CHAPTER 3 METHODOLOGY
In this chapter, the researcher would discuss the methodology that was used by the researcher to conduct the research on the fourth semester students’ writing
competency in writing a topic sentence and supporting sentences in an argumentative paragraph in their Writing V class of English Language Education Study Program,
Sanata Dharma University. This chapter consists of six parts. The first part is method that discusses the type of research chosen to find the answer to the research
questions. The second part is research participants, which elaborates the subject of the research as well as the sampling method. The third part is research instruments.
This part shows the research tools that were used by the researcher to gather the data from the research participants. The fourth part is data gathering technique, which
discusses the techniques that were used by the researcher to gather the research data. The fifth part is data analysis technique, which gives the guidelines for the
researcher on how the findings were analyzed to answer the research questions. And the last part is research procedure, which summarizes the procedure taken in
conducting the study.
3.1. METHOD
The method that was used by the researcher to find out the students’ writing competency in writing a topic sentence and the supporting sentences in an
argumentative paragraph was a text analysis. The researcher’s curiosity in knowing the students’ writing competency in writing a topic sentence and supporting
sentences in an argumentative paragraph could be easily answered by measuring and analyzing the students’ result in making a topic sentence and supporting sentences in
an argumentative paragraph. Thus, the researcher asked the fourth semester students in Writing IV classes to write an argumentative paragraph which would be analyzed
using the instrument. The instruments would be explained in sub-chapter 3.3. In this test, the researcher used diagnostic-test to identify students’ strengths
and weaknesses. Diagnostic test was intended primarily to ascertain what further teaching is necessary Hughes, 1989. The diagnostic test was used here by the
researcher to know the fourth semester students’ writing competency in writing a topic sentence and supporting sentences as the basic requirement to formulate an
argumentative writing, which is taught in Writing V. It meant that the researcher asked the students to write an argumentative paragraph using the topics provided by
the researcher. The researcher gave two topics which could be chosen by the students to give the boundaries of the subject matter. The topics were in the form of
a word or a clause and not a sentence to make sure that the researcher did not give any clue for the participants in writing a topic sentence. The topics which were given
to the participants were “The Educational Level of Indonesian President” and “Polygamy”. These topics were chosen with consideration of the fact that the
researcher wanted to measure the students writing competency in writing a topic sentence and supporting sentences in an argumentative paragraph. Thus the topics
chosen were debatable topics.
3.2. RESEARCH PARTICIPANTS
The participants of this study were the fourth semester students of English Language Education Study Program, Sanata Dharma University who were attending
Writing IV classes. The fourth semester students were chosen based on some reasons: First, the researcher assumed that the fourth semester students had the
experiences in writing a well-organized paragraph with a clear topic sentence and supporting sentences because they had taken Writing I, Writing II, and Writing III.
They had also taken other subjects such as Structure I, Structure II, and Structure III which help them write a good composition. Second, because they were studying
Writing IV in this semester, and they would study about argumentative writing in Writing V in which a topic sentence and supporting sentences should be clearly
stated and developed. Considering the limitation on the manpower, ability, chance, and time
factors, the researcher could not analyze all the members of fourth semester students. Therefore, the researcher used cluster random sampling. “When the population is
spread out in some clusters which each of cluster has the same or almost the same characteristics, one or some clusters can be taken randomly as the sample”
Translated from Gulo, 2002: 93. Thus, the samples taken for the random sampling were not based on the total population of the fourth semester students, but based on
the clusters or in this case were the Writing IV classes. There were five classes of Writing IV, and the researcher only chose two classes randomly to represent the
whole fourth semester students. The two classes were considered enough to represent the whole population with the assumption that each class had the same or
Kategori