Improving the eighth grade students` grammar proficiency of simple past tense in writing of Budi Mulia Minggir Junior High School - USD Repository

  IMPROVING THE EIGHTH GRADE STUDENTS’ GRAMMAR PROFICIENCY OF SIMPLE PAST TENSE IN WRITING OF BUDI MULIA MINGGIR JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL A THESIS

  Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements to Obtain the Sarjana Pendidikan Degree in English Language Education

  By

  Bernadeta Ajeng Setia Pratami Student Number: 031214055 ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDUCATION STUDY PROGRAM DEPARTMENT OF LANGUAGE AND ARTS EDUCATION FACULTY OF TEACHERS TRAINING AND EDUCATION SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY YOGYAKARTA 2008

  IMPROVING THE EIGHTH GRADE STUDENTS’ GRAMMAR PROFICIENCY OF SIMPLE PAST TENSE IN WRITING OF BUDI MULIA MINGGIR JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL A THESIS

  Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements to Obtain the Sarjana Pendidikan Degree in English Language Education

  By

  Bernadeta Ajeng Setia Pratami Student Number: 031214055 ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDUCATION STUDY PROGRAM DEPARTMENT OF LANGUAGE AND ARTS EDUCATION FACULTY OF TEACHERS TRAINING AND EDUCATION SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY YOGYAKARTA 2008

  God will make a way Where there seems to be no way He works in ways we cannot see He will make a way for me He will be my guide Hold me closely to His side With love and strength for each new day He will make a way He will make a way By a roadway in the wilderness He’ll lead me And rivers in the desert will I see Heaven and earth will fade But His love will still remain He will do something new today (Don Moen) I dedicate this thesis to: Jesus Christ

  

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  First of all, I would like to praise and thank my beloved Jesus Christ and

  

Mother Mary for the wonderful grace, blessings, and guidance during this

difficult time in completing this thesis.

  I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my major sponsor, F.X.

  

Ouda Teda Ena, S.Pd., M.Pd., who supported me with his beneficial suggestions

  for my thesis during the thesis writing. My sincere gratitude goes to Christina

  

Kristiyani, S.Pd., M.Pd., my co-sponsor. Her support through many revisions

  and corrections kept me positive to go to the next level. I also give thank to Mbak Tari and Mbak Dani for helping me with the administrative matters.

  I am truly indebted to Drs. Indarto, the principle of SMP Budi Mulia Minggir who had permitted me to conduct this research. My special gratitude also go to Gunawan, S.Pd., the English teacher for his willingness to spend his precious time for every discussion, input, and suggestion. I also thank all of the eighth grade students of Budi Mulia Minggir Junior High School as my research participants.

  My sincere gratitude goes to my beloved parents, Ignatius Harto Bsc and

  

Sri Hartini who always gave me support, encouragement and prayer. I also thank

my lovely sister, Brigitta Ayu Dwi Susanti.

  I truthfully want to thank my best friends, Deonisia Tyas Yuniawati S.

  

Pd, Cipox, Joni, Margareta Anggari, Vika, Protz and Defri to be my best

  friends who have given me their care and support. They have been part of my life and I hope that our friendship will never end. I also like to thank my friend at Sanata Dharma, Anastasia Kiki Widiantari S.Pd, Reta ndut, Maria Melani

  

S.Pd, Ema, Maria Dyah Lintang S.Pd, Oliph, Lisa, Dudunk, Ana ‘04, Fajar

’04, Yesy and Indri ’04.

  I also would like to thank to all Altar Tematik Crews, Bagong, Mardiz,

  

Cecep, Bakir, Ermi, The Gu2k man, Bin2, Ning2 and Krete for making me

smile when I was down.

  Finally, I thank those whose names cannot be mentioned one by one, who helped and support me. May God bless them all.

  

TABLE OF CONTENTS

  Page TITLE PAGE .......................................................................................................i APPROVAL PAGES ..........................................................................................ii DEDICATION PAGE .........................................................................................iv STATEMENT OF WORK’S ORIGINALITY .....................................................v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ...................................................................................vi TABLE OF CONTENTS.....................................................................................viii LIST OF TABLES ...............................................................................................xii LIST OF FIGURES .............................................................................................xiii LIST OF APPENDICES .....................................................................................xiv ABSTRACT ........................................................................................................xv

  

ABSTRAK ...…………………………………………………………………….xvi

  CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION A. Background of the Study.........................................................................1 B. Problem Formulation ..............................................................................3 C. Limitation of the Problem ......................................................................3 D. Objectives of the Study ...........................................................................4 E. Benefits of the Study ...............................................................................4 F. Definition of Terms .................................................................................5 CHAPTER II. REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE A. Theoretical Description ..........................................................................8

  1. The Teaching of English ....................................................................9

  a. The Role of Language Teachers....................................................9 1) An Organizer in the Classroom ...............................................9 2) A Counsellor............................................................................10 3) A Monitor ................................................................................10

  5) A Model ....................................................................................11 6) A Resource of Knowledge and Direction.................................. 11

  b. The Steps in Teaching Language .................................................. 11 1) Selection ................................................................................... 12 2) Gradation ................................................................................... 12 3) Presentation .............................................................................. 12 4) Repetition ................................................................................. 12

  c. The factor in Second Language Acquisition .................................. 13 1) Motivation ................................................................................ 13 2) Self- confidence ........................................................................ 13 3) Anxiety ..................................................................................... 14

  d. Some Points in the Teaching of English ....................................... 14 1) Competition versus Co-operation ............................................. 14 2) Pleasure ..................................................................................... 15 3) Taking Pupils into One’s Confidence ....................................... 15

  2. The Teaching of Writing ..................................................................... 15

  a. Writing ........................................................................................... 16

  b. The Six Basic Understanding about the Writing Process ............. 16 1) Students Learn to Write by Writing ......................................... 17 2) Writing Expresses Thoughts by Writing .................................. 17 3) Students Learn to Write by Reading.......................................... 17 4) Writing is Difficult .................................................................... 18 5) Writing can be Taught ............................................................. 18 6) Writing is a Way of Learning in All Classrooms ...................... 18

  c. Teaching Writing for the Second Year Students of Junior High School.................................................................................... 19

  3. The Teaching of Grammar .................................................................. 19

  a. Grammar ........................................................................................ 19

  b. The Principle in Teaching Grammar ............................................. 21 1) Integrating both Inductive and Deductive Methods ................. 21 2) Using Tasks to Make Relate between Grammatical Form

  and Communicative Function ................................................. 21 3) Focusing on the Development of Procedural rather than Declarative Knowledge ......................................... 22 c. The Nature of Grammar ................................................................ 22

  3. Observation Sheet ............................................................................... 36

  2. Analysis on the cycles .......................................................................... 40

  c. The Type of Verbs Used in Simple Past Tense ............................... 39

  b. The Pattern of Simple Past Tense .................................................. 38

  a. The Usage of Simple Past Tense ..................................................... 38

  1. Analysis on the students’ grammar proficiency.................................... 38

  E. Data Analysis Techniques ....................................................................... 38

  D. Data Gathering Technique ........................................................................ 37

  2. The ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines .................................................... 35

  1) Grammar is an Area of Knowledge........................................... 22 2) When We Say something is Grammatical, We

  1. The Researcher as the Instrument ........................................................ 34

  CHAPTER III. METHODOLOGY A. Research Method .................................................................................. 32 B. Research Participants................................................................................. 33 C. Research Instruments................................................................................. 34

  B. Theoretical Framework.............................................................................. 30

  5. Classroom Action Research ................................................................ 26

  4. Picture Stories as an Aid to Teaching Writing .................................... 25

  e. Common Mistakes of Teaching Grammar ................................... 24

  d. The Learning of Grammar ............................................................. 23 1) Grammar is Acquired Naturally .............................................. 23 2) Grammar Structures are Acquired in a Set Order …………… 24

  Mean that it is Accurate ............................................................ 23 3) Grammar is Arbitrary ............................................................... 23

  F. Research Procedure .................................................................................. 40

  1. Observation .......................................................................................... 41

  2. Reflection ............................................................................................. 41

  3. Planning ............................................................................................... 42

  4. Action ................................................................................................... 42

  CHAPTER IV. RESEARCH FINDINGS AND DISCUSSIONS A. Research Findings and Discussions .......................................................... 43

  1. The First Cycle ..................................................................................... 43

  a. Observation ..................................................................................... 44

  b. Reflection ........................................................................................ 45

  c. Planning............................................................................................ 49

  d. Action ............................................................................................... 51

  2. The Second Cycle ................................................................................ 54

  a. Observation ...................................................................................... 55

  b. Reflection ....................................................................................... 55

  c. Planning............................................................................................ 56

  d. Action. .............................................................................................. 56

  CHAPTER V. CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS A. Conclusions ............................................................................................... 60 B. Suggestions................................................................................................. 62

REFERENCES.................................................................................................... 64

APPENDICES ..................................................................................................... 65

  

LIST OF TABLES

Table 3.1 Sentence Pattern that Used Full Verb ...……………………….

  39 Table 3.2 Sentence Pattern that Used Past to be .………………………..

  39 Table 4.1 The Errors of Students’ Writing Product before and after Imple mentation of the First Cycle ………………………………….

  54 Table 4.2 The Errors of Students’ Writing Product after the Implementation in the First Cycle and the Implementation in the Second Cycle …………………………………………………………..

  58

  

LIST OF FIGURES

  Figure Page 2.1 The Action-Reflection Cycle (Riding, Fowell, and Phil, 1995) ………...

  28 2.2 Harmer’s Action Research Cycle (Harmer, 2002: 40) ………………….

  30 3.1 The Action-Reflection Cycle (Riding, Fowell, and Phil, 1995) ………...

  41

LIST OF APPENDICES

  Page Appendix 1. Letter of Inquiry to Conduct a Research ………………..

  66 Appendix 2. Letter of Recommendation that the Research has been Con ducted …………………………………………………….

  68 Appendix 3. The Example of Students’ Errors in Writing ……………

  69 Appendix 4. The Percentage Errors of Students’ Writing Product before the Implementation …….....………..................................

  72 Appendix 5. The Percentage Errors of Students’ Writing Product after the Implementation in the First Cycle ………………….

  73 Appendix 6. The Percentage Errors of Students’ Writing Product after the Implementation in the Second cycle ………….….…

  74 Appendix 7 The Students’ Writing Product ...…………………………

  75 Appendix 8. Syllabus ………………………………………………….

  91 Appendix 9. Lesson Plans …………………………………………….

  93 Appendix 10. Teaching Materials ……………………………………… 104 Appendix 11. The ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines of Writing……….. 118 Appendix 12. Observation Sheet ……………………………………… 120

  

ABSTRACT

  Ajeng Setia Pratami, Bernadeta. 2008. Improving the Eighth Grade Students’

  

Grammar Proficiency of Simple Past Tense in Writing of Budi Mulia Minggir

Junior High School. Yogyakarta: English Language Education Study Program,

  Sanata Dharma University.

  The research focused on how to improve the eighth grade students’ grammar proficiency of simple past tense in writing. This research was aimed at finding out the students’ grammar proficiency of simple past tense in writing and at proposing the appropriate teaching strategy to improve the students’ grammar proficiency of simple past tense in writing. There were two problems in this research. The first was what the eighth grade students’ grammar proficiency of simple past tense in writing of Budi Mulia Minggir Junior High School was. The second was how the eighth grade students’ grammar proficiency of simple past tense in writing of Budi Mulia Minggir Junior High School can be improved.

  The researcher discovered some problems occurring in the class which were related to the students’ grammar proficiency of simple past tense in writing. First, most of the students had difficulties in writing their past experience in at least four sentences. Second, the students could not write a good narrative accurately in writing because they had no sufficient knowledge of simple past tense. The students had not yet mastered the simple past tense. They did not know the past verb form in the simple past tense. In fact, writing should be grammatically correct. Third, most of the students already had ideas in their minds but they could not put the ideas into good writing. The researcher conducted Classroom Action research with the eighth grade students of Budi Mulia Minggir as the subjects to solve the research problems. The number of participants was five out of twenty-four students of the eighth grade students of Budi Mulia

  

Minggir Junior High School. Two cycles were conducted in this Classroom

  Action Research. The researcher was as the research instrument in order to gain the data. Besides, the observation sheet was employed also to obtain the data.

  At the initial of the research, the researcher discovered that the majority of the students were intermediate low level students in writing. The five students were intermediate low level student in writing and they were selected as the subjects of the research. The researcher employed the model of narrative text with the picture story which enabled the teacher to use both inductive and deductive method in the first and second cycle. After reflecting on the fact-findings, five students improved their grammar proficiency of simple past tense in writing. Five students made progress. They were in intermediate mid level. They could already write with a few frequent errors of simple past tense in writing. So, the researcher concluded that the inductive and deductive method were effective to improve the eighth grade students’ grammar proficiency of simple past tense in writing of Budi Mulia Minggir Junior High School.

  

ABSTRAK

  Ajeng Setia Pratami, Bernadeta. 2008. Improving the Eighth Grade Students’

  

Grammar Proficiency of Simple Past Tense in Writing of Budi Mulia Minggir

Junior High School. Yogyakarta: Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris, Universitas Sanata

  Dharma.

  Penelitian ini menitikberatkan pada bagaimana cara untuk memperbaiki kecakapan siswa kelas delapan dalam tata bahasa simple past tense dalam menulis berbahasa Inggris di SMP Budi Mulia Minggir. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui tingkat kecakapan siswa kelas delapan dalam tata bahasa simple past tense dalam menulis bahasa Inggris dan untuk mengusulkan strategi mengajar yang tepat untuk memperbaiki kecakapan siswa kelas delapan dalam tata bahasa simple past tense dalam menulis bahasa Inggris di SMP Budi Mulia Minggir. Dalam penelitian ini terdapat dua pokok permasalahan. Permasalahan yang pertama yaitu apa tingkat kecakapan siswa kelas delapan dalam tata bahasa simple past tense dalam menulis bahasa Inggris di SMP Budi Mulia Minggir. Permasalahan yang kedua yaitu bagaimana tingkat kecakapan siswa kelas VIII dalam tata bahasa simple past tense dalam menulis bahasa Inggris di SMP Budi Mulia Minggir dapat diperbaiki.

  Peneliti menemukan beberapa masalah yang muncul di kelas yang berkaitan dengan kecakapan siswa dalam tata bahasa simple past tense dalam menulis bahasa Inggris. Pertama, kebanyakan siswa mepunyai kesulitan dalam menulis pengalaman mereka sekurang- kurangnya empat kalimat. Mereka mempunyai kesulitan dalam mengungkapkan pengalaman yang mereka lakukan pada hari kemarin dalam bentuk tulisan. Kedua, siswa tidak dapat menulis sebuah cerita narrative secara akurat dalam menulis bahasa Inggris karena mereka tidak mempunyai pengetahuan cukup tentang simple past tense. Siswa belum menguasai simple past tense. Mereka tidak mengetahui bentuk kata kerja lampau dalam simple past tense. Padahal, menulis bahasa Inggris seharusnya tata bahasanya benar. Ketiga, kebanyakan siswa sudah mempunyai ide- ide dalam pikirannya masing- masing tetapi mereka tidak dapat meletakkan ide- ide tersebut ke dalam tulisan yang baik. Peneliti mengadakan sebuah penelitian yang disebut

  

Classroom Action Research , dengan siswa kelas VIII di SMP Budi Mulia Minggir

  sebagai subyek atau partisipan dalam penelitian in untuk menjawab permasalahan tersebut. Jumplah partisipan dalam penelitian ini adalah 5 dari 24 siswa yang diambil dari satu kelas, yaitu kelas VIII. Dalam penelitian ini terdapat dua siklus. Peneliti sebagai alat untuk mendapatkan data. Selain itu, observation sheet juga digunakan untuk mendapatkan data yang di butuhkan.

  Pada awal penelitian, peneliti menemukan bahwa sebagian besar siswa berada pada tingkat menengah. Mereka dipilih menjadi subjek atau partisipan dalam penelitian ini. Peneliti menggunakan model dari narrative teks dengan cerita bergambar yang memungkinkan penggunaan baik metode induktive dan deductive pada siklus pertama dan kedua. Setelah merefleksikan penemuan dari data-data yang diperoleh, kelima murid dapat meningkatkan tingkat kecakapan tata bahasa siswa dalam simple past tense dalam menulis Inggris. Kelima murid tersebut membuat kemajuan. Mereka berada dalam tingkat menengah sedang dengan kesalahan- kesalahan tata bahasa simple past tense yang sedikit dalam menulis Inggris. Peneliti menyimpulkan bahwa metode induktif dan deduktif efektif untuk meningkatkan tingkat kecakapan tata bahasa siswa kelas VIII dalam simple past tense dalam menulis Inggris di SMP Budi Mulia Minggir.

CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION In this chapter, the researcher presents the background of the study, the

  problem formulation, limitation of the problem, the research objectives, the benefits of this research, and definition of terms used in the thesis.

A. Background of the Study

  English is one of the compulsory subjects that has to be learned at school in Indonesia. There are four skills to be focused in teaching English. Those are reading, listening, speaking, and writing. Nevertheless, teachers cannot put aside grammar inasmuch as it plays an essential role in the language. By mastering the grammar of the language, the students are able to write well by producing correct sentences. As stated by Nunan (2003: 154), sentences should be made by using and applying the rules of grammar to make those sentences receivable and understandable. Hence, it is clear that the place of grammar becomes essential for students in order to produce correct sentences. Grammar is also important to support communication. Littlewood (1983: 77) argues that the mastery of grammar is important to support communication. The knowledge of grammar is a basic requirement for using a language since this knowledge provides language users with the frames, rules, and patterns for constructing sentences as well as understanding others. Comprehending the knowledge of how to construct words together and identifying the types of words and word groups in good sentences enable students to communicate with each other clearly and effectively.

  2 Grammar has a big influence on the four English skills such as writing, speaking, reading, and listening. As stated by Walter (2004: 35), grammatical competence is important to be assigned in English skills especially in accurate writing and fluent speaking. While, Paulston and Bratt (1976: 1) also point out that grammar is related to all language English skills since grammar can be found in writing, listening comprehension, speaking and reading. Meanwhile, Hill (1960: 2) states that the grammatical structures that have to be acquired for writing a composition on given picture stories must be considered. Hence, the students must practice the structures needed with the class beforehand. In short, grammar is integrated with writing as one of English skills.

  This thesis discusses the importance of grammar in writing for Junior High School. The researcher has been teaching English Extracurricular for several years in Budi Mulia Minggir Junior High School and discovered a problem related with the students’ grammar mastery in writing. There were some difficulties the students encountered in learning English. They had difficulty in expressing the ideas in the form of writing. In addition, the students could not write a good narrative accurately because they had no sufficient knowledge of simple past tense. Based on informal questions given to the students, grammar was difficult to learn and understand. The researcher also found a fact that the students often made errors when they did grammar exercises, such as getting confused whether they should use simple present or simple past in filling in writing a composition.

  The researcher focuses on the eighth grade students of Junior High School. There are two considerations why the researcher chooses the eighth grade students of Junior High School as the population of interest. First, Junior High School is a Senior High School or Vocational High School. When the students have mastered sufficient proficiency of English from the previous level, they will find it easier to learn English at the next level. Second, the students can prepare themselves to face the exam better. Apparently, the government has stipulated the minimum requirements that must be satisfied by the students so as to pass the final examination. According to the letter of the government, Keputusan Kepala Dinas

  

Pendidikan Propinsi DIY (2008: 16), the standard of minimum scores for certain

  subjects taught at school is 5,25. In response to this, the researcher’s concern is to help the students improve the students’ grammar proficiency of simple past tense in writing.

  B. Problem Formulation

  In relation to the background mentioned before, the problems are formulated as follows:

  1. What is the eighth grade students’ grammar proficiency of simple past tense in writing of Budi Mulia Minggir Junior High School?

  2. How can the eighth grade students’ grammar proficiency of simple past tense in writing of Budi Mulia Minggir Junior High School be improved?

  C. Limitation of the Problem

  It cannot be denied that grammar occupies an important role for students in learning English especially in writing. Understanding grammar enables the students to produce and express the sentences clearly and understandably both in spoken and written way for their listeners or readers. This research focuses on improving students’ grammar proficiency of simple past tense in writing for the

  4 eighth grade students of Budi Mulia Minggir Junior High School. Thus, this research discusses teachers’ way to teach grammar in writing for the students in

  

Budi Mulia Minggir Junior High School. This study is to make the students write

  accurately by using the appropriate past verb forms and past to be (was and were) in simple past tense. The researcher tries to look for what teaching strategy and teaching methods are appropriate for them. It is hoped the teaching strategy could improve their grammar proficiency of simple past tense in writing. This research is limited for the eighth grade students of Budi Mulia Minggir Junior High School of academic year of 2007/2008.

  D. Objectives of the Study

  Considering the formulation of the problems, the objectives of this research are:

  1. To observe the eighth grade students’ grammar proficiency of simple past tense in writing of Budi Mulia Minggir Junior High School.

  2. To propose the teaching strategy to improve the eighth grade students’ grammar proficiency of simple past tense in writing of Budi Mulia Minggir Junior High School.

  E. Benefits of the Study

  After the researcher conducts this research, it is expected to give valuable contribution for the some people as follows:

  1. The researcher By improving students’ grammar proficiency of simple past tense in writing, it is expected the researcher will acquire new experience in applying methods

  2. The teachers It is expected that the eighth grade English teachers of Budi Mulia Minggir Junior High School will be able to look for and apply certain strategies used to improve, motivate, and help the students learn grammar in writing.

  Hopefully, the teachers will teach better in order to solve the students’ problem.

  3. The students For the eighth grade, hopefully the students are able to improve their grammar mastery of simple past tense in writing. The students will also comprehend and understand this language focus, grammar, which is learnt in the learning process easier. Afterwards, they are able to write well by applying grammar appropriately.

F. Definition of Terms

  In this part, the researcher would like to present the definition of terms in this research in order to avoid misunderstanding.

  1. Grammar Richard, Platt and Weber (1985) as cited in Nunan (1999: 7) said that

  “Grammar is a description of structure of a language and the way in which linguistic units such as words and phrases are combined to produce sentences in the language.” According to Littlewood (1983: 77), the mastery of grammar is important to support communication. Grammar is a basic requirement for using a language

  6 since this knowledge provides language users with the frames, rules, and patterns for constructing sentences as well as understanding others.

  In this study, grammar refers to the way how to construct sentences by using words and phrases correctly. It has an important role for the learner in mastering English. Grammar makes the learner know how to make the right sentences by using its rule and its pattern. By having sufficient knowledge of grammar, the students can write well since grammar influences the students’ writing product.

  2. Writing As Nunan (2003: 88) writes in her book, writing is finding ideas and then expressing those ideas by organizing into statements and paragraphs in order.

  Nunan (2003: 88) also adds that the purpose of writing is to express and impress. In this case, writing is as a way to express and impress what ideas, thought, and feelings the writer has in the written form of English. Meanwhile, writing is “a productive skill” (Harmer, 1991: 16) which requires the students to produce a written form of English. In this study, writing refers to students’ ideas, thought and feeling that are expressed in the written form.

  3. Proficiency “Proficiency is level of competence in English” (Davies and Pearse, 2008:

  208). Based on the definition above, proficiency refers to the level of students’ ability in English.

  4. Picture Story Littlewood (1983: 33) states that a picture story is a series of pictures. The pictures are cut up into its separate. There are four pictures in a picture story.

  5. Eighth Grade Junior High School is generally called as SMP (Sekolah Menengah

  

Pertama) . The students entering Junior High School are those who have passed

  the Elementary School. Junior High School is divided into three grades. After one year they learn in the seventh grade of Junior High School, the students will enter the next level, that is, the eighth grade students of Junior High School.

CHAPTER II REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE In this chapter, the researcher presents a discussion on related literature

  which underlies the topic of the research. This chapter is divided into two major parts. In the first major part, the researcher would like to present the theoretical description. It includes some theories which underlie the study. The theories are The Teaching of English, The Teaching of Writing, The Teaching of Grammar, The Classroom Action Research. The second major part is the theoretical framework. In this part, the researcher draws a framework based on her review of the related theories.

A. Theoretical Description

  This section consists of some related theories which are used to support and conduct the accomplishment of this research. As stated in the introduction paragraph, there are five related theories in this study. The first one is about the teaching of English. It includes the principles and techniques in teaching English as second language. The second main part is about the teaching of writing. Then, the third main part is about the teaching of grammar. It covers the definition of grammar, the nature of teaching grammar, the principle in teaching grammar, and common mistakes of teaching grammar. The forth is picture stories as an aid to teach writing. The last one is about the Classroom Action Research (CAR). It discusses the definition of classroom research and the phases of Classroom Action

  9

1. The Teaching of English

  English is one of the compulsory subjects at schools in Indonesia nowadays. For students, English is one of the difficult subjects. In teaching English for Junior High School, there are four skills that should be focused. Those skills are listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Besides, there are many elements to be learned in mastering English such as vocabulary, pronunciation and grammar. Therefore, English is not easy to be learnt by the students.

a. The Role of Language Teachers The teachers hold important role of the success of teaching English.

  Setiyadi (2006: 18-19) points out the roles of language teachers into six roles, the teacher as an organizer in the classroom, the teacher as a counselor, the teacher as a monitor, the teacher as an observer, the teacher as a model, and language teacher functions as a resource of knowledge and direction. The roles are described as follows.

1) An Organizer of the Classroom

  Setiyadi (2006: 18) states that the teachers have to manage the class and make it discipline. It is for creating an affective atmosphere for student. Asking the students questions are a way to create an affective atmosphere so that they are not passive in the classroom activities. Gebhard (1996: 58) also points out that the teachers have to afford to manage the classroom. This attempt can promote interaction among the teacher and the students. To enable the teachers manage the classroom, there are some points the teachers should know to be able to manage

  10 the classroom. The teachers engineer the amount of classroom talk, control the way used to give instructions, make group and pair work, keep learners on talk and make language comprehensible to students.

  2) A Counselor

  As stated by Setiyadi (2006: 18), the teacher functions as a counselor. The teacher must help the students, when they have difficulties. He or she has to solve and answer problems which the learners have. Moreover, the teachers’ role is also to help the learners to master what they learn. Thus, the teacher is as a counselor.

  3) A Monitor

  Setiyadi (2006: 18) says that the teacher functions as a motivator. The teacher should motivate their students. The teacher can give the encouragement to the students by giving compliments. By doing so, the students will motivate. For instance, the teacher can give positive feedback by saying “good”, “very good”, “great job”, or something else when the students can answer questions given with correctly answer. Another example is by giving positive feedback after they do assignments.

  4) An Observer

  As stated by Setiyadi (2006: 18), the teacher as an observer. If the students make some errors, the teacher should point out the errors they have done.

  Afterwards, the teacher tries to solve the problems by giving treatment. Then, the teacher can ask the learners to correct that error.

  5) A Model

  The teacher’s role is as a model for producing correct expressions as stated by Setiyadi (2006: 18). The teacher points out what the errors have been made by the learners. Then, the teacher asks them to correct those errors.

  6) Language Teacher Functions as a Resource of Knowledge and Direction

  The teacher’s role becomes more dominant than the learners as stated by Setiyadi (2006: 19). Moreover, the teacher can choose the materials to be used which are related to the teaching. Gebhard (1996: 58) states that the teacher has the role of “text adapter”. It means the teacher decides the textbooks which are relevant to the lesson.

  Further, Finocchiro (1969: 20) also adds about the role of the teacher. He states that the teacher is not only to transmit his or her knowledge of English but also to give his or her interest in their students as human being, desire for them to learn, and also enthusiasm.

  The roles of the learners are varied. It depends on the role of the teachers. As pointed out by Setiyadi (2006: 19), when the position of a teacher is more active, the learner will be less silent in the classroom and vice versa.

b. The Steps in Teaching Language

  According to Mackey (1975) as cited in Setiyadi (2006: 13) there are four steps that should be included in teaching language. The steps are selection,

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1) Selection

  In teaching English, there are many aspects of a language. Setiyadi (2006: 13) says that the teacher should select which parts that is relevant to the topic. The teacher will find difficulties if he or she teaches the whole parts of a language.

  Besides, it will be effective for the learners to focus on topic given in the learning process. Then, it is hoped they can learn better.

2) Gradation

  The teacher cannot teach the whole parts as pointed out by Setiyadi (2006: 13). Furthermore, the teacher should choose the part and make it in the good order. The learning process which is in a good order will also help students and the teacher.

3) Presentation

  The teacher needs to communicate in transmitting the materials that the teachers wish to teach with their students. It is impossible for the teacher to teach materials chosen without having communication to somebody as stated by Setiyadi (2006: 13). Thus, the teacher uses the part of presentation as a way to communicate.

4) Repetition

  Setiyadi (2006:13) says that the teacher should ask the students to repeat the materials that they have learnt. It is done to make the students comprehend and remember more about the materials that they have learnt. Furthermore, the

  13 teacher should teach language skills with practice. According to Setiyadi (2006: 13) “all skills depend on practice.” Therefore, practice must be included in teaching language. Bright (1970: 4) also has the same opinion with Setiyadi that by doing practice, the students can acquire the skills. The students must practice since it is very important for them.

c. The Factors in Second Language Acquisition There are some factors related to success in second language acquisition.

  Krashen (1982: 31) states the factors in second language acquisition into three. They are factors, motivation, self-confidence, and anxiety. Those factors are described as follows.

1) Motivation

  The learners who have high motivation usually will do the second language acquisition better as said by Krashen (1982: 31). So, if the learners do not have the motivation, they will perform badly. The learners do not pay attention to the teacher. Besides, they might make noise in the class.

2) Self- confidence

  Krashen (1982: 31) states that the learners who have high self-confidence and good self-image would do better in second language acquisition. The learners are not afraid to answer the teacher’s question even though their answer may be wrong. The learners who have high self-confidence also help the teacher to make the classroom atmosphere better.

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3) Anxiety

  It cannot be denied that a learner sometimes feels anxious. Krashen (1982: 31) says that the learner feels anxious in mastering some topic while studying in class. Basically, the learner feels anxious because they do not understand the lesson that is being studied. Having low anxiety can disturb the second language acquisition process, personal involvement or classroom anxiety.

d. Some Points in the Teaching of English

  The success of transferring knowledge in teaching English as second language does not only depend on how far the teacher masters the lesson. He or she must know some language teaching techniques. In accordance with this, as pointed out by Bright (1970: 4-7) the teacher ought to concern some points in the teaching of English. Those points are competition versus co-operation, pleasure, and taking pupils into one’s confidence. Those points are described in the following sections.

1) Competition versus Co-operation

  Bright (1970: 4) says that the pupils feel education is a race which only a few pupils can win. The pupils compete each other in the class in order to be a winner and pass the examination. Nevertheless, education is not a competition. There are some ways to encourage our pupils in learning. Basically, there are two basic attitudes. The first is asking them to work as individually against each other, if it is easy and divisive. The second is helping then to work with each other

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  2) Pleasure

  Enjoyment is one factor that influences the learning as stated by Bright (1970: 5). So, if the learners feel enjoyable, they will perform well. Therefore, the teacher should make the language activities enjoyable. It is expected that the teaching process is not exhausting but the teaching process is enjoyable.

  3) Taking Pupils into One’s Confidence

  The teacher has to teach and explain to the pupils as clearly as the teacher can do as pointed out by Bright (1970: 5). This attempt is to make the pupils learn well and better in class. It also makes the pupils enjoy their language learning activities. Besides, it can maintain their confidence.

2. The Teaching of Writing

  Writing can be used as a way to communicate our ideas, thought, and feelings. In many Junior High Schools, writing is learnt since it is a skill in learning English. In addition, it is written in School Based Curriculum that there are four skills focused and writing is one of them. However, many students think that writing is difficult. As stated in Tiedt’s work (1989: 6), writing is not easy and it needs hard work. The students are expected to be able to produce accurate and correct written work while doing writing activity in the class. That is the problem that most of students have. Thus, it leads them to have low motivation in learning writing. As a result, the English teachers have to know and understand

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a. Writing