ANALISIS PROSES PEMODELAN MATEMATIS MAHASISWA DITINJAU DARI LEVEL KEMAMPUAN PENALARAN PADA MATERI FUNGSI KONSUMSI DAN TABUNGAN

Abstract

This study aims to analyze students' mathematical modeling processes based on their levels of
mathematical reasoning ability. The study employed a qualitative descriptive approach with a case
study design involving six undergraduate students from the Mathematics Education Program,
selected through purposive sampling. The participants consisted of two students from each
reasoning level (low, medium, and high). Data were collected through a written mathematical
modeling task and think-aloud interviews and analyzed using the Blum and Leiß mathematical
modeling cycle. The findings indicate that students with high mathematical reasoning successfully
completed all stages of the modeling process in a systematic manner, demonstrating creative
reasoning and accurate interpretation. Students with medium reasoning reached the interpretation
stage but still experienced difficulties distinguishing between the concepts of the marginal
propensity to consume (MPC) and the marginal propensity to save (MPS) when determining the
saving rate. Meanwhile, students with low reasoning exhibited fundamental conceptual errors,
including incorrect calculation of MPC and misconceptions about the relationship between MPC
and saving behavior. These findings highlight the importance of providing differentiated scaffolding
based on students' reasoning levels, particularly to strengthen conceptual understanding among
low-level students and mathematical justification skills among medium-level students.