IMPLEMENTING THE GENRE-BASED APPROACH IN NARRATIVE WRITING INSTRUCTION: STUDENTS’ LEARNING EXPERIENCES AND RESPONSES

Abstract

For EFL learners, writing in English remains a significant challenge requiring pedagogical support. Although Genre-Based Approach is widely recognized for supporting student writing development, limited research has examined its implementation in junior high school under the Merdeka curriculum. This qualitative case study investigated how the GBA supported students’ learning of narrative texts and explored students’ responses toward its implementation in an Indonesian junior high school classroom. This research involved one English teacher and one class of eighth-grade students in Karawang. Data were collected through classroom observation and semi-structured interviews with the teacher and twelve purposively selected students and were analyzed using thematic analysis. The findings revealed that GBA supported students through explicit instruction, modelling through texts, collaborative learning, teacher assistance, vocabulary support, and feedback. Students responded positively, demonstrating active participation, interaction with peers and teachers, and increased confidence during learning activities. Although the Teaching-Learning Cycle was not fully implemented due to the omission of the Independent Construction of Text stage, the findings indicate that GBA still provided substantial support for students' understanding of narrative texts and their preparation for independent writing. These results highlight the flexibility of GBA in providing meaningful pedagogical support in Indonesian junior high school EFL classrooms.