PERAN GURU DALAM MENINGKATKAN KEMAMPUAN MENULIS CERPEN PADA SISWA KELAS VIII SMP NW AIKMUAL

ABSTRACT Short story writing instruction among eighth-grade students at SMP NW Aikmual faces several challenges, including generating ideas, developing thoughts, selecting appropriate words, accessing reading references, and maintaining concentration. This study aims to describe the teacher’s role in supporting the development of students’ short story writing skills and to identify the supporting and inhibiting factors in the learning process. The study employed a descriptive qualitative approach involving seven informants selected through purposive sampling, comprising one Indonesian language teacher and six eighth-grade students directly involved in short story writing activities. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews, observations, and documentation, then analyzed through data reduction, data presentation, and conclusion drawing. The findings indicate that the teacher acts as a facilitator by providing learning materials and short story examples, a motivator through encouragement and appreciation, a mentor by guiding students in generating ideas and developing stories, and an evaluator by providing corrections and feedback. Supporting factors include teacher guidance, student motivation, and the availability of learning resources, while inhibiting factors include difficulties in developing ideas, limited vocabulary and reading references, and concentration problems. These findings indicate that targeted and continuous teacher support helps facilitate the short story writing process according to students’ needs. ABSTRAK Pembelajaran menulis cerpen pada siswa kelas VIII SMP NW Aikmual masih menghadapi kendala dalam menemukan ide, mengembangkan gagasan, merangkai kata, memperoleh referensi bacaan, dan mempertahankan konsentrasi. Penelitian ini bertujuan mendeskripsikan peran guru dalam mendukung proses pengembangan kemampuan menulis cerpen serta mengidentifikasi faktor pendukung dan penghambat pembelajaran. Penelitian menggunakan pendekatan deskriptif kualitatif dengan tujuh informan yang dipilih secara purposive sampling, terdiri atas satu guru Bahasa Indonesia dan enam siswa kelas VIII yang terlibat langsung dalam pembelajaran menulis cerpen. Data dikumpulkan melalui wawancara semi-terstruktur, observasi, dan dokumentasi, kemudian dianalisis melalui reduksi data, penyajian data, dan penarikan kesimpulan. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa guru berperan sebagai fasilitator melalui penyediaan materi dan contoh cerpen, motivator melalui dorongan dan apresiasi, pembimbing melalui pendampingan dalam menentukan ide dan mengembangkan cerita, serta evaluator melalui koreksi dan umpan balik. Faktor pendukung meliputi bimbingan guru, motivasi siswa, dan ketersediaan sumber belajar, sedangkan faktor penghambat mencakup kesulitan mengembangkan gagasan, keterbatasan kosakata dan referensi, serta masalah konsentrasi. Temuan ini menunjukkan bahwa dukungan guru yang terarah dan berkelanjutan berperan dalam memfasilitasi proses menulis sesuai kebutuhan siswa.