PPG-Certified Teachers' Lived Experiences in Using Digital Edutainment: A Phenomenological Study Through the TPACK Lens

Abstract

As a core outcome of Indonesia's Pre-Service Teacher Professional Education Program (PPG), teachers' competency in integrating digital educational technology is essential for effective classroom practice. Facilitating today's students in learning a foreign language is increasingly inseparable from how contemporary culture shapes their engagement with digital tools. Although digital edutainment as a form of educational technology has been widely studied in the 21st century, research focusing on PPG-certified teachers under this relatively new government program remains limited. This study explores the lived experiences of PPG-certified teachers in using digital edutainment in the classroom. Six PPG-certified teachers in Indonesia participated in this study. A phenomenological research design was employed as the most appropriate approach to investigate the aim of this study: to explore how these teachers experience and enact digital edutainment in their teaching practice. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews, classroom observations, and document analysis. The findings reveal that teachers' effective use of edutainment reflects a balanced integration of pedagogical knowledge, content understanding, and technological awareness. Rather than functioning as passive users of digital tools, teachers acted as critical decision-makers who selected, adapted, and created digital content based on students' learning needs. This study contributes to the ongoing evaluation of educational policy in Indonesia, particularly in developing teachers' competency in fostering student engagement in foreign language learning to improve overall educational quality.