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get something on the page. It is supported by Bello 1997 who stated that one- way to improve the writing skill is to practice. In this case, the practice will be
conducted in form of the free writing activity. Based on the problems identified above, the researcher assumed that the
free writing as a technique in improving students’ writing ability is important and can be used by the students help to generate the idea and engage themselves more
deeply in writing their expressions dealing with their imagination or their own experiences.
B. Identification of the Problem
According to the explanation above, it is important to apply the free
writing technique in teaching writing at eighth grade student of SMP Muhammadiyah 2 Mlati-Sleman because of problems below:
1. The students’ writing ability is still low
2. The students get a lot of problems in writing using English
3. The student found it difficult to express and generate their ideas in writing
4. The students are less motivation in English writing
5. The students are not encouraged to practice English writing a lot
C. Delimitation of the Problem
There are several elements of writing, including grammar, paragraph organization, and vocabulary. Also, there are mechanics of writing which are
necessary in making a good writing. Those are punctuation, capitalization,
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spelling, cohesion, unity, and organization. These things are very important to be mastered in supporting our writing to be a good writing. Considering those
elements of writing, there are several obstacles in making a good writing. Those obstacles are the lack of ideas, vocabulary, organization, choosing the topic, and
punctuation. As a result, they get stuck in the process of writing. These problems happened in SMP Muhammadiyah 2 Mlati-Sleman. In this case, the study focuses
on investigating and describing the English teaching and learning in teaching writing eighth grade students of SMP Muhammadiyah 2 Mlati in Sleman
Yogyakarta. The researcher focused on some of writing elements, they are vocabulary, grammar, and paragraph organization of the use of free writing
technique in teaching writing in order to improve students’ writing skill.
D. Formulation of the Problems
Based on above explanation, this study tries to answer the following question:
How can writing ability for the eighth grade students of SMP Muhammadiyah 2 Mlati in the academic year of 20142015 be improved by using the free writing
technique?
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E. Objectives of the Study