b. Descriptive Words
Descriptive words are used to give detail about who, what, when, where and how in the recount text. So, those words could help the readers imagining the
past events.
c. The use of Past Tense
As mentioned before, recount text is a text that retells the past events; someone experience. So, the students must use the past tense in writing the
events. The tenses consist of simple past tense, past continuous tense, past perfect tense, and perfect continuous tense.
d. Sequence Maker
Sequence maker means words that show the order of the events for example, first, next, then. Those words are used to link separate events or paragraph
into a cohesive whole text.
C. Clustering Technique
1. Definition of Technique
In teaching learning process, the term technique is commonly used. The implementation of technique usually takes place in a classroom. Furthermore,
technique must be consistent with a method, and therefore in harmony with an approach as well.
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But sometimes, it is often misunderstood with two other terms; approach and method. Therefore, it is important to the students to know the
differences of those terms. Edward Anthony in 1963 identified those three levels of conceptualization and
organization, which he termed approach, method, and technique.
32
An approach is a set of correlative assumptions dealing with the nature of language teaching and
learning.
33
It describes the nature of the subject matter to be taught. It can be seen that approach is the basic concept behind the method of representing teaching and
31
Jack C. Richards and Theodore S. Rodgers, Approach and Methods in Language Teaching, in Edward Anthony, New York: Cambridge University Press, 1986, p. 19.
32
ibid.
33
Ibid.
learning of language with certain theoretical. While method is an overall plan for the orderly presentation of language material, no part of which contradicts, and all
of which is based upon, the selected approach.
34
It means that method is a procedure or steps and the way that will be used by teachers in the achievement of
learning objectives. As mentioned before, a technique is implementation-that which classroom
procedures are described because it actually takes place in a classroom. It is a particular tricks, stratagem, or contrivance used to accomplish an immediate
objective.
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So, it can be concluded that, clustering is one of techniques in teaching writing because
clustering technique is a teachers’ strategy which is applied in the classroom.
2. Definition of Clustering
Before starting to write, the students should prepare it first such as, have a picture and structure in hisher mind that will be poured into the writing. But
sometimes, it is quite difficult to make them run well as Miller stated, “When we
write, we loop back and forth over our own mental tracks, rethinking, rearranging, restarting, and researching”.
36
Finding a topic should be done before write something, but again it is not easy because we must decide a subject that will be
included in the story or not. Moreover, inspiration does not always occur enough for the students to depend on it. To make inspiration come to the student
s’ minds; they should develop other ways to get idea. It is better to do prewriting first before
writing because for many students, getting started is the hardest part.
37
As
mentioned before, prewriting is the first step in writing process.
One of the techniques that can be used in prewriting process is clustering technique. Based on the three basic approaches to learning; aural, verbal or visual,
34
Ibid.
35
Ibid.
36
Miller, op. cit., p. 7.
37
Jean Wyrick, Steps to Writing Well with Additional Readings, eight edition, Boston: Wadsworth, 2011, p. 3.
clustering includes in visual learners.
38
It means that the students are easier in
processing language and information by seeing the information in graphic form.
As Langan said that clustering also known as diagramming or mapping, is another strategy that can be used to generate material for a paper.
39
Diagramming or mapping means that clustering technique can be used to generate material for
paper. Clustering also called “Mapping and webbing, it is an effective way to
gather the information for an essay ”.
40
It is said an effective way because in clustering, the students make some words related to their writing topic and it
could be gathered one to another that would make good ideas in their writing.
Cooper and Axelrod viewed that clustering is a strategy in connecting and showing possible relationship among facts and ideas.
41
It means that the students
could write all their ideas which have connection one to others.
According to Clouse “Clustering lets the writers see at a glance how ideas
relate to one another ”.
42
It means that clustering technique helps the students to have a visual view of their ideas that related to the topic. Langan also said that in
clustering, the students could use lines, boxes, arrows, and circles to show relationship among the ideas and details that occur to them.
43
From those definitions, clustering is also called creative writing, because the students could
pour all their idea about one topic that will be written into some related words to the topic using a visual scheme or chart. From those charts, it might help the
students in understanding the relationship among the parts of broad topic and
developing subtopics.
From the definitions above, it can be said that clustering technique is one of ways in prewriting to help the students in expressing many ideas by making some
38
Donald Pharr and Santi Buscemin, Writing Today: contexts and options for the real world-Brief Edition, New York: McGraw Hill, 2005, p. 30.
39
John Langan, College Writing Skills, sixth edition, New York: McGraw Hill Higer Education, 2003, p. 27.
40
Santi V. Buscemi, A Reader for Developing Writers, fifth edition, New York: McGraw Hill, 2002, p. 14.
41
Charles R. Cooper., and Rise B. Axelrod, Guide to Writing, ninth edition, New York: St. Martin’s Inc, 2001, p. 563.
42
Barbara Fine Clouse, A Troubleshooting Guide for Writers, fourth edition, New York: McGraw Hill,2005, p. 24.
43
John Langan. English Skills, seventh edition, New York: McGraw Hill, 2001, p. 22.
boxes in writing some related subjects. Clustering also should be done before starting an overall written. By doing clustering technique, the students do not have
to be worried about the grammar or the other rules such as punctuation and etc., because they only have to write some subjects related to the topic. After that, the
students may try and omit several clusters before making it into the writing.
It can be concluded, by using clustering technique the students are hoped can easily start writing in generating their ideas that have written. The figure below is
the example of clustering:
Figure 2.1 Example of Clustering
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3. Steps of Using Clustering