Indonesian EFL Journal
Vol. 12 No. 3 (2026)

EFL TEACHERS' CURRICULUM LITERACY AND PEDAGOGICAL SKILLS IN MERDEKA CURRICULUM IMPLEMENTATION: A MIXED-METHODS STUDY IN INDONESIA

Kurnia Saputri (Universitas Muhammadiyah Palembang)
Dita Adawiyah (Universitas Muhammadiyah Palembang, Indonesia)
Emilda Sinar Fatiha (STIA Bala Putra Dewa Palembang, Indonesia)
Arief Pamuji (STIK Bina Husada Palembang, Indonesia)
Agus Wahyudi (STIK Bina Husada Palembang, Indonesia)
Aswadi Jaya (Universitas PGRI Palembang, Indonesia)
Dian Septarini (Universitas Muhammadiyah Palembang, Indonesia)



Article Info

Publish Date
08 Oct 2026

Abstract

This study investigated EFL teachers’ curriculum literacy and pedagogical skills in implementing the Merdeka Curriculum, focusing on their levels, relationship, and translation into classroom practices. An explanatory sequential mixed-methods design was employed involving 150 senior high school English teachers in Palembang, Indonesia, in the quantitative phase and 10 purposively selected teachers in the qualitative phase. Quantitative data were collected using a five-point Likert-scale questionnaire measuring curriculum literacy and pedagogical skills and analyzed using descriptive statistics and Pearson’s correlation. Semi-structured interviews were subsequently conducted and analyzed thematically to explain the quantitative findings. The results revealed high levels of curriculum literacy (M = 4.02, SD = 0.48) and pedagogical skills (M = 4.00, SD = 0.46), with a significant positive correlation between the two constructs (r = .68, p < .001). The qualitative findings showed that curriculum understanding served as a foundation for instructional planning and pedagogical decision-making, while curriculum enactment required flexible translation into classroom practices. Teachers nevertheless encountered challenges related to differentiated instruction, assessment, contextual adaptation, and institutional support, indicating that pedagogical practices were influenced by classroom and school contexts. These findings demonstrate that curriculum literacy and pedagogical skills are interconnected dimensions of EFL teacher competence. Teacher professional development should therefore integrate curriculum understanding with practical pedagogical support, particularly in differentiation, assessment, and contextual adaptation, to strengthen Merdeka Curriculum enactment in EFL classrooms.

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Journal Info

Abbrev

pub

Publisher

Subject

Languange, Linguistic, Communication & Media

Description

The scopes of the journal include critical issues of educational practices in primary, secondary and tertiary education as well as in university level surrounding: English Language Pedagogy Language Acquisition Bilingualism and Multilingualism English language Literacy English for Specific Purposes ...