Digital Textbook Development for Indonesian Language Learning

Abstract

Indonesian elementary students' language competencies remain suboptimal, and current instructional materials rarely reflect students' local cultural context, prompting this study to analyze the needs for developing a digital Indonesian language textbook integrated with Nias folklore for upper-grade elementary students. A convergent mixed-methods design was employed, combining quantitative and qualitative data collected concurrently and merged into an integrated needs profile. Participants comprised 15 upper-grade students from Grades IV, V, and VI and one Indonesian language teacher at UPTD SD Negeri 078451 Hiliadulo, West Nias, selected through purposive sampling. Data were gathered through non-participatory observation, a semi-structured teacher interview, and a seven-aspect student questionnaire using a five-point Likert scale, then analyzed descriptively for quantitative data and through an interactive qualitative model for observation and interview data. Results showed that six of the seven aspects examined, namely textbooks, learning materials, learning activities, assessment, digital media, and Nias folklore integration, were rated in the very high category, while students' confidence in oral Indonesian communication remained only adequate, notably improving when material was linked to familiar Nias folktales. These findings indicate a substantial gap between students' expressed needs and prevailing lecture-based, print-textbook instruction. The study concludes that a digital, multimedia-based textbook grounded in Nias folklore represents an empirically justified and culturally relevant foundation for subsequent textbook design and development.