Vit Ardhyantama, Hana Andriningrum, Rizki Putri Wardani, Delia Indrawati, Muh Syauqi Malik, Sandrotua Bali, Muhammad Sofwan Hadi
Initiative is intrinsically linked to an individual’s motivation, which drives proactive engagement and sustained participation in learning activities. Motivation has long been recognized as a critical determinant of learner engagement, exerting substantial influence on both the processes and outcomes of education. This study investigates the role of initiative within the learning process by examining two primary dimensions: (1) student initiative and (2) lecturer initiative. Although the learning process is influenced by multiple interrelated factors, the concept of initiative—despite its potential pedagogical significance—remains relatively underexplored in the literature. Employing a qualitative descriptive research design, this study explored the role of initiative in classroom learning. The participants consisted of six classes of first-year students enrolled in the Elementary School Teacher Education program at STKIP PGRI Pacitan, along with one lecturer responsible for teaching these classes. Data collection was conducted through classroom observations and in-depth interviews, and the analysis followed four stages: (1) data collection, (2) data reduction, (3) data analysis, and (4) presentation of findings. The results indicate that effective classroom interaction is fostered when both lecturers and students actively demonstrate initiative. The development of such initiative was found to depend on open communication, mutual trust, and receptiveness to constructive feedback. In practice, initiative emerged as a responsive strategy for addressing challenges arising during the learning process. The findings suggest that initiative is more likely to flourish in environments characterized by openness, respect, and a collective willingness to embrace adaptive change. The study concludes that cultivating these conditions is essential for optimizing the potential of initiative in learning. Future research is recommended to identify effective strategies and contextual factors that promote the development of initiative, thereby advancing both individual engagement and collective learning outcomes in higher education. Copyright (c) 2025 The Authors. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Department of Elementary School Education, Campus 5, State University of Surabaya, Indonesia; Department of Elementary School Education, Faculty of Education, University of Jember, Indonesia; Department of Center for Teacher Education, National Tsing Hua University, Taiwan; Community Learning Center, Perdana Telupid, Malaysia
