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Listiyowati 2010 coducted a research using small group discussion in teaching writing news item text to senior high school. She analyzed the effectiveness of
small group discussion in teaching news item text. There is not study yet which discuss about how to make students‟ writing text especially news item text
become good in structure and understandable for the reader. Third, Hamidah: 2009
The use of zig zag pattern technique in improving the students‟ written report. Her study is about the use of zigzag pattern technique in helping the
students make a communicative writing report. Based on those conditions, the writer suggests it would be better for English
teacher to use old and new information method for teaching news item text in order to help the students improve their ability in arranging the sentences well, so
that the students can write the news item composition easily and to make their text easy to understand. The writer believes that by using old and new information
method students score in writing will increase and of course it can influence the students‟ motivation in writing.
1.2 Reasons for Choosing the Topic
Some reasons why the writer chose the topic “Improving Students‟ Ability in
Writing News Item Text by using old and new information” were as follow: First, teaching English to the students is not an easy task because it requires
a lot of creativities. Some students think that learning English especially in writing is a boring lesson. It is not enough for teachers to just give an explanation
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to their students, but it is necessary for them to give students a new and good method in order to make them easily product their sentences. Therefore, the
teacher needs a way of teaching that is enjoyable and practical so that finally they can integrate into English.
Second, writing is one of skills that should be mastered by students who are studying English in order to use the languages as a tool of communication. It
is important for us to have competence on it. Third, theme and rheme old and new information, according to systemic
functional grammar is an important element in constructing a text so that the text can be understandable and well structured.
1.3 Limitation of the study
The writer limits the scope of study so that the problems are not too wide and the study is effective, which is the study will investigate about the effectiveness
between old and new information method to develop the ability of tenth grade students of SMA Negeri 1 Slawi in the academic year 20102011 in writing news
item text.
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1.4 Statements of the Problems
The problems that will be discussed in this paper are: 1 How is the writing test achievement for the students taught using old and
new information? 2 How is the writing test achievement for the students taught using jumbled
sentences? 3
Is there any significant difference in students‟ writing test achievement between the students taught using old and new information and those
who taught by using jumbled sentences?
1.5 Objectives of the Study
