DAU
Imroatin Octaviarnis SMP Ar-Rohmah Putri Dau imroatinoctaviarniss@gmail.com
Indonesia
Article Info ABSTRACT
Article history:
Received May 5, 2020 Revised Jun 9, 2020 Accepted Sept 19, 2020
Vocabulary is an essential part in learning English. The common problems in learning English might be caused of the students were lack of vocabulary. The aimed of the study was to solve the problems by using riddles game. The researcher used Classroom Action Research as the research design. There were four stages in one cycle in which planning the action, implementing the action, observing the action, and reflecting on the action. One cycle of this research that consisted of three meetings. The subject of the study was 7 H class.
The researcher used the research instruments such as interview guide, questionnaire, observation checklist, field notes and test. The criterion of success in which 70% of the students passed the minimum score that was 80. The average score of post-test was 93,54% students passed the criterion of success. Based on the post questionnaire, the students felt interested during learning process and the students’ vocabulary mastery was improved. The researcher suggested to English teacher to use riddles game as an alternative technique in teaching vocabulary, to students could apply this game out of the class, and the researcher hopes other researchers can use riddles game as a reference to conduct their research on the field because riddles game is the effective way to teach vocabulary.
Keywords:
Vocabulary mastery, Riddles game, Classroom Action Research
Corresponding Author:
Imroatin Octaviarnis
imroatinoctaviarniss@gmail.com
SMP Ar Rohmah Putri Dau, Jl. Jambu, Dau, Indonesia
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1. Research Background
The component in the language that cannot be separated from its vocabulary. Thornbury (2002: 13) stated without vocabulary nothing can be conveyed. It means that someone will be useless if they do not know many vocabularies.Vocabulary could maintain all of the information about the meaning.
It was supported by Kridalaksana (2008: 127), that vocabulary is a component of language that maintains all of information about meaning and using word in language. Before students understood a language, they have to learn vocabulary first. After that, they could able to speak, write, listen, and read nicely because of their good vocabulary. Good vocabulary could improve students’
understanding the material especially in English. According to Coxhead (2006: 1), vocabulary mastery is a central part of language. The more words students known well and understand, the more meaning they could communicate. Rohmatillah (2017) asserts that without learning the vocabulary communication in the second language becomes harder. It means students could be more understand the meaning of what they have learnt in English by having much vocabulary in English. However, there were many problems in studying English that were faced by students in the classroom.
In English learning process, there were many problems faced by the students in the classroom. The most common problem in classroom is vocabulary mastery. According to Meara (1980: 221), vocabulary has been acknowledged as L2 learners’ greatest single source of problem. Besides, English learning was started from preliminary school as a target language. It made difficult for students in learning English. Therefore, the students get difficulty in learning English especially in SMP Ar-Rohmah Putri Dau.
In SMP Ar-Rohmah Putri Dau, many students did not understand English subject when the teacher gave them the material in written text. Although the teacher explained the material clearly, the students did not understand because they have lack of vocabulary. That case happened because many students are not accustomed to read English book and listen to the music. Besides, the students are not taught to memorize the vocabulary. The facilities in school also do not support them. Smartphone and internet were not allowed in school. The limitation of information made students difficult to learn many things especially English. One big problem of the caused students difficulty in learning vocabulary was the limitation of of sources of information about words (Rohmatillah, 2017). In this case, the researcher tried to increase student’s vocabulary mastery by using riddles game.
Riddles game required more ingenuity and critical thinking to solve it. Besides, riddles game also foster excitement about words and motivate students to be interested in playing while learning. It made students able to learn the target language unconsciously and they could learn some new words without any stress on their feeling. According to Nachtigal (2010: 15), riddles game are excellent ESL/EFL tools because they required students to practice a variety of language skills in order to find a solution. There were pros and cons to previous research which analyzed the improvement of vocabulary through riddles game. Riddles technique can improve the students’ vocabulary mastery (Apriandari, 2019). The students can be easily remembered the vocabulary that has been taught and the majority of the students had positive responses toward the use of riddles technique in improving students’ vocabulary. Besides, Riddles can develop and motivate students in learning English, especially Vocabulary (Siska, 2011). In contrast, Nasution (2019) stated that riddles game needed two cycle to improve students’ vocabulary mastery. It caused that riddles very
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difficult to applyed. Therefore, the researcher wanted to analyze the imrpovement of vocabulary mastery using riddles game.
2. Methods
It is Classroom Action Research (CAR) which purpose was to improve students vocabulary mastery. This researcher was conducted the research at SMP Rohmah Putri Dau. SMP Ar-Rohmah had been categorized as a good school in Malang. It is shown that the school got
‘AKREDITASI A’ in Malang. The background of the school is Islamic boarding school.The school is located in Jalan Raja Jambu, Dau. It had three stage classes which were class seventh, class eight, class nine. There were 12 lessons. One of these lessons was English. In this school, English lesson was schedule twice meetings in a week and the allocation time for each meeting was 2 x 40 minutes.
The subject of this research was seventh grade students of 7 H class in the academic year 2016/2017.
This class consisted of 32 female students. The researcher made a plan before conducting the research, first, the researcher conducted the preliminary test to check the students’ vocabulary mastery. This was the schema that resercher made before conducting the research.
Figure 2.1 the Research Prosedure
The researcher conducted the preliminary study to find the authentic information about the students’
problem in English and teaching and learning problem in the classroom. There were three steps for conducting the research. First, the researcher used interview guide for English teacher. For the teacher, interview guide was aimed to know the obstacle of teacher in teaching English, to the technique that had been applied and students’ problem. Second, the researcher used vocabulary test as an instruments in assessing students’ vocabulary mastery. The aimed of vocabulary test was to know the students’ vocabulary mastery. The test consisted of 10 multiple choices, 10 cloze-test, and 5 matching test. This type of test would be employed in the beginning of the action research cycle as a pretest and in the end of action research cycle as a post test. The last, the researcher used questionnaire for the students. For the students, questionnaire aimed to know the problem of students in learning English. After knowing the result of preliminary study, the researcher made a planning the action, implementing the action, observing the action, and reflecting the action.
Planning was the researcher’s preparation before doing the action. In this step, the researcher prepare everything such as setting learning objective designing lesson plan, designing the riddles game, teaching material, teaching media, observation checklist, and scoring rubric. It was continued by determining criteria of succeess. The lesson plan was designed for three meetings. The first meeting, the researcher explained descriptive text. In the beginning of the meeting, the researcher explained the purpose of learning. Then, the researcher explained about descriptive text such as definition, purpose, and part of descriptive text, simple present tense and state of being in 15 minutes. The researcher asked students to read and to observe the text and found identification,
Preliminary study
1. Interviewing the English teacher related to the technique that had been applied and students problem
2. Giving pre-test to the students to know their vocabulary mastery 3. Giving questionnaire to know the problem of student in learning English
Observing
Collect the data bu using interview’s guide, observation checklist, field notes, questionnaire test Implementing
Teaching vocabulary by using riddles game
Planning
Designing lesson plan, material, media, criteria of success
Reflecting
Determining whether the action is successful or not by comparing data and criteria of success
conclusion
successful
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description, simple present tense and state of being. After that, the researcher gave another text and asked the students to answer the question. The researcher discussed the answer in 60 minutes. In 5 minutes, the researcher closed the meeting. The second meeting, the researcher reviewed about the previous material. Then, the researcher explained about adjective which definition of adjective and gave the example. After that, the researcher gave handout about animal entitled “The Elephant at the city zoo” in 10 minutes. Next, the researcher asked students to find an adjective based on the text.
The researcher gave exercise entitled Hippopotamuses. Then, the researcher asked to the students to answer the question of the text. The researcher checked the students’ answer. After that researcher continued to play riddles game. The researcher divided the students into saveral groups. Each group consisted of four students. Besides, the researcher gave tree cards for each group; 3 students would understand the clue while the student presented in frot of the class. The group who got much point would be a winner. The researcher gave 20 minutes; 10 minutes to answer the question while 10 minutes to discuss the answer. In 45 minutes, the researcher engaged the students to play the riddles game. Then, the researcher drilled vocabulary in 5 minutes left. The third meeting, the researcher would sum up the lesson. At the beginning of this meeting the resercher reviewed the previous materials which were definition, purpose, generic structute, simple present tense state of being, and adjective in descriptive text. Then, the researcher would give the question about the materialthat had been learnt in the previous meeting, the resercher gave 40 minutes, 30 minute to answer the question while 10 minute to discuss the answer. For 40 minutes left, the resercher would engaged students to play riddles game. The researcher took the materials from the text book entitled “Passport to the World” and “English Assessment Test for Junior High School grade VII”. The media was designed by the researcher in form of riddles card. It required more ingenuity and critical thinking to solve it.
Besides, riddles game also fostered a sense of excitement about word and motivated the students to be interested in playing and learning. The resercher setthe criteria of success based on the condition of the students and the result of preliminary study. There was one criterion of success in which 70%
of students passed minimum score was 80. If the students’ vocabulary score in the post test could reach the criteria of success, the resercher would stop the action. Therefore, if it was not, the researcher would continued in cycle two until the score could meet the criteria of success. In implementing the action, the resercher was decided to conducted three meetings consisted of series of activities namely pre-activity, whilst-activity, and post-activity. The pre-activity, the researcher would greet the students; introduce riddles game by asking some question, that related to the material. In whilst-activity, the resercher explained the material shortly, directed the students about what they had to do and how should they do the task. In the post activity, the researcher would asked definition, generic structure, language feature about the material and greet students. The resercher focused on teaching vocabulary, such as explaining definition of descriptive text, giving the exercise, giving the rules of riddles game, and also drilling vocabulary at the second meeting, and summing up the lesson in the third meeting. In observing the action, the researcher needed collabolator to observe the teaching and learning process and to collect the data. Hence, the researcher would be the teacher and the English teacher as observer would observe the activities during teahcing and learning process. As an observer, the Eglish teacher would be focused on making field noted during the teaching and learning process. Reflecting was taken after the students’
performance in the end of cycle. The researcher reflected on the students’ performance after teaching and learning process. The result would be compared with the criterion of success. Data collection would be collected by using some instrument such as: interview guide, observation checklist, field notes, questionnaire, and vocabulary test. In this research there were two kinds of data collection in which qualitative and quantitative. The qualitative data were collected using interview guide, observation checklist, field notes, and questionnaire. The teachers’ interview guide would focus on the technic used by the teacher and students’ vocabulary, and to know the situation in the class. It was supported by Ary et al (2002: 434), in interviews were used to gather data on subject’ opinions, beliefs, and feelings about situation in their own words. Observation checklist was aimed to measure the students’ participation during teaching and learning process. Field notes were aimed to know something happen during teaching and learning process. In this study, the researcher made two components; first, description about setting, reaction researcher and students in the class.
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Second, reflective part which includes observers’ feeling, comment about teaching and learning process. Questionnaire aimed to check the students’ opinion during learning process, whether they liked it or not. Besides, the questionnaire aimed to know the difficulties that the students experienced in learning English and the students’ opinion about the technique that researcher used in the classroom whether interested or not.
The quantitative data was collected using the score of vocabulary test in pre-test and post-test. Test was aimed to measure the students in vocabulary mastery. It was supported by Brown (2004: 3), stating that the test was a method of measuring a person’s ability, knowledge, or performance in a given of domain. After collecting the data, the researcher would analyze the data that were obtained.
There were twelve steps of data analysis. The first step was conducted the pre-test to take score of students before implementing riddles game. Next, the researcher would give score the pre-test to know the result by calculating the right answers. There were 25 questions; the right answer would be times with four. After that, the researcher would conduct the posttest which riddles game had been implemented in teaching vocabulary to know whether there were improvement or not and take a score like pretest was conducted. Then the researcher selected valid data from the students’
participation in the pretest and posttest. The participation from the students was important to ensure the validity score. So, if one of students did not participate on pretest, she was uncounted on the posttest. Besides, if the students participated in pretest but not on posttest, the score would be uncounted as a valid data. Then the researcher compared the students’ score to know the students improvement after implementing riddles game. After comparing students’ score, the researcher counted the percentage of each student’s score by looking at the result of students’ post-test and used a formula to count. The formula was divided the students’ who gain up to 80 score with total students in the class and then multiplied with 100 % to get percentage or could be presented as;
Percentage = X 100%
Before conducting the last step, the researcher matched the score with the criterion of success in order to decide whether the result of students’ post-test successed or not. The last, the researcher would make report as a result of descriptive analysis as the result of the study to decide whether or not the criterion of success was achieved.
3. Results
The result of this research can be stated as follows; 29 students passed the Minimum Mastery Criterion and 3 students could not achieve the Minimum Mastery Criterion. It will be shown by the figure below:
Figure 3.1 The result of students’ vocabulary score improvement on pre-test to post test
After implementing riddles game the researcher conducted on post test. There were 32 students involved in the post test. After conducting the post test, the researcher found that there were 29 students of 32 students improve their vocabulary mastery. The formula was divided the students’
who gain up to 80 score with total students in the class and then multiplied with 100% to get percentage or could be presented as;
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Percentage = X 100%
Percentage = X 100% = 93,54%
The result of students’ post test score had shown by following table;
Tabel 3.1 Students’ Post Test Score
No Name Pre Test Post Test
01 S1 36 80
02 S2 44 100
03 S3 68 96
04 S4 84 100
05 S5 84 96
06 S6 44 96
07 S7 56 100
08 S8 76 96
09 S9 72 96
10 S10 56 96
11 S11 64 96
12 S12 59 96
13 S13 48 100
14 S14 72 100
15 S15 64 96
16 S16 60 92
17 S17 48 96
18 S18 56 72
19 S19 68 80
20 S20 56 88
21 S21 72 88
22 S22 48 72
23 S23 56 96
24 S24 60 84
25 S25 64 80
26 S26 64 92
27 S27 68 100
28 S28 60 92
29 S29 80 84
30 S30 48 96
31 S31 40 96
32 S32 52 96
Nilai Rata-Rata 60,25 92,12
Students’ Response Toward Riddles Game
The result of post questionnaire was conducted to know the students respond after learning descriptive text through riddles game. The result of questionnaire had shown by following figure;
Figure 3.2 Recapitulation Students Questionnaire After Conducting The Research
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The first question was about the students’ feeling toward riddles game, the result of first question showed that 96,87% students felt enjoyed toward the riddles game and 3,12% students not enjoyed about riddles game. The second question was about students interested and students motivated through riddles game, the result of second question showed that 96,87% Students interested and motivated toward riddles game because riddles game helpful to improve their vocabulary and 3,12%
students not interested toward riddles game because riddles game very challenging to deep thinking.
The third question was about how riddles game improved students vocabulary, the result showed that 96,87% riddles game improved students vocabulary and 3,12% students said riddles game did not improve their vocabulary. The fourth question was about riddles game helped students to memorize vocabulary, the result of fourth question showed that 96,87% Students said riddles game helped students to memorize vocabulary and 3,12% students said not. According to the percentage of students’ opinion, the result of students’ questionnaire after conducting the research was riddles game made students enjoyed, motivated, improved their vocabulary, and helped students memorize vocabulary.
Students Participation
The researcher used the students’ participation during learning process in collecting the data. The English teacher of 7 H class as main observer in the observation checklist which was used for measuring the scale of students who actively participate in teaching and learning activities. The next instrument was field notes. Field notes used to note the data that was not presented in observation checklist. Then, the result of observation checklist had been crosschecked with the result as field noted. The first meeting begun at 07.00 a.m. until 08.20 a.m. the time allotment of each meeting eighty minutes. In this meeting the researcher focused on making students understood more about descriptive text. There were 30 students who joined the lesson. First, the researcher explained the purpose of learning. Then, the researcher distributed the material by writing “what is descriptive text”., “what is the characteristic of descriptive text”, simple present tense, and state of being on the blackboard directly. After that, the researcher asked to the students to write the material on their books. Then, the researcher distributed the exercise sheet about the material in this meeting. Next, the researcher discussed about the exercise. There were 17 students got up to 80 in answering the exercise. Based on observation checklist, there were 20 students out of 30 students involved actively in the first meeting. However, the students felt little bored to do the activities. The second meeting conducted begun at 10.15 a.m to 11. 35 a.m. this meeting was aimed to introduce how riddles game work. First of all, the researcher reviewed the last material. After that, the resercher explained the definition and example of adjective. Then, the researcher distributed the text and asked students to find adjective. The researcher gave the exercise sheet and asked students to answer the question.
Next, the researcher divided the students into 8 groups. Each group consisted of 4 studnets. Each group got 3 cards. Then, the researcher explained the rules of riddles game. All of the group would present in front of the class. The leader of the group presented the clue, while other wrote on the blackboard and observed the other group who raised the hand first. Besides, the researcher asked the difficult word of the clue. The group who guessed correctly, they would get the point, the more point they got, the more chance to be a winner. After that, the researcher discussed the difficult word and drilled the students how to pronounce it. The purpose of drilling vocabulary was to recall and to review the vocabulary that might be useful for students. The end of meeting, the researcher gave the exercise about the meeting. Based on observation checklist, there were 25 out of 31 students involved actively in the class. The last meeting begun at 07.00 a.m. to 09.15 a.m. there were 30