Overcoming My Difficulties in Teaching English Vocabulary to 11 Children Aged 3-4 Years Old in Pre-Kindergarten Class at BPK Penabur.
ABSTRACT
Bahasa Inggris adalah salah satu bahasa internasional yang memiliki
peran penting di dunia, termasuk di Indonesia saat ini. Oleh karena itu, sedari
taman kanak-kanak, anak-anak sudah mulai belajar Bahasa Inggris. Ketika
saya magang di TKK BPK Penabur, saya menemukan masalah dalam
mengajar vocabulary Bahasa Inggris. Hal ini sangat mengganggu dalam
proses mengajar.
Ada beberapa penyebab yang timbul dari permasalahan yang saya hadapi
di TKK BPK Penabur. Penyebab yang pertama adalah kurangnya
pengalaman saya dalam mengajar. Kedua, saya tidak menggunakan metode
yang efektif dalam mengajar vocabulary, dan yang ketiga saya sulit
menemukan materi yang tepat untuk mengajar.
Selain dari penyebab, masalah ini memiliki dua dampak yaitu, pertama kelas
menjadi ribut, kedua anak-anak menjadi kehilangan minat dalam pelajaran.
Saya juga menganalisis beberapa pilihan solusi yang sesuai untuk mengatasi
permasalahan saya. Solusi pertama saya akan menyiapkan diri sebelum
mengajar, kedua saya akan mencari materi yang tepat untuk anak-anak. Dan
ketiga saya akan menggunakan alat bantu visual dan permainan untuk
mengajar vocabulary. Solusi-solusi tersebut juga memiliki dampak positif dan
negatif.
Saya memilih seluruh pilihan solusi yang dianalisis untuk mengatasi
permasalahan ini. Saya akan mempersiapkan diri sebelum mengajar. Selain
itu, saya akan mencari materi yang tepat dan menggunakan beberapa teknik
untuk mengajar vocabulary seperti menggunakan alat peraga dan permainan.
Solusi tersebut dapat membantu saya dalam mengajarkan Bahasa Inggris
dengan baik dan efektif.
Maranatha Christian University
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ABSTRACT …………………………………………………………………...… i
DECLARATION OF ORIGINALITY ………………………………………….. ii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ……………………………………………………. iii
TABLE OF CONTENTS …………………………………………………...…. iv
CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION …………………………………………….
A. Background of the Study
B. Identification of the Problem
C. Objectives and Benefits of the Study
D. Description of the Institution
E. Method of the Study
F. Limitation of the Study
G. Organization of the Term Paper
1
CHAPTER II. PROBLEM ANALYSIS …………………………………….
6
CHAPTER III. POTENTIAL SOLUTIONS …………………………...…
9
CHAPTER IV. CONCLUSION …………………………………………..
15
BIBLIOGRAPHY
APPENDICES:
A. FLOWCHART
B. THE TRANSCRIPTION OF THE INTERVIEW
Maranatha Christian University
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
A. Background of Study
English as a foreign language is very important today. Since kindergarten,
children have already learned English. Nowadays, some English courses
have classes for kindergarten learners. It is because many people start to
realize the importance of learning English at early age. According to Kareem,
childhood is a potential time to learn. Good education must be given to the
children for their future. In addition, providing English education at early age
can make children learn foreign language skills in more fun and easy way
(par. 8). However, teaching English to the young learner is not an easy job for
me. According to Sutrisno, “Teaching English to young learners is not that
easy, though interesting. Teaching English to young learners needs good
teaching skills, creativity, thorough preparation, and patience.” (par. 6).
Some children may face difficulty in learning vocabulary. Therefore by
teaching English started with simple vocabulary, I want to help the children
especially aged 3 – 4 years old to understand English vocabulary, because
1
Maranatha Christian University
learning vocabulary is really important. This term paper will discuss about my
difficulty in teaching English vocabulary to 11 children, 8 boys and 3 girls,
aged 3-4 years old in pre-kindergarten class at BPK Penabur.
The first time I taught English vocabulary there, my first task is to be a
teacher assistant. I must help the teacher to deliver the lessons. Initially I was
just assigned to distribute books and help children who have difficulty in
learning. After two until three sessions, I was assigned to teach English
lessons alone unaccompanied by the English teacher. I was nervous and
afraid to make mistakes during the teaching. Then I also found that some
children could not answer my question during the lesson. It happen because
they did not understand the lesson.
In this term paper, I am interested in analyzing this problem because I
want to improve my teaching skill especially in teaching vocabulary to
children, so that they can understand the material well. Besides, based on my
internship experiences, I think teaching vocabulary is quite challenging.
Therefore, I am going to analyze this problem to find the best solutions.
B. Identification of the Problem
The analysis of this problem is formulated in the following research
questions:
1. Why did I have difficulties in teaching vocabulary for kindergarten?
2. How did this problem influence the teaching and learning
vocabulary?
2
Maranatha Christian University
3. How could I overcome my difficulties in teaching vocabulary for
kindergarten?
C. Objectives and Benefits of the Study
The objective of the study are to find the causes of the problem of my
difficulties in teaching vocabulary in English to pupils of BPK Penabur,
to find out how this problem influences the teaching and learning
vocabulary process, and to find the best solutions to overcome my
difficulties in teaching vocabulary to children.
The benefit of the study for me as the writer is I can use the best
potential solutions for my career in the future. Moreover, the readers and
the institution will also get some information and explanation concerning
how to overcome the problem in teaching English vocabulary.
D. Description of Institution
I did an interview with Ms. Leticia as an English teacher at TKK BPK
Penabur Pasirkaliki 164 Bandung to find the information about BPK
Penabur school institutions at Pasirkaliki 164 Bandung. TKK BPK Penabur
Pasirkaliki 164 was established on July 9, 2012. It is a widening class of
TKK BPK Penabur 246 Bandung. In the first year, TKK BPK Penabur
Bandung 164 has had 40 students consisting of 13 Toddler students, 17
pre-kindergarten students, and 10 K1 students. TKK BPK Penabur
Pasirkaliki 164 Bandung is led by Mrs. Indriane Atmadja who is also the
principal of the TKK BPK Penabur 246 Bandung.The number of teachers
3
Maranatha Christian University
working at TKK BPK Penabur Pasirkaliki 164 Bandung is 10 teachers,
consisting of: 3 classroom teachers, 1 religion teacher, 1 mandarin
teacher, 1 music and sport teacher, 1 admin teachers, and extracurricular
teachers. The education system in TKK BPK Penabur Pasirkaliki uses the
national curriculum, and the lessons are delivered in Indonesian and
English. The English is used to say greetings, give simple commands,
prayers, and sing songs. This institution has a vision, mission and also
motto. The vision of TKK BPK Penabur is to be a Christian educational
institution which excels in faith, knowledge and service. Their mission is to
develop the learners, potentials optimally through qualified education and
teaching based on Christian values. Moreover, TKK BPK Penabur also
has a motto which is faith, knowledge, and service.
E. Method of the study
The data for this study is based on my teaching experiences in BPK
Penabur during my internship from 07 January 2013 until 07 February
2013, and the interview with Ms Leticia, the English teacher of the school.
The data for library research are taken from electronic sources and printed
source. The data that I found is used to analyze the causes, the effects
and the potential solutions.
F. Limitation of the Study
In the research, the subjects are me, as the assistant teacher at
4
Maranatha Christian University
BPK Penabur, and 11 children, aged 3-4 years old as pupils in TKK
BPK Penabur. The period of teaching is from 07 January - 07
February. The respondent of the interview is Ms Leticia as the English
teacher at BPK Penabur. The focus of the study is teaching English
vocabulary to the 11 pupils .
G. Organization of The Term Paper
This term paper is divided into several chapters. The first part of this
term paper is Abstract, the overall summary of the final paper written in
Indonesian. Second is the Declaration of Originality, and then the next
parts are Acknowledgements and Table of Contents. Chapter One is the
Introduction, containing Background of the Study, Identification of the
Problem, Objectives and Benefits of the Study, Description of Institution,
Method of the Study, Limitation of the Study, and then Organization of The
Term Paper.
Chapter Two is about Problem Analysis, in this chapter I will explain
the causes and the effects of my problem. Chapter Three is about
Potential Solutions to overcome my problem. In Chapter Four I will explain
about the conclusion of the analysis. The last part is the Bibliography and
Appendices which contain the flowchart and the transcription of the
interview with Ms. Leticia.
5
Maranatha Christian University
CHAPTER IV
CONCLUSION
Before presenting the best solution for the problem, I would like to present the
summary of the previous chapters. The problem that I discuss is in teaching
English vocabulary to 11 children consists of: 8 boys and 3 girls aged 3-4 years old
in pre-kindergarten class at BPK Penabur. There are 3 causes of the problem, first
cause is I lacked of teaching experiences. The second cause is I did not use an
effective method in teaching vocabulary to the children. The third cause is I felt
difficult to find appropriate materials for those children. There are also 2 effects of
the problem. First, The class became noisy. Second, The children lost their
interest. Besides the causes and effect of the problem, there are three potential
solutions to solve my problem. The potential solutions to the problem are I will
prepare myself before teaching the lesson, I will find appropriate material for
children, I will using visual aids and games to teach vocabulary.
My chosen solution is combining all of the potential solutions. The reason why I
choose all of the potential solutions is because they support each other.
First I will prepare myself before teaching the lesson, so that I can give a better
instruction to the students. Then, I will find appropriate material for children.
The last one is I will using visual aids and games to teach vocabulary, I will use
games to review the lesson before they do the exercise. Each of the potential
15
Maranatha Christian University
solutions will support the other potential solutions, as a result, teaching English
vocabulary will be easier, more effective and more fun for both the teacher and the
students.
16
Maranatha Christian University
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Printed Sources
Harmer, Jeremy. How to Teach English. England,1998.
Paul, David. Teaching English to children in Asia. Hongkong, 2003.
Electronic Sources
“A Good Preschool for Your Child.” Naeyc. 5 November 2013.
.
Appelbaum, Maryln. “How to Handle Children Who Are Disruptive.” Sagepub. 22
October 2013.
.
Brain, Marshall.” Emphasis on Teaching.” 2003. 20 May 2014.
Carey, Nina.” Journals.” December 1992. 02 July 2014.
Maranatha Christian University
Freeman, Kate.” Chatting With Children Activities To Build Children Language
Development From ages 3-5.” 5 November 2012. 20 May 2014.
.
Garreth G, Zalud. “Elementary School Teachers’ Out Of Pocket
Expenditures.” 2008. 6 January 2013.
.
“Good Teaching Practice.” Flinders. 2003. 30 December 2013.
.
Isenberg, J.P. “Developmentally Appropriate Materials for Preschool and
Kindergarten Children (Ages 3-6).” Education 20 July 2010. 22 October 2013.
.
Joel, “10 Steps to Becoming a Great Teacher.” Teaching Community. 30 October
2013. .
Maranatha Christian University
Lowry, Lauren. “Build Your Child’s Vocabulary.” 2011. 02 July 2014.
Mike,Rose. “Lives On The Boundary.” 2003. 20 May 2014.
.
Pesce, Claudia. “Teaching Kids English: 10 Things to Consider.” 2007. 02 July
2014.
Sutrisno, Adi. “Teaching English to Young Learners: Beneficial or Detrimental?
How Do We Go about It?” Kompasiana.13 June 2013. 7 November 2013.
.
“The Hidden Costs of Teaching.” 28 June 2011. 20 May 2014.
.
“What Teachers Do Every Day.” Experience. 2013. 5 November 2013.
.
Interview
Leticia.Personal Interview.19 February 2013.
Maranatha Christian University
Bahasa Inggris adalah salah satu bahasa internasional yang memiliki
peran penting di dunia, termasuk di Indonesia saat ini. Oleh karena itu, sedari
taman kanak-kanak, anak-anak sudah mulai belajar Bahasa Inggris. Ketika
saya magang di TKK BPK Penabur, saya menemukan masalah dalam
mengajar vocabulary Bahasa Inggris. Hal ini sangat mengganggu dalam
proses mengajar.
Ada beberapa penyebab yang timbul dari permasalahan yang saya hadapi
di TKK BPK Penabur. Penyebab yang pertama adalah kurangnya
pengalaman saya dalam mengajar. Kedua, saya tidak menggunakan metode
yang efektif dalam mengajar vocabulary, dan yang ketiga saya sulit
menemukan materi yang tepat untuk mengajar.
Selain dari penyebab, masalah ini memiliki dua dampak yaitu, pertama kelas
menjadi ribut, kedua anak-anak menjadi kehilangan minat dalam pelajaran.
Saya juga menganalisis beberapa pilihan solusi yang sesuai untuk mengatasi
permasalahan saya. Solusi pertama saya akan menyiapkan diri sebelum
mengajar, kedua saya akan mencari materi yang tepat untuk anak-anak. Dan
ketiga saya akan menggunakan alat bantu visual dan permainan untuk
mengajar vocabulary. Solusi-solusi tersebut juga memiliki dampak positif dan
negatif.
Saya memilih seluruh pilihan solusi yang dianalisis untuk mengatasi
permasalahan ini. Saya akan mempersiapkan diri sebelum mengajar. Selain
itu, saya akan mencari materi yang tepat dan menggunakan beberapa teknik
untuk mengajar vocabulary seperti menggunakan alat peraga dan permainan.
Solusi tersebut dapat membantu saya dalam mengajarkan Bahasa Inggris
dengan baik dan efektif.
Maranatha Christian University
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ABSTRACT …………………………………………………………………...… i
DECLARATION OF ORIGINALITY ………………………………………….. ii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ……………………………………………………. iii
TABLE OF CONTENTS …………………………………………………...…. iv
CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION …………………………………………….
A. Background of the Study
B. Identification of the Problem
C. Objectives and Benefits of the Study
D. Description of the Institution
E. Method of the Study
F. Limitation of the Study
G. Organization of the Term Paper
1
CHAPTER II. PROBLEM ANALYSIS …………………………………….
6
CHAPTER III. POTENTIAL SOLUTIONS …………………………...…
9
CHAPTER IV. CONCLUSION …………………………………………..
15
BIBLIOGRAPHY
APPENDICES:
A. FLOWCHART
B. THE TRANSCRIPTION OF THE INTERVIEW
Maranatha Christian University
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
A. Background of Study
English as a foreign language is very important today. Since kindergarten,
children have already learned English. Nowadays, some English courses
have classes for kindergarten learners. It is because many people start to
realize the importance of learning English at early age. According to Kareem,
childhood is a potential time to learn. Good education must be given to the
children for their future. In addition, providing English education at early age
can make children learn foreign language skills in more fun and easy way
(par. 8). However, teaching English to the young learner is not an easy job for
me. According to Sutrisno, “Teaching English to young learners is not that
easy, though interesting. Teaching English to young learners needs good
teaching skills, creativity, thorough preparation, and patience.” (par. 6).
Some children may face difficulty in learning vocabulary. Therefore by
teaching English started with simple vocabulary, I want to help the children
especially aged 3 – 4 years old to understand English vocabulary, because
1
Maranatha Christian University
learning vocabulary is really important. This term paper will discuss about my
difficulty in teaching English vocabulary to 11 children, 8 boys and 3 girls,
aged 3-4 years old in pre-kindergarten class at BPK Penabur.
The first time I taught English vocabulary there, my first task is to be a
teacher assistant. I must help the teacher to deliver the lessons. Initially I was
just assigned to distribute books and help children who have difficulty in
learning. After two until three sessions, I was assigned to teach English
lessons alone unaccompanied by the English teacher. I was nervous and
afraid to make mistakes during the teaching. Then I also found that some
children could not answer my question during the lesson. It happen because
they did not understand the lesson.
In this term paper, I am interested in analyzing this problem because I
want to improve my teaching skill especially in teaching vocabulary to
children, so that they can understand the material well. Besides, based on my
internship experiences, I think teaching vocabulary is quite challenging.
Therefore, I am going to analyze this problem to find the best solutions.
B. Identification of the Problem
The analysis of this problem is formulated in the following research
questions:
1. Why did I have difficulties in teaching vocabulary for kindergarten?
2. How did this problem influence the teaching and learning
vocabulary?
2
Maranatha Christian University
3. How could I overcome my difficulties in teaching vocabulary for
kindergarten?
C. Objectives and Benefits of the Study
The objective of the study are to find the causes of the problem of my
difficulties in teaching vocabulary in English to pupils of BPK Penabur,
to find out how this problem influences the teaching and learning
vocabulary process, and to find the best solutions to overcome my
difficulties in teaching vocabulary to children.
The benefit of the study for me as the writer is I can use the best
potential solutions for my career in the future. Moreover, the readers and
the institution will also get some information and explanation concerning
how to overcome the problem in teaching English vocabulary.
D. Description of Institution
I did an interview with Ms. Leticia as an English teacher at TKK BPK
Penabur Pasirkaliki 164 Bandung to find the information about BPK
Penabur school institutions at Pasirkaliki 164 Bandung. TKK BPK Penabur
Pasirkaliki 164 was established on July 9, 2012. It is a widening class of
TKK BPK Penabur 246 Bandung. In the first year, TKK BPK Penabur
Bandung 164 has had 40 students consisting of 13 Toddler students, 17
pre-kindergarten students, and 10 K1 students. TKK BPK Penabur
Pasirkaliki 164 Bandung is led by Mrs. Indriane Atmadja who is also the
principal of the TKK BPK Penabur 246 Bandung.The number of teachers
3
Maranatha Christian University
working at TKK BPK Penabur Pasirkaliki 164 Bandung is 10 teachers,
consisting of: 3 classroom teachers, 1 religion teacher, 1 mandarin
teacher, 1 music and sport teacher, 1 admin teachers, and extracurricular
teachers. The education system in TKK BPK Penabur Pasirkaliki uses the
national curriculum, and the lessons are delivered in Indonesian and
English. The English is used to say greetings, give simple commands,
prayers, and sing songs. This institution has a vision, mission and also
motto. The vision of TKK BPK Penabur is to be a Christian educational
institution which excels in faith, knowledge and service. Their mission is to
develop the learners, potentials optimally through qualified education and
teaching based on Christian values. Moreover, TKK BPK Penabur also
has a motto which is faith, knowledge, and service.
E. Method of the study
The data for this study is based on my teaching experiences in BPK
Penabur during my internship from 07 January 2013 until 07 February
2013, and the interview with Ms Leticia, the English teacher of the school.
The data for library research are taken from electronic sources and printed
source. The data that I found is used to analyze the causes, the effects
and the potential solutions.
F. Limitation of the Study
In the research, the subjects are me, as the assistant teacher at
4
Maranatha Christian University
BPK Penabur, and 11 children, aged 3-4 years old as pupils in TKK
BPK Penabur. The period of teaching is from 07 January - 07
February. The respondent of the interview is Ms Leticia as the English
teacher at BPK Penabur. The focus of the study is teaching English
vocabulary to the 11 pupils .
G. Organization of The Term Paper
This term paper is divided into several chapters. The first part of this
term paper is Abstract, the overall summary of the final paper written in
Indonesian. Second is the Declaration of Originality, and then the next
parts are Acknowledgements and Table of Contents. Chapter One is the
Introduction, containing Background of the Study, Identification of the
Problem, Objectives and Benefits of the Study, Description of Institution,
Method of the Study, Limitation of the Study, and then Organization of The
Term Paper.
Chapter Two is about Problem Analysis, in this chapter I will explain
the causes and the effects of my problem. Chapter Three is about
Potential Solutions to overcome my problem. In Chapter Four I will explain
about the conclusion of the analysis. The last part is the Bibliography and
Appendices which contain the flowchart and the transcription of the
interview with Ms. Leticia.
5
Maranatha Christian University
CHAPTER IV
CONCLUSION
Before presenting the best solution for the problem, I would like to present the
summary of the previous chapters. The problem that I discuss is in teaching
English vocabulary to 11 children consists of: 8 boys and 3 girls aged 3-4 years old
in pre-kindergarten class at BPK Penabur. There are 3 causes of the problem, first
cause is I lacked of teaching experiences. The second cause is I did not use an
effective method in teaching vocabulary to the children. The third cause is I felt
difficult to find appropriate materials for those children. There are also 2 effects of
the problem. First, The class became noisy. Second, The children lost their
interest. Besides the causes and effect of the problem, there are three potential
solutions to solve my problem. The potential solutions to the problem are I will
prepare myself before teaching the lesson, I will find appropriate material for
children, I will using visual aids and games to teach vocabulary.
My chosen solution is combining all of the potential solutions. The reason why I
choose all of the potential solutions is because they support each other.
First I will prepare myself before teaching the lesson, so that I can give a better
instruction to the students. Then, I will find appropriate material for children.
The last one is I will using visual aids and games to teach vocabulary, I will use
games to review the lesson before they do the exercise. Each of the potential
15
Maranatha Christian University
solutions will support the other potential solutions, as a result, teaching English
vocabulary will be easier, more effective and more fun for both the teacher and the
students.
16
Maranatha Christian University
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Printed Sources
Harmer, Jeremy. How to Teach English. England,1998.
Paul, David. Teaching English to children in Asia. Hongkong, 2003.
Electronic Sources
“A Good Preschool for Your Child.” Naeyc. 5 November 2013.
.
Appelbaum, Maryln. “How to Handle Children Who Are Disruptive.” Sagepub. 22
October 2013.
.
Brain, Marshall.” Emphasis on Teaching.” 2003. 20 May 2014.
Carey, Nina.” Journals.” December 1992. 02 July 2014.
Maranatha Christian University
Freeman, Kate.” Chatting With Children Activities To Build Children Language
Development From ages 3-5.” 5 November 2012. 20 May 2014.
.
Garreth G, Zalud. “Elementary School Teachers’ Out Of Pocket
Expenditures.” 2008. 6 January 2013.
.
“Good Teaching Practice.” Flinders. 2003. 30 December 2013.
.
Isenberg, J.P. “Developmentally Appropriate Materials for Preschool and
Kindergarten Children (Ages 3-6).” Education 20 July 2010. 22 October 2013.
.
Joel, “10 Steps to Becoming a Great Teacher.” Teaching Community. 30 October
2013. .
Maranatha Christian University
Lowry, Lauren. “Build Your Child’s Vocabulary.” 2011. 02 July 2014.
Mike,Rose. “Lives On The Boundary.” 2003. 20 May 2014.
.
Pesce, Claudia. “Teaching Kids English: 10 Things to Consider.” 2007. 02 July
2014.
Sutrisno, Adi. “Teaching English to Young Learners: Beneficial or Detrimental?
How Do We Go about It?” Kompasiana.13 June 2013. 7 November 2013.
.
“The Hidden Costs of Teaching.” 28 June 2011. 20 May 2014.
.
“What Teachers Do Every Day.” Experience. 2013. 5 November 2013.
.
Interview
Leticia.Personal Interview.19 February 2013.
Maranatha Christian University