“Aku Siap Bekerja” Toolkit: Enhancing Choice-Making Skills to Prepare Students with Mild Intellectual Disabilities for the Transition from School to Work

Abstract

Choice-making skills are crucial for students with mild intellectual disabilities as they prepare for the transition from school to the workforce. This study focuses on developing these skills using the "Aku Siap Bekerja" (I Am Ready to Work) Toolkit, which serves as a concrete, visual, and structured learning medium. The study aims to: (1) identify the choice-making skill needs of students with mild intellectual disabilities regarding the school-to-work transition; (2) design the "Aku Siap Bekerja" Toolkit to meet these students' needs; (3) determine the toolkit's feasibility based on expert assessment; (4) assess the practicality of using the toolkit in instruction; and (5) evaluate the toolkit's effectiveness in improving the choice-making skills of students with mild intellectual disabilities. This is a Research and Development (R&D) study utilizing the 4D model, comprising the define, design, develop, and disseminate stages. The resulting product is the "Aku Siap Bekerja" Toolkit, which includes an instruction manual, an illustrated comic scenario book, choice cards, simulation cards, an assessment rubric, and a storage box. The content covers selecting suitable jobs, choosing work attire, selecting transportation to the workplace, choosing appropriate work tools, and selecting internship or work-practice locations. The research subjects consisted of high school (SMA) and special high school (SMALB) students with mild intellectual disabilities. Data collection was conducted through observation, interviews, expert validation questionnaires, practicality questionnaires, and pre-test/post-test assessments. Data were analyzed using descriptive quantitative and qualitative methods, while effectiveness was tested using a paired-sample t-test. The research results indicate that: (1) students with mild intellectual disabilities require concrete, visual, and structured learning media to develop choice-making skills as part of their transition readiness from school to work; (2) the "Aku Siap Bekerja" (I Am Ready to Work) toolkit was successfully developed to meet the needs of both students and teachers; (3) validation results showed the toolkit achieved an average score of 3.5 from subject matter experts and 3.6 from media experts, falling into the "Very Good" category; (4) practicality test results demonstrated that the toolkit is user-friendly and can be effectively implemented in the learning process; and (5) effectiveness test results showed a significant improvement in choice-making skills, with a Sig. (2-tailed) value of 0.000 (< 0.05) and a calculated t-value of 4.59 (> t-table 1.73). The average pre-test score rose from 2.39 to 3.33 in the post-test, representing an increase of 39.33%. Based on these findings, it can be concluded that the "Aku Siap Bekerja" toolkit is valid, practical, and effective for enhancing choice-making skills to support the school-to-work transition for students with mild intellectual disabilities.