Journal of Education, Linguistics, Literature and Language Teaching

Enhancing Eighth-Grade Students' Vocabulary Mastery Through The Simpler Digital Application

2026-07-20T11:40:09+00:00

This study investigated the effect of the Simpler application on the vocabulary mastery of eighth-grade students at SMP Negeri 1 Simpang Jernih. Vocabulary mastery is a basic component of English learning because it supports listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Preliminary observation showed that students had limited vocabulary knowledge and often relied on teacher translation. To respond to this classroom problem, the Simpler application was used as a digital learning medium that offers vocabulary exercises, repetition, contextual examples, and interactive tasks. This research employed a quantitative approach with a pre-experimental one-group pre-test and post-test design. The participants were 23 eighth-grade students selected through purposive sampling. The treatment was conducted in five learning sessions, and the students completed a 20-item vocabulary test before and after the treatment. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, a paired sample t-test, and effect-size interpretation. The results showed that the mean score increased from 32.61 in the pre-test to 45.87 in the post-test, with a mean gain of 13.26 points. The obtained t-value was 6.247, which was higher than the t-table value of 2.074 at the 5% significance level. The effect size was also large, which indicates that the improvement was meaningful in this classroom context. These findings suggest that the Simpler application can support vocabulary learning when it is used with clear teacher guidance, repeated practice, and collaborative activities. However, the findings should be interpreted carefully because the study used one class only and did not involve a control group.

Linguistic Patterns of Students in Academic Short Message Communication with Lecturers

2026-07-08T08:58:41+00:00

The use of digital communication media has increasingly shaped the way students interact with lecturers, especially through short messaging applications. This study aims to provide a clear and systematic description of the linguistic patterns used by students in academic communication with lecturers via short messages. Using a descriptive qualitative approach, this research applies content analysis to a set of students’ short messages. The findings show that students’ language use reflects variations in formality, the use of greetings, lexical choice, and sentence structure. These results indicate that students’ awareness of academic context influences how messages are written. This study is expected to serve as an accessible reference for understanding academic communication through digital messaging, particularly for beginner researchers

Reconceptualising Generative Grammar In English Language Teaching: From The Cognitive Turn To Classroom Implementation

2026-07-20T11:37:19+00:00

The generative tradition stands as a monumental pillar in twentieth-century formal linguistics, yet its direct translation into pedagogical frameworks remains heavily debated. This conceptual article explores the theoretical evolution of generative grammar and evaluates its implications for contemporary English Language Teaching (ELT) classrooms. Beginning with Noam Chomsky’s 1957 cognitive revolution, which shattered structuralist and behaviourist traditions, this paper traces the paradigm shifts through Government and Binding Theory up to the streamlined Minimalist Programme and recent developments in Strong Minimalist Thesis models (Chomsky, 2023). It examines the foundational dichotomies of competence versus performance and the structural dependent nature of human language governed by Universal Grammar (UG). By analyzing how these abstract constructs cross paths with Second Language Acquisition (SLA) models, the article provides a thorough synthesis of how generative principles can be systematically integrated into practical teaching methodologies. Specifically, the paper illuminates the empirical effectiveness of Form-Focused Instruction (FFI), Consciousness-Raising (CR) strategies, and Bill VanPatten’s Processing Instruction (PI), factoring in modern operational updates (VanPatten, 2021). Ultimately, the article argues that understanding a learner's interlanguage as a rule-governed, evolving grammar allows educators to move past superficial drilling methods. By prioritizing structured, targeted input over mere repetition, teachers can foster a deeper development of underlying linguistic competence rather than just automated performance. It concludes that while generative theory does not offer a simplistic classroom recipe, it provides essential diagnostic tools for modern language educators.

Reconstruction of The Concept of Shirk in the Digital Era: A Thematic Analysis of the Qur’an on the Shift of Contemporary Aqidah

2026-07-21T05:03:40+00:00

In the contemporary post-secular landscape, the manifestation of shirk (polytheism) has evolved from overt ritualistic idol-worship to subtle, functional equivalents within digital culture. This study aims to reconstruct the Qur’anic concept of shirk by examining its modern implications on the purity of aqidah (faith). Using a qualitative-descriptive approach grounded in library research, this study employs Tafsir Mawdu’i (thematic interpretation) to analyze relevant Qur'anic verses alongside modern sociological theories of digital alienation and self-apotheosis. The findings reveal that digital culture—characterized by algorithmic dependence, the sanctification of "likes/validation," and the commodification of the self—mirrors the Qur’anic warnings regarding al-hawa (whims) and andad (rivals to God). This research identifies a shift from "theological shirk" to "functional shirk," where technological and social platforms exert an ultimate agency over human behavior. The study concludes that maintaining aqidah in the digital age requires a conceptual expansion of tawhid that addresses the psychological and systemic idols of the 21st century. The analysis draws specifically on classical and contemporary tafsir sources, including Tafsir Ibn Kathir and Tafsir Al-Mishbah, which anchor the interpretive lineage informing this study.

Indonesian-English Code-Mixing in Platform X Posts: Linguistic Levels and Communicative Functions

2026-07-29T03:43:01+00:00

This study examines the linguistic levels and communicative functions of Indonesian-English code-mixing in public posts on Platform X. Using a qualitative descriptive design and a sociolinguistic approach, it analyzes ten posts purposively collected from late 2025 to early 2026. Each post was coded by identifying the Indonesian matrix frame, classifying the English material as lexical, short phrasal, extended phrasal or clausal, or morphologically hybrid, and interpreting its primary communicative function from the textual and interactional context. The analysis shows that Indonesian remains the matrix language, while English operates as an embedded communicative resource. Lexical and short phrasal insertions are prominent, although several posts contain longer English stretches and one hybrid form combining an English stem with Indonesian morphology. The main functions are referential precision, expressive or emphatic stance, identity positioning, humor or irony, and phatic alignment. Because these functions can overlap, the analysis assigns a primary function according to the most immediate discourse effect and records secondary functions where relevant. The findings support an insertional and continuum-based account of code-mixing and indicate that Platform X enables locally grounded messages to incorporate globally recognizable linguistic resources. The study contributes a transparent coding framework for small-scale digital sociolinguistic analysis while acknowledging the limitations of corpus size and contextual access.