Institutional Repository | Satya Wacana Christian University: Teachers' Strategies to Deal with Students' Silence in SMP Kristen Laboratorium Satya Wacana Salatiga

TEACHERS’ STRATEGIES TO DEAL WITH STUDENTS’ SILENCE IN
SMP KRISTEN LABORATORIUM SATYA WACANA SALATIGA

Sri Murtini

Abstract
Silence is a common problem faced by ESL/EFL teachers in classrooms, especially in
those with mainly Asian students. L2 learners usually end up with silent and seldom give
contribution to speak in English classroom to avoid mistakes in communication. Secondary
level is demanded to be able to use English communicatively during the lesson. Lack of
confidence, low English proficiency, shyness, fear of mistakes, and lack of motivation are the
factors which cause their silent. In the classroom, it must be there are silent and noisy
students, and the teachers often treat them in the same way. The same treatments can lead an
unfair and inequality grading for the students with different personalities. Additionally,
students have different learning styles and these different ways of learning may produce
different results academically for either students silence or talkative one. It is important for
the teachers to have the best strategies to cope with those problems. This paper aims to
investigate the common strategies that are used by the teachers in dealing with students’
silence at the seventh grade in English classrooms. The data were collected through interview
and supported by observations. The participant is only one teacher at SMP Kristen
Laboratorium Satya Wacana, Salatiga because she is the one who teach speaking for seventh

grader. The results show that teacher uses strategies which appropriate with the language
learners’ environment in order to help reduce students’ silence. One of the strategies which
often emerge and able to increase silent students to speak is motivation.
Kerwords: Teacing strategies, silent students, seventh grade of Junior High School