English for Cultural Voices: Students' Handbook & Teachers' Guide
v Objectives of Learning
This book, English for Cultural
Voices, is designed to support students in achieving the expected learning
outcomes of Phase D as outlined in the Kurikulum Merdeka. Through
culturally rich narrative texts, learners are encouraged to engage with English
in meaningful and authentic contexts. The learning activities in this book
promote the development of integrated skills, listening, speaking, reading,
writing, viewing, and presenting, while fostering students’ critical thinking,
creativity, and autonomy. By the end of the course, students are expected to
achieve the following objectives:
- Interact
and communicate in English both orally and in
writing in various formal and informal contexts using appropriate vocabulary
and sentence structures.
- Understand,
respond to, and interpret spoken, written, and
visual texts, both familiar and unfamiliar, by identifying the main ideas,
supporting details, and the purpose of the text.
- Exchange
ideas, opinions, and experiences effectively with
peers and teachers by giving arguments, stating preferences, and making
comparisons in discussions or presentations.
- Develop
written and oral texts using simple and
compound sentences to convey messages, tell stories, and explain or justify
their ideas clearly and appropriately.
- Utilize
technology and multimodal sources to support
comprehension and production of English texts, including stories, legends, and
cultural narratives.
- Apply
inference skills to understand implied meanings and
respond critically to a variety of text types, particularly narrative texts
with cultural significance.
- Demonstrate
increasing autonomy in learning English
through collaborative and individual tasks involving listening, speaking,
reading, writing, viewing, and presenting.
v
About
The Book
English for Cultural
Voices is a thematic English coursebook designed
for Phase D learners in accordance with the Kurikulum Merdeka. The book
explores Indonesia’s rich cultural heritage through five captivating legends,
each originating from one of the nation’s major islands:
1. Sumatra:
The Legend of Lake Toba,
2. Java:
The Legend of Sangkuriang and Mount Tangkuban Perahu,
3. Kalimantan:
The Legend of the Crying Stone,
4. Sulawesi:
The Legend of Sawerigading,
5. Maluku:
The Legend of Ternate and Tidore.
Each chapter is structured to guide
students through an integrated learning experience that combines language skill
development, cultural understanding, and character education. The activities
are designed to foster learner autonomy, collaborative learning, and the use of
technology to support English language acquisition.
Each chapter consists of
the following components:
A. Brainstorming
Students begin by activating prior knowledge and
sharing ideas related to the legend through multimedia prompts and
collaborative digital tools (e.g., Mentimeter, Padlet).
B. Narrative
Text Exploration
Students read the legend aloud with guidance from the
teacher or digital pronunciation tools to enhance their fluency and intonation.
C.
Guided
Comprehension and Critical Reflection
Learners work in pairs or small groups to discuss and
write their answers to comprehension questions, followed by oral practice to
reinforce speaking skills.
D. Vocabulary
Enrichment
Key words from the story are introduced. Students
pronounce and explore their meanings using dictionaries or digital tools to
support independent vocabulary building.
E. Communication
Skill-Building Activities
Through engaging video-based storytelling, students
deepen their understanding of the narrative by:
1. Rearranging
story pictures,
2. Retelling
the story in their own words,
3. Performing
role plays,
4. Reflecting
on the moral values of the story, and
5. Engaging
in interactive narration activities.
F.
Language Features: Simple
Past Tense
Each
chapter includes an explicit focus on the Simple Past Tense as a key
grammatical element in narrative texts. The explanation is contextualized using
sentences from the legend. Narrative texts have distinct language features that
help shape the storytelling: Use of past tense, action verbs, , adverb of time,
time conjunction, and specific characters that will be discussed in each
chapter.
G. Language
Application and Grammar Practice
Learners strengthen their understanding of past tense
structures through four key tasks:
1. Identifying
verbs in the past tense from the story,
2. Rewriting
sentences into negative and interrogative forms,
3. Completing
story gaps with correct past tense verbs, and
4. Sequencing
and retelling events using past tense verbs.
H. Learning
Reflection
Reflection is an
important stage in language learning as it allows learners to evaluate their
understanding, recognize values presented in the story, and connect learning
experiences with personal perspectives.
Through
this structure, English for Cultural Voices not only enhances students’
English language proficiency but also deepens their appreciation for
Indonesia’s cultural narratives. The book supports the development of critical
21st-century competencies, including communication, collaboration, digital literacy,
and character values, delivered through meaningful, localized content that
connects language learning to identity, tradition, and moral reasoning.
Using Folktale Flashcards:
Implementation Guide
The use of “Folklore
English Flashcards” in this book is grounded in the belief that language
learning becomes meaningful when students actively construct knowledge through
interaction, storytelling, and cultural engagement. Rather than functioning as
memorization tools, the flashcards serve as communicative triggers that
encourage learners to express ideas, negotiate meaning, and participate in
collaborative dialogue.
The
integration of folktale narratives allows students to connect English learning
with familiar cultural contexts. This approach supports contextual learning
principles, where language is not treated as isolated grammar structures but as
a medium for expressing identity, values, and shared experiences. Through
visual storytelling prompts, students are guided to transform comprehension
into production, moving gradually from understanding texts to communicating
ideas confidently.
2.
Alignment with the CENTRUM Framework
The
implementation of flashcards aligns with the CENTRUM Framework, which
emphasizes student-centered, culturally responsive, and communicative learning
environments. Within this framework, flashcards function as instructional
scaffolding that supports multiple stages of learning:
1.
Connection:
activating prior cultural knowledge through visual story prompts.
2.
Engagement:
encouraging participation through interactive speaking tasks.
3.
Narration:
supporting storytelling and retelling activities.
4.
Transformation:
enabling students to reconstruct stories using their own language.
5.
Reflection:
facilitating discussion of moral values and cultural meanings.
6.
Understanding:
reinforcing comprehension through collaborative dialogue.
7.
Meaning-making:
allowing students to internalize both linguistic and cultural learning
outcomes.
By embedding flashcards within these
stages, learning becomes dynamic and learner-driven rather than
teacher-dominated.
3.
Supporting the TIC Approach
(Talkative & Interesting
Classroom)
The
flashcards also support the concept of TIC (Talkative and Interesting
Classroom), which promotes active communication and engaging classroom
interaction. In many English classrooms, students hesitate to speak due to
limited ideas or fear of making mistakes. Visual narrative prompts help reduce
this barrier by providing concrete contexts for communication.
Through flashcard activities,
classrooms become:
1.
Talkative,
as students are encouraged to express opinions, retell stories, and engage in
peer discussions.
2.
Interesting,
because storytelling visuals stimulate curiosity and imagination.
3.
Interactive,
as learners collaborate in pairs or groups.
4.
Inclusive,
allowing students with varying proficiency levels to participate meaningfully.
The teacher’s role shifts from
information provider to learning facilitator who guides interaction and
supports student expression.
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