English language education and peace education in Indonesia: a framework of materials development for Pesantren

This study aimed to develop a context-based framework for multimodal peace-education EFL (English as a Foreign Language) materials development in secondary school pesantren in Indonesia. The study used Participatory Action Learning and Action Research (PALAR), a research design underpinned by critical theory and praxis that acknowledges the power and social relationships within a society and attempts to break down the power differentials between stakeholders, researcher and researched and empowers participants to take a leadership role. The research took place in three workshops with 21 volunteer participants purposefully selected from pesantren secondary school teachers. The data consisted of the designated textbook to identify pre-intervention conditions. It also included pre-intervention, during intervention, and post-intervention participant reflective journals, focus group discussions, field notes collected during the workshops, and participants' peace-education EFL materials. Data were analysed using critical discourse analysis and reflective thematic analysis. Following the workshops, all participants worked collaboratively and produced and/or adapted their own multimodal peace-education EFL material. A template was developed highlighting links with Islamic values, the K2013 goals, and advice for teachers. Up to a year after the workshops, the participants reflected on the applicability and sustainability of the project. Post-intervention, most respondents had used or adapted the sample materials and/or created their own materials despite the disruptions of the COVID-19 pandemic. All participants remained positive about the value of infusing Islamic and local values into the EFL and peace-education/character education curriculum. However, some participants expressed concern about student engagement and English language proficiency and wanted materials created in recognition of student diversity. This study contributes both to theory and practice. The PALAR framework illustrates the value of professional development where participants fulfil the role of students and teachers iteratively experiencing, providing feedback, refining, and implementing what they have learned. The materials provide teachers in the senior secondary EFL pesantren with resources aligned to the K2013 curriculum and local and Islamic values and serve as a template for locally grounded EFL peace-based materials.