Designing Local Culture-Based EFL Materials To Enhance English Language Proficiency: Evidence From West Papua

Abstract

Designing EFL with students’ own culture is not a garnish, it is a lever for equity and measurable learning. this study examines whether integrating West Papuan cultural knowledge into EFL materials improves proficiency and engagement. Using an educational design research approach, we co-developed culture-based units with teachers at two middle schools (SMP YPK 2 Manokwari and SMP YPK Aiumieri), drawing on authentic narratives (e.g., Ottow-Geissler and Dorewui). The intervention targeted four main English skills and was evaluated via a one-group pretest-posttest design. Moreover, there were classroom observation and document analysis. Results show consistent gains across all skills at inferential tests that confirmed the improvements of the students. Observation checklists and field notes documented heightened participation, confidence, and attentiveness when lessons referenced familiar places, people, and practices. Triangulating test scores, observation evidence, and material design indicates that culturally grounded scaffolds (vocabulary banks, evidence-based questions, C.E.R routines) transformed tasks from decontextualized drills into meaningful communication, strengthening proficiency while affirming learners’ identities. Findings position locally responsive materials as a practical pathway to improve EFL outcomes in under-researched regions such as West Papua.