An Attitude Analysis Of English Language Learning: A Case Study Of Second-Grade Students Of Natural Science Program At Sma 4 Binjai

AN ATTITUDE ANALYSIS OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNING: A
CASE STUDY OF SECOND-GRADE STUDENTS OF NATURAL SCIENCE
PROGRAM AT SMA 4 BINJAI

A THESIS

BY

NOVA KRISTINA OP. S
REG. NO. 110705027

DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH
FACULTY OF CULTURAL STUDIES
UNIVERSITY OF SUMATERA UTARA
MEDAN 2015

i

AN ATTITUDE ANALYSIS OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNING: A
CASE STUDY OF SECOND-GRADE STUDENTS OF NATURAL SCIENCE
PROGRAM AT SMA 4 BINJAI


A THESIS

BY

NOVA KRISTINA OP. S
REG. NO. 110705027

SUPERVISOR,

CO-SUPERVISOR,

Drs. H. Chairul Husni, M.Ed. TESOL

Drs. Yulianus Harefa, M.Ed. TESOL

NIP. 19570803 198404 1 004

NIP. 19610703 198601 1 001


Submitted to Faculty of Cultural Studies University of Sumatera Utara Medan
in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Sarjana Sastra from
Department of English

DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH
FACULTY OF CULTURAL STUDIES
UNIVERSITY OF SUMATERA UTARA
MEDAN 2015
ii

Approved by the Department of English, Faculty of Cultural Studies University
of Sumatera Utara (USU) Medan as thesis for The Sarjana Sastra Examination.

Head,

Secretary,

Dr. H. Muhizar Muchtar, MS.

Rahmadsyah Rangkuti, MA. Ph.D


NIP. 19541117 198003 1 002

NIP. 19750209 200812 1 002

iii

Accepted by the Board of Examiners in partial fulfillment of requirements for
the degree of Sarjana Sastra from the Department of English, Faculty of
Cultural Studies University of Sumatera Utara, Medan.

The examination is held in Department of English Faculty of Cultural Studies
University of Sumatera Utara on Wednesday, 29th July 2015

Dean of Faculty of Cultural Studies
University of Sumatera Utara

Dr. H. Syahron Lubis, MA
NIP. 19511013 197603 1 001


Board of examiners

Dr. H. Muhizar Muchtar, MS.

_____________

Rahmadsyah Rangkuti, MA. Ph.D

_____________

Dr. H. Syahron Lubis, MA

_____________

Drs. H. Chairul Husni, M.Ed. TESOL

_____________

Drs. H. Umar Mono, Dipl.Trans., M.Hum


_____________

iv

AUTHOR’S DECLARATION

I, NOVA KRISTINA OP. S., DECLARE THAT I AM THE SOLE AUTHOR OF
THIS THESIS EXCEPT WHERE REFERENCE IS MADE IN THE TEXT OF
THIS THESIS. THIS THESIS CONTAINS NO MATERIAL PUBLISHED
ELSEWHERE OR EXTRACTED IN WHOLE OR IN PART FROM A THESIS BY
WHICH I HAVE QUALIFIED FOR OR AWARDED ANOTHER DEGREE. NO
OTHER

PERSON’S

WORK

HAS

BEEN


USED

WITHOUT

DUE

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS IN THE MAIN TEXT OF THIS THESIS. THIS THESIS
HAS NOT BEEN SUBMITTED FOR THE AWARD OF ANOTHER DEGREE IN
ANY TERTIARY EDUCATION.

Signed

:

Date

: July 29th, 2015

v


COPYRIGHT DECLARATION

NAME

: NOVA KRISTINA OP. S

TITLE OF THESIS

: AN

ATTITUDE

ANALYSIS

OF

ENGLISH

LANGUAGE LEARNING: A CASE STUDY OF

SECOND-GRADE

STUDENTS

OF

NATURAL

SCIENCE PROGRAM AT SMA 4 BINJAI
QUALIFICATION

: S-1/ SARJANA SASTRA

DEPARTMENT

: ENGLISH

I AM WILLING THAT MY THESIS SHOULD BE AVAILABLE FOR
REPRODUCTION
DEPARTMENT


AT
OF

THE

DISCRETION

ENGLISH,

FACULTY

OF

THE

LIBRARIAN

OF


CULTURAL

OF

STUDIES,

UNIVERSITY OF SUMATERA UTARA ON THE UNDERSTANDING THAT
USERS ARE MADE AWARE OF THEIR OBLIGATION UNDER THE LAW OF
THE REPUBLIC OF INDONESIA.

Signed

:

Date

: July 29th, 2015

vi


ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

First of all, I would like to express my deep and sincere gratitude to the only
Saviour of mine, Jesus Christ, for He always blesses me abundantly. Even,
blessings in disguise create an unpredictable strength for me during the time of doing
and finishing this thesis of mine. I do not only realize but also truly and honestly
admit that I am nothing without God. Naturally, I can do nothing without Him.
At the time of finishing this thesis, there are many people taking parts.
Therefore, I would like to deliver my great thanks to them as follow:

1. To my beloved daddy, St. Anggiat Op. Sunggu, and mommy, Rosnihati br.
Nainggolan, I thank God for being given a chance to be your daughter. You
always teach me how to be a good and strong girl. You guide me in the dark.
You always advice and remind me to do things for the sake of others. I specially
thank you for strengthening me as long as I did and finished my thesis. I could
do it because of your love, kindness, motivation, and patience, my dear daddy
and mommy. Thank you very much for all things.
2. To my only younger sister, Desi Op. Sunggu, I thank God for your existence in
my life. With a grateful heart, I thank you, dear, for your kindness and patience
to do things at home thus I could concentrate in doing my thesis in time.
3. To my supervisor, Drs. H. Chairul Husni, M.Ed. TESOL, and my cosupervisor, Drs. Yulianus Harefa, M.Ed. TESOL, I would like to say thanks
too for your guidance, motivation and patience during the time I did my thesis.
4. To the Head of English Department, Dr. H. Muhizar Muchtar, MS., and the
Secretary of English Department, Rahmadsyah Rangkuti, MA. Ph.D, I also
thank you for your kindness and patience especially when I did my thesis.
5. To the Dean of Faculty of Cultural Studies, University of Sumatera Utara, Dr.
H. Syahron Lubis, MA, I also thank you for your motivation and advice given
at the end of my struggle in the board examination.
6. To all of my lecturers in the Department of English that I can not name one by
one, I thank you very much for all lessons given and all experiences shared to
me during the time I studied in English Department.

vii

7. To my best and closest friends in English Department, Rinova Simanungkalit,
Anna Simbolon, Mesrani Tumanggor, Dona P. Aritonang, Raja Guntar
Simamora, Ridho Vandi Ambarita, and Dani Saputra Tarigan, I thank God
for permitting me to know all of you, my dear. I am so grateful for all
unforgottenable moments and experiences we could have as long as we are
together thus I could do my thesis enthusiastically.
8. To my small Christian group, Joyful, with Marliana Manik as the leader, I
thank God for your existence in my life. You taught me to be a humble person as
what Jesus Christ always does. I know God more and more in this community. I
always have hope, power and enthusiasm in doing my thesis. Thank you UKM
KMK USU and specially UKM KMK USU UP FIB.
9. To my friends Elisabeth, Igez, Cristine, Shinta, Elsa Glo, and the other names
which I can’t mention one by one, all friends in IMSI 2011, I thank you for all
support and help you gave thus I could also finish my thesis in time.
10. To my Christian community in Binjai, RN-HKBP Binjai and NH-Jalan
Medan 2, I also thank you very much for every second we spent together in
talking about God’s words thus I could be more patient in doing my thesis.
11. To my best English teacher at SMA 4 Binjai, Mr. Amir Alamsyah, SPd, thank
you for your motivation while educating me to know English. I was interested in
English the most because of your integrity. Besides, I would like to thank all
teachers at SMA Negeri 4 Binjai for all lessons taught to me, especially to Mrs.
Merry Simbolon and Mr. Muslim for helping me in doing my research there.
12. To my dear brother, Ardiso Tambunan, who motivated, inspired, advised, and
guided me to be a strong and wise girl, especially to be more patient in doing my
thesis, I would like to deliver my special gratitude to you for every second of
your life dedicated to me. Thanks for being my motivator.
13. To my brother James Pangaribuan, I also thank you for helping me to do my
field research at SMA 4 Binjai.
Medan, July 28th 2015
The Writer

Nova Kristina Op. S
Reg. No. 110705027
viii

ABSTRACT

This thesis entitled “An Attitude Analysis of English Language Learning: A
Case Study of Second-Grade Students of Natural Science Program at SMA 4 Binjai”
is designed to enrich the English teachers’ knowledge for what the second-grade
students think and respond towards learning English as a foreign language. In finding
more answers for the three things, it was expected that the teachers will get an idea of
what to do and how to behave while teaching English in the classroom. To be able to
overcome all problems faced by the English teachers and the students, the writer did
an observation of the teaching and learning activities in the classroom and, of course,
distributed questionnaires to the second-grade students of Natural Science Program
in the following day when doing a field research in her former high school, that is
SMA 4 Binjai. There were three classes of Natural Science Program at SMA 4 Binjai
but the only class going to be the sample was XI IPA 1. As a result, the writer
ultimately get an idea indicating that the second-grade students truly need English in
supporting their lives in the future. Nevertheless, they still lack of vocabularies and
understandings in English. English is a foreign language. For the students, it is quite
difficult to understand and master it since there are too many patterns in that
language. They hope that they will be able to master it someday if the teaching and
learning activities in the classroom are fun and comfortable. They need homeworks,
games, and extra hours in learning English. They also need a motivation given by the
English teacher. They prefer working in a small groups and discussing a topic
together to merely listening to the teachers’ explanation all the time of learning. They
would rather get a same chance to practice communicating in English than focus on
grammatical structures or memorize word lists deductively. In this way, it can be said
that the second-grade students of Natural Science Program at SMA 4 Binjai have a
positive attitude towards learning English as a foreign language as well as an
international language.

Keywords : attitude analysis, second-grade students in a high school

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ABSTRAK
Skripsi yang berjudul “An Attitude Analysis of English Language Learning: A
Case Study of Second-Grade Students of Natural Science Program at SMA 4 Binjai”
ini dirancang untuk memperkaya pengetahuan para guru bahasa Inggris akan apa
pendapat dan tanggapan para siswa kelas dua terhadap pelajaran bahasa Inggris
sebagai mata pelajaran bahasa asing di sekolah. Jawaban yang akan didapatkan
setelah penelitian berlangsung diharapkan dapat membantu para guru yaitu apa yang
seharusnya mereka lakukan dan bagaimana mereka seharusnya melakukannya ketika
mengajarkan bahasa asing tersebut. Agar mampu mengatasi permasalahan yang
dihadapi para guru dan siswa, penulis melakukan observasi tindakan kelas dan tentu
saja membagikan kuesioner kepada siswa/i IPA ketika melakukan penelitian di SMA
Negeri 4 Binjai dimana penulis pernah bersekolah. Ada tiga kelas untuk jurusan IPA,
namun kelas yang akan menjadi sampel di dalam penelitiannya adalah siswa/i yang
ada di dalam kelas XI IPA 1. Alhasil, penulis akhirnya mendapatkan sebuah gagasan
bahwasanya para siswa benar-benar membutuhkan bahasa Inggris di dalam
kehidupan mereka pada masa yang akan datang. Akan tetapi, perbendaharaan kata
mereka dalam bahasa Inggris masih sedikit/kurang. Bahasa Inggris adalah bahasa
asing. Bagi mereka, cukup sulit untuk mengerti bahasa tersebut apalagi
menguasainya yang juga dikarenakan oleh banyaknya rumus yang ada. Mereka
berharapa suatu saat mereka akan menguasai bahasa asing tersebut apabila aktivitas
ketika belajar di dalam kelas asyik dan menyenangkan. Mereka perlu adanya PR,
permainan, dan jam tambahan dalam belajar bahasa Inggris. Mereka juga perlu
dimotivasi oleh sang guru saat mempelajari bahasa asing tersebut. Mereka lebih suka
belajar kelompok dan membahas sebuah topik bersama daripada hanya
mendengarkan guru menjelaskan pelajaran selama kegiatan belajar mengajar
berlangsung. Mereka lebih senang mempraktikkan apa yang telah mereka pelajari
secara langsung, misalnya berkomunikasi dalam bahasa Inggris bersama teman
sekelasnya daripada hanya fokus kepada tata bahasa Inggris ataupun menghafal katakata bahasa Inggris. Dalam hal ini, dapat dikatakan bahwa murid-murid kelas dua
IPA di SMA Negeri 4 Binjai memiliki sikap yang positif dalam mempelajari bahasa
asing sekaligus bahasa internasional, yaitu bahasa Inggris.
Keywords : analisis sikap, para siswa kelas dua SMA

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

AUTHOR’S DECLARATION....................................................................

v

COPYRIGHT DECLARATION ................................................................

vi

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS.........................................................................

vii

ABSTRACT ..................................................................................................

ix

ABSTRAK ....................................................................................................

x

TABLE OF CONTENTS.............................................................................

xi

CHAPTER I : INTRODUCTION.........................................................

1

1.1 Background of the Study...........................................

1

1.2 Problems of the Study................................................

5

1.3 Objectives of the Study..............................................

6

1.4 Scope of the Study.....................................................

6

1.5 Significances of the Study.........................................

6

CHAPTER II : REVIEW OF LITERATURE ......................................

7

2.1 Learners......................................................................

7

2.2 Attitude......................................................................

8

2.3 Factors Influencing Language Attitude.....................

8

2.3.1 The Prestige and Power of the Language...............

9

2.3.2 The Historical Background of Nations...................

9

2.3.3 The Social and Traditional Factors.........................

10

2.3.4 The Language Internal System...............................

10

2.4 Attitudes in Language Learning.................................

10
xi

2.5 Relevant Studies........................................................

12

CHAPTER III : METHOD OF RESEARCH.........................................

13

3.1 Research Design.........................................................

13

3.2 Location and Time.....................................................

14

3.3 Source (s) of Data......................................................

14

3.4 Data Collection Procedures.......................................

15

3.5 Step of the Research..................................................

15

3.6 Data Analysis.............................................................

16

CHAPTER IV : ANALYSIS AND FINDINGS......................................

17

4.1 Analysis......................................................................

17

4.2 Findings......................................................................

52

CHAPTER V : CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTION........................

60

5.1 Conclusion.................................................................

60

5.2 Suggestion.................................................................

61

REFERENCES............................................................................................

63

APPENDIX

xii