Articles

Between Readiness and Reality: EFL Teachers’ Deep Learning Implementation in Indonesia’s Merdeka Curriculum Amid Remote-Region Constraints

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This study investigates the readiness of EFL teachers in Toraja, a geographically remote region of South Sulawesi, Indonesia, to implement the Deep Learning approach within Indonesia’s Merdeka Curriculum, and examines the systemic, pedagogical, student-related, and infrastructural challenges they encounter during implementation.A sequential explanatory mixed-methods design was employed, involving six purposively selected junior secondary school EFL teachers. Quantitative data were collected through a validated 20-item questionnaire measuring four readiness dimensions (pedagogical, technological, psychological, and institutional) on a five-point Likert scale, analyzed using descriptive statistics. Qualitative data were gathered through in-depth semi-structured interviews and analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis within Miles and Huberman’s interactive framework. Quantitative results revealed Very High overall teacher readiness (M = 4.28, SD = 0.470), with pedagogical and psychological readiness achieving Very High categorization (M = 4.40 each) and technological and institutional readiness achieving High categorization (M = 4.20 and 4.13 respectively). Four of six teachers (66.7%) were classified as Very High readiness. However, qualitative analysis identified four major challenge themes that systematically constrain implementation: (1) systemic institutional constraints inadequate sporadic professional development, rigid curriculum structures, and heavy administrative burden; (2) pedagogical instructional difficulties severe time constraints, challenges implementing inquiry and reflection phases, and authentic assessment design gaps; (3) student-related barriers uneven readiness, limited EFL vocabulary, passive learning habits, and cultural deference norms; and (4) infrastructure and technological limitations limited shared devices, unstable internet, and forced pedagogical regression reducing deep learning quality by up to 50%. This study reveals a critical readiness-reality gap: teachers demonstrate high internal readiness, yet face substantial external constraints that systematically undermine implementation quality. The findings contribute evidence-based insights to the emerging literature on Deep Learning implementation in under-resourced Indonesian EFL contexts and offer targeted recommendations for teachers, school leaders, district authorities, and national policymakers to achieve sustainable implementation in Toraja and comparable remote regions.​

Integrating Ethnopedagogical Approaches in English Vocabulary Learning: A Qualitative Study from Toraja, Indonesia

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learning and identifies the challenges teachers face in implementing these culturally responsive approaches in the Toraja context, Indonesia. Employing a qualitative research design with thematic analysis following the Miles and Huberman interactive model, data were collected through in-depth interviews with English teachers regarding the integration of ethnopedagogical approaches in vocabulary instruction. Findings reveal that ethnopedology significantly enhances student motivation across eight dimensions: increased learning attractiveness and information retention, enhanced overall motivation, greater active participation, increased confidence, improved long-term vocabulary retention, stronger sense of ownership and cultural pride, increased perseverance, and fostered independent learning habits. Teachers face ten substantial implementation challenges, including limited competence in integrating local wisdom, insufficient contextual materials, absence of evaluation standards, time constraints, difficulty balancing cultural content and linguistic targets, and assessment difficulties. Despite these challenges, teachers employ ten effective strategies including the use of authentic cultural objects, storytelling, discovery learning, cultural portfolios, and collaboration with community experts. This study contributes to the growing body of literature on culturally responsive language teaching by providing empirical evidence from an under-researched Indonesian context, offering practical implications for teachers, curriculum developers, and policymakers.