Bridging Educational Inequality: Reading Instruction in Remote Indonesia and Its Policy Implications
Abstract
Educational inequality remains a major issue in Indonesia, especially in / (3T) regions where access to effective reading instruction is limited. This study explores how English reading is taught in junior secondary schools in Maluku Barat Daya, a remote and under-resourced area, and examines the challenges affecting students’ literacy development. Using a qualitative case study approach, data were collected through classroom observations, interviews, and teaching material analysis involving sixty students of SMP Negeri 2 Tiakur and two English teachers. The findings reveal several challenges, including limited learning resources, low student vocabulary mastery, minimal English exposure, and inadequate infrastructure. Despite these difficulties, teachers show adaptability by using locally relevant texts, code-switching, collaborative learning, and simple low-technology teaching strategies to improve reading comprehension. This study highlights the important role of teachers in marginalized educational settings and emphasizes the need for responsive education policies, flexible curriculum implementation, continuous teacher development, and equitable resource distribution to support inclusive literacy development in Indonesia.
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References
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.31004/jele.v11i3.2541
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