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CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION
This study would like to firstly, investigate the relationship between web- based grammar practice and grammatical competence as well as writing skill and
secondly describe and interpret the contribution of web-based grammar practice to students‟ grammatical competence and writing skill in Writing 1 course. This
chapter provides the research background, problem identification, problem limitation, research questions, research objectives, and research benefits.
A. Research Background
Nowadays, English as a second language is not only taught as an object of study, but also as a system of communication Weigle 2002. It means that
English is not only taught as a matter of knowledge, but also as skills, which are communication skills. The English skills taught at school cover listening,
speaking, reading, and writing. As a means of communication, speaking and writing are the skills that are needed and used to share ideas and knowledge.
However, in terms of teaching and learning speaking and writing, writing is still perceived as a difficult subject to learn since there are many writing aspects that
need to be considered Brown 2004. In the other hand, speaking is considered to be easier than writing, since the main point of speaking is the message. It means
as long as the message can be conveyed and understood among the speakers, then it can be called as successful speaking. Brown 2004 proposes two aspects of
writing skills, which are micro and macro skills. Micro-skills in writing cover grammatical system pattern and rule within sentences, while macro-skills include
the construction among sentences. Thus, successful writing includes the ability in using correct organization, control of content, grammatical devices, mechanics
spelling, punctuation, and capitalization, and word choice vocabulary. Writing is categorized into some different levels. One of the levels is
sentence writing. Sentence writing is the basic level of writing where students learn the inner aspects or elements within sentences. A sentence is composed by a
group of words that are combined grammatically, while the combination of one sentence and another sentence can create compound and complex sentences
Birjandi
et al.
2004. Those are what the students learn in Writing 1 course. This course focuses on the grammatical aspects of sentences. It aims at developing
students‟ skills in identifying the inner and outer elements of sentences and creating their own sentences grammatically based on the topics provided.
However, learning grammar can be frustrating since it deals with numerous elements. Teachers may also find difficulty in teaching those various elements
within limited time provided in traditional learning. Therefore, there is a need to find an alternative way in teaching and learning grammar, especially in sentence
writing. The use of technology in education is growing recently. E-learning is used
as a new way of teaching. As suggested by Masie
et al.
2000, e-learning deals with both electronic media and internet Munir 2009. It integrates the use of
CALL Computer Assisted Language Learning and online internet. Kakasevski
et al.
2008 assert that the advantage of e-learning is in its ability in making learning process independent of time and location or place. One of the
applications of e-learning is shown by the number of websites that are available PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
for teaching and learning activities. Those websites offer modern learning processes that can facilitate both the students and the teachers.
ELTGallery
is the website used in Writing 1 course that is designed to facilitate the regular learning process in the classroom. Related to the goal of
Writing 1, which is to develop students‟ skills in writing sentences grammatically,
ELTGallery
provides grammar practices for the students that can be conducted at any time and any place. These grammar practices include the micro-skills of
writing, which are sentence agreement, tense, article and determiner, personal pronoun, question, noun modifier, auxiliary verb, perfect and continuous,
compound and complex sentence, relative clause, noun clause, and passive voice. It is believed that by conducting the grammar practices continuously, students will
be able to write sentences grammatically.
ELTGallery
enables the students not only to do exercises or practices but also to comment to their peers‟ work.
Therefore it will enable the students to learn independently outside the class. However, teachers and students are still inexperienced with the latest technology
and unresponsive to implement technology in the learning process Mumtaz 2000, Ertmer 2006, Pope
et al.
2002. Thus, implementing technology should be followed by evaluating it. In addition, the learning advantages provided by
ELTGallery
should be clearly stated to the students so that they will be able to make use of
ELTGallery
beneficially. The principles of the integration between CALL and online learning provide
benefits or advantages for the students. One principle of CALL is learner autonomy.
Edge and Wharton defines learner autonomy as learners‟ responsibility in engaging in their own learning Tomlinson 1998. Similarly, Sinclair 2000
suggests that autonomy involves the willingness to be responsible in the learning process. Furthermore, Sinclair 2000 also asserts that to develop learner
autonomy, learners should be aware of the learning process. This awareness includes the reflection and decision-making process conducted by the learners
Borg 2012. It is conducted by reflecting the learning values into their own experience. By developing autonomous learning, learners will be able to control
and monitor their own progress, and decide what they should do to improve and develop their progress Lloyd 2000. Autonomous learning also deals with
learner-centered learning, in which it covers individual as well as social dimension in creating independent and collaborative learning OlesovaMeloni in
Hubbard Levy 2006. Taber 2006 also asserts that learner construct knowledge through collaborative interaction with others. In additional, learning
should result from social interaction among learners through communication, activities, and interactions with others Swan 2005. Jones and Youngs suggest
that autonomous and collaborative learning is the key of successful online learning Hubbard Levy 2006. Therefore, by implementing
ELTGallery
, students will be able to develop their autonomous learning and collaborative
learning with their peers. They will be able to work independently without being restricted by time and place. It means that they can monitor their progress and
evaluate their learning by themselves. Related to the advantages provided by using web-based learning,
ELTGallery
is expected to be able to enhance students‟ autonomous and collaborative learning in conducting the grammar practices. Grammar cannot be
separated from writing since grammar is the one of the significant elements in PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI
successful writing. Learning grammar can lead to the improvement of writing Hudson 2001, Fearn and Farnan 2007. Therefore,
ELTGallery
provides online grammar practices that are beneficial for the students in improving their writing
skills. It is believed that by conducting these grammar practices autonomously and collaboratively, students will be able to write their own sentences grammatically
and improve their writing skills. For that reason, this study is conducted to find out the relationship between
web-based grammar practice and grammatical competence as well as writing skill. It also investigates the contribution of the grammar practices offered in
ELTGallery
to the students‟ grammatical competence and writing achievement in Writing 1 course. It is then analyzed to validate the positive influence of web-
based grammar practice in Writing 1 course. T he data gathered are the students‟
scores of the grammar practices, grammar scores and sentence complexity in passage writing tasks, passage writing, and final achievement in Writing 1 course.
This study conducts quantitative research to identify the relationship between web-based grammar practice in
ELTGallery
and students‟ grammatical competence and writing skill. It also applies qualitative research to dig more
about how
ELTGallery
, especially grammar practices, contribute to students‟ grammar competence as well as writing ability. It is expected that web-based
grammar practice has positive relationship and contribution to the students‟
grammatical competence and writing skill and that the application improves students‟ writing skills. The positive contribution of the grammar practices will
provide new instrument to assess students‟ grammatical mastery, especially in sentence writing.
B. Problem Identification
