Ethnopedagogical Learning as a Multidimensional Approach to Improving Scientific Literacy, Critical Thinking, and Character Development in Primary Education

Uslan Uslan (Faculty of Teacher Training and Education, Universitas Muhammadiyah Kupang)
Ummu Aiman (Faculty of Teacher Training and Education, Universitas Muhammadiyah Kupang)
Ahmad Yani (Faculty of Teacher Training and Education, Universitas Muhammadiyah Kupang)
Ummu Fajariyah Akbari (Faculty of Teacher Training and Education, Universitas Muhammadiyah Kupang)
Obby Taufik Hidayat (Faculty of Teacher Training and Education, Universitas Muhammadiyah Surakarta)
John Gyun Yeol Park (Department of Ethics Education, College of Education, Gyeongsang National University,)

Indonesian Journal on Learning and Advanced Education (IJOLAE)
Vol. 8, No. 2, May 2026

Scientific literacy, critical thinking, and character development remain major challenges in Indonesian primary education due to the dominance of decontextualised learning approaches. Although ethnopedagogy has been widely associated with literacy development and culturally responsive learning, limited empirical studies have simultaneously examined its impact on scientific literacy, critical thinking skills, and character development within elementary school settings. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of an ethnopedagogical learning module grounded in local wisdom for improving these competencies among elementary school students in Kupang, Indonesia. This study employed a quasi-experimental design with pre-test and post-test control groups involving 78 students, consisting of 38 students in the experimental group and 40 students in the control group. Data were collected using scientific literacy tests, critical thinking tests, and character observation instruments, then analysed using descriptive statistics, Mann–Whitney U tests, and MANOVA. The findings revealed that the experimental group achieved significantly higher improvements than the control group across all variables. Scientific literacy scores increased from 62.36 to 77.89, critical thinking scores improved from 62.98 to 81.05, and character development scores rose from 64.23 to 85.22. MANOVA analysis confirmed significant multivariate effects, with character development showing the largest effect size (partial η² = 0.281), followed by scientific literacy (partial η² = 0.101) and critical thinking (partial η² = 0.093). The study demonstrates the novelty of ethnopedagogical learning as a multidimensional, culturally responsive, and contextually grounded instructional approach that simultaneously strengthens cognitive and affective competencies. Therefore, ethnopedagogical learning can serve as an innovative pedagogical framework for supporting holistic education and the implementation of the Merdeka Curriculum in Indonesia.