model of software which for ordinary foreign language teaching in school still hardly available.
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The technology now days inevitably has permeated in various forms of language laboratory models and systems. Many programs have been designed to
improve language teaching field.
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3. Function of Language Laboratory
Language laboratory has function that generally used as a teaching aid. The functions are:
a. Listening. Students listen by using the available equipments b. Conversation. Students do various of conversation types
c. Attention. Teacher conveys the material d. Monitoring. Teacher runs the monitoring function through student
activities e. Intercom. Teacher can call students and vice versa
f. Text to speech. Teacher writes the text into the computer and computer transfer it into sounds automatically.
g. Multimedia control. The software of multimedia based operates the audio files as a learning material.
h. Audio record. Teacher records file audio as a teaching learning. i. Audio control. Teacher controls the teaching material through sound
device available. j. Database. The database in the computer can save the students
information.
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According to A. G. Sciarone the language laboratory has three major functions. Thus are:
a. To allow students to listen to language material spoken by native speakers;
b. To allow them to listen and speak independently of fellow students; c. To enable them to learn a foreign language at their own pace.
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36
Theo Van Els Op.cit., P. 285.
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Nida Husna, Call and Language Lab., Jakarta: ELTI Journal, 2010, vol. 1. p. 28.
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http:laboratorium Bahasa.co.idtagfungsi-lab-bahasa.
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A. G. Sciarone, ―Language Laboratory‖, in Bernard Spolsky, Concise Encyclopedia of Educational Linguistics, University of Edinburgh: Elsevier Science Ltd, 1999, p. 363.
4. Problems in Language Laboratory Work
As a learning aid, language laboratory is with or without perfection. Some of common problems displayed by students and teacher in the language laboratory
are: a. Working straight to a whole unit without stopping, then going right
through again listening, thus leaving too big a time gap for effective identification and correction of errors.
b. Finishing the work before the language laboratory tine is up c. Being unable to do the language laboratory exercises
d. Being unable to identify their mistakes on tape.
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e. A commonly held error maintains that audio equipment for speech requires much less fidelity than for music.
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5. Advantages and Disadvantages of Language Laboratory
