IMPROVING STUDENTS’ WRITING SKILL THROUGH PICTURE CARDS AT MADRASAH ALIYAH NEGERI KRATON PASURUAN
IMPROVING STUDENTS’ WRITING SKILL THROUGH
PICTURE CARDS AT MADRASAH ALIYAH NEGERI KRATON
PASURUAN
THESIS
By:
AMANDA DWI SETYAWATI
201010100311244
ENGLISH DEPARTMENT
FACULTY OF TEACHING TRAINING AND EDUCATION
UNIVERSITY OF MUHAMMADIYAH MALANG
2015
IMPROVING STUDENTS’ WRITING SKILL THROUGH
PICTURE CARDS AT MADRASAH ALIYAH NEGERI KRATON
PASURUAN
THESIS
This thesis is submitted to meet one of the requirements to achieve Sarjana
Degree in English Education
By:
AMANDA DWI SETYAWATI
201010100311244
ENGLISH DEPARTMENT
FACULTY OF TEACHING TRAINING AND EDUCATION
UNIVERSITY OF MUHAMMADIYAH MALANG
2015
This thesis written by Amanda Dwi Setyawati was approved on January 12th, 2015s
written by was approved on April 30, 2014.
By:
Advisor II,
Nurakhfini Septiany, M.A., M.Ed
Advisor I,
Puji Sumarsono, M.Ed
This thesis was defended in
TABLE OF CONTENTS
COVER .................................................................................................................... i
APPROVAL ........................................................................................................... ii
LEGALIZATION .................................................................................................. iii
ORIGINALITY DECLARATION ........................................................................ iv
MOTTO AND DEDICATION ................................................................................v
ABSTRACT ........................................................................................................... vi
ACKNOWLEDGMENT ....................................................................................... vii
TABLE OF CONTENTS ..................................................................................... viii
CHAPTER I-INTRODUCTION
1.1
Background of the Study .............................................................................. 1
1.2
Statement of the Problem ............................................................................. 4
1.3
Hypothesis .................................................................................................... 4
1.4
Purpose of the Study …………………………………………................... 4
1.5
Significance of the Study ................................................................................... 5
1.6
Scope and Limitation ................................................................................... 5
1.7
Definition of the Key Terms .............................................................................. 5
CHAPTER II-REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
2.1
Definition of Writing.................................................................................... 7
2.2
Teaching Writing ................................................................................................. 8
2.2.1 Classroom Writing Performance ………………………………….……………………10
2.2.2 Student’s Problem in Writing............................................................ 11
2.3
Teaching Writing at Senior High School/Islamic Senior High School...... 11
2.4
Writing Descriptive Paragraph ........................................................................ 12
2.5
Media .................................................................................................................. 14
2.5.1 Definition of Media ................................................................................. 14
2.5.2 Teaching Media........................................................................................ 14
2.5.3 Kinds of Teaching Media ....................................................................... 15
2.6
Picture Cards as a Media in Teaching Writing ............................................. 16
CHAPTER III-RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
3.1
Research Design ......................................................................................... 18
3.2
Population and Sample ............................................................................... 20
3.2.1 Population ................................................................................................. 20
3.2.2 Sample ....................................................................................................... 21
3.3
Data collection ........................................................................................... 22
3.3.1 Research Instrument ................................................................................ 22
3.3.2 Procedures of Data Collection................................................................ 23
3.4
Data Analysis ..................................................................................................... 27
CHAPTER IV-RESEARCH FINDING AND DISCUSSION
4.1
Findings ...................................................................................................... 29
4.1.1 The Mean Scores of Pre-test of Experimental and Control Group ... 29
4.1.2 Mean Scores of Post-test of Experimental and Control Group ......... 31
4.1.3 The Analysis ............................................................................................. 33
4.1.3.1 The Result of Independent Sample T-test ......................................... 36
4.2
Discussion .................................................................................................. 38
CHAPTER V-CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTIONS
5.1
Conclusion.................................................................................................. 40
5.2
Suggestions ................................................................................................ 41
5.2.1 For the Teachers ................................................................................ 41
5.2.2 For the Teachers ................................................................................ 41
5.2.3 For the Next Researcher…………………………………………….42
REFERENCES
APPENDICES
REFERENCES
Ary, Donald, et al. 2010. Introduction to Research in Education. (8th). Wadsworth
Cangage Learning.
Azwar, Saifuddin. 1996. Educational Research Funadamentals for The Consumer.
(2nd)
Badan Standar Nasional Pendidikan. 2006. Kurikulum Tingkat Satuan Pendidikan.
Jakarta: Departemen Pendidikan Nasional.
Blevins, Willey. 1998. Phoenics from A to Z. New York: Wiley Blevins.
Brown, Douglas. 2001. Teaching By Principles an Interactive Approach to language
Pedagogy. (2nd). Calofornia: Longman.
Cohen, et al. 2005. Research Methods in Education. USA: Routledge.
Crystal, David. 2003. English as A Global Language. Cambridge: Cambridge Press.
Daryanto. 2011. Media Pembelajaran. Bandung: PT. Sarana Tutorial Nurani
Sejahtera.
Fraenkel, Wallen. 2005. How to Design and Evaluate Research in Education. (2nd).
Singapore: Monotype Composition company.
Harmer, Jeremy. 2004. How to Teach Writing. England: Pearson Education Limited.
Haremer, Jeremy. 2007. The Practice of English Language Teaching. London:
Pearsong Longman.
Kartono, St. 2009. Menulis Tanpa Rasa Takut. Yogyakarta: Kanisius.
Langan, John. 2010. Exploring Writing Sentences and Paragraphs. (2nd). America:
McGraw-Hill.
Marsaulina, Anggi. 2011. The Effectiveness of Using Picture Cards in Teaching
Vocabulary Used in Descriptive Text for Seventh Graders at SMP 1 Pakisaji.
Unpublished Thesis. State University of Malang.
McCrimmon, James. 2008. Writing With a Puspose. USA: Houghton Mifflin
Company.
McMillan, James. 1996. Educational Research Fundamentals for The Consumer.
(2nd). Virginia: Harper Collin Collage.
Miarso, Yusufhadi, et al. 2004. Teknologi Komunikasi Pendidikan. Jakarta: CV.
Rajawali.
Mukalel, Joseph. 2007. Classroom Teaching. Delhi: Arora Offset Press.
Munadi, Yudhi. 2013. Media Pembelajaran Sebuah Pendekatan Baru. Jakarta:
Referensi (GP Press Group).
Oshima, Hogue. 2007. Introduction to Academic Writing. (3rd). United States of
America: Pearson Education, Inc.
Putatunda,
Rita.
2011.
Descriptive
Writing.
(http://www.buzzle.com/articles/descrptive-writing.html)
accessed
on
st
September 1 , 2014 (07.25 AM).
Samaroh. 2011. Improving Descriptive Text Writing Ability of The Seventh Grade
Students of SMPN 1 Camplong Sampang Through Picture Word Inductive
Model Strategy. Unpublished Thesis. Islamic University Of Malang.
Seniati, et al. 2005. Psikologi Pendidikan. Jakarta: PT. Indeks
Shankar, Prem. 2008. Teaching of English . Delhi: Arora Offset Press.
Sugiyono. 2013. Metode Penelitian Kuantitatif Kualitatif dan R & D. Bandung:
Alfabeta.
Supriati. 2011. Improving Vocabulary Achievement of The Sixth Grade Students of SD
Muhammadiyah 6 Genteng Through Picture Cards. Unpublished Thesis.
Islamic University of Malang.
Susilana, Riyana. 2009. Media Pembelajaran Hakikat, Pengembangan, Pemanfaatan,
dan Penilaian. Bandung: CV Wacana Prima.
Suyanto, Jihad. 2013. Menjadi Guru Profesional. Jakarta: Esensi Erlangga Group.
Tarigan, Henry. 1982. Menulis Sebagai Suatu Keterampilan Berbahasa. Bandung:
Angkasa.
Tas’adina, Usriya. 2012. Using Picture Cards to Improve The Vocabulary Mastery of
The Tenth Graders of SMK Islam Krembung Sidoarjo. Unpublished Thesis.
Islamic University of Malang.
Vankateswaran, S. 2009. Principle of Teaching English. Delhi: Vikas Publishig
House Put Ltd.
Weigle, Sara. 2002. Assessing Writing. Cambridge: Cambridge University
PressWright, Andrew. 2004. Picture for Language Learning. Cambridge:
Cambridge Press. Zemach, Islam. 2004. Pargraph Writing. New York:
MacMillan
Zemach, Islam. 2004. Pargraph Writing. New York: MacMillan
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
This chapter presents background of the study, statement of the problem,
hypothesis, purpose of the study, significance of the study, scope and limitation, and
definition of the key terms.
1.1 Background of the Study
Language is something that cannot be separated from human life. This is
because it is a tool and system in communication. Kridalaksana (2005) explained that
language is a sign of sound system which is used by people in certain communities
for work, communication, and self-identification. Furthermore, language is also one
of the most important ways to express feelings and thoughts. Without a language, it
would be difficult for us to communicate.
A language can be said to be global if it has some function in many ways.
English is considered as a global language because of two main ways. Firstly, it is
used for an official language, such as in the government, courts, media, and the
educational system. Secondly, the language must be taught to children in the schools
as a foreign or second language in over 100 countries (Crystal, 2003). Furthermore,
Harmer (2007, p.19) stated, “English as a foreign language described situation where
learners were learning English in order to use it with any other English speakers in
the world.” This means that English plays an important role in transferring
1
2
information especially for adopting science, technology, culture, and developing
interrelationship with foreign countries.
English has four skills which is required to complete communication.
According to Tarigan (1982, p.1), “English language skill has four components, i.e;
listening, speaking, reading, and writing skill.” One of the skills that the writers’
focus in this study is writing. Writing is a thought that the writer put into a paper and
in the written form. In other words, writing is considered as a productive skill and it
aims to state the writers’ idea.
Writing is an important language skill, not only to be learned but also to be
taught. As it is stated by Zemach and Islam (2004), Writing is important form of
communication especially for students in the high school and collage, because it is
the most difficult skill to be mastered in both first language and second language.
Hence, English language learners’ success in acquiring the ability to write depends on
some extent on how teachers are able to teach writing to their students. Many efforts
have been done in teaching writing for the students. In order to have good learning of
a foreign language, the process of learning should be supported by good and
interesting media. One of the valuable instructional media is picture in the form of
cards. Supriati (2011) explained that picture card is a card that printed or drawn, and
it is should be big enough to be seen clearly by every student in the class. In addition,
Vankateswaran (2009, p.175) stated that “picture card is a card that useful for
3
presenting, practicing, revising vocabulary or as prompts for other activities.” By
using picture cards, students may become interested in learning writing.
There were several research that have been conducted related to this study.
One of them was conducted by Marsaulina (2011). The research is about the
effectiveness of using picture cards in teaching vocabulary used in descriptive text for
seventh grader at SMP 1 Pakisaji. This research was a quasi experimental design and
the finding showed the different treatment used for the experimental group and
control group gave a significant different result. There was an increase in students’
score by using picture cards. Thus, picture card is an effective media to be used in
teaching and learning vocabulary.
Another research was done by Tas’adina (2012). She found that the picture
cards improve the vocabulary mastery of the tenth graders of SMK Islam Krembung
Sidoarjo. There was a significant improve of the vocabulary mastery of the students
taught by using picture cards. The percentage of the students’ vocabulary test was
79,31%. It was higher than the percentage of the students’ score in the preliminary
study. The percentage of the students’ vocabulary mastery in the preliminary study
was only 20.69%. This implied that the implementation of picture cards was able to
improve the students’ vocabulary mastery.
Based on the explanation above, the researcher is interested in studying
whether picture cards will improve the students’ writing skill at Madrasah Aliyah
Negeri Kraton Pasuruan. The school was choosen because it is a boarding school
4
whose students are more focused on religious subjects than the general subjects.
Therefore, students in this school have low achievement in English, especially in
writing skill.
1.2
Statement of The Problem
Based on the background of the study, the problem of this research can be
formulated as follows:
Does picture cards improve the first grade students’ writing skill at Madrasah
Aliyah Negeri Kraton Pasuruan?
1.3
Hypothesis
1.3.1 The Alternate Hypothesis (H1)
Picture cards improves the first grade students’ writing skill at Madrasah
Aliyah Negeri Kraton Pasuruan.
1.3.2 The Null Hypothesis (H0)
Picture cards does not improve the first grade students’ writing skill at
Madrasah Aliyah Negeri Kraton Pasuruan
1.4 Purpose of the Study
The purpose of this study is to identify whether or not picture cards improve
the first grade students’ writing skill at Madrasah Aliyah Negeri Kraton Pasuruan.
5
1.5 Significance of the Study
It is expected that the result of the this study is useful to the English teachers
who want to teach writing. They may consider using picture cards to teach writing.
Furthermore, for the students, picture cards will help them to give an idea and
inspiration in writing, therefore, it is expected that picture cards can improve
students’ writing skill. Moreover, for the further researchers, hopefully, this study can
be applied as a reference in doing the following research.
1.6 Scope and Limitation
The scope of this research is using picture cards as a teaching media to improve
students’ writing skill. However, it limits only on the first grade students of Madrasah
Aliyah Negeri Kraton Pasuruan.
1.7 Definition of The Key Terms
To avoid misunderstanding about the terms of the title of this study, the
researcher tries to guide and define the key terms as follow:
1. Writing is the process of putting the writer’s idea into the written form and
deliver it to reader (Kartono : 2009)
2. Writing skill is students’ ability in writing a short descriptive text in the forms of
paragraphs with right grammatical structures and complete elements (parts of a
paragraph, unity, and coherence) (Samaroh : 2011)
6
3. Picture cards is a small card that can be easily contributed in the class, used by
teacher as picture aids (Mukalel: 2007)
4. Media is any means that is used to deliver the message and to stimulate thoughts,
feelings, concearns, and the willingness to learn, so that it can facilitate the
process of learning (Miarso : 2004)
PICTURE CARDS AT MADRASAH ALIYAH NEGERI KRATON
PASURUAN
THESIS
By:
AMANDA DWI SETYAWATI
201010100311244
ENGLISH DEPARTMENT
FACULTY OF TEACHING TRAINING AND EDUCATION
UNIVERSITY OF MUHAMMADIYAH MALANG
2015
IMPROVING STUDENTS’ WRITING SKILL THROUGH
PICTURE CARDS AT MADRASAH ALIYAH NEGERI KRATON
PASURUAN
THESIS
This thesis is submitted to meet one of the requirements to achieve Sarjana
Degree in English Education
By:
AMANDA DWI SETYAWATI
201010100311244
ENGLISH DEPARTMENT
FACULTY OF TEACHING TRAINING AND EDUCATION
UNIVERSITY OF MUHAMMADIYAH MALANG
2015
This thesis written by Amanda Dwi Setyawati was approved on January 12th, 2015s
written by was approved on April 30, 2014.
By:
Advisor II,
Nurakhfini Septiany, M.A., M.Ed
Advisor I,
Puji Sumarsono, M.Ed
This thesis was defended in
TABLE OF CONTENTS
COVER .................................................................................................................... i
APPROVAL ........................................................................................................... ii
LEGALIZATION .................................................................................................. iii
ORIGINALITY DECLARATION ........................................................................ iv
MOTTO AND DEDICATION ................................................................................v
ABSTRACT ........................................................................................................... vi
ACKNOWLEDGMENT ....................................................................................... vii
TABLE OF CONTENTS ..................................................................................... viii
CHAPTER I-INTRODUCTION
1.1
Background of the Study .............................................................................. 1
1.2
Statement of the Problem ............................................................................. 4
1.3
Hypothesis .................................................................................................... 4
1.4
Purpose of the Study …………………………………………................... 4
1.5
Significance of the Study ................................................................................... 5
1.6
Scope and Limitation ................................................................................... 5
1.7
Definition of the Key Terms .............................................................................. 5
CHAPTER II-REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
2.1
Definition of Writing.................................................................................... 7
2.2
Teaching Writing ................................................................................................. 8
2.2.1 Classroom Writing Performance ………………………………….……………………10
2.2.2 Student’s Problem in Writing............................................................ 11
2.3
Teaching Writing at Senior High School/Islamic Senior High School...... 11
2.4
Writing Descriptive Paragraph ........................................................................ 12
2.5
Media .................................................................................................................. 14
2.5.1 Definition of Media ................................................................................. 14
2.5.2 Teaching Media........................................................................................ 14
2.5.3 Kinds of Teaching Media ....................................................................... 15
2.6
Picture Cards as a Media in Teaching Writing ............................................. 16
CHAPTER III-RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
3.1
Research Design ......................................................................................... 18
3.2
Population and Sample ............................................................................... 20
3.2.1 Population ................................................................................................. 20
3.2.2 Sample ....................................................................................................... 21
3.3
Data collection ........................................................................................... 22
3.3.1 Research Instrument ................................................................................ 22
3.3.2 Procedures of Data Collection................................................................ 23
3.4
Data Analysis ..................................................................................................... 27
CHAPTER IV-RESEARCH FINDING AND DISCUSSION
4.1
Findings ...................................................................................................... 29
4.1.1 The Mean Scores of Pre-test of Experimental and Control Group ... 29
4.1.2 Mean Scores of Post-test of Experimental and Control Group ......... 31
4.1.3 The Analysis ............................................................................................. 33
4.1.3.1 The Result of Independent Sample T-test ......................................... 36
4.2
Discussion .................................................................................................. 38
CHAPTER V-CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTIONS
5.1
Conclusion.................................................................................................. 40
5.2
Suggestions ................................................................................................ 41
5.2.1 For the Teachers ................................................................................ 41
5.2.2 For the Teachers ................................................................................ 41
5.2.3 For the Next Researcher…………………………………………….42
REFERENCES
APPENDICES
REFERENCES
Ary, Donald, et al. 2010. Introduction to Research in Education. (8th). Wadsworth
Cangage Learning.
Azwar, Saifuddin. 1996. Educational Research Funadamentals for The Consumer.
(2nd)
Badan Standar Nasional Pendidikan. 2006. Kurikulum Tingkat Satuan Pendidikan.
Jakarta: Departemen Pendidikan Nasional.
Blevins, Willey. 1998. Phoenics from A to Z. New York: Wiley Blevins.
Brown, Douglas. 2001. Teaching By Principles an Interactive Approach to language
Pedagogy. (2nd). Calofornia: Longman.
Cohen, et al. 2005. Research Methods in Education. USA: Routledge.
Crystal, David. 2003. English as A Global Language. Cambridge: Cambridge Press.
Daryanto. 2011. Media Pembelajaran. Bandung: PT. Sarana Tutorial Nurani
Sejahtera.
Fraenkel, Wallen. 2005. How to Design and Evaluate Research in Education. (2nd).
Singapore: Monotype Composition company.
Harmer, Jeremy. 2004. How to Teach Writing. England: Pearson Education Limited.
Haremer, Jeremy. 2007. The Practice of English Language Teaching. London:
Pearsong Longman.
Kartono, St. 2009. Menulis Tanpa Rasa Takut. Yogyakarta: Kanisius.
Langan, John. 2010. Exploring Writing Sentences and Paragraphs. (2nd). America:
McGraw-Hill.
Marsaulina, Anggi. 2011. The Effectiveness of Using Picture Cards in Teaching
Vocabulary Used in Descriptive Text for Seventh Graders at SMP 1 Pakisaji.
Unpublished Thesis. State University of Malang.
McCrimmon, James. 2008. Writing With a Puspose. USA: Houghton Mifflin
Company.
McMillan, James. 1996. Educational Research Fundamentals for The Consumer.
(2nd). Virginia: Harper Collin Collage.
Miarso, Yusufhadi, et al. 2004. Teknologi Komunikasi Pendidikan. Jakarta: CV.
Rajawali.
Mukalel, Joseph. 2007. Classroom Teaching. Delhi: Arora Offset Press.
Munadi, Yudhi. 2013. Media Pembelajaran Sebuah Pendekatan Baru. Jakarta:
Referensi (GP Press Group).
Oshima, Hogue. 2007. Introduction to Academic Writing. (3rd). United States of
America: Pearson Education, Inc.
Putatunda,
Rita.
2011.
Descriptive
Writing.
(http://www.buzzle.com/articles/descrptive-writing.html)
accessed
on
st
September 1 , 2014 (07.25 AM).
Samaroh. 2011. Improving Descriptive Text Writing Ability of The Seventh Grade
Students of SMPN 1 Camplong Sampang Through Picture Word Inductive
Model Strategy. Unpublished Thesis. Islamic University Of Malang.
Seniati, et al. 2005. Psikologi Pendidikan. Jakarta: PT. Indeks
Shankar, Prem. 2008. Teaching of English . Delhi: Arora Offset Press.
Sugiyono. 2013. Metode Penelitian Kuantitatif Kualitatif dan R & D. Bandung:
Alfabeta.
Supriati. 2011. Improving Vocabulary Achievement of The Sixth Grade Students of SD
Muhammadiyah 6 Genteng Through Picture Cards. Unpublished Thesis.
Islamic University of Malang.
Susilana, Riyana. 2009. Media Pembelajaran Hakikat, Pengembangan, Pemanfaatan,
dan Penilaian. Bandung: CV Wacana Prima.
Suyanto, Jihad. 2013. Menjadi Guru Profesional. Jakarta: Esensi Erlangga Group.
Tarigan, Henry. 1982. Menulis Sebagai Suatu Keterampilan Berbahasa. Bandung:
Angkasa.
Tas’adina, Usriya. 2012. Using Picture Cards to Improve The Vocabulary Mastery of
The Tenth Graders of SMK Islam Krembung Sidoarjo. Unpublished Thesis.
Islamic University of Malang.
Vankateswaran, S. 2009. Principle of Teaching English. Delhi: Vikas Publishig
House Put Ltd.
Weigle, Sara. 2002. Assessing Writing. Cambridge: Cambridge University
PressWright, Andrew. 2004. Picture for Language Learning. Cambridge:
Cambridge Press. Zemach, Islam. 2004. Pargraph Writing. New York:
MacMillan
Zemach, Islam. 2004. Pargraph Writing. New York: MacMillan
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
This chapter presents background of the study, statement of the problem,
hypothesis, purpose of the study, significance of the study, scope and limitation, and
definition of the key terms.
1.1 Background of the Study
Language is something that cannot be separated from human life. This is
because it is a tool and system in communication. Kridalaksana (2005) explained that
language is a sign of sound system which is used by people in certain communities
for work, communication, and self-identification. Furthermore, language is also one
of the most important ways to express feelings and thoughts. Without a language, it
would be difficult for us to communicate.
A language can be said to be global if it has some function in many ways.
English is considered as a global language because of two main ways. Firstly, it is
used for an official language, such as in the government, courts, media, and the
educational system. Secondly, the language must be taught to children in the schools
as a foreign or second language in over 100 countries (Crystal, 2003). Furthermore,
Harmer (2007, p.19) stated, “English as a foreign language described situation where
learners were learning English in order to use it with any other English speakers in
the world.” This means that English plays an important role in transferring
1
2
information especially for adopting science, technology, culture, and developing
interrelationship with foreign countries.
English has four skills which is required to complete communication.
According to Tarigan (1982, p.1), “English language skill has four components, i.e;
listening, speaking, reading, and writing skill.” One of the skills that the writers’
focus in this study is writing. Writing is a thought that the writer put into a paper and
in the written form. In other words, writing is considered as a productive skill and it
aims to state the writers’ idea.
Writing is an important language skill, not only to be learned but also to be
taught. As it is stated by Zemach and Islam (2004), Writing is important form of
communication especially for students in the high school and collage, because it is
the most difficult skill to be mastered in both first language and second language.
Hence, English language learners’ success in acquiring the ability to write depends on
some extent on how teachers are able to teach writing to their students. Many efforts
have been done in teaching writing for the students. In order to have good learning of
a foreign language, the process of learning should be supported by good and
interesting media. One of the valuable instructional media is picture in the form of
cards. Supriati (2011) explained that picture card is a card that printed or drawn, and
it is should be big enough to be seen clearly by every student in the class. In addition,
Vankateswaran (2009, p.175) stated that “picture card is a card that useful for
3
presenting, practicing, revising vocabulary or as prompts for other activities.” By
using picture cards, students may become interested in learning writing.
There were several research that have been conducted related to this study.
One of them was conducted by Marsaulina (2011). The research is about the
effectiveness of using picture cards in teaching vocabulary used in descriptive text for
seventh grader at SMP 1 Pakisaji. This research was a quasi experimental design and
the finding showed the different treatment used for the experimental group and
control group gave a significant different result. There was an increase in students’
score by using picture cards. Thus, picture card is an effective media to be used in
teaching and learning vocabulary.
Another research was done by Tas’adina (2012). She found that the picture
cards improve the vocabulary mastery of the tenth graders of SMK Islam Krembung
Sidoarjo. There was a significant improve of the vocabulary mastery of the students
taught by using picture cards. The percentage of the students’ vocabulary test was
79,31%. It was higher than the percentage of the students’ score in the preliminary
study. The percentage of the students’ vocabulary mastery in the preliminary study
was only 20.69%. This implied that the implementation of picture cards was able to
improve the students’ vocabulary mastery.
Based on the explanation above, the researcher is interested in studying
whether picture cards will improve the students’ writing skill at Madrasah Aliyah
Negeri Kraton Pasuruan. The school was choosen because it is a boarding school
4
whose students are more focused on religious subjects than the general subjects.
Therefore, students in this school have low achievement in English, especially in
writing skill.
1.2
Statement of The Problem
Based on the background of the study, the problem of this research can be
formulated as follows:
Does picture cards improve the first grade students’ writing skill at Madrasah
Aliyah Negeri Kraton Pasuruan?
1.3
Hypothesis
1.3.1 The Alternate Hypothesis (H1)
Picture cards improves the first grade students’ writing skill at Madrasah
Aliyah Negeri Kraton Pasuruan.
1.3.2 The Null Hypothesis (H0)
Picture cards does not improve the first grade students’ writing skill at
Madrasah Aliyah Negeri Kraton Pasuruan
1.4 Purpose of the Study
The purpose of this study is to identify whether or not picture cards improve
the first grade students’ writing skill at Madrasah Aliyah Negeri Kraton Pasuruan.
5
1.5 Significance of the Study
It is expected that the result of the this study is useful to the English teachers
who want to teach writing. They may consider using picture cards to teach writing.
Furthermore, for the students, picture cards will help them to give an idea and
inspiration in writing, therefore, it is expected that picture cards can improve
students’ writing skill. Moreover, for the further researchers, hopefully, this study can
be applied as a reference in doing the following research.
1.6 Scope and Limitation
The scope of this research is using picture cards as a teaching media to improve
students’ writing skill. However, it limits only on the first grade students of Madrasah
Aliyah Negeri Kraton Pasuruan.
1.7 Definition of The Key Terms
To avoid misunderstanding about the terms of the title of this study, the
researcher tries to guide and define the key terms as follow:
1. Writing is the process of putting the writer’s idea into the written form and
deliver it to reader (Kartono : 2009)
2. Writing skill is students’ ability in writing a short descriptive text in the forms of
paragraphs with right grammatical structures and complete elements (parts of a
paragraph, unity, and coherence) (Samaroh : 2011)
6
3. Picture cards is a small card that can be easily contributed in the class, used by
teacher as picture aids (Mukalel: 2007)
4. Media is any means that is used to deliver the message and to stimulate thoughts,
feelings, concearns, and the willingness to learn, so that it can facilitate the
process of learning (Miarso : 2004)