Enhancing Eco-literacy of Children of Indonesian Migrant Workers (IMW) through Interactive Storybook Media
A Border Learning Strategy for Environmental Sustainability Awareness at Entikong CCBP
- Publication History
- Published online: June 30, 2026
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.35877/454RI.mattawang5247
- Copyright
- Copyright (c) 2026 Nina Yulianti, Fengky F. Adji, Febrina Natalia, Wilson, Firliaty
- User License
- https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0
Abstract
Abstract
Children of Indonesian Migrant Workers (IMW) in the Sarawak, Malaysia border region face complex educational and environmental challenges. This community service program aimed to enhance environmental eco-literacy among IMW children at the Entikong–Tebedu Cross-Border Post through interactive media-based sustainability education. The implementation method comprised three stages: (1) preparation and development of the educational storybook "Lets Learn Soil, Water and Air Pollution!", (2) interactive educational workshops and field activities, and (3) evaluation using pre-test and post-test assessments. The results demonstrated a 35.5% increase in environmental awareness, with the average comprehension score rising from 54.5 (moderate) in the pre-test to 90.0 (excellent) in the post-test. Furthermore, the program facilitated a formal partnership agreement between Universitas Palangka Raya, Central Kalimantan and Universitas Panca Bhakti, West Kalimantan to support ongoing border education. This initiative confirms that context-aware and interactive educational approaches effectively foster environmental stewardship among border children.
Abstrak
Anak-anak Pekerja Migran Indonesia (PMI) di wilayah perbatasan Sarawak, Malaysia menghadapi tantangan pendidikan dan lingkungan yang kompleks. Kegiatan pengabdian kepada masyarakat ini bertujuan untuk meningkatkan ekoliterasi anak-anak PMI di Pos Lintas Batas Negara (PLBN) Entikong–Tebedu melalui pendidikan keberlanjutan lingkungan hidup berbasis media interaktif. Metode pelaksanaan ditempuh melalui tiga tahapan: (1) tahap persiapan dan penyusunan buku cerita edukatif "Ayo Belajar Polusi Tanah, Air, dan Udara!", (2) tahap pelaksanaan edukasi interaktif dan praktik lapangan, serta (3) tahap evaluasi menggunakan pre-test dan post-test. Hasil kegiatan menunjukkan peningkatan pemahaman ekoliterasi anak-anak PMI sebesar 35,5%, di mana rerata skor pemahaman meningkat dari 54,5 (kategori sedang) pada pre-test menjadi 90,0 (kategori sangat baik) pada post-test. Selain itu, program ini memfasilitasi penandatanganan Perjanjian Kerja Sama (PKS) antara Universitas Palangka Raya dan Universitas Panca Bhakti untuk mendukung keberlanjutan edukasi perbatasan. Kegiatan ini membuktikan bahwa pendekatan edukasi bernuansa lokal dan interaktif efektif dalam membangun kesadaran lingkungan pada anak-anak perbatasan.
Keywords
References (24)
- Ardoin, N. M., Bowers, A. W., & Gaillard, E. (2020). Environmental education outcomes for conservation: A systematic review. Biological Conservation, 241, 108224. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2019.108224
- Azmiyati, U., & Jannah, W. (2024). Penguatan Literasi Lingkungan untuk Membangun Sekolah Sehat dan Hijau di SMK Islam Qiyamu At-Tarbiyah Desa Beber Kecamatan Batukliang Kabupaten Lombok Tengah. Jurnal Pengabdian Kepada Masyarakat, 4(2), 5–9. https://doi.org/10.69503/abdinesia.v4i2.518
- Chawla, L. (2020). Childhood nature connection and constructive hope: A review of research on connecting with nature and coping with environmental loss. People and Nature, 2(3), 619–642. https://doi.org/10.1002/pan3.10128
- Desmarais, C. (2024). Ecological literacy: Definition, early articulations, frameworks and empirical research. Journal of Sustainability Education, 29(1), 1–18. http://www.susted.com/wordpress/content/ecological-literacy-definition-early-articulations-frameworks-and-empirical-research_2024_04/
- Dimitrova, A., & Bouloukos, A. (2021). Cross-border educational initiatives and environmental resilience in frontier regions. International Journal of Educational Development, 82, Article 102370. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijedudev.2021.102370
- Effendi, T., & Rahmi, A. (2024). Pemenuhan hak pendidikan bagi anak pekerja migran Indonesia di Klang Lama, Malaysia. Maslahah: Jurnal Pengabdian Masyarakat, 5(1), 13–37.
- I Made, P. (2025). Peningkatan Ecoliteracy Siswa Sekolah Dasar Melalui Program Pengabdian Masyarakat: -. Farabi, 22(1), 102–134. https://doi.org/10.30603/jf.v22i1.6531
- Gichuru, T. M., & Thuranira, M. N. (2025). Eco-literacy and climate action in the primary school curriculum in Kenya. International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science, 9(3), 2748–2755. https://doi.org/10.47772/IJRISS.2025.903SEDU0208
- Jatmika, M. I. (2023). Indonesia-Malaysia collaborative policy to address the issue of education for Indonesian migrant worker family in Sabah Malaysia. NST Proceedings, 22, 22–28.
- Lamanauskas, V. (2023). The importance of environmental education at an early age. Journal of Baltic Science Education, 22(4), 564–567. https://doi.org/10.33225/jbse/23.22.564
- Lee, S. M., & Bozeman, B. (2019). Collaborative research: Impacts on education and innovation. Research Policy, 48(5), 103–113. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.respol.2019.01.008
- Muzri S, A., Sakkir, G., Saputri, N. E., Karamay, B. R. Y., & Pangestu, R. D. (2025). Education on Utilizing Plastic Waste through Creative Class by Sikola Inspirasi Alam in 3T Area. Mattawang: Jurnal Pengabdian Masyarakat, 6(1), 38–43. https://doi.org/10.35877/454RI.mattawang3706
- Nikolopoulou, K., & Gialamas, V. (2021). Creative activities in children's books: Enhancing engagement and learning. International Journal of Early Years Education, 29(1), 24–36. https://doi.org/10.1080/09669760.2020.1778451
- Poje, M., Marini?, I., Stanisavljevi?, A., & Rechner Dika, I. (2024). Environmental education on sustainable principles in kindergartens—A foundation or an option? Sustainability, 16(7), Article 2707. https://doi.org/10.3390/su16072707
- Purba, N. A., & Azizah, N. (2024). Strategies of the Indonesian Embassy in Kuala Lumpur in resolving education problems for undocumented children of Indonesian migrant workers in Malaysia. Edunesia: Jurnal Ilmiah Pendidikan, 5(2), 652–668. https://doi.org/10.51276/edu.v5i2.841
- Purwanto, A., Asbari, M., & Santoso, T. I. (2024). Management of Indonesian overseas schools (SILN) in providing access to basic education for children of migrant workers in East Malaysia. Journal of Educational Administration and Leadership, 5(1), 45–58.
- Ranjbar, M., Khosravi, Y., & Farahani, E. (2020). The role of illustrations in children's books: Enhancing understanding of environmental concepts. Journal of Environmental Education, 45(3), 245–256.
- Sihvonen, P., Lappalainen, R., Herranen, J., & Aksela, M. (2024). Promoting sustainability together with parents in early childhood education. Education Sciences, 14(5), Article 541. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci14050541
- Sweller, J. (2020). Cognitive load theory and educational technology. Educational Technology Research and Development, 68(1), 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11423-019-09701-3
- UNESCO. (2024). Global education monitoring report 2024/25: Leadership in education. UNESCO. https://www.unesco.org/gem-report
- Wulan, T. R., Muslihudin, M., & Wijayanti, S. (2023). The difficulty of education for the children of Indonesian migrant workers in Sabah Malaysia. Migration Letters, 21(2), 115–126.
- Williamson, H. J., Young, B., Murray, N., Burton, D. L., Levin, B. L., Massey, O. T., & Baldwin, J. A. (2016). Community-University Partnerships for Research and Practice: Application of an interactive and contextual model of collaboration. PubMed, 20(2), 55–84. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28184179
- Wong, B. W.-K., Ghazali, S., & Yusof, N. (2021). The condition and challenges of community learning centres in the oil palm plantations of Sarawak, Malaysia. International Journal of Business and Society, 22(3), 1656–1672. https://doi.org/10.33736/ijbs.4328.2021
- Yuniarto, B., & Setiawan, A. (2022). Community Learning Center (CLC) Sarawak: Special service for the education of children of Indonesian migrant workers in Sarawak, Malaysia. Journal of International Migration and Integration, 23(3), 1105–1122. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12134-021-00885-3
How to Cite
Copyright & license

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.





