The issue of the environmental problem has been prevalent especially in the contemporary era. The fact that Mother Earth is currently facing a lot of environmental concerns is the central discussion of the selected children’s picture books. Hence, this study aims to analyze how the picture books successfully capture the idea that trees are the symbol of Mother Earth per se. The selected picture books to be discussed are: A Tree is Nice by Janice May Udry (1984), The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein (1992), Red Knit Cap Girl and The Reading Tree by Naoko Stoop (2014), Tree by Britta Teckentrup (2015) and The Tree by Neil Layton (2016). By scrutinizing the narrative and illustrative elements of the picture books, this study sheds light on how the ecosystems are held together by trees. The trees play a vital role in balancing and maintaining the world’s ecosystems. Moreover, the trees are valuable for providing environmental and social benefits. Hence, taking care of the trees can be perceived as maintaining a sustainable life for both the living and nonliving things. The underlying theories to support the discussion are those of ecocriticism, narrative and illustrative elements, and the trees as metaphor of the Mother Earth, all of which are interconnected in children’s picture books.

Salah satu institusi pendidikan di Indonesia yang menerapkan sistem pembelajaran jarak jauh pada saat pandemi COVID-19 adalah Madrasah Ibtidaiyah Jam’iyyatul Khair di Tangerang Selatan. Faktanya, staf pengajar di Madrasah ini mengalami kesulitan dalam memaksimalkan pembelajaran online. Kendala tersebut disebabkan oleh rendahnya minat siswa dalam membaca materi sebelum mengerjakan tugas sehingga berdampak pada hasil belajar siswa. Sebagai solusinya, tim Pengabdian Masyarakat (PkM) Universitas Pamulang mengadakan workshop tentang literasi digital dan dimensi literasi lainnya seperti budaya dan pendidikan karakter. Kegiatan PKM ini tidak dipungut biaya dan disampaikan langsung oleh dosen dan mahasiswa. Aplikasi Edpuzzle dimanfaatkan untuk meningkatkan literasi media digital sebagai sarana pendukung pembelajaran jarak jauh. Hal ini dirancang agar suasana belajar menjadi lebih menarik dan hidup, sehingga kemampuan literasi digital siswa akan meningkat seiring dengan pendidikan karakter yang baik. Dengan menelaah kuesioner – pertanyaan yang mencakup literasi digital hingga Edpuzzle – yang dibagikan kepada peserta sebelum dan sesudah lokakarya, dapat disimpulkan bahwa Edpuzzle merupakan alternatif baru dan menyenangkan dalam pembelajaran jarak jauh bagi pendidik dan siswa.

This study, entitled “Gender and Religious Identity: Intersecting Axes of Discrimination in The Breadwinner Animated Movie (2017)”, highlights the importance of conceptualizing gender discrimination related to religious identity as inherently shaped by society. Using intersectional theoretical perspectives - the narrative and cinematography elements and gender studies – this study examines how gender and religious identity are inextricably linked to portray the main character’s experiences of discrimination. The analysis begins with narrative and illustrative data showing how the main character’s background as a daughter and Muslim results in multiple layers of discrimination. Her gender and religious affiliation substantially influence the discrimination. Moreover, bias varies for men and women of different age groups. The main character experiences more discrimination as a teenage girl than her disguised character as a teenage boy. Women are significantly more likely to face gender discrimination than men, but girls are enormous. Hence, this concurrent examination of the main character’s gender and religious identity reveals that she is characterized by high rates of discrimination throughout her childhood, in a way teenage boys are not. The main character’s experience of discrimination highlights the importance of conceptualizing gender and religious identity as intersecting axes of discrimination.