Empowering Students’ Ability in Writing Descriptive Texts Through Point Illustration Explanation (PIE) Strategy: A Case on Teaching Strategy

Abstract

This study sought to investigate the impact of the PIE strategy on seventh-grade students' ability to write descriptive texts at SMP Negeri 1 Pematangsiantar during the 2024/2025 academic year. The research involved 62 participants and employed a quantitative quasi-experimental methodology. Data collection was conducted through written tests, and the analysis procedure included descriptive statistical hypothesis testing. This involved calculating the mean score, median score, and standard deviation to determine the t-test value, which was then compared to the t-table to assess the significance of the PIE strategy in teaching descriptive text writing skills. The findings revealed that the statistical hypothesis test using t-test analysis at a 5% significance level (0.05) yielded a t-test value of 3.571, surpassing the t-table value of 1.677. Consequently, the null hypothesis (H0) was rejected, and the alternative hypothesis (Ha) was accepted. This outcome indicates a statistically significant disparity between the compared groups, suggesting that the observed effect is unlikely to be attributed to chance. These results provide robust evidence supporting the research hypothesis and warrant further exploration of their implications. This statistical significance implies that the observed differences between the groups are likely due to a genuine effect rather than random variation. It is important to consider the practical significance of these findings alongside the statistical results. Further analysis of effect sizes and confidence intervals could provide additional insights into the magnitude and precision of the observed differences. In conclusion, the study demonstrates that the PIE strategy effectively influences seventh-grade students' descriptive text writing abilities at SMP Negeri 1 Pematangsiantar.