative thinking skills also increase.
CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS
This study shows that PBL using computer simulations could significantly improve
students' problem-solving and creative thinking skills. The findings also indicate that
PBL with computer simulations in collaborative learning could help students understand
problems more comprehensively and develop their creative thinking skills to solve
problems. In addition, a significant relationship between problem-solving skills and
creative thinking skills does exist. Ultimately, this study would be helpful for teachers
when determining or selecting a suitable teaching approach to teach physics, especially
the topics of simple harmonic motion, impulse, and momentum. Thus, educational
stakeholders may consider implementing PBL combined with computer simulations in
the curriculum for senior high schools to improve students’ problem-solving and
creative thinking skills.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The authors would like to thank the ministry of education of Indonesia and Rector of the
State University of Medan for funding this research under contract: Number
48/UN33.8/PL-DRPM/2019
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