<![CDATA[The Merdeka Curriculum positions differentiated instruction (DI) as a core competency for guru penggerak (mentor/driving teachers), yet empirical evidence on the factors determining the quality of its implementation in regency-level elementary schools remains limited, particularly regarding the simultaneous role of teachers' social-emotional competence (SEC) and school climate two variables that have largely been studied separately and predominantly in developed-country contexts. This study aims to examine the influence of teachers' SEC and school climate on the quality of DI in Indonesian Language learning at elementary schools in Tuban Regency. The research employed an ex post facto design with a quantitative approach, involving 150 Indonesian Language teachers at elementary schools in Tuban Regency selected through proportional stratified random sampling. Data were collected using a Likert-scale questionnaire measuring teachers' SEC (five dimensions), school climate (four dimensions), and quality of DI (four dimensions), then analyzed using descriptive statistics and multiple linear regression. The results showed that teachers' SEC, school climate, and quality of DI were all at high categories; teachers' SEC had a significant positive partial effect on quality of DI (r = 0.232; R² = 0.054); school climate had a stronger partial effect (r = 0.392; R² = 0.154); and both simultaneously had a significant effect on quality of DI (R² = 0.253). These findings reinforce the theoretical understanding that the quality of DI is not merely a function of teachers' individual capacity, but rather the result of an interaction between teacher competence and school environmental conditions enriching the literature on teachers' SEC and school climate, which has previously rarely tested their simultaneous effect on concrete instructional practice. Practically, these findings imply the need for a dual-track strategy: strengthening teachers' SEC through structured social-emotional training, accompanied by improvements to school climate, particularly within the context of Merdeka Curriculum implementation in regency areas.]]>
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