Teachers' Barriers in Implementing Merdeka Curriculum in Teaching English at Junior High School

As additional preparation while teaching for the K-12 medium of instruction, the Korean Ministry of Education has actively promoted diverse professional development (PD) programs to promote English teachers' Teaching English through English (TETE) implementation. This study explored Korean K-12 English teachers' self-efficacy about TETE implementation and their experiences of participating in a long-term PD program (six-months). Through semi-structured interviews, classroom observations, and teachers' after-PD evaluations, the data analysis showed that PD could enhance English teachers' self-efficacy about implementing TETE, and that the PD site provided a professional learning community for English teachers to reflect on what they had learned from their training. However, further data analysis found that self-efficacy and experiences in the PD program were different for elementary and secondary English teachers. Several suggestions are provided in terms of effectively preparing K-12 English teachers for TETE implementation through the long-term PD program.

The Independent Curriculum (Kurikulum Merdeka) represents a significant shift in Indonesia’s education system, promoting competency-based learning and student-centered instruction. However, its implementation has posed various challenges for English teachers, particularly in junior and senior high schools. This study explores the obstacles faced by teachers, the strategies adopted to overcome these challenges, and the impact of these strategies on student learning outcomes in five junior high schools and three senior high schools in Palopo. Using a qualitative case study approach, data were collected through semi-structured interviews with English teachers and analyzed using thematic analysis. The findings reveal that teachers struggle with limited access to resources, inadequate professional training, increased workload, and student difficulties in adapting to independent learning. To address these issues, teachers implemented project-based learning, differentiated instruction, collaborative teaching, and digital learning integration, which enhanced student engagement, motivation, and critical thinking skills. However, many students, particularly in junior high schools, continued to struggle with self-directed learning due to lack of preparation for autonomous study habits. The study highlights the importance of ongoing teacher training, sufficient resource allocation, and gradual adaptation strategies to ensure effective curriculum implementation. These findings contribute to discussions on curriculum reform and English language teaching, emphasizing the need for stronger institutional support and instructional flexibility. Future research should explore longitudinal studies to assess the long-term impact of these teaching strategies.

The globalization of English has undoubtedly brought shifts into how the English language is taught in classroom settings and how English teachers are prepared. In English as a foreign language (EFL) settings, for example, teaching and learning English is generally influenced by local contexts. Taking into account the sociocultural contexts of the learners and the teachers, identity construction becomes one important aspect in the process of English teaching and learning. Focusing on the microanalysis of social language uses, the study was aimed to understand how pre-service teachers of English as a foreign language in a multilingual setting, Indonesia, enact their identities through their language use in classroom settings. The data for this study was obtained from a classroom observation where an English pre-service teacher was performing peer teaching. The discourse analysis of the first thirteen minutes of a pre-service teacher's teaching demonstration indicates that multiple identities were enacted when the student teacher switched from one language to another. The pervasive use of code-switching in four different languages (Indonesian, English, Arabic, and Malay) provides clues that Mamas, a student teacher's pseudonym in the study was enacting different identities as he taught his peers. While further research is absolutely necessary to obtain more vivid pictures of the reasons behind using multiple languages in teaching English within this context, the study provides insight about how pre-service teachers in an Indonesian context try to develop identities as they learn to teach English.

Using digital media to teach English is very varied, but the most important thing is how to use digital media. Furthermore, an English teacher can have new experiences using digital media in the classroom. This research aims to explore English teachers' experiences using digital media while teaching English. The research object is the experience of English teachers using digital media in teaching English at Muhammadiyah 4 Gempol Junior High School. This research uses a qualitative case study approach. The data was collected through observation and interviews with the research subjects, especially English teachers at Muhammadiyah 4 Gempol Junior High School. The observation and interview sheet will be used as the research instrument in this study. This research is expected to provide information about teachers' experiences in teaching with digital media and a reference for future research.

A study was conducted to examine the factors that impact the teaching of English to standard III, V, and VI pupils in public primary schools. The study aimed to identify enhancing elements and propose practical measures for improvement. Using a qualitative case study research design, data were collected through purposive sampling from eleven public primary schools in three wards that speak different mother tongues, namely Kicheba, Magoroto, and Kigombe. English language teachers and pupils were selected from the targeted group through purposive sampling. The research methods included teacher interviews, pupil focus group discussions, and classroom observations for standard VI. The study identified key enhancing factors such as qualified English teachers, effective teaching methods, and the availability of valuable materials and resources. It also pinpointed inhibiting factors like overcrowded classrooms, time constraints, and inadequate teacher professional development programs. However, the study did not stop at identifying these challenges. It recommended practical and effective measures such as curriculum alignment, utilization of innovative teaching strategies, and substantial investment in teacher development. These measures, being practical and feasible, offer hope for a brighter future in English education, instilling a sense of optimism in the audience about the potential for positive change. The study's findings underscore the critical need for targeted policy interventions to enhance English language instruction in public primary schools. The study concluded that improving teacher qualifications, enhancing resource allocation, and fostering supportive teaching environments are pivotal for advancing English education. These findings, with their potential to significantly impact educational strategies, provide invaluable insights for educators and policymakers, inspiring them with the potential to refine and enhance English teaching outcomes. This knowledge empowers and equips the audience to make informed decisions and take effective actions in their respective roles, thereby enhancing their sense of inspiration and motivation to drive positive change.

The Effect of Using Digital RPG on EFL Reading Instruction: Student Learning Outcome and Teaching Perceptions Abstract This present study intends to explore the effectiveness of RPG for English teaching and to investigate the improvement of students’ reading skills by using digital RPG. Moreover, this present study investigates the students’ motivation and learning attitude regarding RPG as a tool for English learning. It is also found that many of the previous studies have supported the claim made in the present study with respect to the digital RPG as an effective way for enhancement of English teaching and improvement of students’ reading skills. To address four main research questions, a mixed-research design was employed as the research method. Ninety-four students and six English teachers of a private school in West Indonesia were recruited in the present study. Teaching materials were designed by the researcher, which were comprised by twelve digital RPGs. Data were collected both quantitatively and qualitatively. Participants’ learning outcome of reading skills, learning motivation/attitude, and the usefulness of RPG were collected by means of pre/posttest and ELAMU, respectively. A questionnaire for reading strategy teaching is also employed to collect teachers’ feedback. On the other hand, the classroom observation and a semi-structured interview were conducted, in order to collect English teacher’s responses to the use and effectiveness of RPG on English language teaching. Furthermore, descriptive statistics and paired-sample t-test were used to examine the participants’ achievement and psychological attributes. Also, Krueger framework analysis was employed an analyzing tool for the interview protocol. Regarding the classroom observation, its major findings were used as the supporting claims on the use of RPG. The feedback collected from the teacher was analyzed through content analysis. The findings indicate that the effect of digital RPG can be an alternative tool for improving students’ reading skills. The students’ English proficiency has significantly improved after the intervention of RPG. The test results also reveal that the students have acquired positive attitudes and a high level of motivation toward English learning via digital RPG. As shown, moreover, the pictures and the animations of RPG are useful for English learning. The result of observation demonstrated that digital RPG can help the students focus more on their assignment to a large extent. The students have actively engaged in reading the passage and participated in the activity. Moreover, one of the English teachers has shown positive attitude toward the idea that digital RPGs can increase the level of the students’ motivation for English learning. Additionally, she mentioned that RPG can help the students to have concentration and enhance the students-teacher’s interaction during learning. The test results of Teaching Reading Strategy Questionnaire confirm that five English teachers mention that digital RPG can be a tool for English teaching. The English teachers agreed that the features of RPG can facilitate English learning process. However, the teachers pointed out that they have difficulty designing RPG on their own, because they have not mastered the program yet. Overall, it is concluded that the effect of using digital RPG can be a tool for improving students’ reading skills, and increasing students’ level of motivation in English learning. By using RPG, students become more focused on their assignment, and also demonstrate active interaction with one another in class. Keywords: Role Playing Game, reading skills, English learning, English Teaching

Two major objectives are targeted in this research, method applied in English language teaching and how to implement the method. The research was conducted at State Junior High School 1 in Kalikajar in 2015. The subjects of this research were three English teachers at the school. The data for this research were collected through document, classroom observation, and interview. The result revealed the method claimed by the teachers were Total Physical Response (TPR) and Presentation, Practice, Production (PPP). Methods written on the lesson plan were categorized onto none implemented, partially implemented, and fully implemented in the teaching process. Findings shows that what was written on the lesson plan was not always implemented in the English language teaching and learning.

Teaching English is not a very easy job and becomes a challenging task for the Junior High School teacher in Banjarnegara regency that is located in a mountainous area and the majority of the people love to speak their mother tongue in their daily life. The main purpose of this study was to investigate the challenges faced by an English teacher in the teaching as well as what the solution/recommendation they made. This study employed the qualitative methods in which questionnaires and interview guide utilized and hundred and twenty-five (N=125) teachers were purposely and conveniently sampled from Junior High School English teachers in Banjarnegara regency. The results revealed that the challenges faced in teaching English are divided into four parts. The first challenges were from the teachers. These challenges are less of teaching material, teaching design, classroom management, ICT skill, many teaching administration, job loaded, and memory decrease. The second was from the students. Those are lack of vocabulary, loss of motivation, and juvenile delinquencies. The third was from schools. Schools had limited facilities, which can be utilized by teachers and students in teaching activities such as; limited dictionary, projector, and language laboratory. The fourth was from the parents. Many parents from the village have low education and future vision so it influenced their children's education. The study also gives three recommendations for succeeding in teaching English such as; (1) teachers should make teaching contract at the beginning of the semester, (2) principals send teachers joining to MGMP meeting and Continuous Professional Development activity, (3) schools give motivation to students and parents periodically.

In Indonesia, the number of English learners keep growing. Different methoods and effectiveness in teaching English has been experimented to get a better achievement. But still the systems, methods and techniques have some lacks and still need to have improvement and innovation to solve the problems. The problems are different in every schools, one of the problems currently faced by teachers was the new adaptation to the situation where schools activity turned to online activity. Teachers have to adapt into the new situation where all activities need to be handled through online activity and it becomes the problems for most of teachers who had no preparation and facilities during that time. Thus, the way English teachers adapt intstructional media and how teachers utilize and apply the instructional media especially audio visual media will be the main focus of this research. The researcher used suervey as a research design. There will be five junior high schools included in this study. There are 10 English teachers from different junior high schools in Sungai Penuh. The researcher only chose the junior high schools which are A-accredited. The researcher used questionnaire and interview as the instruments of this particular study. The researcher employed quantitative and qualitative data. The quantitative data were taken from close-ended questionnaire while the qualitative data were taken from interview result. The data analysis results shows that the teachers at Junior High Schools in Sungai Penuh used variatif instructional media in teaching. The researcher found types of audio visual instructional media mostly used among the teachers to improve student’s skills are audio recording (9,4) (hints,stories,conversation) and Videos (8,4) (documentaries,tutorials,teaching) which is very good response. The most used to improve speaking is Song (6,1) and Picture (7,3) teachers have good response towards them. Next, for reading is picture (8,8) and last to improve writing skills song (6,4), picture (6,8), flashcards (5,9), charts (5,7), videos (5,1) also have good response. Audio drama, movies, TV programs, news broadcast are the media that have bad response. Additionally, The most used hardware among the teachers are whiteboard (9,7) printed paper (9,1), smartphone (8,4), computer /laptop (7,7). Radio, recorder, CD player are get low response from the teachers. In adapting instructional media, teachers adapting from concrete object surround the classroom and schools, teachers also utilze digital devices like smartphone and software application like Whatsapp and Youtube. Moreover, teachers adapting the existing media and combined with other media that created by their own to assit them in delivering the materials. In addition, Teachers at five different junior high schools in Sungai Penuh have good views towards instructional media.

Currently, English teaching focus has been gradually transferred from teacher-centeredness to learner-centeredness. However, some problems still exist in the process of English teaching so that English teachers are encouraged to seek strategies to solve them, which is expected to enhance the English classroom teaching effectiveness. It has been the vital goal for English classroom teaching in junior high school because through the unremitting improvement of it, English teachers will boost their teaching capabilities, optimize teaching methods and attain further professional development. Thus, this research mainly focuses on the problems and strategies of effectiveness of English teaching in junior high school from the perspective of English grammar teaching to attain further foreign teachers’ professional development.

A learning process is a complex condition which needs consideration to make it goes well. So does the textbook being an important component that should be available in a school. Meanwhile textbook is the book of a certain subject that produced knowledge needs for the students which contained the materials of learning, the textbook also held a significant role in the learning process. The teachers as educators used textbooks to meet the needs of students learning targets and as the teaching advice in planning students’ activities in the classroom. Meanwhile, the student used textbooks as learning media in obtaining the updated information to help them enrich their ability of lesson subjects. Regarding the textbook issue, the researcher conducted the study of textbooks in teaching English at Junior High School in Jambi City by implemented a Qualitative descriptive approach in gaining the data. The technique used to gain the data was an interview. The data were analyzed descriptively. The respondent of the research was three English teachers who taught in each grade of students’ level. The results showed that the teachers perceived the textbook positively and it shows that the textbook used was not limited to the teachers to create another initial step to improve the students’ ability in understanding English even after considerin several minus aspects. The weakness of the main book makes the teacher uses other additional books in learning so that variety and sufficient material in the learning.
 Key word: Textbook, Textbook Used, Teachers’ Perceived

Teaching English as Foreign Language (TEFL) becomes a crucial issue. Meanwhile, it is not an easy task, especially when it was done in places where English has very limited purposes. This research seeks to investigate the challenges of English teachers as well as the solutions taken by English teachers in private Islamic junior high school. The data is gathered through documentation, interview, and classroom observation. This study captures the perspective of an English teacher in facing the challenges of teaching English in the classroom through interviews. Various challenges arose, results showed that the challenges facing in teaching English are varied in which they related to the students and the facilities. The challenges coming from students’ side including lack of vocabulary mastery, low concentration, lack of discipline, students’ boredom, speaking problem, confidence issue, facilities issues, and time constraint. It can be concluded that this study has highlighted a wide range of issues faced in teaching English as a Foreign Language in Madrasah Tsanawiyah Nurul Qolbi.

Teaching English requires effective strategies for students to improve their language skills. English Native Speakers play an important role in the learning process as they provide a more authentic language experience. However, English Native Speakers also face various challenges, especially when teaching in one of the junior high schools in Manokwari, West Papua. This study aims to identify the challenges English Native Speakers face in teaching English in that school. Using a descriptive qualitative approach, data were collected through interviews and classroom observations. The results showed that English Native Speakers experience challenges in dealing with differences in students' ability levels, cultural gaps, and adaptation to the local education system. In addition, large class sizes and limited opportunities for students to practice English outside the classroom are also barriers to learning. By understanding these challenges, it is hoped that teaching strategies can be improved and recommendations made for more effective English language teaching in Manokwari.

The outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic makes many changes in the educational system. One of the changes is in the process of assessment that is conducted by the teachers. Online assessment becomes the demand for teaching and learning process. In EFL teaching context, the English teachers are also demanded to present an online assessment that meets the students’ needs. The practice of online assessment needs to be investigated to capture whether it runs well or not. In line with this case, this present study describes online assessment practices as well as the challenges faced by the EFL teachers. By conducting descriptive qualitative research, the writers observed the practices of online assessment in English teaching in a junior high school in Semarang. There are three English teachers participated in this study. To obtain the data, the writers used observation and semi-structured interview as the instruments of data collection. After the data was collected, it was analyzed and interpreted descriptively. The findings show that English teachers implemented some online assessment tools such as Google Classroom, What’s App, Google Form, and Zoom in online assessment practices during the English teaching and learning. During the implementation of online assessment, the EFL teachers found some challenges such as internet connection, the different level of students’ intelligence, students’ low motivation, and EFL teachers’ lack of computer skills. The findings of this study imply that online assessment practices need to be evaluated to have a better implementation. Further, the EFL teachers’ computer skills need to be improved to realize an exemplary practices of online assessment in English teaching and learning.

The purpose of the study was to find out: (I) how the junior high school English teachers in Bengkulu city exploited the commercially published textbooks for classroom use; (2) if there was a difference in the way the experienced and the inexperienced English language teachers exploited the commercially published textbooks in the classroom; and (3) whether the teachers adapted textbooks or produced their own materials for classroom use. Twelve English teachers (6 experienced and 6 inexperienced teachers) from four different junior high schools or SMPs (2 favourite and 2 non-favourite) in Bengkulu city were the participants in this study. Data were obtained through a questionnaire, classroom observations, and sample lesson plans. The results of the study revealed that: first, the junior high school English language teachers (ET and IT); (1) used the commercially prescribed textbooks to a large extent; (2) there was not much difference between the way experienced teachers and inexperienced teachers exploited the textbooks; (3) both groups of teachers adapted the textbooks or produced their own teaching materials.