T1 112010070 Full text

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Information Technology Students’ Strategies in Learning

Vocabulary in

Bahasa Inggris Profesional

Course

THESIS

Submitted in Partial Fulfillment

of the Requirements for the Degree of

Sarjana Pendidikan

MargarethaWardhani

112010070

English Teacher Education Program

Faculty of Language and Literature

SWCU

2014

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COPYRIGHT STATEMENT

This thesis contains no such material as has been submitted for examination in any course or accepted for the fulfillment of any degree or diploma in any university. To the best of my knowledge and my belief, this contains no material previously published or written by any other person except where due reference is made in the text.

Copyright@ 2015. Margaretha Wardhani K.P. and Elisabet Titik Murtisari, M. TransStud.,Ph.D All rights reserved. No part of this thesis may be reproduced by any means without the permission of at least one of the copyright owners or the English Department, Faculty of Language and Literature, SatyaWacana University, Salatiga.

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Information Technology Students’ Strategies in Learning

Vocabulary in Bahasa Inggris Profesional Course

Margaretha Wardhani

Abstract

This study investigates the vocabulary learning strategies used by students of the Professional English Class (Bahasa Inggris Professional - BIP) at the Information Technology Faculty of Satya Wacana Christian University. The study aims to answer the research questions “What are the strategies commonly used by BIP in learning vocabulary?”and “What are the levels of use of these strategies?. Fifty eight students from BIP class were selected to be the participants in a survey using questionnaires. The result of this study shows that metacognitive strategy was the most frequently used type of strategies. It was followed respectively by Social strategies, Determination strategies, Memory strategies and the least used type is Cognitive strategies. On the second research question, the result shows that based on Oxford's result profile key,some strategies such as metacognitive and social strategies have fair levels of use from the participants. The rest of the stategies (determination strategies, memory and cognitive strategies) had low users of vocabulary learning strategy.

7 Introduction

English has become a language that is needed by most people across the globe. On the last few decades we have seen a growth in the role of the English language around the world as the lingua franca for economic, scientific, and political exchange. The term lingua franca means

„any language used for communication between groups who have no other language in common‟ (Matthews, 2000:209). According to Crystal (1997), 85% of the world's international

organizations use English as their official language in worldwide communication.

As we enter globalization era, many institutions and companies use English as means of communication. This globalization movement also impacts on how technology and English become entities that complement each other. Computer as one influential invention in technology demands the user to understand English in order to operate it. The necessity of knowing English is not only on how to operate the computer but also on knowing that English is needed in installing some essential software. In order to be successful in installing the required software the users have to understand the operation instructions that are usually written in English to avoid installation errors. Moreover, English for Specific Purpose (ESP) in the computer technology field is also crucial for IT students to learn because of the register in the field itself. Many computer terms are based on English specific terms. The term when it is translated in the local language instead of English will be awkward to say or write. For example, the term 'cookies' means a message given to a web browser by a web server, it is not natural when translated as 'bread' in the Indonesian language. Thus, learning English is an

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obligatory for IT students to master their field of study since translation of terms rarely available in their mother language.

To put it simply, information technology has been termed as the medium of a new, and revolution in human communication. Thus, through this paper, the need for Information Technology students in learning English has become inseparable part hence all of the term in the internet and computer use English vocabulary that is specialized in the scope of technology.

It is often said that words are the basic unit of language use and, therefore, without sufficient vocabulary, a person cannot communicate effectively. Further, having limited vocabulary is also a barrier that prevents students from learning a foreign language (Zhihong, 2000). In other words, by reinforcing the learners‟ vocabulary, we are helping them to achieve the goal of learning the foreign language. The reinforcement for instance can be learned by trying to communicate the language with other people who master the language. Since the learners having limited vocabulary, they may feel ashamed when they cannot have a good conversation with others; this may lead to vocabulary stagnancy. Therefore, vocabulary will have an actual effect on one's language proficiency. Just as Wilkins (Wilkins, 1972: 9-10)

stated that “without grammar little can be conveyed, without vocabulary nothing can be conveyed”. I agree that by viewing vocabulary as an essential matter in learning foreign languages is a point that needs to be emphasized. In my opinion, according to teaching's point of view, this as important matter since communication and knowing the technical terms of IT is the bridge that can connect them to their future career/work.

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The IT Faculty offered several English courses: Basic English Class (Bahasa Inggris Dasar- BID) and Professional English class (Bahasa Inggris Professional-BIP). My research was focused on BIP class since this was the only class opened in this semester 2 academic year 2014/2015. Most of students who take this course are normally repeaters and therefore I am interested in knowing how their strategies of vocabulary learning contribute to the high number of failures. Although, learning strategies may not be the only factor that causes students‟ failure in BIP class, yet, knowing it will give an extra benefit for the teachers. The benefit is, the teachers may apply the strategies in their teaching and learning process. Thus, the students can apply the learning strategies that may be helpful in learning English .

Another reason is the text book used for the course contains short or long English texts on IT subject matters. If the students have low mastery of vocabulary it will be hard for them to pass the course since they are difficult to understand what the passages are about.

Further the students will have to do TOEFL test at the end of the semester. This test usually contains rich vocabulary words and in order to pass TOEFL test, they have to reach the preferred score and once they reach the targeted score, they are able to pass BIP class. Based on these rationales, I consider that it is important for them to master vocabulary well. I hope the findings of this research able to make the IT faculty consider teaching these strategies in the English courses of the faculty. At the time the students able to apply these strategies, it may aid the students in learning English.

Research Question

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1. What are the strategies commonly used by BIP students of Information Technology program in learning vocabulary?

2. What are the levels of use of these strategies?

Significance of the Study

Words are the components of parts in a language. By learning the lexical items, we start to develop knowledge of the target language. Based on our experience of being a language learner, we appear to have no hesitation in recognizing the importance of vocabulary in L2 learning. Meara (1980) points out those language learners admit that they encounter substantial difficulty with vocabulary even when they improve it from an initial stage of acquiring a second language to a much more advanced level. Therefore, it may be claimed that the role of vocabulary in L2 learning is fundamental and it is not easy to learn. Knowing some VLS may be helpful for teachers in guiding learners to master the technical terms of vocabulary in the IT

scope. Robinson (1991: 4) says that: “It may often be thought that a characteristic, or even a

critical feature, of ESP is that a course should involve specialist language (especially terminology) and content.” As I mentioned before in the introduction, to be a language specialist in the IT terminology, the learners need to know what strategies that can provide ease for the students in mastering vocabulary.

The present paper concentrates on vocabulary (lexis) on the term of ESP IT context and the vocabulary learning strategies (VLS) that are applied by the IT BID class‟s students. In addition, even though they are learning vocabulary not commonly used in their active communication, the students are expected to be able to acquire the vocabulary that attach with the major that they are learning at the moment. Furthermore, I would like to provide

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recommendations for the teachers concerning the students' problems in their vocabulary's mastery on the tertiary education of ESP (Information Technology) context. Finally, this research is expected to give considerable contribution to knowledge in English Language education, especially for the Information Technology Faculty of Satya Wacana Christian University.

Literature review

Research into language learning strategies

Definition of learning strategies

Language learning styles and strategies are among the main factors that help determine how –and how well – the students learn a second or foreign language. A second language is a language studied in a location where that language is the main medium of daily communication and where plentiful input exists in that verbal communication (Oxford, 2003). Furthermore, the definition of foreign language is a language that is studied in a setting where it is not the main means for daily interaction and where input in that language is limited (Oxford, 2003) Related to this paper, vocabulary learning strategies are “specific strategies for learning vocabulary” as Ellis (1999) put it.

Different definitions of learning strategies can be found in recent literature. A typical sample of these definitions is presented. The first is, according to Tarone (1981), Learning strategies are efforts to build up linguistic and sociolinguistic capability in the target language. From the definition of Tarone (1981), in my opinion learning strategies are how the language users put an effort to learn the target language in the form of linguistic or in their sociolinguistic context. The linguistic competence can be seen in their ability in the grammar or lexis and their

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sociolinguistic ability is based on how the language user able to fit the language choice in social surroundings. The second definition is presented by Chamot, (1987) who asserts that learning strategies are deliberate actions that students take in order to assist the learning in both linguistic and content area information. Thus, according to these definitions, it can be perceived that there are some intentional actions in the linguistic and sociolinguistic context or content area information to acquire the competence in the target language.

Additionally, it is said that language learning strategies are behaviors or actions which learners use to make language learning more successful, independent and pleasurable (Oxford, 1989). From my frame of reference, it is not assert the strategies to master linguistic or sociolinguistic competence, however this statement by Oxford(1989) points out that the goal to study learning strategies are self directed to the learners' goals itself.

Ellis (1994), therefore, suggested that the following characteristic should be recognized. Language learning strategies are strategies pass on to both common approaches and specific actions or techniques used to study a language (Ellis, 1994). Related to VLS, the definition of language learning strategies by Ellis (1994) asserts that there are general approaches and specific actions conducted by language learners. General approaches can be in the form using the strategies in global or analytic, auditory or visual –that students use in acquiring a new language or in learning any other subject. These styles are “the overall patterns that give general direction to learning behavior” (Cornett, 1983, p.9). Thus, related with VLS, take for instance the global strategies; the students able to learn vocabulary in global context by skimming a text and learn vocabulary that they don't know without specifically analyze it. Moreover, specific actions can be in the form of applying some strategies in VLS. Some of the strategies are when the learner consciously chooses strategies that fit his or her learning style and the L2 task at hand, these

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strategies become a useful toolkit for active, conscious, and purposeful self regulation of learning. Learning strategies can be classified into six groups: memory, cognitive, metacognitive, determination, affective, and social(Ellis 1994:535).. Each of these is discussed later in this chapter.

Classification of Vocabulary Learning Strategies

Much of the earlier research on language learning strategies focuses on compiling inventories of the learning strategies that learners were observed to use or reported using. Little attempt was made to classify the strategies into general categories (Ellis 1994:535). Gradually the classification of vocabulary learning strategies became the focus of research. However, so far no agreement has been reached on this issue since researchers classify the strategies from different angles and use different terms to describe them as we can see from the definition of the vocabulary learning strategies. In this section some representative and influential strategy classification models are presented. There are three groups that belong to direct strategies and three groups belong to indirect strategy. The groups which belong in direct strategies are: memory, cognitive, and compensation/determination (Oxford, 1990). Moreover, the groups belong to Indirect strategies are metacognitive, affective, and social strategies (Oxford, 1990).

Direct strategy involves the mental process in absorbing the materials. According to Oxford (1990), direct strategies require mental processing of the language (Oxford, 1990). It means that the direct strategies are beneficial to the students because they help store and recover information in the learners' mind. Furthermore, these strategies help learners to produce language even when there is gap in knowledge. They also help to understand and use the new language.

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(1) Memory strategies as those “helping students store and retrieve new information”. which engage learners in learning the new word through mental processing by associating their existing or background knowledge with the new word. For example, if the learner comes

across the word “bird”, the learner can group theword “bird” under the category of animals which can fly with its wing. It is caused the learners already knows the image of these flying animals from his/her background knowledge.

(2) Cognitive strategies are “enabling learners to understand and produce new language by

many different means”. Cognitive Strategies in this taxonomy are similar to Memory

Strategies, but are not focused so specifically on manipulative mental processing; they include repetition and using mechanical means to study vocabulary. Written and verbal repetition, repeatedly writing or saying a word over and over again, are common strategies in many parts of the world. Word lists and flash cards can be used for the initial exposure to a word, but most students continue to use them to review it afterwards. Cognitive strategies such as these appear to be directly linked to the performance of particular

learning tasks according to O‟Malley and Chamot (1990).

(3) Determination strategies are individual learning strategies, which help learners to discover the meaning of words by themselves with no assistance from peers or teachers. (e.g., guessing from the context in listening and reading; using synonyms and “talkingaround” the missing word to aid speaking and writing; and strictly for speaking, using gestures or pause words) help the learner make up for missing knowledge. Here is an example of guessing based on partial knowledge of the target language. When a learner recognizes the words shovel, grass, mower, and lawn in a conversation, it could be understood that it is about gardening.

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According to Oxford (1990) indirect learning strategies is strategy which able to help learners control the learning process. These strategies support and manage language learning without direct engagement with the material, and therefore called as indirect strategies (as cited in Samida, 2004). Thus, below are the descriptions of indirect learning strategies:

(1) Metacognitive strategies are strategies that make use of knowledge about cognitive process and regulate language learning by means of planning, monitoring and evaluating. Moreover, Chamot et al (1999) say that metacognitive strategies are higher order executive skills and include advance organizers, directed attention, selective attention, self-management, advance preparation, self-monitoring, delayed production and self-evaluation. Here is an example of arranging and planning learning. For a learner who wants to listen to the news in the target language can plan the task by first determining what topics might be covered in the program. Most news programs have segments of politics and economics. The learner can look up the words related to the topics before listening to the news. This would better prepare the learner.

(2)Social/ affective strategies are the way in which learners interact with other learners or native speakers, and represent a broad grouping that involves interaction with another person (Liu Zhi-liang, 2010). Generally, they are considered applicable to a wide variety of tasks. Social/affective strategies include cooperation and question for clarification since it deals with interaction. Learners can apply the strategy of cooperating with others by doing something together in the language they are learning. Daily telephone conversation with a friend in the target language is an example to practice listening and speaking skills.

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The first study by Liu Zhi Liang (2010) titled A Study on English Vocabulary Learning Strategies for Non-English Majors in Independent College results that non-English major learners in independent college have an active attitude about English vocabulary learning and usually employ a large variety of learning strategies when they come across new words in their English learning, either to discover the meanings of the new words or to consolidate the words but did not form effective vocabulary learning strategies. The most frequently employed strategies, the least-used strategies and the least-helpful strategies can be seen obviously in the study. The most helpful strategy according to her research is discover meaning from bilingual dictionary(determination strategy) with the rank 91% and least helpful strategies is use semantic map(memory strategy) which ranked 11%.

The second study by Gina Howell (2012) which is titled Vocabulary Strategies for a Fourth Grade Classroom yield result that the author has learned quite a few things from this project. One of the first things that she learned was when games are used in correct manner and used continually; they can be really helpful with students‟ recall of vocabulary words. The second thing that she learned during this project was that participation in learning centers and class

discussions can affect a students‟ ability to successfully recall vocabulary words.During this

project, her students grew in their ability to recall their vocabulary words as well as their ability to define their vocabulary words. The students were not the only ones who grew from this project, she grew as well. She learned that she needs to help her students see the benefits of participating in class. Before this project, she would just ask students to participate so that she would not be the only one talking, but after this project she has realized that her students would benefit more from truly participating in class instead of just doing it because it is required.

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The other study is a study that conducted by Cohen and Aphek (1981), they find that the use of mnemonic association is helpful to vocabulary learning. Incidental learning through guessing from the context is the most important strategies for vocabulary learning. Many researchers have done comprehensive study in this field.

The Study Methodology

The study was about the strategies that were used by IT BIP students in learning vocabulary conducted with their vocabulary context in technology. The study used descriptive study. Bickman and Rog (1998) suggest that a descriptive study is one in which information is collected without changing the environment (i.e., nothing is manipulated) and it can answer

questions such as “what is” or “what was.” Thus, this is related with my research question that started with "what is" question. Another thing is, descriptive studies can involve a one-time interaction with groups of people (cross-sectional study) or a study might follow individuals over time (longitudinal study). This research used cross-sectional study which means that the information was collected at one point of time.

Participants/ sample

The Bahasa Inggris Profesional students from Information Technology Faculty of Satya Wacana Christian University were the participants/ sample of the study since the problem arose from the students. English is their foreign language and they are not using it as intermediate language in their study beside in the class which specified in English such as BIP and BID classes. It was specified on students who repeating BIP class in IT Faculty because this was the only class which oriented in English that opened in this semester 2 academic year 2014/2015. It was 58 students who were filling in the questionnaire.

18 Data Collection Instrument

Questionnaire was the instrument that used in this study to collect the data. The questionnaires were given to five BIP classes. The questionnaires are given to the students who are taking BIP class in order to get the information related to their strategies in learning and improving their vocabulary. The Close-ended questionnaire was used in this research because it would help the writer to analyze the data collected. The language that used was in Bahasa Indonesia to provide ease for students to fill out the questionnaires. The questionnaires were adapted from Oxford‟s strategy inventory for language learning (SILL) (1989) was modified and used to make the questionnaire that was appropriate to the context of the study. Oxford‟s SILL was an effective way to track the learning strategies used by students and how often they used them by scaling the strategies from always (5) to never (1).

Data collection procedure

In order to collect the data, there are some steps that have to be done. First, the writer selected the participants from the Information technology BIP students. The key points were explained by the researcher and one of the five Likert scale was ticked according to their opinion. Then, the writer spread some questionnaires paper based on the number of the students who participated to fulfill the questionnaires questions.

Data Analysis

In the data analysis procedure, in order to answer the research question, the frequencies of each statement were calculated and analyzed descriptively by counting for each category.

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There will be five categories from Oxford (1990) which are, Memory strategy, Metacognitive strategy, Cognitive strategy, Determination strategy and Social strategy.

Accordingly, the analysis the questionnaires were interpreted based on the Likert- scale (1=never, 2= rarely, 3=sometimes, 4= often, 5=always). Then the result calculated in average based on the category from the items in the questionnaire. The data display is in a form of chart. Then after finishing the calculation the writer then summarized the result. The Likert scale that was initially used from 1.0 (low) to 5.0 (high) was modified into 1.0 (low) to 4.0 (high) since there were no result that higher than 4.0 , as seen below:

Results profile key (adapted from Oxford, 1990, p.300) High always or almost always used 3.5 to 4.0

Medium Sometimes used 2.5 to 3.4 Low Generally not used 1.5 to 2.4 Never or almost never used 1.0 to 1

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Results and Discussion

The section below present data analysis obtained from the questionnaire

1. Overall strategy use

The figure below represents the SILL findings for the use of strategies averaged over all 58 participants, from a possible lowest ranking of 1, to a highest possible of 4, as per the Likert scale as previously mentioned:

Figure1. Strategy used by all participants

Figure 1 shows that the most commonly used type of strategies by the participants was the metacognitive strategy. Metacognitive strategies are those related to the learners' self monitoring, for example arranging and planning learning their own learning materials associated with vocabulary mastery. Referring to Oxford's result profile key, the number shows that it is only moderately used by the students (3.38). On the second place, social strategies which

2,4 _2,3 2,45

3,38

2,63

0 0,5 1 1,5 2 2,5 3 3,5 4

Memory Cognitive Determination Meta Cognitive Social

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associated with the way learners socialize with other learners or native speakers in mastering new words rank on medium used by the participants (2.63). On the third place, determination strategies which related with individual learning style placed on low rank (2.45). The next fourth place is memory strategies which ranked on low usage (2.4), this strategies deal with learners' background knowledge in order to master new vocabulary. The least used strategies are cognitive ones, which demand the learners to use any means they know to learn new vocabulary item. This type of strategy is also ranked on low or generally not used as the two previous strategies I have mentioned (2.3).

This (Figure.1) showed that the students‟ preference in using the strategies varied. Some strategies such as metacognitive and social strategies have fair levels of use from the participants. The rest of them were low users of vocabulary learning strategy since the charts generally are under 3.4 based on Oxford results profile key. It can also be concluded from the findings above (Figure.1), although there are two strategies such as metacognitive and social strategies that have fair number from participants' preference but three of the strategies which consist of memory, cognitive and determination strategies are still unfavorable based on the data on figure.1. It means that the students may still unfamiliar with the unfavorable strategies since from all of the strategies only two of most strategies are generally used and the rest of the three are still never or almost never used (based on Oxford results profile key).

2. Findings from each classification

Some figures below present the results of the study based on the strategy classification:

22 2.A. Memory Strategies

Memory strategies are the strategies that engage learners in learning new words through mental processing by associating their existing or background knowledge with the new words.

The chart below shows the questionnaire items of memory strategy and their average score:

Figure 2. Questionnaire items and average score of memory strategies

2,36 2,55

2,03

2,52 2,55 _2,4

0 0,5 1 1,5 2 2,5 3

Question 1 Question 2 Question 3 Question 4 Question 5 Average Score

Memory strategies

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Figure 3. Trends of each questionnaire item

This strategy has the average use of 2.40 or low use (Figure.1). Further demonstrated with the data in the figure 3 that shows from question number one until number five, the students usually answered „never‟, „rarely‟ or „sometimes‟.

On the question number one, 'I use new English words in a sentence so I can remember them‟, over half of the students (55%) were responded with „never‟ or „rarely‟ use new words in a sentence to remember them. Almost the other half (45%) used it „sometimes‟ or „often‟ and none (0%) responded with „always‟.

Based on responses to number 2 is one of the question in memory strategy that the most frequently used .The question item 'I remember a new English word by making a mental picture

19% 19%

34%

14% 16%

36%

26%

38% 38%

28%

34% 36%

19% 33% 43% 10% 19% 7%

14% 14%

0% 0%

2% 2%

0% 0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45% 50%

Q1:I use new English words in

a sentence so I can remember

them.

Q2:I remember a new English word by making a mental picture of a situation in which the word might be used.

Q3:I use flashcards to remember new

English words.

Q4:I physically act out new English words. Q5:I remember new English words or phrases by remembering their localities on the page or street sign Never Rarely Sometimes Often Always

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of a situation in which the word might be used', almost half of the participants (45%) never or rarely use the strategy to learn new words and more than half of the participants (55%) use the strategy sometimes or often. The same as the previous strategy, none of the students responded

„always‟ (0%). From the high result of „sometimes‟ and „often‟ we can see that the participants are like to remember new words in creating the setting where the new words will likely be used.

On the third question 'I use flashcards to remember new English words' has the lowest users above all of the strategies, 72% of the students responded never and rarely use flashcards, only 28% answered „sometimes‟, „often‟ and „always‟. This question item has the least frequently used strategy among all of the questions in memory strategy. Probably the students did not apply this strategy in learning English because they are still unfamiliar with using cards or mechanical tools in learning new words.

The next questionnaire item which is question number 4 'I physically act out new English words' has slightly more than half of the participants(52%) who choose „never‟ and „rarely‟ to pronounce the new word and the rest of them (49%) answered „sometimes‟, „often‟ and „always‟.

The last question from this strategy which is number 5 has frequent use from the questions in memory strategy. The question item 'I remember new English words or phrases by remembering their localities on the page, on the board, or on a street sign' has 44% for „never‟ and „rarely‟. The rest of the students who remembering the new words in their localities on the things they see are 56% for „sometimes‟, „often‟ and „always‟. although this strategy became the most frequently used strategy in compensation/memory strategy, but its overall Likert scale score is under 3,5 (figure.3). That means generally the students are not active users of the strategies based on participants' preference.

25 2. B. Cognitive strategies

Cognitive strategies are strategies that usually include mechanical means and repetition to study vocabulary. Mechanical means can be in the form of word lists. Repetition is something to do with saying or writing a word over and over again.

The chart below shows the questionnaire items of cognitive strategies and their average score:

Figure 4.Questionnaire items and average score of cognitive strategies

2,36

2,1

2,43

2,3

1,9 2 2,1 2,2 2,3 2,4 2,5

Question 6 Question 7 Question 8 Average score

Cognitive strategies

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Figure 5.Trends of each questionnaire item

In deference with cognitive strategies, the average score for all of the questionnaire items is 2.30, which means the participants were the low users of this category (see figure 1)

On the question number six 'I Say or write new English words several times' which can be categorized on repetition of the new words falls on more than a half of the students never or rarely use the strategy(56%) ,less than a half of the population (45%) use it sometimes or often and none use it (0%) .This means that the low users of this strategy have greater numbers than the medium users of this strategy.

On the next question which has the lowest score on the charts or question number seven, 'I find the meaning of an English word by dividing it into parts that I understand‟, means dividing new difficult words into pieces that they are familiar with, we can see that more than half of the students dominate on (67%) „never‟ or „rarely‟ and less than half answered

16%

26%

14%

40% 41% 41%

38% 29% 34% 7% 3% 9%

0% 0%

2% 0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45% 50%

Q6:I Say or write new English words several

times.

Q7:I find the meaning of an English word by dividing it into parts that I

understand.

Q8:I try not to translate word-for-word. Never Rarely Sometimes Often Always

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„sometimes‟ or „often‟ (32%), and constantly, „always‟ ranked at 0% from total population. This least frequently used strategy gained much more percentage with the option „never‟ (26%) than other questions (Q6:16% & Q8:14%). This may means that the students did not know about dividing word parts. This strategy on question number 7 is a crucial strategy to do the TOEFL test. The test requires the skill in dividing word into parts to know what the meaning of the unfamiliar word. Take for example the word subway; they have to divide it into the word they know. If in this case they know the meaning of the word sub which means under, they will able to know that sub way means underground transportation.

The strategy number eight has a greatest number of the low users from all strategies. On the last question which has the highest score on the charts or question number eight 'I try not to translate word-for-word‟ has over than half of the students who answered „never‟ and

„rarely‟(55%), moreover less than half of the participants(45%) answered sometimes, often and always. From the result, it can be concluded that most of the participants have the tendency to not translate word for word in their learning English activity. They may have known some vocabulary words thus they do not have to translate it word for word, although this strategy falls with the score 2.43 or generally not used. The students may already use it, but not in frequent time.

The trends in the table 2 show that the students dominantly answered never and rarely. As we can see „sometimes‟, „often‟ and „always‟ ranked below „never‟ and „rarely‟. Furthermore, the percentage of the students who answered „often‟ and „always‟ are very little. It is only one or two person who ticked often and always. This may means that the students are reluctant to use cognitive strategy since they are may already knew the strategy but rarely or occasionally used it. This finding is contradictive to Howell‟s (2012) study. Her study yield results when games are

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used in the correct manner and used continually they can be really helpful with students‟ recall of

vocabulary words. The finding unable to find that the students are comfortable learning with mechanical means, as in Gina Howell case the mechanical means is in the form of game.

2.C. Determination Strategies

Determination strategies are used to discover a new word‟s meaning without recourse to another‟s expertise when learners don‟t know a word. For instance, learners can use a dictionary, analyze any available pictures or gestures or guess meaning from textual context.

The chart below shows the questionnaire items of memory strategy and their average score

Figure 6.Questionnaire items and average score of determination strategies

2,43

2,31

2,6

2,45

2,15 2,2 2,25 2,3 2,35 2,4 2,45 2,5 2,55 2,6 2,65

Question 9 Question 10 Question 11 Average score

Determination Strategies

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Figure 7.Trends of each questionnaire item

In determination strategies, the average score for all of the questionnaire items is 2.45(Figure.1). Based on Oxford result profile key, the participants of determination strategy were the low users of this strategy.

On the question number nine which has the most frequently used strategy 'To understand unfamiliar English words, I make guesses' the students who never or rarely use the strategy in making guesses on unrecognized words were more than a half of the total population(58%) . Less than a half of them (40%) use it sometimes or often and 2% always use it. This means that the low users of this strategy have greater numbers than the medium users of this strategy. This also can mean that even though the students unfamiliar with a difficult word they

17% 28% 17% 41% 29% 28% 24%

33% 33%

16% 5% 22% 2% 5% 0% 0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45% 50% Q9:To understand unfamiliar English words, I

make guesses.

Q10:I read English without looking up every

new word.

Q11:If I can’t think of an

English word, I use a word or phrase that means the

same thing. Never Rarely Sometimes Often Always

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are trying to find the way for interpreting their idea in different word or phrase. At the moment when the participants are dealing with their language learning problems, specifically for some unfamiliar words, most of them tend to use synonym of the word that they unacquainted with.

On the question which has the lowest score in the charts or number ten 'I read English without looking up every new word' we can see that over half of the total population never or rarely use the strategy (58%) and less than a half of the total participants use the strategy sometimes or often (38%), always ranked at 5% from total population. Although the percentage of the students who answered always is higher than other strategies, the percentages of students who still look up every new word are higher than students who use it. The trends of strategy show that students have the tendency to look up the new words that they don't know without trying to interpret the meaning by themselves.

On the last question which is question number eleven 'If I can‟t think of an English word, I use a word or phrase that means the same thing' it has over than a half of students who answered never and rarely (57%), moreover slightly less than a half of the participants use a word or phrase that means the same thing for sometimes, often and always (47%). As usual the numbers of the students who are never or rarely use the strategies are higher than those who use it.

This finding is contradictive to Liang (2011) study titled A Study on English Vocabulary Learning Strategies for Non-English Majors in Independent College. The study resulted in that the most helpful strategy according to her research is discovering meaning from bilingual dictionary (determination strategy) with the rank 91%. This is probably caused by the students' hesitation to solve the language barrier by themselves. Solving the language barrier in

31

term of these strategies can be in the attempt of the students to try to think the other way to know the new word with their background knowledge or with their own effort (e.g. look up at bilingual dictionary and using synonyms).

2.D. Metacognitive Strategies

Metacognitive strategies are set of strategies that take the learner as the one who takes control on how to regulate vocabulary learning by means of planning, monitoring and evaluating.

The chart below shows the questionnaire items of memory strategy and their average score

Figure 8.Questionnaire items and average score of metacognitive strategies

3,3

3,36

3,38

3,26 3,28 3,3 3,32 3,34 3,36 3,38 3,4

Question 12 Question 13 Average score

Metacognitive Strategy

32

Figure 9.Trends of each questionnaire item

In metacognitive strategy, the average score for all of the questionnaire items is 3.38.(see figure 1). That means the participants were the average users of this category. Among all of the strategies, this strategy has the highest score.

On the question number 12 'I try to find as many ways as I can to use my English',

„sometimes‟ or „often‟ dominate with the percentage of 74% and 10% always use it. This result is higher than other questions on previous strategies; it has 10% for „always‟ which so far is the highest percentage on „always‟. The reason that strategy 12 being the least frequently may be caused by the unspecific ways to use English. Through the perspective from one person and another person, the ways to use English is not relatively in the same. The other thing is, the students may confused on how they are able to use it, some may say that they will find native speaker to use English, or some will say that the way to use it is by writing a story in English. If the students able to be motivated to learn it, they will be high user of these strategies which can help them in learning English.

The question number 13 is the most frequently used strategy „I look for opportunities to read as much as possible in English' we can see that less than half of the total population never or

0% 0%

16%

21%

40% 38%

34% 26% 10% 16% 0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45% 50%

Q12:I try to find as many ways as I can to use my English.

Q13:I look for opportunities to read as much as possible in English.

Never Rarely Sometimes Often Always

33

rarely use the strategy (21%) and over half than the students look for opportunities as much as possible in English with sometimes, often and always which reach 79%. The percentage also shows that the students who were ticked always and often are higher than other strategies. The other strategies usually only have 0% to 2% for often or always, but this metacognitive strategy reach the percentage from 10% to 16% for always. This means that the students are thrilled to find books or texts in English to help them elevate their ability in the scope of vocabulary.

2.E. Social Strategies

Social strategies are employed to ask someone who knows. Learners can ask teacher or classmates about information in a variety of ways, such as a synonym, paraphrase, or L1 translation of new word.

The chart below shows the questionnaire items of social strategies and their average score

Figure 10.Questionnaire items and average score of social strategies

2,31

2,95

2,63

0 0,5 1 1,5 2 2,5 3 3,5

Question 14 Question 15 Average Score

Social strategy

34

Figure11. Trends of each questionnaire item

In social strategy, the average score for all of the questionnaire items is 2.63. That means the participants were the medium users of this category.

On the question number 14 'I ask English speakers to correct me when I talk‟ Over half of the participants answered „never‟ or „rarely‟ asking native speakers to correct them when they talk (64%), 36% of them use it „sometimes‟, „often‟ and „always‟.

On the question number 15 'I practice English with other students‟, we can see that 34% of the total population never or rarely use the strategy and 55% use the strategy sometimes or often in practicing English with other students. Different with previous question, „always‟ ranked at 10% from total population which is high compared to other questions. This finding shows that this strategy is fairly preferred by the students. The study by Gina Howell(2012) yield result that

participation in learning centers and class discussions can affect a students‟ ability to

successfully recall vocabulary words. This finding is closely related since class discussion and participation is liked by the students.

The table above shows that in social category, most of the participants chose strategy 15 as their solution in dealing with their learning problems. That means the students of BIP class

24% 10% 40% 24% 21% 36% 12% 19% 3% 10% 0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45% 50%

I ask English speakers to correct me when I talk.

I practice English with other students. Never Rarely Sometimes Often Always

35

felt more confidence and comfortable to learn with their peers. Although they are not highly using this strategy, through motivation from the teachers they may highly use this strategy. The teachers can provide some activities for the students to work with their peers considering they are more comfortable learning English with this way. By practicing together with friends, the students can share their difficulties and help each other.

Summary of key findings

Based on overall findings, the students are figuring out how to learn English based on their motivation. Based on the questions in metacognitive part which are addressed to them, it seems that the participants try to find the material and the way for learning English by themselves (Q12: I try to find as many ways as I can to use my English.& Q13: I look for opportunities to read as much as possible in English.). Thus, it does involve their self motivation to look for the most suitable material or the method to learn English. Moreover, this finding is different from other studies in this field. In the other previous studies which I already mentioned above, none of them found that the most preferred strategy is metacognitive strategy. Take for example the study from Liu Zhi Liang (2010) titled A Study on English Vocabulary Learning Strategies for Non-English Majors in Independent College which results that the most used strategy was determination strategy. Determination strategy belongs in direct strategy that requires the students to directly engage in the discovery of the meaning of new word.

On the other hand, the least frequent strategy used was cognitive strategy that belongs to direct strategy. According to Oxford (1990), direct strategies require mental processing of the language. From the result, it can be said that the direct strategy is not the first choice for IT students to learn English in BIP. It seems like they do not know well that the direct strategy is also important in learning a new language because it contains how to memorize new words, review the lesson, analyze tasks, etc.

36

Conclusion, Limitation, and Suggestion

Some language learning strategies used by BIP students has been examined and the study showed that the most frequent learning strategy used by the students was metacognitive strategy. This strategy belongs to indirect learning strategy. This strategy of learning involves self-management, advance preparation, self-monitoring, and self-evaluation. From this result, the students can be seen as students who are already have self-motivation to learn English. However, they have to be more encouraged in learning English in order to pass the BIP course.

On the other hand, the least frequently learning strategy used was cognitive strategy, which belongs to direct learning strategy. The students are expected to do the steps or operations used in problem solving that require direct analysis, transformation or synthesis of learning materials. This strategy ought to be taught for the students in the future since the students are mostly unfamiliar with this strategy.

The result from this study is expected to be useful to the teachers to use some of the listed learning strategies that can be used to learn English. The result of this study could also make students aware with their learning strategy profile by knowing the mean score of their strategy use. Since the questionnaire was only distributed for 58 participants (all of them were Information Technology students of Satya Wacana Christian University) and it was done only once time. Therefore, this study has a limitation and the result cannot be used as the generalization for other similar studies. For further studies, some continuous analysis could be examined. First, how the vocabulary learning strategies affect the score improvement of the students?. Secondly, what makes the students who already know some vocabulary learning strategies still fail to pass the course?. In addition, the research also can be done with the faculty that teach these strategies in learning English, the researcher can try to prove that VLS

37

Acknowledgment

During the process of writing this thesis, I have been encouraged and assisted by many people. Without their support, it would be impossible to complete this study. I would like to take this opportunity to express my sincere gratitude to all of the following people for their boundless help.

First and foremost I want to thank my Almighty God for His blessing undeservingly

bestowed upon me. I can‟t thank enough for the bless He gave to me. Secondly, my sincere gratitude goes to my advisor, Bu Titik Murtisari, I feel particularly honored to have such a warm-hearted and erudite advisor. Bu Titik has offered me great help from the moment I began to prepare my study. Her academic knowledge and scrupulous attitude has not only assisted me in my thesis but also influenced me greatly in doing academic research. Also my gratitude goes for my examiner, Pak Christian Rudianto, for his help, correction, and also the useful suggestion.

A million of thanks also goes to my little family. Above all, for my little angel, Aluna, in your eyes I am a hero, I am strong and wise and I know no fear. I see who I want to be in your beautiful bright eyes and this is all for you. I also want to thank my beloved husband, Nugroho. I am very proud to call you my best friend, happy to call you my lover, and very blessed to have you as my husband. Thank you for your limitless support and patience upon me.

My sincere gratitude goes to my family. For my father Yustinus Suwito and my mother, Christiana Sri Winarni, I really thank you for this. I knew when my dreams are come true it is based on both of your prayers. For my sister Linda, Lukie and Prita, thank you for never tired in keep giving me motivation to reach success.

Lastly I want to thank my lovely former friends in college, Tanty, Vita, Luina, Olivia. For all of the laughter, tears and the lessons of life that I‟ve learned when I was with all of you in College. Moreover, for my lifetime friends, Mitha and Niko, you guys always keep encouraging me with your never-ending support, I am grateful to know you guys. Last but not least, for all of the teachers and staffs in ED, without them it is impossible for me to make my dream happened.

38 References

Alexandra-Valeria. (2010). A General View on the Relationship between ESP and EGP. Professional Communication and Translation Studies, 3, 1-3.

Alhamlan, S. (2013). EFL Curriculum and Needs Analysis: An Evaluative Study .

Brickman, Leonard, and Debra J. Roy, eds. (1998). Handbook of Applied Social Research Methods. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Chamot, A. U. (1987). The Ehrman, M. E. (1996).Understanding Second Language Learning Difficulties. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Learning Strategies of ESL Students. Wenden& J. Rubin (Eds.), Learner strategies in language learning (pp. 71-83). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice/Hall International.

Cohen, A.D. & Aphek, E. (1981). Easifying second language learning. Studies in Second Language Acquisition 3 (2), 221-36.

Cornett, C. E. (1983).What you should know about teaching and learning styles. Bloomington: Phi Delta Kappa Educational Foundation.

Coxhead, A. (2006). Essentials of Teaching Academic Vocabulary. (T. Heinle, Penyunt.) Boston, USA: Patricia A. Coryell.

Crystal, D. (1997). English as a global language. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Devadason, I. (December 2008). TSL-EJ.ESP for Technology: Teachers Must Go the Extra Mile, .12( 3)

39

Ellis, R. (1999). The Study of Second Language Acquisition. Shanghai: Shanghai Foreign Language Education Press.

Howell, G. "Vocabulary Strategies for a Fourth Grade Classroom." 2 (2012).

Long, M. H. (2005). Second Language Needs Analysis. New York: Cambridge University Press.

Macaro, E. (2003). Teaching and Learning a second language. London: The Bath Press.

Meara, P. (1980). Vocabulary acquisition: A neglected aspect of language learning. Language Teaching and Linguistics: Abstracts: 221-246

Nation, I. S. P. (1990). Teaching and learning vocabulary. Boston, Mass: Heinle&Heinle Publishers.

Nation,P.(2001). Learning vocabulary in another language. Cambridge. Cambridge University Press

O‟Malley, J. & Chamot, A., (1990). Learning Strategies in Second Language Acquisition. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.

Oxford(1989).Language Learning Strategies around the World: Crosscultural Perspectives. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press.

Oxford, Nation,I.S.P. (1978). “What is it?”A Multipurpose Language Reaching Technique. English Teaching Forum.

Oxford, Rebecca. (1990). Language Learning Strategies: What Every Teacher Should Know. New York:

40

Oxford, R. L. (2003). Language learning styles and strategies: An overview. Learning Styles and Strategies Oxford,GALA. pp. 1-25.

P.H. Matthews. (2000). Oxford Concise Dictionary of Linguistics. Shanghai: Shanghai Foreign Language Education Press, 209.

Robinson, P. (1991). ESP Today: A Practitioner's Guide. New York: Prentice Hall.

Schmitt, N. (1997). „Vocabulary learning strategies‟in N. Schmitt and M.McCarthy (eds): Vocabulary:Description, Acquisition and Pedagogy. Cambridge:Cambridge University Press.

Stoffer, F. L. (1995). Project work: A means to promote language content. English Teaching Forum, 35(4), 2.

Tarone, E. (1981) Decoding a Primary Language: the Crucial Role of Strategic Competence. Paper presented at the conference on Interpretive. Strategies in Language University of

Lancaster.

Warschauer, M. (1995). E-Mail for English teaching. Alexandria, VA: TESOL Publications.

Wilkins, D. (1972). Linguistics in language teaching. London: Arnold.

Zhihong, Y. (2000). Learning words. Forum, 38(3). Retrieved October 13, 2005, from http://exchange.state.gov/forum/vols/vol38/no3/p18.htm.

36

Conclusion, Limitation, and Suggestion

Some language learning strategies used by BIP students has been examined and the study showed that the most frequent learning strategy used by the students was metacognitive strategy. This strategy belongs to indirect learning strategy. This strategy of learning involves self-management, advance preparation, self-monitoring, and self-evaluation. From this result, the students can be seen as students who are already have self-motivation to learn English. However, they have to be more encouraged in learning English in order to pass the BIP course.

On the other hand, the least frequently learning strategy used was cognitive strategy, which belongs to direct learning strategy. The students are expected to do the steps or operations used in problem solving that require direct analysis, transformation or synthesis of learning materials. This strategy ought to be taught for the students in the future since the students are mostly unfamiliar with this strategy.

The result from this study is expected to be useful to the teachers to use some of the listed learning strategies that can be used to learn English. The result of this study could also make students aware with their learning strategy profile by knowing the mean score of their strategy use. Since the questionnaire was only distributed for 58 participants (all of them were Information Technology students of Satya Wacana Christian University) and it was done only once time. Therefore, this study has a limitation and the result cannot be used as the generalization for other similar studies. For further studies, some continuous analysis could be examined. First, how the vocabulary learning strategies affect the score improvement of the students?. Secondly, what makes the students who already know some vocabulary learning strategies still fail to pass the course?. In addition, the research also can be done with the faculty that teach these strategies in learning English, the researcher can try to prove that VLS influencing the students‟ vocabulary mastery.

37

Acknowledgment

During the process of writing this thesis, I have been encouraged and assisted by many people. Without their support, it would be impossible to complete this study. I would like to take this opportunity to express my sincere gratitude to all of the following people for their boundless help.

First and foremost I want to thank my Almighty God for His blessing undeservingly bestowed upon me. I can‟t thank enough for the bless He gave to me. Secondly, my sincere gratitude goes to my advisor, Bu Titik Murtisari, I feel particularly honored to have such a warm-hearted and erudite advisor. Bu Titik has offered me great help from the moment I began to prepare my study. Her academic knowledge and scrupulous attitude has not only assisted me in my thesis but also influenced me greatly in doing academic research. Also my gratitude goes for my examiner, Pak Christian Rudianto, for his help, correction, and also the useful suggestion.

A million of thanks also goes to my little family. Above all, for my little angel, Aluna, in your eyes I am a hero, I am strong and wise and I know no fear. I see who I want to be in your beautiful bright eyes and this is all for you. I also want to thank my beloved husband, Nugroho. I am very proud to call you my best friend, happy to call you my lover, and very blessed to have you as my husband. Thank you for your limitless support and patience upon me.

My sincere gratitude goes to my family. For my father Yustinus Suwito and my mother, Christiana Sri Winarni, I really thank you for this. I knew when my dreams are come true it is based on both of your prayers. For my sister Linda, Lukie and Prita, thank you for never tired in keep giving me motivation to reach success.

Lastly I want to thank my lovely former friends in college, Tanty, Vita, Luina, Olivia. For all of the laughter, tears and the lessons of life that I‟ve learned when I was with all of you in College. Moreover, for my lifetime friends, Mitha and Niko, you guys always keep encouraging me with your never-ending support, I am grateful to know you guys. Last but not least, for all of the teachers and staffs in ED, without them it is impossible for me to make my dream happened.

38 References

Alexandra-Valeria. (2010). A General View on the Relationship between ESP and EGP.

Professional Communication and Translation Studies, 3, 1-3.

Alhamlan, S. (2013). EFL Curriculum and Needs Analysis: An Evaluative Study .

Brickman, Leonard, and Debra J. Roy, eds. (1998). Handbook of Applied Social Research Methods. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Chamot, A. U. (1987). The Ehrman, M. E. (1996).Understanding Second Language Learning Difficulties. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Learning Strategies of ESL Students. Wenden& J. Rubin (Eds.), Learner strategies in language learning (pp. 71-83). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice/Hall International.

Cohen, A.D. & Aphek, E. (1981). Easifying second language learning. Studies in Second Language Acquisition 3 (2), 221-36.

Cornett, C. E. (1983).What you should know about teaching and learning styles. Bloomington: Phi Delta Kappa Educational Foundation.

Coxhead, A. (2006). Essentials of Teaching Academic Vocabulary. (T. Heinle, Penyunt.) Boston, USA: Patricia A. Coryell.

Crystal, D. (1997). English as a global language. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Devadason, I. (December 2008). TSL-EJ.ESP for Technology: Teachers Must Go the Extra Mile, .12( 3)

39

Ellis, R. (1999). The Study of Second Language Acquisition. Shanghai: Shanghai Foreign Language Education Press.

Howell, G. "Vocabulary Strategies for a Fourth Grade Classroom." 2 (2012).

Long, M. H. (2005). Second Language Needs Analysis. New York: Cambridge University Press.

Macaro, E. (2003). Teaching and Learning a second language. London: The Bath Press.

Meara, P. (1980). Vocabulary acquisition: A neglected aspect of language learning. Language Teaching and Linguistics: Abstracts: 221-246

Nation, I. S. P. (1990). Teaching and learning vocabulary. Boston, Mass: Heinle&Heinle Publishers.

Nation,P.(2001). Learning vocabulary in another language. Cambridge. Cambridge University Press

O‟Malley, J. & Chamot, A., (1990). Learning Strategies in Second Language Acquisition.

Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.

Oxford(1989).Language Learning Strategies around the World: Crosscultural Perspectives. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press.

Oxford, Nation,I.S.P. (1978). “What is it?”A Multipurpose Language Reaching Technique. English Teaching Forum.

Oxford, Rebecca. (1990). Language Learning Strategies: What Every Teacher Should Know. New York: Newbury House Publishers.

40

Oxford, R. L. (2003). Language learning styles and strategies: An overview. Learning Styles and Strategies Oxford,GALA. pp. 1-25.

P.H. Matthews. (2000). Oxford Concise Dictionary of Linguistics. Shanghai: Shanghai Foreign Language Education Press, 209.

Robinson, P. (1991). ESP Today: A Practitioner's Guide. New York: Prentice Hall.

Schmitt, N. (1997). „Vocabulary learning strategies‟in N. Schmitt and M.McCarthy (eds): Vocabulary:Description, Acquisition and Pedagogy. Cambridge:Cambridge University Press.

Stoffer, F. L. (1995). Project work: A means to promote language content. English Teaching Forum, 35(4), 2.

Tarone, E. (1981) Decoding a Primary Language: the Crucial Role of Strategic Competence. Paper presented at the conference on Interpretive. Strategies in Language University of

Lancaster.

Warschauer, M. (1995). E-Mail for English teaching. Alexandria, VA: TESOL Publications.

Wilkins, D. (1972). Linguistics in language teaching. London: Arnold.

Zhihong, Y. (2000). Learning words. Forum, 38(3). Retrieved October 13, 2005, from http://exchange.state.gov/forum/vols/vol38/no3/p18.htm.