Introduction Definition LITERATURE REVIEW

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CHAPTER II LITERATURE REVIEW

A. Introduction

In this chapter, I am going to discuss some literature reviews related to the topic of discussion in this paper. Here, I present at least three topics; the definition, the problems in teaching and learning and some causes of the problems. All of the parts as mentioned above will be explained in more detailed below.

B. Definition

B.1 Teaching Everyone has been exposed to teaching and most people believe they know what is meant by the term teaching. Teaching is such a common and complex occurrence, therefore, it is extremely important for each person to study carefully what is involved in the teaching task when it successfully promotes learning Battle Shannon, 1968. Many authors describe the meaning, the principle, the methods and the pattern of teaching. Howard in his book “Teaching in Middle Schools” describes teaching as an activity that tries to help someone to acquire, change or develop skills, attitudes, ideals, appreciations and knowledge. It means that teachers have big responsibilities in every learning process. They should help learners receive the lesson or the knowledge they give and help learners to develop their skills that can give benefit in the learners’ real life. 4 commit to user In doing teaching activity, teacher can use two dominant styles of teaching. They are direct and indirect teaching. Direct teaching means that teacher presents information to students, gives students directions and uses criticism Dunkin Biddle, 1982:113. It generally calls as teacher-centered in which the teacher decides all activities in the classroom. On the other hand, indirect teaching means that teacher permits students to decide how to do the task he set to be accomplished. His role in the classroom is to be a facilitator or mentor when students need help Dunkin Biddle, 1982:97-98. Both of the styles are best be used. In presenting or explaining material, teacher may use direct style that will be more effective in getting students’ attentions. For a discussion, teacher may use indirect style that gives a chance for students to think and discuss with their friends how to do the task. Beside the two teaching styles, there is a strategy called learning to learn that can help students learn effectively. Brewster, Ellis Girard in their book „The Primary English Teacher‟s Guide‟ state that; Learning to learn is an umbrella term for a wide variety of activities designed to develop learning strategies. It is primarily concerned with the process es of learning and aims to focus pupils’ attention on how they learn in addition to what they learn. It aims to develop self-awareness and gradually lead pupils to a conscious development of their own learning strategies, so they can become more effective and independent learners. It has basic concept in educational activity that successful learners have their own technique of learning whether it can be found with the support from teacher or not. From the statement above, we can conclude that it is important for students to have their own technique of learning so that if their teacher’s explanation is not clear, they can learn by themselves. I t is better for teacher to know his students’ commit to user learning strategies. Therefore, he can choose the best teaching method to create effective activity in the classroom. Those are the responsibilities of teacher in the classroom. Whereas Brumfit, Moun Tongue 1995 mention twelve functions of teaching whether it should be done in the classroom or outside the school. They are: 1. Explaining, informing, showing how 2. Initiating, directing, administering 3. Unifying the group 4. Giving security 5. Clarifying attitudes, beliefs, problems 6. Diagnosing learning problems 7. Making curriculum materials 8. Evaluating, recording, reporting 9. Enriching community activities 10. Organizing and arranging classroom 11. Participating in school activities 12. Participating in professional and civic life Those statements above show that teacher should not only focus on his commit to user students but also with the environment because the knowledge given to the students will be realized as guidance in their life. Hopefully, teacher can give both theory of subject-matter and moral lesson to students. The twelve functions of teaching remind us as a teacher that we have to do our best both in the classroom and outside the school. When teacher can do those functions, it means that he is an effective teacher as Arends says in his book ‘ Learning to Teach ’ that effective teachers have personal qualities that allow them to develop colleagues and to create democratic classrooms for children and adolescents Arends, 1998:12. However, an effective teacher is unsure the improvement of students’ academic performances because it depends on the students; their quality of prior learning, their study strategies and work habits that can affect their academic performance Crowl Kaminsky, 1986:365. But, teachers can try to find good teaching methods in order to create successful students. Based on Rosenshine and Stevens 1986, there are ten strategies to be an effective teacher in the classroom. They are: 1. Begin each new lesson with a review 2. State the goal of the lesson 3. Present new material in small steps 4. Give clear instructions and explanations 5. Give students much time to practice 6. Ask numerous questions commit to user 7. Guide initial practice 8. Provide feedback and corrections 9. Provide explicit instructions for seatwork 10. Hold weekly and monthly reviews. In short, to be an effective teacher is not easy. We should notice our goals of the lesson, our methods in presenting materia l, our students’ practices and our reviews before giving new material or before a lesson. I find some definitions of a good teacher stated by students. It is written by Jeremy Harmer 1998 in his book „How to Teach English‟. These statements below may motivate us to be a good teacher; 1. They should make their lesson interesting so you don‟t fall asleep in them 2. A teacher must love her job if she really enjoys her job that‟ll make the lessons more interesting 3. I like the teacher who has his own personality a nd doesn‟t hide it from the students so that he is not only a teacher but a person as well and it comes through the lessons 4. I like a teacher who has lots of knowledge, not only of his subject 5. A good teacher is an entertainer and I mean that in a positive sense, not a negative sense commit to user 6. A good teacher is…..someone who helps rather than shouts 7. A good teacher is…..someone who knows our names Harmer, 1998 Those statements show what kinds of teachers that students want. Students can differentiate which one is a good or bad teacher. They asses us from our personalities and our teaching methods used in the classroom. As teachers, we should try to be the best for our students so that they will give a good appreciation in our lessons and ourselves as an individual. B.2 Learning Learning is going on all the time whether it is directed or not. It begins at or even before birth and continues until death. The use of term ‘learning’ mostly refers to educational activity although it can be used to other aspects of life. There are many definitions of learning stated by Brown in his book „Principles of Language Learning and Teaching‟. They are: 1. Learning is acquisition or “getting” 2. Learning is retention of information or skill 3. Retention implies storage systems, memory, cognitive organization 4. Learning involves active, conscious focus on and acting upon events outside or inside the organism commit to user 5. Learning is relatively permanent but subject to forgetting 6. Learning involves some form of practice, perhaps reinforced practice 7. Learning is a change in behavior In short, learning gives impacts in human life. Through learning people know foreign languages other cultures, create many beneficial tools that can be useful in life, realize the good and bad behaviors and many more. Learning will be more effective when there is a good control from the teacher and a good participation from the learners. To make a good control in the classroom, the teacher should recognize to the material, the students and the condition of the classroom as Battle and Shannon explained in their book „The new idea in Education‟ that learning will be most effective when: a. The learning situations are related to life as realistically as possible b. The learner gains confidence in his ability and also acquires favorable attitudes and good works habits c. The environment contributes positively to the learning situation d. The learning experiences help the learner gain an insight through practical use of the relationships with which he is having experiences commit to user e. The learners are adapted to the needs, capacities, and interests of students f. The students feel the need for the experiences and outcomes g. The students are free from emotional tensions h. The students are adapted to the normal growth of the learners i. The situations provide satisfactory for student participation in planning and learning. While from the learner, they can support the learning process by having willingness to listen, experiment, ask question, think about how to learn and accept correction Harmer, 1998. In conclusion, learning process need both of good teacher and good learners participations to make the learning process run effectively. B.3 Young Learners Teaching and learning can not be separated from the teacher and the learners who do and participate in the classroom activity. In this subchapter, I want to discuss young learners at the age of eight to twelve years old, the age of Elementary school’s students. According to Wylie 1967, the generally character of the period of middle childhood usually regarded as including the age six to twelve years is typified as a period of realistic orientation i n which the child “most eagerly investigates the real world, acquires learning, is intensely curious, and acquires new skills”. In this period, the child becomes ready to apply himself to skills and tasks. commit to user Therefore, foreign language is also taught to children beside the other school subjects. Hopefully, the teacher can give a basic knowledge of the foreign language being taught. While Scott Ytreberg in their books „Teaching English to Children‟ explain the children characteristics of eight to ten year olds in the statements below: a Their basic concepts are formed. They have very decided views of the world b They can tell the difference between fact and fiction c They ask questions all the time d They rely on the spoken word as well as the physical world to convey and understand meaning e They re able to make some decisions about their own learning f They have definite views about what they like and don’t like doing g They have a developed sense of fairness about what happens in the classroom and begin question the teacher’s decision h They are able to work with others and learn from others From the statements above, it can be concluded that young children have some characteristics that can be developed to their learning styles. The teacher should make variation in his teaching methods to attract children to learn. For commit to user example: the activity should include movement, practice pronouncing words by singing songs and telling stories, learn vocabulary from pictures and games, etc Scott Ytreberg, 1990 In conclusion, young learners are ready to learn new skills although they learn slowly than adults, forget things quickly and get bored easilyBrewster, Ellis Girard, 2002 but they are easier to be motivated to study. It depends on their learning style and the support from their teacher to find out the best methods to teach them.

C. Some Problems in Teaching and Learning