Framework of Pre-understanding LITERATURE REVIEW

B. Framework of Pre-understanding

Some teachers have started to apply blended learning in teaching English. Before applying it, they must have some belief about learning. Learning a foreign language presents different challenges for different people in different contexts. The reasons for learning a foreign language are as diverse as the ways different individuals approach the task of learning new vocabulary, figuring out new grammar rules, listening, reading, and speaking in a language other than their native language. A range of methods and approaches are often used to introduce new language, and a variety of classroom management techniques are employed to maximize practice opportunities. In short, there is no one way to learn a language, just as there is no one way to teach it. Language teachers, although they may not have been aware of the term, have always used a “blend” of teaching approaches in order to provide as rich a learning environment as possible for our learners. Blended learning is therefore not a new concept. What is new is the range of different learning opportunities and environments made possible today through the use of technology to support learning and teaching. What is also new is the “expectation” of our learners to use technology in and out of the classroom as part of the learning process. This study attempted to investigate the teachers‟ lived experience in implementing blended learning. Teachers here means the ones whose duties are to plan, execute, evaluate, teaching learning process, giving academic advices, guidance and also conducts the administrative things such as designing syllabus, lesson plan and preparing learning material. To discover the teachers‟ lived experience in implementing blended learning, the researcher need to know their stories related to the implementation. Blended learning is probably viewed differently by different teachers. To get the stories, the researchers conduct interview and observation. The teachers, as participants, need to express their interpretation toward blended learning. The researcher, then, attempts to interpret. However, the data gathering must be limited to those relevant with this research. A theoretical framework is constructed in order to guide the researcher to describe the research context. It is also used to limit the scope of the study. Lived experience is what something means to certain people. It is the interpretation of what have happened to them. Understanding, desire, intention, action, belief, feeling etc are the aspects of lived experience. However, in this study only understanding, belief, intention, feeling, and action are discussed. They are related to each other. In other words, we can say that teachers‟ lived experience of implementing blended learning is to discuss what, teacher understand, believe, intend to do, what teachers feel and what teachers do with blended learning. A thematic interaction is constructed in order to guide the researcher to describe the research context. By using it, it is expected that it can also limit the participant‟s narrative to make to focus this study. However, this study is qualitative, the thematic interaction is still possible to be changed and adapted to emergent phenomena. The English teachers‟ lived experience in implementing blended learning has five themes to figure out the meaning. Those are the researcher need to find out. Figure 3. Framework of Understanding Pre understandings in this research are 1 the lived experience of the English teacher in implementing blended learning may vary and 2 there will be emerging themes during the data gathering

C. PREFIGURED THEMES