Challenges that occurred in teaching are natural and unavoidable. Not all classroom teaching and learning processes will always go smoothly. According to Songbatumis (2017), the challenges in teaching English arise from students, teachers, and the
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school’s facility. In this chapter, the researcher obtained the data by interviewing the participants in order to investigated the challenges occurred in teaching English in Pesantren Hidayatullah and the strategies used in overcoming those challenges.
The findings of a qualitative data analysis based on in-depth interviews with eight informants done by researcher revealed a variety of new information or data on the challenges experienced by teachers when teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah.
Data analysis was carried out both individually and between informants showed that there are two major themes that were related with the research questions of this study and several emerging themes that supported the main themes. Important findings in this qualitative research are classified depending on what was categorized in the research questions based on the research objectives to be achieved. The main themes and sub-themes that related with the research questions were showed in figures 4.1 and 4.2.
Students’ challenges in learning English and how they overcome those challenges are also included in this research to support the data findings, as illustrated in figures 4.3 and 4.4. In addition, the emerging themes about teaching English in pesantren hidayatullah were added to strengthen the data findings that showed in figures 4.5 and 4.6.
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Figure 4.1 below shows the findings related to main themes and sub-themes:
Challenges in teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah.
Figure 4.1 Themes and Sub-Themes: Challenges in teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah
Figure 4.1 shows that there are six sub-themes related to challenges in teaching English at pesantren hidayatullah. The first sub-theme is the common challenges that faced by the teachers in teaching English at pesantren hidayatullah. The second sub-theme is the most difficult challenges faced by the teachers in teaching English. The third sub-theme is the challenges in teaching English that arise from students themselves. The fourth sub-theme
Teachers Challenges in Teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah
a. Common challenges in teaching English
b. The most difficult challenges in teaching English
c. Challenges that arise from students
d. Challenges that arise from teachers
e. Challenges that arise from the school
f. Unexpected challenges in teaching English
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is the challenges in teaching English that arise from the teachers. The fifth sub-theme is the challenges that arise from the school’s facilities. The sixth sub-theme is the unexpected challenges that occur when teaching English.
Next, Figure 4.2 below shows the findings related to main themes and sub-themes: Strategies in overcoming the challenges in teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah.
Teachers’ Strategies to overcome the challenges
b. Strategies to overcome the most difficult challenges in teaching
English
a. Strategies to overcome the common
challenges in teaching English
c. Strategies to overcome the challenges that arise
from students
d. Strategies to overcome the challenges that arise
from teachers
e. Teachers’ hopes for the school in overcoming the
challenges
f. Strategies to overcome the unexpected challenges in teaching
English
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Figure 4.2 Themes and Sub-Themes: Strategies to overcome the challenges in teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah
Figure 4.2 shows that there are six sub-themes related to strategies in overcoming the challenges in teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah. The first sub-theme is strategies in overcoming the common challenges that faced by the teachers in teaching English at pesantren hidayatullah. The second sub-theme is strategies in overcoming the most difficult challenges faced by the teachers in teaching English. The third sub-theme is strategies to overcome the challenges in teaching English that arise from students themselves. The fourth sub-theme is strategies to overcome the challenges in teaching English that arise from the teachers. The fifth sub-theme is teachers hopes for the school in overcoming the challenges that arise from the school itself. The sixth sub-theme is strategies in overcoming the unexpected challenges that occur when teaching English.
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Figure 4.3 below shows the findings related to main themes and sub-themes: Challenges faced by the students in learning English at Pesantren Hidayatullah.
Figure 4.3 Themes and Sub-themes: Students’ challenges in learning English at Pesantren Hidayatullah
Figure 4.3 shows that there are four sub-themes related to students’ challenges in learning English at pesantren hidayatullah. The first sub-theme is common challenges that the students faced in learning English at pesantren hidayatullah. The second sub-theme is the most difficult challenges faced by the students in learning English. The third sub-theme is challenges in learning English that arise from the school itself. The fourth sub-theme is unexpected challenges that faced by the students in learning English.
Challenges faced by the students in learning English at Pesantren
Hidayatullah a. Common challenges
in learning English
b. The most difficult challenges in teaching English
c. Challenges in learning English that arise from
the school’s facilities
d. Unexpected challenges in learning English
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Figure 4.4 below illustrates the findings related to main themes and sub-themes:
Strategies to overcome the challenges faced by the students in learning English at Pesantren Hidayatullah.
Figure 4.4 Themes and Sub-themes: Students’ Strategies in overcoming the challenges in learning English at Pesantren Hidayatullah
Figure 4.4 shows that there are four sub-themes related to students’ strategies to overcome the challenges in learning English at pesantren hidayatullah. The first sub-theme is strategies in overcoming the common challenges in learning English at Pesantren Hidayatullah. The second sub-theme is strategies in overcoming the most difficult challenges in learning English. The third sub-theme is student’s hopes for the school to
Strategies in overcoming the challenges faced by the students in learning English at
Pesantren Hidayatullah a. Strategies to
overcome the common challenges
b. Strategies to overcome the most difficult challenges in learning
English
c. Students’
expectations of the school in overcoming
the challenges
d. Strategies to overcome the unexpected challenges
in learning English
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overcome the challenges in learning English. The fourth sub-theme is strategies in overcoming the unexpected challenges in learning English.
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In addition, Figure 4.5 below shows the findings related to the emerging themes:
Teachers’ side.
a. English Language Teaching in Pesantren
Hidayatullah
b. Number of students in the class
c. Duration of teaching
d. Teaching Media
e. Ability to use technology
f. Language Use in Teaching
g. Students Understanding
h. Curriculum Implementation
i. Teaching Materials
j. Urgency in Learning English
k. Urgency in Parents Role for Students
Learning Emerging Themes
(Teachers)
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Figure 4.5 Emerging Themes: Teachers’ Side
Figure 4.5 shows that there are eleven emerging themes. The first emerging theme is about English language teaching in Pesantren Hidayatullah. The second emerging theme is the number of students in the class. The third emerging theme is the duration of teaching. The fourth emerging theme is about teaching Media. The fifth emerging theme is teachers’ ability to use technology. The sixth emerging theme is the language use in teaching. The seventh emerging theme is about students understanding. The eighth emerging theme is about curriculum implementation. The ninth emerging theme is the teaching materials applied by the teachers. Next is about the urgency in learning English at Pesantren Hidayatullah. The last emerging theme is the urgency in parents’ role for students’ learning.
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Figure 4.6 below shows the findings related to the emerging themes: Students’ side.
Figure 4.6 Emerging Themes: Students’ Side
Figure 4.6 shows that there are nine emerging themes. The first emerging theme is about English language learning in Pesantren Hidayatullah. The second emerging theme is the duration of teaching and learning process. The third emerging theme is about teaching media. The fourth emerging theme is students’ opinions about teachers’ ability to use
Emerging Themes (Students) a. English Language
Learning in Pesantren Hidayatullah
b. Duration of Teaching
c. Teaching Media
d. Ability to Use Technology
e. Language Use
f. Students Understanding
g. Learning Materials
h. Learning Environment i. Urgency in Learning English
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technology. The fifth emerging theme is the language use in teaching. The sixth emerging theme is about students understanding. The seventh emerging theme is about the teaching materials applied by the teachers. The eighth emerging theme is about the learning Environment. The last emerging theme is about the urgency in learning English.
4.3.1 Teachers Challenges in Teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah
The findings of the qualitative case study research on the challenges experienced by the teachers when teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah are divided into six sub-themes. The first sub-theme is common challenges that the teachers faced in teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah. Second, the most difficult challenges faced by the teachers in teaching English. Third, the challenges in teaching English that arise from students themselves. Fourth, the challenges in teaching English that arise from the teachers. Fifth, the challenges that arise from the school itself. The last sub-theme is the unexpected challenges that occur in teaching English. All these six sub-themes will be explained in depth below which will be supported by the findings of interviews based on the results of data analysis.
4.3.1.1 The Common Challenges Faced by the Teachers in Teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah
The results of interviews showed that there are some challenges that the teachers usually faced when teaching English in Pesantren Hidayatullah. As stated by P1:
“Yang pertama ya paradigma terhadap belajar Bahasa Inggris ya. Ada beberapa paradigma yang perlu diluruskan, khususnya untuk anak-anak. Jadi selama ini karna mereka di pesantren, menurut mereka Bahasa inggris itu bukan bahasanya kita ya, bahasanya orang barat, jadi kadang ada yang masih suka malas-malasan.
Yang kedua asal dari santri ini yang bermacam-macam sehingga standarnya itu tidak sama. Apalagi Bahasa inggris itu antara bacaan dan tulisan itu kan berbeda. Sementara anak-anak ini mereka kadang dari dusun dari kampung yang baca Bahasa Indonesia aja kadang masih terbata-bata harus membaca Bahasa
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inggris. Terus di pesantren ini jadwalnya memang banyak sekali ya, pelajaran itu kan banyak ya beda sama di sekolah luar. Kalau di sekolah luar itu kan paling pelajaran umum sama Bahasa inggris, kalau di pesantren itu ada Al-qur’an hadits, Aqidah akhlak, Bahasa Arab, terus kitab kuning, tahfidz dan lain sebagainya, sehingga memang fokus ke Bahasa inggris itu menjadi tantangan kita sebagai guru Bahasa inggris untuk lebih serius lagi.” (First, the paradigm towards learning English. There are several paradigms that need to be clarified, especially for children. Since they are in pesantren all this time, according to them, English is not our language, it is western, so there are still some of them that like to be lazy. The second is that the background of the students vary, so that the standards are different. Moreover, there is a distinction between reading and writing in English. Meanwhile, these children are occasionally come from the village. They still struggle to read in Indonesian, let alone having to read English.
Then, at this pesantren, the schedule is indeed hectic. There are many different lessons with the regular schools. In regular schools, there are general lessons and English, however in pesantren, there are Al-qur’an hadith, Aqidah morals, Arabic, the yellow book, tahfidz, and so on, so focusing on English is our challenge to be more serious as English teachers.) [Partisipan-P1-Tema 1]
Based on the result of the interview above, there were some common challenges in teaching English. First, the concepts of learning English in pesantren. Many students think that English was not really necessary to be learned in pesantren, since it is not our language. They often used Indonesian, Arabic, or vernacular to communicate with others, so they were lazy to learn English. Second, the different background of each student.
There were some students that come from the village, so they were still not familiar with English. Even they sometimes still found it difficult to read in Indonesian, let alone English. Moreover, in English, the way we say something in English and how the writing is different. Then, the hectic schedule in pesantren was also become a challenge. There were various subjects that should be learned in pesantren, not only regular subjects that the same with regular schools, but also about Islamic teachings, such as Al-qur’an hadith, Aqidah morals, Arabic, the yellow book, tahfidz, and others. However, P1 found it challenging to teach English in pesantren hidayatullah.
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Challenges in teaching English in pesantren hidayatullah are numerous as stated by P2:
“Sarana prasarana ya, di samping itu juga padatnya pelajaran lain, jadwal lain jadi untuk itu kayaknya berat, ada juga saat materinya sulit jadi tergantung daripada waktu dan kondisinya.” (Infrastructure and facilities, besides, the busy schedule of other subjects, so it seems difficult, and when the materials are difficult, so it depends on time and conditions.) [Partisipan-P2-Tema 1]
Based on the result of interview with P2, there were several common challenges in teaching English at pesantren hidayatullah. The hectic schedule of student was a challenge for teachers in teaching English. They did not give much attention and focus on learning English, since they have a lot of activities should be done and many other lessons to be learned.
In addition, when the topic of the lesson was getting hard, it made students feel lazy and unmotivated to learn English. P2 said that challenges in teaching English usually occurred because of the lack of time in teaching English and based on various situations and conditions.
The findings of the interviews of two English teachers at pesantren hidayatullah showed that there were some common challenges in teaching English faced by the teachers. Teachers found that students were still unfamiliar with the concepts on learning English at pesantren. Students found it was not really important to learn English at pesantren since English is not our language. Students’ different background also became the challenge for teachers in teaching English. Many students come from various villages and werre still not familiar with English. Then, both teachers agreed that the hectic schedules in pesantren was become a challenge for teachers. There were various subjects that should be learned in pesantren, not only regular subjects being taught in regular
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schools, but also about Islamic teachings. Other than that, the difficult material and topic made students feel lazy and unmotivated to learn English. In addition, the challenges in teaching English usually occurred because of the lack of time in teaching English and based on various situations and conditions being faced.
4.3.1.2 The Most Difficult Challenges in Teaching English
Challenges in teaching English are vary in every aspect, as well as the level of its difficulty. The findings of the interviews showed that there are some difficult challenges in teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah. As stated by P1:
“Kalau saya memang susah untuk menangani anak-anak yang di bawah standar.
Artinya kemampuan mereka memang lemah karena kita kan masuk pesantren itu tidak ada seleksi, semuanya masuk gitu. Tapi kalau siswa yang memiliki kemampuan rata-rata sih tidak ya. Jadi, yang sulit itu menurut saya kompetensi siswanya.” (According to me, it is hard to handle the students who are below the standards. It means that their abilities are indeed weak, since there is no selection in entering the pesantren, everyone can study in pesantren. But, for students who have average skill is not hard to handle. In my opinion, the most difficult challenge in teaching English is the students’ competence.) [Partisipan-P1-Tema 1]
Based on the result of the interview above, teacher found it difficult to teach students whose competence is below average. To sum up, the most difficult challenge in teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah is students’ competence.
Along with the above statement, P2 also stated that:
“Kalau menurut saya, yang paling susah ya itu tadi menyediakan sarana prasarana.” (In my opinion, the most difficult challenge is providing infrastructure and facilities.) [Partisipan-P2-Tema 1]
According to the above statement, providing infrastructure and facilities is the most challenging for the teacher in teaching English.
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The findings of the interview showed that the most difficult challenges in teaching English faced by the teachers are dealing with students’ competence and providing adequate infrastructure and facilities.
4.3.1.3 Challenges in Teaching English that Arise from Students
Challenges in teaching English can arise from a variety of sources, one of which is students themselves. According to the results of the interview, there are several challenges that arise from students themselves. As stated by P1:
“Iya motivasi siswanya, karena kalau anak ini kurang semangat atau motivasinya kurang cukup berat juga mereka untuk belajar Bahasa inggris, apalagi Bahasa inggris ini cukup asing di telinga anak-anak. Apalagi anak-anak ini asalnya dari desa-desa, berbeda mungkin dengan masyarakat perkotaan yang sudah tidak asing dengan Bahasa inggris ini.” (The students’ motivation, because if they lack of excitement or motivation, it will be hard for them in learning English; also, English is rather foreign to children’s ears. Furthermore, many children come from rural, which may be distinct from urban communities who are already familiar with English.) [Partisipan-P1-Tema 1]
Based on the statement above, P1 stated that the challenge emerged from students was the students’ motivation. The unfamiliarity of English for children that come from rural areas was a challenge for the teacher in teaching English. Therefore, students lose enthusiasm and motivation in learning English.
The above statement is supported by the following statement stated by P2:
“Ya, yang terpenting memang motivasi mereka ya, karena kalau kata orang, Bahasa Inggris itu pelajaran tersulit kedua setelah matematika, jadi ya perlu motivasi. Mereka perlu sering dibuat pembiasaan untuk speaking, reading dan yang lain jadi biar mereka juga merasakan langsung efeknya, maksudnya bisa untuk berkata-kata seperti ini nanti akan ada kebanggaan tersendiri” (The most important thing is their motivation, because people said English is the second most difficult subject after mathematics, so motivation is needed. They need to be accustomed to speaking, reading, and so on so that they can feel the effect
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immediately, which means they can say things like this and feel proud of themselves.) [Partisipan-P2-Tema 1]
The findings of the interview with two English teachers at pesantren hidayatullah showed that there was a challenge in teaching English that emerged from students. It was related to students’ motivation. Since English was still foreign at this pesantren, especially for students who came from rural areas. Furthermore, students were not used to speak and read or communicate with English. In conclusion, students’ motivation became a challenge for teachers in teaching English.
4.3.1.4 Challenges in Teaching English that Arise from Teachers
Challenges in teaching English can also emerged from the teachers themselves.
This can be shown in the findings of the interviews with two English teachers at Pesantren Hidayatullah. As stated by P1:
“Kalau dari kita ini sebagai guru bahasa Inggris sebenarnya memang harus meng-upgrade kemampuan Bahasa Inggris ya, tapi karna banyaknya kesibukan sehingga waktu itu rasanya seperti padat sekali. Nah itu mungkin yang kesulitannya, waktu itulah yang cukup berat membaginya. Background saya juga bukan Bahasa Inggris ya, itu juga menjadi tantangan saya.” (As English teachers, we need to improve our English skills, but, because of the busy schedules, the time seemed very hectic. Perhaps that is a challenge, it is hard to divide the time.
My background of education is not English either, that is also my challenge.) [Partisipan-P1-Tema 1]
According to the statement above, challenges in teaching English that arise from teachers were the teacher’s hectic schedules, so that she cannot improve her English skills and the background of education that is not English.
P2 added some challenges that arise from teachers in teaching English, as stated below:
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“Kompetensi ya. Selanjutnya, untuk bisa membuat berbagai macam metode pengajaran yang tidak monoton. Ini mungkin yang perlu banyak belajar lagi ya seperti itu.” (It is competence. Then, to be able to create a variety of non-monotonous teaching methods. This might be something that needs to be studied further.) [Partisipan-P2-Tema 1]
Based on the statement stated by P2, it can be concluded that the challenges in teaching English that emerged from teachers were the competence and creativity in developing non-monotonous teaching methods.
According to the findings from the interviews with two English teachers at Pesantren Hidayatullah, it can be found that there were some challenges that appeared because of the teachers themselves. They were the busy schedules of the teachers, a different educational background than the one they teach, teachers’ competence, and creativity to make a variety of teaching methods that are non-monotonous.
4.3.1.5 Challenges Faced by the Teachers in Teaching English that Arise from the School
The school itself can also be a challenge for the teachers in teaching English. This is supported by the results of the interviews with two English teachers at Pesantren Hidayatullah. As stated by P1:
“Kalau ini memang harus kreatif ya, jadi menggunakan media yang ada di sekitar kita, karna memang secara fasilitas kita masih sangat kurang. Kalau lingkungan mendukung sih, hanya perlu dimaksimalkan lagi aja dari kita, guru, dan dari anak-anaknya. Kalau secara lingkungan sangat mendukung sekali sebenarnya karna 24 jam kan anak-anak ada di pondok pesantren.” (In this case, we have to be creative, so we use the media that is available for us because our facilities are still severely lacking. The environment is supportive, it just needs to be maximized once more by us, teachers, and the students. The environment is actually very supportive because students are in pesantren for twenty-four hours.) [Partisipan-P1-Tema 1]