This paper explains the process of creating a novelette entitled Dian-Tara. The novelette was written in one linear plot with external narration using narrative theory or narratology. Tragedy and ...gothic fiction were chosen as the genres since they could create a sense of eeriness in the audience. The issues and phenomena raised in the novelette were the impact of a broken family on children and also what society can do to help the victims. This undergraduate final work adapted Aristotle’s Poetics by having the three-act structure and catharsis for the resolution. The theory of narrative by Tzvetan Todorov was applied for the plot development. Sigmund Freud’s psychoanalytic theory was also used for the characters’ design in terms of creating their past and how it influenced their decision-making in the story. For the character types, this novelette used a protagonist and an antagonist. The characters’ design was separated into three aspects of life (professional, personal, and private). The result of the final work showed that the past life of each protagonist and antagonist character contributed to their decision-making and helped to drive the plot forward as a tragedy was chosen to end the story. Their bad childhood memories and the tragic ending were meant to raise the awareness of the readers, as the impact of this phenomenon cannot be denied.
Student-centered learning has been the new trend in education field in recent years. Various levels of education have started to gradually shift their teaching approach from the traditional ...teacher-centered instruction into student-centered instruction. This transition that focuses the learning process on students is considered desirable by society as it offers various benefits for students’ personal and academic growth (Clifford, 1999). However, in higher education, where most teaching instructions are naturally conducted in the form of lectures, the application of student-centered approach may appear as unfamiliar to students who are used to teacher-centered instruction. This study, hence, aims to investigate how undergraduate students responded to a shift in their classroom instruction, from teacher-centered into student-centered. An action research was conducted in three meetings of a Reading and Writing course for EFL undergraduate students in the Department of English. The study collected the data from class observations done by three observers. The field notes, observation reports, and discussion notes resulted from the three observation sessions were then analyzed using a qualitative approach to find out the students’ responses towards the student-centered classroom instructions. The findings of this study reveal that most of the students responded positively towards the student-centered instruction, as shown in their active involvement during the learning activities, such as in pair works, group discussions, and collaborative work using technology. The implications and recommendations drawn from this study are discussed in the paper.
