EFL teachers are currently considering implementing practical strategies to help students make rapid progress in learning English and reach their learning goals. Simultaneous Roundtable is one of the strategies that are familiar to them. In particular, the Simultaneous Roundtable strategy is examined in this study in order to determine whether it is effective for writing English descriptive essays. Indonesian seventh graders were examined in this experiment. The experimental group applied the Simultaneous Roundtable strategy. The control group then received instruction using a teacher's feedback strategy. The Simultaneous Roundtable strategy was more effective than the traditional teacher feedback strategy for improving the students' descriptive writing skills. Simultaneous Roundtable, therefore, is recommended for EFL teachers to implement since it can be one of the practical teaching strategies that significantly improve students' descriptive writing skills and increase their interpersonal and social skills.

Feedback should be beneficial to learners; it should provide information about their performance of a task or activity. This study aims to explore students' concerns and expectations toward teachers' online written feedback through photovoice. Participants involved fifteen students of a writing course. To obtain the data, a photovoice was used following Wang et al.'s SHOWeD protocols based on the theme "students' voices on teachers' online written feedback to promote discussion among participants and researchers about critical topics to generate solutions. Two instruments were used to collect the data; documentation in the form of the participants' photographs and a semi-structured interview with each participant. The result revealed that students had raised some points regarding the teacher's online written feedback. These points include: 1) online written feedback is sufficient; 2) online feedback should show the strength of students' writing; 3) students' revision will improve students writing quality; 4) students need a comfortable place, correct times, and snacks when revising. The study concludes that instead of simply making suggestions, as is customary when providing feedback, the students require the teacher's assessment of their strengths. The findings suggested that teachers and lecturers should consider the points when providing online written feedback to students.

Carried on in non-English major freshman students setting, this study aims to examine how critical thinking skills can be developed through cooperative learning in their argumentative essay writing. An experimental group (n=20) and a control group (n=20) were randomly set up, the students were pre-tested and post-tested to see if there is a significant difference in their assigned essay through the Illinois Critical Thinking Essay Scoring Rubric. The implementation of critical thinking rubrics was carried out by 1) supporting students in cooperation, 2) offering the objective 3) fostering students to develop their ideas in writing. The Paired Sample T-test was used to calculate the difference between the pre-and post-test results. Results confirmed that in the Paired Sample t-test, the mean score (-5000) of the experimental group is statistically higher than the mean of the control group’s (-3900). It indicates that the implementation of the critical thinking strategy effectively develops and promotes students’ critical thinking skills in argumentative essay writing. Through the implementation of five key elements of critical thinking by Sadeghi (2012), students were more open-minded, tolerant, objective, honest and concise, respecting others, and interpreting situations differently. The research offered a different perspective on developing students’ critical thinking strategy use by focusing on longer periods of research and the larger number of participants and also implied the integration of critical thinking scoring rubric and argumentative essay skill performance for future research.

Being an ‘ideal woman of Muslim version,’ or muslimah in Indonesia, is the expectation from any family, and studying at pesantren (Islamic boarding school) is an option. However, female students confronted cultural shock when switching to a campus environment and experienced identity mediation. Experiences of study and interaction with the campus environment as well as the confrontation of gender norms between different pesantren and university, require them to renegotiate the meaning of gender and reinterpret Islamic teachings to meet their developing identity needs. To enhance our comprehension of the potential impact of higher education on gender identity negotiations, this study researched three female students who graduated from pesantren and then continued their education at university. The researchers employed in-depth interviews, discussions, and sharing of experiences through essays to obtain comprehensive information. This study found that pesantren and campus create ­­­­­an environment for thinking development. Some took the middle path to become more moderate, and others even resisted the pesantren doctrine. It generates novel assumptions concerning gender rather than the two prevalent perspectives, traditionalists who preserve the old system or principles and feminists who battle for gender justice based on their interpretation. Therefore, it is suggested that pesantren begin to adapt to the curriculum and public-school materials relevant to the era. Preserving a conservative notion of gender will diminish interest in studying at the pesantren.