This article reports on the results of a study aiming to investigate whether systemic functional linguistic genre pedagogy (SFL GP) can help students develop their writing ability in English and the students' opinions about the teaching program using SFL GP. The study was conducted in one semester with 19 student teachers taking a writing course on argumentative texts, in the English Department at a state university in West Java, Indonesia. The texts in focus were Exposition, Discussion and Response to Literary Works, but in the interests of space, the article will centre around Exposition. The study used a qualitative case study research design with data collected from participant observations for 16 meetings, analysis of students' texts collected over the program, and questionnaires distributed at the conclusion of the program. The results indicate that despite some aspects that still need improvement, SFL GP can generally help students develop their writing ability. Observation data show students' writing skill improvement supported by students' texts which depicts good control of the schematic structure and linguistic features of the texts in focus. Finally, questionnaire data reveal students' consciousness of improved writing skill and positive responses to each activity in the program. Based on the results of the study, it is recommended that SFL GP be implemented in other contexts in Indonesia and other countries.

This article reviews the significant and diverse range of research on English language education in Indonesia in the eight-year period 2011–2019. It brings together a body of research consisting of 108 sources, ranging from journal articles, book chapters, conference proceedings and doctorate dissertations, to inform the international research and practice community. The contributions cover primary education, secondary education and tertiary education in highly diverse Indonesia where 707 living languages co-exist and struggle to find space in its linguistic ecology. The discussion will provide insights into how factors such as educational policies, ideologies as well as sociocultural and religious values are in contestation in shaping research into and the practice of English language education in the complex, dynamic and polycentric sociolinguistic situation of Indonesia, which has been recently conceptualized as superglossia (Zein, 2020). It is hoped our insights will help inform other multilingual contexts facing the unprecedented need for transforming English language education in this increasingly globalized world.

In this article, we discuss key issues about English language proficiency in Indonesia, focusing in particular on the level and kind of proficiency that English language teachers need to have to support their classroom teaching. We first define the concept of proficiency and how it is usually measured, and then present some data about teachers and students' English language proficiency in Indonesia and the Asian region. The next section discusses research that helps us understand why a threshold of proficiency is required for effective teaching. As many teachers may not have reached a level of proficiency considered sufficient for effective teaching, we then discuss key theoretical principles from SLA that can be used as a basis for developing a training programme to help raise teachers' proficiency. We conclude by calling all stakeholders (i.e., policy makers, language education providers and professional associations) to work together and find ways to support teachers in their effort to acquire a higher level of proficiency in English.

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In this article, we discuss key issues about English language proficiency in Indonesia, focusing in particular on the level and kind of proficiency that English language teachers need to have to support their classroom teaching. We first define the concept of proficiency and how it is usually measured, and then present some data about teachers and students' English language proficiency in Indonesia and the Asian region. The next section discusses research that helps us understand why a threshold of proficiency is required for effective teaching. As many teachers may not have reached a level of proficiency considered sufficient for effective teaching, we then discuss key theoretical principles from SLA that can be used as a basis for developing a training programme to help raise teachers' proficiency. We conclude by calling all stakeholders (i.e., policy makers, language education providers and professional associations) to work together and find ways to support teachers in their effort to acquire a higher level of proficiency in English.

This research aims to explore the students' writing and critical thinking capacity in a joint construction practice in an academic writing course. The course applied a genre-based approach in teaching academic writing and critical thinking to first-year English as a Foreign Language students of a private university in Pontianak, West Kalimantan, Indonesia. A combination of explicit teaching, group discussion, and online review sessions was employed in the joint construction practice for three meetings. The source for the data collection was a jointly constructed text. The text was selected from thirty-six students who worked in groups. Every group consisted of low achievers, medium achievers, and high achievers in writing. The text was analyzed using functional grammar. The analysis shows that the students had gained a good control of the exposition genre with its linguistic features. Thematic progression and logical connectors at the text level and circumstances (adverbs) at the clause level had realized critical thinking skills and dispositions. Several grammatical mistakes and improper lexical choices were identified but did not interfere with the purpose of the text. The findings suggest that having more classroom meetings will make explicit teaching and group discussion work effectively before the students begin to write independently. Moreover, online review sessions can support the students' learning but with limitations.

Considered important for global competitiveness like ASEAN Economic Society, the English proficiency of Indonesian students is unfortunately not satisfactory yet. This condition is, one of which, due to low teachers’ professionalism and students’ motivation for English learning. The motivation of students may become weak because they have not found ways to identify, drive and sustain it. Of the various studies on motivation and challenges in EFL practice in the Indonesian context, research specifically addressing how learners find motivation triggers synergized into project-based learning for sustainable and continuous English learning is still limited. This survey and interview study investigates the motivation of Senior High School (SHS) students in West Java province of Indonesia on English learning and how to drive their motivation through a collaborative project as mandated by the 2013 National Curriculum. Results of questionnaires, interviews and document analysis show that despite having integrative and instrumental motivation to learn English, the participating SHS students show low investment as indicated by low learning enthusiasm in the classroom and poor English performance. This low motivation is also related to some socioeconomic status such as school geographical location, classroom learning situation, and parental supports. The study recommends students’ involvement in a cooperative learning project which can direct and energize their English learning motivation so that they can have increased motivation, good English proficiency and become global citizens with high competitiveness.

For tertiary English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students, academic writing is not an easy task. It requires knowledge of the academic writing genres with their particular linguistic features. Moreover, academic writing demands good critical thinking. This research aims to explore the students' academic writing competencies that also focus on critical thinking. The research involved thirty-six first-year tertiary EFL students from a regular class of a private university in Pontianak, West Kalimantan, Indonesia. The source for data collection was the students' texts. Three texts were selected and the students were categorized into low, medium, and high levels of writing achievement. The text analysis utilized functional grammar rooted in systemic functional linguistics (Emilia, 2014). The analysis shows that the students, regardless of their levels of writing achievement, have little control over the schematic structure and linguistic features of an argumentative writing. The text analysis also shows that the students' texts have some limitations as regards their critical thinking capacity. Still, a few examples of academic language were detected in the texts. The findings suggest that the lecturer should incorporate explicit teaching and cooperative learning activities to alleviate the students' difficulties and develop their academic writing and critical thinking capacity.