Moral Internalization and Modeling in Addressing Children’s Conflicts: Evidence from Indonesian Early Childhood Teachers in the RPL Program

Abstract

Moral development in early childhood is closely related to children’s ability to regulate emotions, develop empathy, take responsibility, and maintain social relationships. In classroom practice, conflicts among children provide important opportunities for teachers to internalize moral values through their responses and interactions. This study aimed to describe the strategies of moral value internalization and teacher modeling used by experienced early childhood teachers enrolled in the Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) program in addressing children’s conflicts. A descriptive qualitative design was employed. Data were collected from 46 RPL students at Universitas Sebelas Maret who were actively teaching in early childhood education settings and had teaching experience. Participants responded to an open-ended online questionnaire based on a moral conflict scenario, and the data were analyzed using thematic analysis. The findings revealed six themes: teacher emotional regulation, validation of children’s emotions, apology and acknowledgment of mistakes, responsibility and collaborative repair, social reconciliation, and integration of religious values and social norms. The overall pattern of responses reflected a relational and restorative orientation. The study highlights the importance of integrating teachers’ practical experience with academic foundations in moral and pedagogical development.  [Perkembangan moral pada masa anak usia dini berkaitan erat dengan kemampuan anak dalam mengatur emosi, mengembangkan empati, bertanggung jawab, dan mempertahankan hubungan sosial. Dalam praktik pembelajaran di kelas, konflik antaranak dapat menjadi kesempatan penting bagi guru untuk menginternalisasikan nilai-nilai moral melalui respons dan interaksi yang diberikan. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mendeskripsikan strategi internalisasi nilai moral dan keteladanan guru yang diterapkan oleh guru pendidikan anak usia dini berpengalaman yang mengikuti program Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) dalam menangani konflik antaranak. Penelitian ini menggunakan desain deskriptif kualitatif. Data dikumpulkan dari 46 mahasiswa RPL Universitas Sebelas Maret yang aktif mengajar pada satuan pendidikan anak usia dini dan memiliki pengalaman mengajar. Partisipan memberikan respons terhadap kuesioner daring terbuka berdasarkan skenario konflik moral, kemudian data dianalisis menggunakan analisis tematik. Hasil penelitian mengungkapkan enam tema, yaitu regulasi emosi guru, validasi emosi anak, permintaan maaf dan pengakuan kesalahan, tanggung jawab dan perbaikan secara kolaboratif, rekonsiliasi sosial, serta integrasi nilai-nilai agama dan norma sosial. Secara keseluruhan, pola respons guru menunjukkan orientasi yang bersifat relasional dan restoratif. Penelitian ini menegaskan pentingnya mengintegrasikan pengalaman praktis guru dengan landasan akademik dalam pengembangan moral dan pedagogis.]