IJELTAL (Indonesian Journal of English Language Teaching and Applied Linguistics)

Halal Industry in Thailand Presented in Bangkok Post: Structural Linguistics and World Englishes Perspectives

Pairote Bennui — 2026-05-04

The halal industry is a contemporary global trend of economic development because of the growing number of Muslim consumers. This is realized in Thailand, although it is a Muslim-minority country. Research studies have been conducted to support the readiness of Thailand as a regional hub of the Halal industry. However, a few works emphasize English studies on Thailand’s Halal industry. Thus, this study aims to analyze lexical, grammatical, and semantic features of English regarding the Halal industry in the Bangkok Post, a leading English-language daily newspaper in Thailand. It also discusses the extent of the structural linguistic features that indicate and contribute to World Englishes in the Islamic context of the Thai and global economy. Based on the frameworks of morphology, grammar, semantics, and World Englishes using textual analysis, results revealed that the journalists utilized and constructed a range of outstanding lexical formations as well as phrases and clauses in English that incorporate Arabic and Thai and convey specific semantic features in order to present the Halal industry in Thai society. These structural linguistic features can indicate their Islamic English, World Englishes of global commerce/economy, and Thai Muslim identity of English.

Indonesian EFL Students’ Thesis Writing in the Age of AI: Practices and Ethical Perspectives

Yustinus Calvin Gai Mali — 2026-05-20

This study aims to explore how Indonesian EFL university students use Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools to support their undergraduate thesis writing, why they use those tools, and the AI-use policies they expect to have in their thesis writing process. To achieve these goals, the researcher conducted a qualitative case study involving five female EFL undergraduate students who were in the process of completing their theses at an English Education Program at a private university in Indonesia. Research data were collected through an in-depth semi-structured interview, supported by the students’ thesis draft to help them recall their thesis writing experiences. The researcher considered four rigor standards for qualitative studies: credibility, transferability, dependability, and confirmability to ensure the quality of the research findings. The inductive data analysis results revealed that students used four AI tools; ChatGPT, DeepL, Grammarly, and Quillbot in their thesis writing process to help them paraphrase, generate writing ideas, translate words and sentences, and select appropriate vocabulary. These tools were used because the students believed they might help enhance the quality of their writing, write faster, and increase their confidence in writing their thesis. At the same time, the students were also aware of the risks of being too dependent on AI tools and the inaccuracy of AI-generated texts and suggestions, which encouraged them to verify the AI outputs before incorporating them into their thesis. Practical implications for EFL lecturers who are supervising thesis students and directions for future research were presented.

Gemini API-Based Automated English Paragraph Scoring Aligned with High School Thai Curriculum Writing Indicators

Phisit Deeboonmee Na Chumphae — 2026-05-20

This research aims to develop and evaluate an automated English paragraph scoring system using the Gemini API aligned with the Thai upper secondary curriculum's writing indicators, to address issues related to teacher workload and delayed feedback in writing assessments. The system integrates the Gemini 2.5 Pro API with a prompt-engineering framework designed to simulate expert EFL assessors. This research employs a sequential mixed-methods research approach. For the quantitative component, 160 upper secondary EFL students in Thailand were sampled from their written assignments, consisting of three expository paragraph assignments aligned with the Thai core curriculum. Cluster sampling was used to select participants. The students' writings were assessed using a validated analytical evaluation criterion comprising four aspects. The essays were independently scored by three evaluators, and the results were compared to automated scores generated by a Gemini-based system. Reliability between human evaluators was first checked using the Intraclass Correlation Coefficient (ICC), and the agreement between human and AI scores was measured using the Quadratic Weighted Kappa (QWK). The results showed a high level of agreement between the Gemini-generated scores and the human evaluators (QWK = 0.82), indicating that the system can approximate human judgment in evaluating English as a Foreign Language writing. Qualitative analysis of the AI-generated feedback further revealed that the system could provide diagnostic recommendations related to grammar, vocabulary, and sentence structure. These findings suggest that the system can support teachers in reducing grading workload while providing timely, criteria-based feedback to enhance students’ writing development.

Politeness Strategies Used in NIKIZEFANYA Twitter (X) Account’s Comments

Fitriyah Fitriyah — 2026-05-24

Politeness is a communication strategy that involves both positive and negative face, aiming to prevent face-threatening acts and help individuals maintain each other’s social image. Communication that takes place in cyberspace has now become common and accepted by various groups of people, regardless of age, background, or social status. Through social media, individuals can not only communicate and exchange information, but also establish connections, interact with old friends, and find new friends from different across the globe. This study aims to identify types of politeness strategies and the most dominant types of politeness strategies used in the @nikizefanya account Twitter (X) platform. The study uses qualitative descriptive method. The findings reveal that there are six positive politeness strategy and two negative politeness strategies used in the @nikizefanya account Twitter (X) platform. The most dominant strategy is the fourth positive politeness strategy (Use in-group identity markers) with the percentage of usage reached 45,5%. This shows the strong tendency of users to build and emphasize group identity in their interactions. Meanwhile, from the category of negative politeness strategies, the first strategy (Be conventionally indirect) dominates with a much higher percentage of 89,4%. These findings show that the users’ comments in NIKIZEFANYA account use language or references that identify them as part of the same group as their audience, creating a sense of closeness and community. This research contributes to understanding how politeness functions as a tool to maintain harmonious communication and avoid conflict in social media context.

Hedging in English Social Science Research Articles: A Corpus-Based Comparison of Native and Turkish EFL Writers

Zekeriya Hamamcı — 2026-05-24

Hedging plays a central role in academic writing because it enables researchers to present claims with appropriate caution and to situate their arguments in relation to earlier scholarship. This study compares hedging in English-language social science research articles written by native speakers of English and by Turkish scholars writing in English as a foreign language. Adopting a corpus-based contrastive design, the study examines 90 published research articles with WordSmith Tools. The corpus comprises 37,243 words in the Turkish EFL subcorpus and 38,349 words in the native-speaker subcorpus, with texts drawn from economics, education, law, and literature. The analysis considers both the overall frequency of hedges and their distribution across two rhetorically important parts of the article: the Introduction and the Discussion/Conclusion. Statistical analysis showed no significant difference in total hedge frequency between the two groups (p = .935). Native-speaker writers produced 866 hedges (4.38%), while Turkish EFL writers produced 868 (4.39%). The contrast emerges not in quantity, but in placement. Turkish writers used more hedging in Introductions, whereas native-speaker authors used more in Discussion and Conclusion sections, where interpretation and evaluation become more prominent. The findings indicate that both groups share a broad awareness of cautious academic positioning, yet differ in how they distribute that caution across the article. The study therefore suggests that research on hedging should consider rhetorical location alongside raw frequency. The results also point to the value of section-sensitive instruction in EAP and ESP writing classrooms.

Reinterpreting Indonesian Folklore in EFL Education: Symbolic Meaning, Local Wisdom and Generation Z Perspectives

Andi Irlina — 2026-05-25

This qualitative study explores how Indonesian local folklore can function as a literary and pedagogical resource in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) education by examining symbolic meanings, educational values, and generational reinterpretation. Focusing on the legends of Princess Mayangsari from the Banjar community and Princess Tadampalik from the Bugis tradition, the study integrates Symbolic Interactionism and Value Theory (Western and Islamic) to analyze how moral, cultural, and spiritual values are constructed and transformed. Data were collected through content analysis and in-depth interviews with 20 Generation Z participants, and analyzed using thematic coding. The findings reveal that traditional symbols such as the sacred sword, mirror, white buffalo, and heirloom kris are reinterpreted by Generation Z within contemporary frameworks of rationality, gender equality, ethical leadership, and digital creativity. Rather than perceiving folklore as sacred and static, participants engage with these narratives as reflective texts that support identity formation and moral reasoning. From an EFL perspective, the study demonstrates that local folklore provides authentic narrative materials that enhance narrative literacy, cultural awareness, and character education. The integration of symbolic analysis and digital storytelling further highlights the potential of folklore-based pedagogy to support critical reading, interpretation, and intercultural competence in language learning contexts.