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Children are the next generation and the hope for the nation's future. However, not all children have the opportunity to grow up in a complete and supportive family environment. The Menara Kasih Indonesia Orphanage Foundation serves as a social solution for children who have lost their parents or are in a state of neglect. This research aims to examine how the background, social services, and caregiving patterns are implemented in this orphanage. The methods used were literature study, descriptive qualitative with observation, and direct interviews with the orphanage administrators and one of the children from the orphanage. The research results show that this orphanage applies a warm and supportive familial parenting style, where the staff actively play the role not only as parental substitutes but also as companions in the children's learning process. The caretakers help the children with their schoolwork and provide emotional support. However, in terms of funding and facilities, the Menara Kasih Indonesia Orphanage Foundation still has limitations.

This study explores the challenges and expectations faced by teachers in educating deaf students at SLB Negeri Keleyan. Using a qualitative descriptive approach, data were collected through interviews and observations to understand the real experiences of teachers in the learning process. The findings reveal that one of the main challenges is teaching students with total hearing loss from birth, which demands more time, creativity, and adaptation in instructional strategies. Teachers often adjust the curriculum based on the students’ individual abilities. Despite these difficulties, students show positive development when they receive consistent encouragement, emotional support, and recognition. Teachers express hope for improved training opportunities, especially in visual and adaptive teaching techniques, as well as better support from families and the government. Additionally, they highlight the importance of assistive learning tools and inclusive job opportunities after graduation. This study affirms that with collaborative support, deaf students have the potential to grow, learn, and contribute meaningfully to society.

This study looks at the English sound system from a phonological standpoint, emphasizing successful teaching strategies and the difficulties non-native speakers have pronouncing words correctly.  This study examines the effects of native language interference, identifies particular phonological challenges, and assesses instructional methods for improving pronunciation using qualitative research with fourth-semester English education students.  The results show that although explicit phonetic teaching greatly helps pupils, they still struggle to manage spelling-pronunciation inconsistencies and discern vowel lengths.  By offering insights into phonological learning processes and suggesting evidence-based teaching strategies, the research advances the field of applied linguistics.  Although individual sound distinctions require tailored treatments, the results show that systematic pronunciation education improves student confidence and communicative skills.

This study aims to analyze the personality competence of ninth-grade teachers at SMP Negeri 23 Medan based on students' perceptions. The research employed a qualitative descriptive approach with data collected through observation and in-depth interviews involving nine purposively selected students. The findings reveal that most teachers demonstrated basic aspects of personality competence, such as punctuality and responsibility. However, several issues were identified, including emotional instability in handling classroom situations, favoritism, and the use of physical punishment as a disciplinary method. These findings indicate that teachers' personality competence still needs improvement, particularly in emotional regulation, fairness, and role modeling. The study recommends structured and continuous personality development programs for teachers to foster a positive classroom environment and support students' character development.    

Communication skills are a fundamental foundation in early childhood development. Teachers, as the main figures in the learning process, play a strategic role in creating educational interactions that support the development of children's communication abilities. This study aims to describe educational interaction strategies that can strengthen effective communication among early childhood learners. Using a qualitative-descriptive approach, data were obtained from observations, teacher interviews, and literature studies. The results show that strategies such as responsive communication, role play, interactive storytelling, and proper language modeling can enhance children's confidence in communication. This study recommends continuous training for early childhood educators in implementing adaptive and contextual communication strategies.

Emotional well-being is a crucial element in establishing a creative and inclusive learning environment at SMAN 1 Palangka Raya. This study explores the relationship between students' emotional well-being and its impact on creativity and engagement in the learning process. The findings indicate that an environment that supports emotional well-being can reduce anxiety, enhance motivation, and strengthen social interactions between students and teachers. Through an inclusive educational approach, students from diverse backgrounds can actively participate, creating a harmonious and collaborative atmosphere. Emotional well-being not only affects academic performance but also contributes to students' social and emotional development. Therefore, it is essential for schools to integrate strategies that promote emotional well-being into the curriculum and educational policies, thereby creating a better learning environment that supports holistic growth for students at SMAN 1 Palangka Raya.  

Education plays a crucial role in shaping superior human resources, where learning motivation is the main factor in students' academic achievement. One of the external factors that contribute to learning motivation is family social support. This study aims to analyze the effect of family social support on the learning motivation of grade IX students at SMPN 5 Tangerang. A quantitative approach was used in this study with a survey method by distributing questionnaires to randomly selected respondents. The data obtained were analyzed using simple linear regression to test the relationship between the independent variables, namely family social support, and the dependent variable, namely student learning motivation. The results showed that there was a positive and significant relationship between family social support and student learning motivation. The most dominant forms of support in increasing learning motivation include emotional, financial, instrumental, and reward support. The implications of this study emphasize the importance of family involvement in the education process in order to increase student learning motivation. With optimal support from the family, students are expected to have a higher enthusiasm for learning and achieve better academic achievement.

Economic concepts are often considered abstract and difficult to understand by high school students. The lack of connection between the subject matter and the reality of everyday life is one of the factors causing low student interest in learning in this field. This study aims to explore the effectiveness of the "home economics" learning approach in improving students' understanding of the economic system. The study was conducted at SMAN 12 Medan using a quantitative method with a questionnaire instrument that has been tested for validity and reliability. The results showed that this approach was able to explain 59.2% of the variation in students' understanding of economics. This study suggests that teachers use contextual learning models to improve the effectiveness of the economics learning process.    

This research is motivated by the challenges in history learning which tend to be conventional and less interesting so that it has an impact on students' low understanding of history material. The use of digital technology through a virtual tour of the museum is an innovative alternative to present a more interactive and contextual learning experience. Wajakensis Museum as a regional museum with a collection of historical artifacts in Tulungagung has great potential as a learning resource rich in historical and cultural values. The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of utilizing the virtual tour of the Wajakensis Museum in improving students' understanding in history learning for class X SMAN 1 Kauman Tulungagung. The method used is descriptive qualitative with data collection through observation, interviews, and documentation. The results of the study indicate that the Wajakensis Museum virtual tour is effective in improving students' understanding of historical material by providing a more interesting, visual, and interactive learning experience. In addition, the use of virtual tours also increases student enthusiasm and participation during the learning process. Teachers and students stated that this media provides ease and efficiency of learning, especially in conditions of limited access to physical museums. The implications of this study indicate that the integration of technology in history learning can be a solution to improve the quality of history education and significantly enrich students' learning experiences.

The development of information technology has had a major impact on the world of education, especially for prospective teachers and students interacting in the teaching and learning process. However, in many educational units, the utilization of educational learning technology is not fully optimal. This study serves to analyze the effect of technology-based learning media utilization on student learning outcomes at SMKN 4 Medan. This research uses a descriptive qualitative approach with data collection methods through interviews with the principal, one teacher, and three students. The interview instrument consisted of ten questions designed to explore the use, constraints, and impact of technology in the learning process. The results show that the school has provided technological facilities and encouraged teachers to utilize them, although not all teachers are able to integrate technological media to the fullest. Teachers acknowledge that digital media helps solve educational problems that occur at SMKN 4 Medan. From the students' side, technology-based learning is interesting and helps understanding, but there are still obstacles in the availability of devices and distraction of learning focus.

Learners are continually faced with choosing appropriate courses or making career choices due to increased educational opportunities. The emergence of machine learning-based course and career recommender systems has the potential to address this issue, offering personalized course recommendations tailored to individual learning pathways, preferences, and learning history. The optimization and feature engineering techniques and practical deployment environments have not been collectively examined in the previous research, despite the significant advancements in this area of research. Furthermore, previous research has rarely synthesized how these technical components help students choose appropriate courses and careers. This systematic review was carried out to investigate the current state of machine learning-based course and career recommender systems, focusing on key elements, such as primary data sources, feature engineering methods, algorithms, optimization techniques, evaluation metrics, and the environments where the existing course recommendation models are deployed. The PRISMA method for conducting a systematic review was used to choose studies that met the requirements for inclusion and exclusion. The study findings show significant reliance on interpretable and traditional machine learning algorithms, such as K-Nearest Neighbor and Random Forest, to develop recommender models. Feature engineering remains basic, as most studies rely on normalization, while optimization processes are often underreported. Also, evaluation metrics varied widely, impeding comparability, while most of the recommender models are deployed in an e-learning environment, leaving the traditional learning environment underrepresented. Furthermore, the study findings identified issues including data sparsity and diversity, data security and privacy, and changes in learner preferences that may have an impact on the performance of recommender systems while recommending further studies to make use of standardized optimization methods, and automated domain-informed feature engineering frameworks, benchmark and annotated datasets in developing models the gives priority to learners’ success and educational relevance.

Mathematics learning does not only focus on students' mastery of numbers, but also functions significantly in developing the ability to solve problems holistically. This skill is not something that is taught separately, but is integrated into the entire educational process, offering a real context so that mathematical concepts and abilities can be understood and applied. One approach that is highly recommended to achieve this is Problem Based Learning (PBL). This method has been proven effective in improving students' critical thinking skills through exploration and solving relevant problems, allowing students' knowledge to grow in a constructive way. The low achievement in problem-solving competency in Indonesia is a strong reason to apply PBL in mathematics teaching. This study aims to analyze the literature on the application of PBL to improve students' problem-solving abilities. Data were collected and analyzed from relevant journals, and testing and comparison of results were carried out to identify patterns and results from previous studies. In addition, this study also applies a bibliometric approach to explore publication trends, keywords, and the development of themes related to PBL in mathematics education. The analysis was carried out using VOSviewer software to map the relationship between topics and the progress of PBL research themes in the world of mathematics education.

Islamic educational institutions play a crucial role in shaping students’ character based on Islamic values. However, the rapid development of the digital era presents both opportunities and challenges. This article aims to analyze the problems faced by Islamic educational institutions in adapting to the digital age and to offer practical solutions. The research identifies key issues such as outdated curricula, lack of professional human resources, limited digital infrastructure, and financial constraints. The findings suggest that to remain relevant, these institutions must integrate technology into the learning process, reform curriculum design, improve teachers' digital competencies, and ensure sustainable funding. This study emphasizes the importance of collaborative efforts between schools, families, governments, and society in ensuring the advancement of Islamic education in a digitalized world.

Mathematics education in Indonesia still faces various challenges, one of which is students’ low conceptual understanding due to predominantly conventional teaching methods. Amid the advancement of digital technology, the MathSolver application emerges as an alternative solution to assist students in understanding mathematical material through its automatic problem-solving feature and step-by-step explanations. This study aims to examine the utilization of the MathSolver application as a mathematics learning medium using a literature review approach. Data sources were obtained from relevant journals or scientific articles published between 2018 and 2024. The review findings indicate that the use of MathSolver can enhance students' conceptual understanding, support independent learning, and increase motivation to learn mathematics. However, there is also a risk of misuse, where students may rely on the application merely to obtain answers without understanding the underlying processes. Therefore, active teacher involvement is essential to guide the wise use of such applications. In conclusion, MathSolver holds significant potential as an effective and adaptive learning tool in the digital era.

Motivation can be defined as the drive to do something, or as the needs, desires, and urges that drive individuals to act. In the context of education, motivation plays a role as an important psychological process in determining the extent to which students strive to achieve learning goals. At the end of each learning unit, students take a test to measure their progress towards these goals, and the results are known as learning achievement. This study focuses on the relationship between students' learning motivation and their academic performance, especially in science lessons at SD Negeri Wanajaya 03. The results of the analysis show that students' enthusiasm or motivation to learn has a direct correlation with learning achievement in class. In general, the higher the students' intrinsic drive, the better the academic performance shown. This finding emphasizes the importance of learning strategies that can improve student motivation in a sustainable manner.

This study intends to examine the mathematical literacy skills of elementary school students in solving story problems. The ability to read mathematics includes not only understanding concepts, but also the ability to interpret, reason, and apply mathematics in everyday situations. The focus of this study is useful for evaluating the level of literacy competence of elementary school students. The method used in this study is Literature Review (LR), without direct observation in the field. Data were obtained through the analysis of various literature sources as well as the results of relevant previous research. The results of the study show that elementary school students still face challenges in understanding information in story problems, choosing the right solution strategies, and drawing conclusions from the problems faced. These findings highlight the need for a learning approach that is more focused on developing critical thinking competencies and contextual problem-solving. Learning that prioritizes real context, group discussions, and an emphasis on critical thinking processes is needed to support students in expanding their mathematical literacy skills to the fullest.

Character Education, especially in terms of discipline, is a major concern in the learning process that occurs in schools. The role of teachers is not only limited to teaching, but also includes being role models, motivators, and mentors who can build a disciplined atmosphere among students. This study adopted a qualitative approach with data collection methods including observation, interviews, and documentation. The research findings indicate that the culture of discipline in madrasas is greatly influenced by the implementation of strict rules, the provision of rewards and punishments, and the persuasive approach and role models from teachers. In addition, there are supporting factors such as the existence of madrasa regulations and good examples from teachers, as well as inhibiting factors such as environmental influences and the use of gadgets. In conclusion, the development of a culture of discipline in madrasas requires cooperation between teachers, students, and the environment, as well as the right strategy to create a conducive and disciplined learning atmosphere.

This research aims to improve the learning outcomes of fifth grade elementary school students in Natural and Social Sciences (IPAS) subjects through the application of the Role Playing method.  The Role Playing method was chosen because it is considered effective in improving students' conceptual understanding and critical thinking skills, as well as motivating students to actively participate in the learning process. This research uses an experimental method with a quasi-experimental pretest-posttest control group design. The research sample consisted of two fifth classes in an elementary school, namely an experimental class taught using the Role Playing method and a control class taught using conventional methods. Data was collected through student learning outcomes tests before and after treatment. Data were analyzed using the t-test to compare the differences in average learning outcomes between the experimental class and the control class. The research results showed that there was a significant difference between the learning outcomes of experimental class and control class students after the Role Playing method was applied.  The average learning outcomes of experimental class students increased significantly compared to the control class.  In conclusion, the Role Playing method is effective in improving the learning outcomes of fifth grade elementary school students in science and science subjects.  This research recommends that teachers can apply the Role Playing method in science learning to increase students' understanding and interest in learning.

Critical thinking skills are fundamental to everyday life and academics, allowing individuals to analyze information, evaluate arguments, and draw evidence-based conclusions. In the context of Christian Religious Education (PAK), critical thinking also has a theological dimension, where reason, as a divine gift, is renewed through Christ to understand divine truth and love God. Given this urgency, this study aims to explore how the implementation of the Team Based Learning (TBL) Model can improve the critical thinking skills of PAK students. This study uses a descriptive qualitative method through literature study, collecting and analyzing data from various journal articles and books. The results show that the TBL structure includes individual preparation, team discussion (IRAT/GRAT), problem-based concept application, and peer feedback and evaluation systematically encourage high-level cognitive processes. In conclusion, TBL has proven effective in improving the critical thinking skills of PAK students, while deepening their understanding of the material and their religious competence.

Conducive classroom conditions are an important factor in increasing student activity in the learning process, especially in Madrasah Aliyah (MA). Teachers have an important and strategic role in creating a learning environment that supports active student participation. This study aims to analyze the strategies implemented by teachers in building a conducive classroom and its impact on student activity. The method used in this study is a qualitative method with data collection techniques through observation, interviews, and documentation. The results of this study indicate that effective strategies include the application of an interactive learning approach, the use of varied learning media, the creation of a comfortable classroom atmosphere, and providing motivation and appreciation to students. By implementing these strategies, teachers can increase student involvement in learning, increase interaction between students and teachers, and build a pleasant and productive learning atmosphere. In conclusion, the application of the right strategy by teachers contributes significantly to creating a conducive classroom and increasing student activity at MA Hidayatul Islamiyah.