Exploring Pre-Service EFL Teachers' Experiences In Teaching English To Young Learners In Non-Formal Learning Contexts: Challenges And Strate- Gies

Despite the growing involvement of pre-service EFL teachers in non-formal Eng- lish learning settings, limited research has explored their experiences in teaching young learners within these contexts. This study aims to explore the challenges en- countered by pre-service EFL teachers in teaching English to young learners in non- formal learning contexts and the strategies they employ to address those challenges. This study employed a descriptive qualitative research design. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with five pre-service EFL teachers from the English Language Education Department at UIN Ar-Raniry, who had experience teaching young learners in non-formal learning contexts. The data were analyzed using thematic analysis. The findings revealed five major challenges encountered by the participants: maintaining students' attention and engagement, managing hy- peractive classroom behavior, addressing learner diversity and mixed abilities, helping young learners understand learning materials, and supporting young learn- ers' retention of learning materials. To address these challenges, the participants employed four main strategies: promoting student engagement through interactive learning, utilizing multimodal teaching media, building student engagement through personal interaction, and reinforcing learning through repetition and con- tinuous review. These findings highlight that teaching young learners in non-formal learning contexts requires pre-service EFL teachers to adopt flexible, learner-cen- tered instructional practices that respond to learners' diverse needs and develop- mental characteristics.