Research Problem Problem Limitation Research Objective Research Benefits Definition of Terms

5

B. Research Problem

In relation to the background mentioned above, the problem is formulated as follows: To what extent does the use of direct written corrective feedback improve the eighth grade students‟ spelling accuracy in writing English?

C. Problem Limitation

This research focused only on improving the eighth grade students‟ spelling accuracy. This was limited for the VIII H class of SMPN 15 Yogyakarta 20152016 academic year.

D. Research Objective

Considering the formulation of the problem, the objective of this study was to assess to what extent the direct written corrective feedback improved the eighth grade students‟ spelling accuracy in writing English.

E. Research Benefits

The researcher would like to contribute to the development of education through this study since this is educational research. There are some benefits intended to the researcher, the teacher, and also the students. PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI 6 1. The researcher The researcher can get the knowledge and experience on improving the students‟ spelling accuracy. Besides, the researcher can find out whether the direct written corrective feedback from teacher can improve students‟ spelling accuracy in writing English and how far the use of it improves the students‟ spelling accuracy. 2. The teacher The teacher can use the method to improve other students‟ spelling accuracy. It is expected that the teacher can help the students to solve their problems by applying this teaching strategy. 3. The students The students can improve their spelling accuracy. It is expected that the students can know and master the correct spelling of English words. The students can apply the knowledge for the next writing activities.

F. Definition of Terms

There are some terms used in this study. The researcher gives the explanation of each term, in order to avoid misinterpretation. Those terms are spelling accuracy and direct written corrective feedback. The explanations of those terms are stated in the following part. 7

1. Writing

Sokolik 2003 describes writing as the mental work which involves inventing ideas, thinking about how to express them, and organizing them into sentences and paragraphs that will be clear to readers. In this study, writing refers to an activity of inventing students‟ ideas and organizing them into clear sentences and paragraphs.

2. Spelling Accuracy

According to Coulmas 1996, spelling is the conventions which determine how the graphemes of a writing system are used to write a language. In addition, Graham and Miller 1979 define spelling as “the ability to recognize, recall, reproduce or obtain orally or in written form the correct sequence of letters in words” p. 2. In this study, it refers to the act of forming a word or words of English from individual letters present in an accepted standard order. While Skehan 1996, as cited in Ellis and Barkhuizen 2005, defines accuracy as referring “to how well the target language is produced in relation to the rule system of the ta rget language.” In this study, the accuracy refers to produce Standard English which uses American spelling system since American English is more commonly used in Indonesia‟s textbooks used by teachers than British English. According to B.D. Smith as cited in Dewi, 2014, communication media in Indonesia has positioned American English as the main variety of English. Therefore, the students were trained to be consistent to use one of the spelling systems, which was American spelling system. 8

3. Direct Written Corrective Feedback

In this study, the term written corrective feedback is as defined by Lightbown and Spada 1999 an indication to the learners that his or her use of the target language is incorrect. It is written information given to learners regarding a linguistic error they have made Loewen, 2012; Sheen, 2007. The forms of giving written corrective feedback can be direct and indirect. Ellis 2009 stated that indirect written corrective feedback is a feedback written by the teacher that involves indicating that the student has made an error without actually correcting it. This can be done by underlining the errors or using cursors to show omissions in the student‟s text or by placing a cross in the margin next to the line containing the error. In effect, this involves deciding whether or not to show the precise location of the error. Meanwhile, direct written corrective feedback is a written feedback in which the teacher provides the student with the correct form of the error. Thus in this research, when the researcher mentions direct written corrective feedback, it means a technique to give written feedback by actually correcting the error made by the students. 4. Eighth Grade Junior High School SMP is the first level of high school. The students entering Junior High School are those who have passed Elementary School SD. Junior High School is divided into grades. There are seventh grade, eighth grade, and ninth grade. The eighth grade means the second grade in Junior High School. In this 9 research, the participants were 34 students from VIII H of SMPN 15 Yogyakarta in the 20152016 academic year, which consists of 17 boys and 17 girls. 10

CHAPTER II REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE