URBAN–COASTAL INEQUALITIES IN INDONESIAN ENGLISH EDUCATION: POLICY, CAPITAL, AND EDUCATIONAL JUSTICE

Abstract

Access to English education in Indonesia depends on the institutional conditions through which learners obtain instruction, resources, and opportunities to use the language. Existing studies address national policy and rural schooling, but provide limited direct evidence of urban–coastal differences. This article examines how those bodies of research can inform an educational justice framework for underserved coastal and island communities. A qualitative integrative review combines purposively selected research, foundational theory, and an official policy update. Targeted source verification and an evidence update were conducted on 30 October 2026. The final reference set comprises 22 sources, with empirical findings distinguished from theoretical interpretations and proposed applications. The synthesis develops five connected dimensions: policy implementation, teacher capacity and support, material and digital access, meaningful language interaction, and motivation and aspirations. An island case provides directly relevant contextual evidence, while broader rural studies inform propositions whose transfer requires local verification. The proposed chain of inequality describes potentially reinforcing relationships rather than an established causal sequence. The article recommends needs-based support, sustained teacher development, accessible learning resources, and multilingual tasks connected to community knowledge. Comparative fieldwork is needed to test these propositions across different coastal settings. The contribution is a traceable framework for investigating educational opportunity, not an estimate of the size of an urban–coastal proficiency gap.

Read More Abstract