ALTERA: Journal of Applied Linguistics, English Education, and Literature

Mental Health Issues Among Indonesian Adolescents: Prevalence, Contributing Factors, and Strategies

Rizqika Amalia — 2026-02-28

This study examined the mental health issues affecting Indonesian adolescents between 2019 and 2025 through a comprehensive literature review. The research aimed to identify the most prevalent mental health problems, analyze contributing factors, and explore proposed solutions to support adolescent well-being. A total of 10 relevant studies published within the last decade were collected and synthesized using thematic content analysis. The findings indicated that anxiety and depression were the most commonly reported mental health challenges among adolescents, with approximately 1 in 3 young people experiencing psychological distress during this period. Contributing factors included academic pressure, family conflict, peer relationships, excessive social media use, and socio-economic disparities, all of which interacted to create significant risks for mental health problems. The review also found that cultural stigma and low mental health literacy limited adolescents’ ability to seek help. Several strategies emerged as promising interventions, including school-based mental health programs, peer support initiatives, and community education campaigns aimed at increasing awareness and reducing stigma. Despite these efforts, challenges remained in ensuring equitable access and consistent implementation across regions. The study concluded that integrated approaches combining education, family engagement, and policy support are critical for improving adolescent mental health outcomes. Future research was recommended to evaluate culturally adapted programs and digital solutions to expand access to mental health services.

The Effect of Using the Problem Based Learning Model On Students’ Procedure Text In Writing Skill

Muhammad Farhan — 2026-02-28

This research aims to determine the effect of the Problem Based Learning (PBL) model on the writing ability of class VIII students of SMP Negeri 3 Binjai in the 2024/2025 academic year. The problem in this study is the low ability of students to write procedural texts. This research uses quantitative methods with quasi-experimental nonequivalent design and pre-test & post-test. The population of this research was 188 students with a sample of 30 student from experimental classes and 30 student from control classes. The sample was taken by purposive sampling. The research instrument was an essay test on writing procedure texts. The result of Independent Samples T Test analysis shown that the significance (sig) 2-tailed value 0.00 was lower than the significance level (0.05) and determined that coefficient of t_counted was -5.390 indicating higher than the t_table coefficient (2.002) with significance level (?) = 0.00 (2-tailed) with degree of freedom (df) = 58, which those results shown that H_a was accepted and H₀ was rejected.

Integrating SDGs into Indonesian Education: A Literature Review of Implementation and Barriers in ESD Practices

Anggria Jelita Furba — 2026-02-28

This study aims to examine the implementation of the principles of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) in the Indonesian education curriculum and identify the challenges faced by educators in applying them. This study uses a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) approach to explore various relevant literature sources, including scientific journals, policy documents, and reports from national and international institutions published between 2015 and 2025. The analysis was conducted thematically by grouping the data into several main themes, such as forms of ESD implementation, curriculum policies, teacher challenges, and gaps in access and training.Research results show that the principles of ESD have been conceptually accommodated in the Merdeka Curriculum policy and the Pancasila Student Profile Strengthening Project (P5) program. Sustainability values are integrated through thematic learning, issue-based local projects, as well as extracurricular activities and community engagement. However, its implementation still faces significant challenges, particularly related to the low understanding of teachers, the limited availability of specialized ESD training, and the disparity in educational infrastructure between regions. Moreover, the absence of formal regulations that explicitly include ESD as an integral part of the national education system also serves as an obstacle. This study concludes that the transformation towards sustainable education in Indonesia requires systemic strengthening through teacher training, the development of contextual learning resources, and sustainable policy support.

Enhancing a Teenage Listening Skills Through Repetition Drills with the Go Getter Application: A Narrative Inquiry

Hafizh Hardantyo — 2026-02-28

This narrative inquiry explored the effectiveness of repetition drills, delivered through the Go Getter application, in enhancing the listening skills of a teenage English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learner. The study followed a 13 years old female student, whose initial proficiency level was assessed at CEFR A1, with the aim of advancing her listening competence toward B1 over a six weeks digital intervention. The intervention comprised weekly 45 minutes listening sessions incorporating structured repetition-based activities, including shadowing and echo listening techniques. Data were collected through weekly reflection journals, teacher observation notes, and semi-structured interviews, supported by informal CEFR-aligned listening assessments. Thematic narrative analysis revealed five key outcomes: significant improvements in listening fluency, enhanced pronunciation accuracy, increased metacognitive awareness, heightened motivation, and the effective integration of digital tools as scaffolding supports. The participant demonstrated notable gains in sentence-level articulation, prosody, and self-regulated learning strategies. Furthermore, the study highlighted how personalized, interactive digital content, when combined with repetition drills, addressed common listening challenges faced by adolescent EFL learners. The findings suggested that integrating repetition-based listening tasks into digital learning applications not only improved auditory comprehension but also fostered learner autonomy and confidence. This research provided valuable pedagogical insights for language teachers and educational technologists seeking effective strategies to support listening development and CEFR progression in teenage EFL contexts.

The Goals and Beliefs of Progressivism in the Approaches and Methods of English Language Teaching: A Literature Review

Kholisha Amalia — 2026-02-28

Progressivism is the educational ideology that opposes the traditional paradigm of teacher authority and promotes the students’ autonomy, experiential learning, and democratic collaboration. This research aims to present the main goals and beliefs of Progressivism in education from the pertinent literature and their accommodations in the approaches and methods of English Language Teaching (ELT). To achieve these aims, the researcher used a literature review by collecting the related finding that consists of collective e-books and journals. Then, categorizing the key terms that are related to basic concepts or main values. After that, synthesizing the values such as philosophical foundations, aims of education, and their influence in curriculum design, which focuses on the teacher and students’ role, curriculum focus, and teaching methods. Next, the researcher synthesizes and reveals these main values or principles of progressivism for accommodation in approaches and methods in existing English Language Teaching (ELT) programs. A review of six empirical studies and two foundational texts identified five core progressivist values, experiential learning, student-centeredness, democratic participation, critical thinking, and problem-solving, and traced their influence on curriculum components (teacher and learner roles, curriculum focus, and teaching methods). Analysis of Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) and Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT) showed how these values are operationalized through authentic, learner-driven tasks: CLT fosters democratic peer interaction and experiential use of language in real contexts, while TBLT embeds problem-solving and collaborative inquiry in purpose-built tasks. Together, these approaches exemplify how progressivism shapes ELT to promote autonomy, social awareness, and active knowledge construction.