e. Paired- association
Paired- association is defined as human task, which requires the subject to associate pairs of verbal units. In this way of improving memory
retention, people are asked to learn to associate, or pair together, two items. As it is shown in the following table:
Table 2.2 Example of Paired-Associate Lists
5. Retaining Students’ Memory on Irregular Verb through Songs.
Before explaining how songs can help students to retain their memory of irregular verb on their mind, the most important one is to know the meaning of
retaining and the relationship between the use of song and memory retention. According to Oxford Advanc
ed Learner’s Dictionary, retain is: a.
To keep something b.
To continue to hold or contain something, and c.
To obtain the services.
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It means that retainin g students’ memory on irregular verb is to store the
irregular verb on their memory. In other words, students will automatically know the form of common-used irregular verb which is being asked to them. They do not need
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A S Hornby, Oxford Advanced Learners Dictionary, Oxford University Press, 2000. p. 1136.
Difficult
XQKZ QKZX QXKZ KQXZ
ZXKQ XQKZ Easy
House Home Table Chair
Mother Father
to look at the list of irregular verb to find out the form of verb 1, verb 2, or verb 3 they are looking for. It is because their memory has kept the information about
irregular verb. Song has a great effect in helping students to retain their memory of irregular
verb on their mind because listening to the song makes brain easier to process information. It is supported by the theory of Laurence O’Donnel. He stated that
“activities which engage both sides of the brain at the same time, such as playing an
instrument or singing, causes the brain to be more capable of processing information”.
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If the information is well-processed in the brain, the process of memory retention will be easier too.
Furthermore, Alan Maley stated that both poem and song are effective to be used in language-learning ac
tivities because their fragments are stick in students’ mind.
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Furthermore, Laird S. Cermark stated in his book Improving Your Memory that listening to song especially soft song will aid students’ concentration and
increase their probability of learning the material quickly and easily.
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Furthermore, David A. Sousa stated that “Teachers with great understanding
of the types of memory and how they form can select strategies that are more likely to improve the retention and the retrieval of learning”.
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In other words, if teachers have a good understanding about memory, they will be able to select a good learning
strategy which can improve students’ memory retention. A good strategy in this case can be referred to a learning strategy which provides an enjoyable learning
atmosphere. Using song as the medium of language-learning in the classroom is enjoyable for students, and if students feel enjoy with the learning activity, the
process of their memory retention will likely be improved.
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Retrieved from http:www.ceremobrente.org.brn15mentemusica.html on Wednesday. March 23, 2011 at 11.40 A.M.
47
Wilga M. Rivers, edt., Interactive Language Teaching, USA: Cambridge University Press, 1997. p. 93.
48
Laird S. Cermark, Improving Your Memory. USA: McGraw-Hill Company, 1975. p. 29.
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David A. Sousa, How the Gifted Brain Learns, California: Corwin Press, Inc., 2003. p. 32.
There are many techniques to use songs in the classroom. Those can be in the form of gap fills or close texts, focus questions, true-false questions, putting the lines
into the correct sequences, dictation, circling the antonym or synonyms of the given words, and discussing the song content.
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Those techniques can be used by teachers in teaching many aspects of grammar. However, teachers have to make sure about the
specific grammar point to be studied. It is done to decide appropriate techniques in using song in the classroom.
To maximize the effectiveness of using song as the medium of learning in the classroom, here are the procedures in using song as the medium of learning grammar
in the classroom which is explained by Arif Saricoban and Esen Metin in ELT Journal:
a. Teachers must decide which grammar point will be learned, and after
that, they have to make an effective lesson plan to be implemented in the classroom.
b. As a pre-listening activity, the theme, the title, or the history of the song
can be discussed. This activity can also be used as an ice breaking for students.
c. Before listening to the song, it is also beneficial to let the students know
which grammar points they are going to study. d.
In the listening stage, some of the techniques listed above can be used. This stage can also be developed by the teacher according to the needs of
the students and the grammar point to be studied. e.
As a follow-up activity, the teacher can lead the students into a discussion in which the grammar point could be practiced orally and also naturally.
50
Arif Saricoban and Esen Metin. Songs, Verse and Games for Teaching Grammar. 2001. Retrieved from http:iteslj.orgArticlesSchoepp-Songs.html. On Saturday, April 10, 2010 at 11.00 am
In using song for teaching irregular verb, teacher firstly selects an appropriate song to be used in the classroom. In this case, the appropriate song is a song in which
there are many irregular verbs that can be learned through it. Next, during the process of listening to the song, students underline the correct irregular verb based on the
lyric they are listening to. However, teacher has to make sure students listen to the song completely, and if it is needed, he or she presents the song for several times. It is
according to what Millie Grenough stated in her book “English: Sing It” that teacher must have the students listen to the complete song and listen to it again.
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As the follow-up activities, students have to make a list of irregular verb within the song
they heard on their notebooks and they have to find out the verb 1, verb 2, andor verb 3 of the verb in the song. Then, in the last activity, students do an exercise to measure
their ability in retaining irregular verb they have learned on their mind. This activity is an optional activity and able to be used to exercise
students’ ability in memorizing irregular verb they have learned. Besides, it is also beneficial to improve students’
memory on irregular verb. The use of this optional activity is based on the theory of Millie Grenough which stated that “It is suggested that teachers use the optional
activity when they have time and the students could take benefit from it”.
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Millie Grenough. English: Sing it, New York: McGraw-Hill, 1978. p.2.
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Millie Grenough. English: Sing it... p.3.
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CHAPTER III RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
This chapter is divided into several parts, they are: the purpose of the research, the method of the research, place and time of the research, the subject and object of
the research, the writer’s role on the study, research design, the Classroom Action Research CAR procedures, technique of data collecting, technique of data analysis,
the trustworthiness of the study, and criteria of the action success.
A. Purpose of The Research
This research is conducted to know whether using songs as the medium of retaining students’ memory on irregular verb can be effective or not. In
addition, this writing is expected to be useful especially for the writer to improve her English teaching technique, and, in general, for English teachers and everyone
who reads this writing.
B. Place and Time of The Research
This research takes time about six 6 months to be done. It is started from November 2010 to April 2011. The place is at the eighth grade male
Tirmidzi of SMPIT Raflesia Cimanggis- Depok, academic year 20102011.
