UNAIR NEWS – Linguistics master program student of Universitas Airlangga (UNAIR) became presenter in an international conference. The prestigious event was held by National University of Singapore (NUS), from Thursday, December 5, 2024 to Saturday, December 7, 2024. Restu Santyarini presented her research on the professional identity of teachers in front of academics and researchers from various countries.

Addressing important issues in Indonesia

To UNAIR NEWS, Santyarini explained that she presented a research paper entitled An Ecological Perspective Case Study: The Role of Emotion in the Identity Construction of Young Learner English Language Teachers. Santyarini explained that the topic she raised is one of the important issues in Indonesia that is interesting to discuss.

“So, this research is related to how we improve the professional identity of teachers, especially in Indonesia. Especially for a young learner teacher, who in Indonesia itself is seen as inferior. Rather than teachers who teach at the upper levels, such as junior high and high school,” Santyarini said.

Santyarini was proud to have the opportunity to represent his research in this prestigious event. Moreover, she raised an important issue regarding the professionalism and identity of teachers in Indonesia. “This is my first international conference. Of course, I am very proud because this is also an opportunity for me to raise this issue,” she added.

Open to collaboration

Attended by researchers from 42 countries, Santyarini said she was hesitant when presenting her research. “Initially, I had my own doubts. Would I be able to convince them that this issue is worthy of being published internationally?” said the student from Bangkalan.

Santyarini had hoped to collaborate with one of the researchers there. “I was interested in one of the keynote speakers there, Professor Sarah Mercer. We had a discussion and it turned out that I got an offer of collaboration with her. She asked me to send a paper to her personal email,” she said.

In the end, Santyarini advised other students to always be sensitive to the issues around them. “The point is that we have to open our eyes more to the phenomena around us. Even though I initially considered this topic irrelevant, in the end I managed to deliver and and contribute to the issue,” she concluded.

Author: Zahwa Najiba Putri Malika

Editor: Yulia Rohmawati