Developing Digital Instructional Materials via Design-Based Research: A Case Study of Critical Literacy Skills Among Undergraduate EFL Students
Keywords:
Critical Literacy, Design-Based Research, Digital Instructional Materials, Multimodal Reading, Tertiary EFLAbstract
While digital media consumption has proliferated in higher education, undergraduate English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students in regional contexts often struggle to engage critically with online multimodal texts. Addressing this gap, this study employed a Design-Based Research (DBR) methodology to design, iteratively refine, and evaluate web-based instructional materials (CriticaRead) aimed at fostering critical literacy skills among EFL undergraduates. Conducted at Universitas Madako Tolitoli, Central Sulawesi, the research followed three systematic DBR phases—Analysis/Exploration, Design/Construction, and Evaluation/Reflection—involving 32 undergraduate EFL students and four expert evaluators. The materials were structured around Luke and Freebody's Four Resources Model. Quantitative data from expert validation rubrics and qualitative data from classroom observations, artifacts, and Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) were analyzed using descriptive statistics and reflexive thematic analysis. Findings revealed that iterative DBR refinements elevated material validity from an initial mean score of 3.18 (79.5%) to 3.65 (91.25%). Furthermore, classroom implementation demonstrated a qualitative shift in students' reading stances, progressing from passive comprehension to active deconstruction of authorial bias, multimodal framing, and omitted perspectives. This study highlights the value of scaffolded digital materials in democratizing critical pedagogy within regional tertiary EFL settings.
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