Students' Understanding of Local Wisdom and Environmental Issues in Short Stories

The reserch aimed to describe students' knowledge of themes, character education (figures) who care about the environment, environmental issues, local wisdom, and students' expectations after reading short stories. The theories used are ecocriticism, local wisdom, and literary reception. This is a descriptive qualitative study. The data sources include a questionnaire with students' perspectives on short stories and five short stories by Jemmy Piran. The questionnaire included research data, namely student perspectives. Data were gathered via a questionnaire. The data gathering began with students reading the five short stories, after which they answered the questionnaire questions. The analysis of students' understanding yielded the following results: 1) The theme of the sea amounting to 0.80%, and the theme of Harin Botan 0.25%; 2) data on students' understanding of environmentally conscious character figures amounting to 1.60%; 3) data on fish population damage 0.51% and marine pollution 0.29%; 4) local wisdom includes traditional rituals amounting to 0.74%, beliefs 0.27%, local knowledge 0.27%, and customary law 0.09%; and 5) data on student readers' expectations about environmental preservation and local culture amounting to 1.34%. The research shows that local wisdom, such as traditional rituals and customary laws, is not only a culture but also an effective strategy for preserving the environment. The implication is that this understanding can enrich students' literacy regarding the importance of maintaining traditional values in facing modern environmental challenges.