INDIGENOUS KNOWLEDGE AND PHYSICS EDUCATION: THE INTEGRATION OF ACEHNESE DISASTER TRADITIONS INTO ENVIRONMENTAL PHYSICS PEDAGOGY

Abstract

In disaster-vulnerable regions, formal science education often operates in isolation from indigenous memory and local cultural heritage, missing a vital opportunity to foster contextual environmental awareness and resilience. Addressing this socio-cultural gap at UIN Ar-Raniry in Banda Aceh, Indonesia, this interdisciplinary study examines the integration of Acehnese oral traditions and disaster wisdom specifically the Smong and Ie Beuna narratives into higher education physics curriculum through the Problem-Based Environmental Physics Instruction Model for Tsunami Impact. Utilizing a Research and Development (R&D) design guided by Thiagarajan's 4-D framework (Define, Design, Develop, Disseminate), the study embedded local cultural disaster responses alongside constructivist learning theories (Piaget and Vygotsky) and Polya's problem-solving steps. Instructional materials were evaluated through expert validation and two-phase field trials involving undergraduate physics education students (n=10 for limited trials; n=18 for expanded trials). Data were collected using a 20-item environmental attitude questionnaire (Guttman scale) and eight essay problem-solving assessments, analyzed via Hotelling's T2 test, normalized gain (N-Gain) scores, and paired-sample t-tests using SPSS. Expert validators deemed the culturally integrated instructional materials “very feasible”. Empirical findings revealed statistically significant enhancements in students' environmental attitudes and contextual problem-solving competencies. By transforming Acehnese collective memory into an active pedagogical framework, the model demonstrates how indigenous knowledge systems can be meaningfully synthesized with university-level STEM education, offering a replicable, interdisciplinary model for disaster-prone coastal communities globally.