METHODS AND MEDIA IN TEACHING VOCABULARY TO PRE-SCHOOL STUDENTS OF “SPEAKFIRST” KLATEN
A THESIS
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements to Obtain the Sarjana Pendidikan Degree
in English Language Education
By
Stefani Yustita Asdra Noveani 061214151
ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDUCATION STUDY PROGRAM DEPARTMENT OF LANGUAGE AND ARTS EDUCATION FACULTY OF TEACHERS TRAINING AND EDUCATION
SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY YOGYAKARTA
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Dedication Page
R
emember what we receive &
F
orget what we give
to others
I
dedicate this thesis for those whom I love much,Jesus Christ & Virgin Mary
My beloved family
vii ABSTRACT
Noveani, Stefani Yustita Asdra. 2011. Methods and Media in Teaching Vocabulary to Pre-School Students of “Speak First” Klaten. Yogyakarta: English Education Study Program, Sanata Dharma University.
Teaching methods had an effect on the students’understanding, especially to learn English vocabulary for pre-school students. The teacher should vary methods in teaching, so the students understood what they learnt. Furthermore, the role of media was also very helpful in teaching-learning process. In this study, media helped the teachers to teach English to pre-school students, especially in teaching vocabulary. Teaching vocabulary to pre-school students would be interesting if media were included in it. The teachers used media to support their teaching methods. The participants of this study were early children whose ages are between 3-4 years old in 2009/2010 academic year. It was not easy for early-age young learners to learn vocabulary because they were also still learning Bahasa Indonesia as their mother tongue. According to Dodge (1992: 7), English as foreign language was best to be taught since early ages of school since pre-school was the basic education to develop human’s quality. According to Ritter (1950), young learners “learn by seeing, hearing, feeling, smelling, and tasting.” There were three problems in this study: (1) What kinds of methods are used in teaching vocabulary for pre-school students of “Speak First”? (2) What kinds of media are used in teaching vocabulary for pre-school students of “Speak First”? and (3) What are the underlying reasons to use different methods and media in each meeting?
This study was a qualitative research, which used three data gathering instruments, which included observation checklists, field notes, and interview. The writer conducted the observation in “Speak First” Pre-School in Klaten. In this study, field notes were used to write everything that happened in the classroom during the observation. Observation checklists and field notes were used to answer the first and second questions, which were about the methods and media that were used in teaching vocabulary for pre-school students. Then, interview was used to gain more data and to answer the third research question which was about the underlying reasons to use different methods and media in each meeting.
The results showed that Desuggestopedia, Multiple Intelligences (MI), and Total Physical Response (TPR) were the methods which were used in teaching vocabulary. The media used during the teaching-learning process were based on the methods used. The teacher used different media in turns based on the methods used in teaching vocabulary to pre-school students in each meeting. The general underlying reasons to use different methods and media in each meeting were to improve students’ motor, to increase students’ confidence, and to broaden students’ knowledge.
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ABSTRAK
Noveani, Stefani Yustita Asdra. 2011. Methods and Media in Teaching Vocabulary to Pre-School Students of “Speak First” Klaten. Yogyakarta: Program Studi Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris, Universitas Sanata Dharma.
Metode pengajaran sangat berpengaruh terhadap pemahaman anak dalam menerima pelajaran, khususnya belajar vocabulary bahasa Inggris untuk anak-anak usia pra-sekolah. Pendidik hendaknya membuat variasi metode pengajaran agar anak-anak mengerti apa yang dipelajari. Selain itu, peran media juga sangat membantu dalam proses belajar-mengajar. Dalam hal ini, media juga dapat membantu proses pengajaran bahasa Inggris untuk anak-anak pra-sekolah. Pengajaran kosakata Bahasa Inggris akan menarik jika media disertakan di dalamnya. Pendidik menggunakan media untuk mendukung metode mengajar yang digunakan. Subyek dalam penelitian ini adalah anak-anak usia 3-4 tahun tahun ajaran 2009/2010. Tidaklah mudah belajar kosakata bahasa Inggris untuk anak-anak usia pra-sekolah karena mereka masih belajar Bahasa Indonesia sebagai bahasa ibu. Menurut Dodge (1992: 7), bahasa Inggris sebagai bahasa asing paling baik diajarkan sejak awal usia sekolah karena usia pra-sekolah sebagai dasar dalam mengembangkan pengetahuan seseorang. Menurut Ritter (1950), pelajar usia muda ”belajar melalui melihat, mendengar, merasakan apa yang dialami, mencium, dan mengecap rasa.” Ada tiga hal yang akan ditunjukkan dalam penelitian ini, yaitu: (1) Apa saja metode yang digunakan dalam mengajar kosakata bahasa Inggris untuk anak-anak pra-sekolah di “Speak First”? (2) Media apa saja yang digunakan dalam mengajar kosakata bahasa Inggris untuk anak-anak pra-sekolah di “Speak First”? dan (3) Apa alasan yang mendasari penggunaan metode dan media dalam setiap pertemuannya?
Penelitian ini merupakan jenis kualitatif deskripsi yang menggunakan tiga cara pengumpulan data, yaitu pengamatan, catatan lapangan, dan wawancara; digunakan. Penulis melaksanakan pengamatan terhadap anak-anak usia pra-sekolah ”Speak First” di Klaten yang berusia 3-4 tahun dalam tahun ajaran 2009/2010. Dalam penelitian ini, catatan lapangan digunakan untuk menuliskan segala sesuatu yang terjadi di kelas selama pengamatan berlangsung. Pengamatan dan catatan lapangan digunakan untuk menjawab pertanyaan pertama dan kedua, yaitu tentang teknik dan media yang digunakan dalam pengajaran kosakata bahasa Inggris untuk anak-anak usia pra-sekolah. Wawancara terhadap pendidik juga digunakan untuk menggali data lebih dalam dan menjawab pertanyaan ketiga, yaitu tentang alasan yang mendasari penggunaan teknik dan media dalam setiap pertemuan.
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pertemuannya adalah untuk meningkatkan kemampuan motorik anak, meningkatkan rasa percaya diri, dan menambah pengetahuan anak.
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
First of all, I want to express my greatest gratitude to Almighty Jesus Christ for the everlasting love, blessing and amazing grace in every step of my life. I thank Him for giving me a great chance to fill this world with anything I can do my very best for the people around me. I always believe that there is nothing impossible in Him. I also thank Mother Mary, who always teaches me to be patient and strong whenever the situation is.
My sincere gratitude goes to my sponsor, Christina Kristiyani, S.Pd., M.Pd., for her correction, advice, suggestion, and support during my thesis. I am deeply grateful to all PBI lecturers for guiding and teaching me during my study in Sanata Dharma University. I would also like to thank all secretariat staffs of PBI for always helping me with the administrative matters. Furthermore, I thank all librarians of Sanata Dharma University for giving me their kind service and enjoyable place to study.
My special thanks are addresed to Speak First Klaten where I conducted the research. I thank Mrs. Siska, Ms. Ayun, Ms. Cici, and Ms. Tanti very much for helping and guiding me conducted the research. I also thank all Pre-school students who actively and enthusiastically studied in class.
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Ridwan for giving me support and moments we have shared together. With all my love, I thank Pius for his praying, support, patience, and everlasting love.
My special thanks are addressed to all the fighters: Yoana, Indi, Kaje, Siskey, Niken, Ata, Nana, Esti, Oliph, Septi, Nita, and Zico for the support and friendship, and all the happiness and sadness we have spent together. We have worked hard and worked smart together. Then, I will never forget the beautiful life in the nicest boarding house “Kost Pelangi” with all togetherness in happy and sad moments: mbak Weni, Riyutz, Popon, Cepti, Ningsih, Dora, Nina,
Nita, and Vida.
Next, I would like to thank all the members of “Cantus Firmus” choir,
friends of KKN Angkatan 39 Desa Gedogan, play performance group “Fatal Desire” and LPPM staffs of Sanata Dharma University for the togetherness, sadness, and happiness moments – I miss them. Thanks for the unforgettable memories during the struggle.
Last but not least, my gratitude also goes to all PBI 2006 students for the unforgettable moments during the study in Sanata Dharma University, and to all people who cannot be mentioned one by one. God bless us.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
TITLE PAGE ………... i
APPROVAL PAGES ... ii
DEDICATION PAGE ... iv
STATEMENT OF WORK’S ORIGINALITY ... v
ABSTRACT ……... vii
ABSTRAK ... viii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ... x
TABLE OF CONTENTS ... xii
LIST OF APPENDICES... xviii
CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION A. Research Background ... 1
B. Problem Formulation ………... 4
C. Problem Limitation ……….. 5
D. Research Objectives ……… 5
E. Research Benefits ……… 6
F. Definition of Terms ………. 7
CHAPTER II. REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE A. Theoretical Description ... 10
1. Principle of Teaching ... 10
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a. The Important of Vocabulary ... 14
b. Vocabulary Learning ... 15
c. Vocabulary Teaching ... 16
3. Methods ... 17
a. Desuggestopedia ... 18
b. Multiple Intelligences (MI) ... 20
1.) Logical / Mathematical ... 20
2.) Verb / Linguistic ... 20
3.) Bodily / Kinesthetic ... 21
4.) Musical / Rythmic ... 21
5.) Visual / Spatial ... 22
6.) Interpersonal ... 22
7.) Intrapersonal ... 22
c. Total Physical Response ... 23
4. Teaching Media ... 24
a. Pictures ... 26
1.) Context-Oriented Picture ... 27
2.) Structured-Oriented Picture ... 27
b. Real Things ... 27
1.) Object ... 28
2.) Events / Real Pictures ... 28
5. Teaching Children in the Pre-School Ages ... 28
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b. Principle of Teaching Pre-School Students ... 31
B. Theoretical Framework ... 32
CHAPTER III. METHODOLOGY ... 34
A. Research Method ... 34
B. Research Participants ... 35
C. Research Instruments ... 36
1. Observation Checklist ... 36
2. Field Notes ... 39
3. Interview ... 39
D. Data Gathering Techniques ... 40
E. Data Analysis Techniques ... 41
F. Research Procedures ... 43
CHAPTER IV.RESEARCH FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION ... 45
A. Research Findings ... 45
Table 4.1. Teaching Topic ... 45
Table 4.2. Classroom’s Daily Activities ... 46
Table 4.3. Teaching Activities ... 47
Table 4.4. Teaching Media ... 50
Table 4.5. Classification of Methods and Media ... 55
B. Discussion ... 56
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a. Total Physical Response ... 57
b. Multiple Intelligences (MI) ... 57
1.) Logical-Mathematical Intelligence ... 57
2.) Verb- Linguistic Intelligence ... 58
3.) Bodily- Kinesthethic Intelligence ... 59
4.) Musical-Rhythmic Intelligence ... 60
5.) Visual-Spatial Intelligence ... 60
6.) Interpersonal Intelligence ... 61
7.) Intrapersonal Intelligence ... 61
c. Desuggestopedia ... 62
2.) The Media Used in Teaching Vocabulary to “Speak First” Pre-School ... 62
a. Pictures ... 63
1.) Context-Oriented Pictures: Crepe Paper and Glue ... 63
2.) Context-Oriented Pictures: Decoration Pictures, Glue, and a Piece of Paper ... 64
3.) Structured-Oriented Pictures: Photos ... 64
b. Real Things ... 65
1.) Objects ... 65
a) Money ... 65
b) Dry Leaves, Drawing Pictures, and Glue ... 65
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d) The Greeting Cards, Stamps, and Glue ... 66
e) Musical Instrument, Songs, Sponge Blocks, Puzzles, Sand and Water, and Table Toys ... 66
2.) Events / Real Places ... 68
a) Swimming Pool ... 68
b) Post Office ... 69
3.) The Underlying Reasons Using the Methods and Media Used in Teaching Process ... 69
Table 4.6. The Classification of Methods and Media in The 1st Meeting ... 70
Table 4.7. The Classification of Methods and Media in The 2nd Meeting ... 72
Table 4.8. The Classification of Methods and Media in The 3rd Meeting ... 74
Table 4.9. The Classification of Methods and Media in The 4th Meeting ... 74
Table 4.10. The Classification of Methods and Media in The 5th Meeting ... 76
Table 4.11. The Classification of Methods and Media in The 6th Meeting ... 78
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in The 8th Meeting ... 81
CHAPTER V.CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS ... 85
A. Conclusions ... 85
B. Suggestions ... 88
1. For Students ... 88
2. For English Teachers ... 88
3. For Future Researchers ... 89
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LIST OF APPENDICES
Page
APPENDIX A ... 1
Letter of Permission ... 2
APPENDIX B ... 3
Teaching and learning Process in “Speak First” Pre-School ... 4
APPENDIX C ... 14
“Speak First” Pre-School ... 15
APPENDIX D ... 23
Observation Checklists ... 24
APPENDIX E ... 42
Vocabulary Learnt through Each Meeting ... 43
APPENDIX F ... 51
List of Interview Questions (Bahasa Indonesia)... 52
List of Interview Questions (English language) ... 53
APPENDIX G ... 54
Interview Transcripts (Bahasa Indonesia)... 55
Interview Transcripts (English language)... 59
APPENDIX H ... 63
Figure 3.1. ... 44
Figure 1. Snack Time ... 64
Figure 2. Cooking Chocolates ... 64
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Figure 4. Students Played in The Playing Area ... 65
Figure 5. The Teacher Guided the Students Sticking a Stamp... 65
Figure 6. A Student Sent a Greeting Card ... 66
1 CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION
This chapter presents the methods and media that the teacher used in teaching vocabulary. The methods and media which are used will be in line for the teaching-learning situation nowadays.
A. Research Background
English language becomes an important language nowadays. Smith (1976) defines the term “international language”, noting that an “international” language is one which is used by people of different nations to communicate with one another. English becomes an international language as well due to the fact that it has been widely used around the world. In addition, English has been involved in wider communication between individuals of a country and among different countries.
to develop human‟s quality (Depdiknas, 2005: 1). The purpose of pre-school is preparing the children to continue their education to the higher level. According to Ritter (1950), young learners “learn by seeing, hearing, feeling, smelling, and tasting”. Moreover, pre-school students are always active. They still like learning by playing. In their ages, they still cannot write well, but they use their senses of sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch to understand the language. With respect to the students as young learners and the objective of teaching English, the teachers can introduce them to the language study habits beginning in the early grades.
To teach vocabulary beginning in the early grades, the teacher should use interesting methods so the students will understand what they have learnt. Interesting teaching method can make the students enjoy the teaching-learning activities. As stated in Larsen-Freeman (2000: ix), methods can aid teachers in bringing to conscious awareness the thinking that underlies their action. Methods offer teachers alternatives to what they currently think and do. Teachers can vary the methods in their teaching process.
and real things. Those kinds of media give a big contribution to the students in their learning process. The teachers have to know the basic concept of English vocabulary so that they know what they want to teach to their students. The more technology develops, the more media can be used by the teacher to conduct the teaching method. Both methods in teaching English and media are needed to make the pre-school students learn better.
In this study, the writer is interested in conducting a research in “Speak First” Pre-school since it is a new billingual school in Klaten. There are two
reasons why the writer chooses “Speak First” to be observed. The first reason is practicality. Since the distance of “Speak First” is near to the writer‟s house, the writer knows well about the school. The second one is that “Speak First” has experienced teaching English for six years. Since “Speak First” has lots of experiences, most people in Klaten believe that “Speak First” gives the best education quality from the early grades. In this study, the writer wants to know what methods the teachers of “Speak First” conducting in teaching-learning process and what kinds of media used to support their teaching process.
The participants in this study were students of “Speak First” pre-school whose ages are between 3 – 4 years old. The students belonged to pre-school in the academic year 2010-2011. Based on my informal observation, each student has different characteristics. There were active, passive, shy, and brave students in one class.
education, including interpersonal skill, social skill, and academic skill to learn independently. According to Napitupulu (2001: 2), this policy is related to UNESCO‟s educational pillars, those are learning to know, learning to do, learning to be, and learning to live together. Learning to know means that children learn through media and teacher‟s explanation. Learning to do means that children do learning activities directly, and learning to live together means that children have interaction with other people. In the teaching process, pre-school students will have social interaction with other students. It is very difficult to teach pre-school students because they are not able to write well. Their process of learning is still to learn through the sense of sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch. Based on those senses, it is hoped the students will be accustomed to understand the meaning of vocabulary list step by step with continuous teaching process through appropriate methods and media. The vocabulary lists will be useful for the students to face life skill education in their future. In today‟s circumstances, life skill education for pre-school students has not appeared yet because they are still too young to understand the meaning of life skill. Life skill will be used throughout their lives.
B. Problem Formulation
1. What kinds of methods are used in teaching vocabulary for “Speak First” pre-school students?
2. What kinds of media are used in teaching vocabulary for “Speak First” pre-school students?
3. What are the underlying reasons to use different methods and media in each meeting?
C. Problem Limitation
In order to limit the scope of the study in conducting the research, the writer deals only with the vocabulary activities conducted by English teachers in “Speak First” Klaten. The observation on the vocabulary activities was about
how an English teacher teaches vocabulary in every meeting by using methods and media. The observation also covers in what situation the methods and media can be applied in class.
D. Research Objectives
The general objective of this study is to investigate what the English teacher in “Speak First” Klaten conducts vocabulary teaching-learning for pre-school students. The specific objectives can be stated as follows.
1. To find out the methods the teachers applied in teaching-learning vocabulary as the foreign language.
3. To know what the underlying reasons are to use the methods and media in each meeting in teaching vocabulary.
E. Research Benefits
This study is expected to be able to give several benefits for the students, teachers, and the future researchers.
For students, this study aims to give new experience to the students in learning vocabulary as their foreign language and the basic knowledge of their learning English language. The students can understand the meaning of vocabularies that they learn although they are not able to write yet. The students can get experiences in vocabulary and also expand their understanding of word meaning.
For the English teachers, the result of this study is to gain insight into methods in teaching vocabulary. After knowing the methods in teaching vocabulary, the English teachers are expected to provide better methods in teaching vocabulary in which vocabulary is an important element that can support students‟ quality in learning English. The English teachers may also find out whether the learning activities and teaching methods and media they planned and applied are useful or not in order to encourage students during the class. In addition, English teachers may also find out whether the teaching-learning activities through the methods enable students to learn vocabulary in easier ways.
level to learn English. It is also expected in the future that the researchers can know the underlying reasons of using the methods and media during the teaching process.
F. Definition of Terms
This section presents the definition of term used in this study. The terms defined here are the methods, media, teaching vocabulary, and the pre-school students in “Speak First”.
1. Methods
According to Brown (2001: 16), a method is a generalized set of classroom specification for accomplishing linguistic objectives. Methods tend to be concerned primarily with teacher and students roles and behaviors and secondarily with such features as linguisitc and subject-matter objectives and materials.
In this study, the methods refer to the generalized set of classroom specification which is conducted by the English teacher in teaching vocabulary to “Speak First” pre-school students during the teaching-learning process. The
methods which are used will be effective for the students in understanding vocabulary. Moreover, the teachers can improve their creativity in teaching vocabulary based on its various genres so that the students grasp more the words that they learn.
2. Media
education world, the source of information is the teacher and the receiver is the students. The information is the lesson that students have to learn in every meeting. The purpose of media is to communicate the transformation of knowledge from the teachers to the students. In this study, media are used appropriately based on the teaching methods which are applied by the English teacher in teaching vocabulary to pre-school students. One method can be used with the same and different media in the teaching-learning process. The examples of media are pictures and real things.
3. Teaching Vocabulary
4. Pre-school Students in “Speak First”
“Speak First” objectively accepts the students every year. The students
10 CHAPTER II
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
This chapter presents the literature review of the study. This chapter includes two main parts, namely theoretical description and theoretical framework.
A. Theoretical Description
This part elaborates five key points used in this study. They are principles of teaching, vocabulary, method, media, and teaching children in the pre-school ages.
1. Principles of Teaching
According to Gerlach & Ely (1980: 49), one of the tasks as a teacher is to facilitate learning. Teachers are to establish conditions which make it probable that learning will occur within a period of time. Teaching cannot be defined apart from learning. Nathan Gage (1964: 269) as cited in Brown (1994: 7) noted that
“to satisfy the practical demands of education, theories of learning must be stood
on their head so as to yield theories of teaching.” Teaching is guiding and
facilitating learning, enabling the learner to learn, setting the conditions for
learning. Teachers’ understanding of how the learner learns will determine
teachers’ philosophy of education, teachers’ teaching style, teachers’ approach,
Teachers who teach pre-school students have the limitation of the curriculum because pre-school students are unique. The major element of developing pre-school students’ education is through playing. Albrecht and Miller (2000: 216-218) stated that the development of curriculum for pre-school students should give priority to the freedom of students’ creativity. According to Kitano
and Kirby (1986: 27-167), curriculum for pre-school students is a plan to maximize the interaction of learning in order to have potential behavior. Curriculum should have major element in every stage of education which covers all the teaching-learning process. According to Catron and Allen (1999: 30), curriculum covers the answer of all the questions about what have to be taught to the students and how to teach them by using a planner program which based on
the philosophy of children’ development and learning. The teachers can apply
playing as one of the effective ways to be done in the curriculum, which will be used as the main level for children’ development.
The creative curriculum is rooted in educational philosophy and theory as well as practice. “It builds on Erik Erikson’s stages of socio-emotional development, Jean Piaget’s theories of how children think and learn, on principles of physical development, and appreciation of cultural influences” (Dodge, 1992:
The creative curriculum shows teachers how to encourage positive responses to the three stages. The type of environment helps children develop a sense of trust and belonging. Children can feel safe and encouraged to explore not only materials but also their relationship with peers and adults. The environment encourages both autonomy and self-control. Children learn to handle their feeling in acceptable. When they are encourage to make decisions for themselves, children experience a sense of control over their lives. Competence and initiative are fostered in this type of environment. By setting clear, age-appropriate expectations for behavior and by letting children know what is expected of them, teachers can endanger success and minimize frustration. Children’s concern about
doing things because they are encouraged to learn from their mistakes, to explore, and to take risks.
Creative curriculum explains how children learn to think. “Children learn
by doing. Through active involvement with their environment, children attempt to make sense of the world around them” (Dodge, 1992: 7). They learn by observing what happens when they interact with materials and other people. They spontaneously engage in activities such as block building, house corner or dramatic play. They learn simple concepts and then used the concepts to grasp more complex ideas.
“Children learn concrete and literal thinking. Young children view the world concretely, as they mature, their view changes” (Dodge, 1992: 6). What
had. By interacting with indoor and outdoor physical environment and their social environment, children broaden their frame of reference.
“Children learn from the environment.” The creative curriculum builds on
Piaget’s theories of development of young children. Piaget believed that all
children learn through active exploration of their environment” (Dodge, 1992: 7).
By grasping, rolling, pounding, smelling, sucking, and crawling around and over everything they come in contact with. As children’s learning expands, the environment plays a critical role. The richer the environment, the more concrete opportunities there are for children to learn by interacting with materials and people.
“The creative curriculum also explains how the children develop their
physical, both gross and fine motor physical development. Physical development is taken for granted in early childhood education” (Dodge, 1992: 9). Normally
physical development relies on good health, proper nutrition, and safe environment. Proper nutrition is crucial to both mental and physical development. Proper nutrition comes from nutritious food. Dodge (1992: 271) stated that
“cooking enables children give experience the world of food firsthand.” It means
need indoor and outdoor space where they can try out all their newly acquired skills without danger of injury.
2. Vocabulary
English language in Indonesia is used as an international language. “English is a language of wider communication both among individuals from
different countries and between individuals from the country” (McKay, 2002: 6). It is not easy to learn foreign language for pre-school students because they also still learn their mother tongue. Vocabulary is taken into account since this study requires some enlightenment of related theories that is significant to the research. The discussion on vocabulary covers the importance of vocabulary, vocabulary learning, and vocabulary teaching. Further, the theories will be elaborated in this sub-chapter.
a. The Importance of Vocabulary
communicate the language (Willis, 1996: 118). For instance, if learners are visiting a foreign country in which they do not speak the language, they tend to take a dictionary to look up the meaning of the word rather than a grammar book. It indicates that learners initially need vocabulary if they want to communicate in the intended language.
b. Vocabulary Learning
Vocabulary learning is central to language acquisition whether the language is first, second, or foreign (Decarrico as cited in Muria-Celce, 2001: 285). A language contains a number of words or what is so called vocabulary. Such words in a language are often used by people to communicate everything, which is processed in their minds, for example to express what they feel and do. Thus, to be able to acquire a language, people first need to acquire its vocabulary so that they are able to communicate the language.
c. Vocabulary Teaching
It is imperative to know the current issues in vocabulary teaching since both language teachers and language learners are involved in it. These issues concern with deciding which items of vocabulary to teach and how to teach them. According to Meara (1995) as cited in Muria-Celce (2001: 287) in vocabulary teaching, learners should initially be taught a large productive vocabulary. The productive vocabulary refers to such words that are regularly heard or seen by learners. Language learners need to be exposed to a large amount of vocabulary since they are to make use of it, either actively or passively, in any language use. That is why learners should learn large vocabularies even when they first start to acquire a language.
pictures or any other teaching aids in order to make learning more comprehensive to the learners.
The beginning language learners, especially, can be assisted to acquire vocabulary for instance by presenting them such word association lists. It is done to make them easier to learn new vocabulary. On the other hand, more advanced learners can be taught to acquire vocabulary through context. It is important that new vocabulary items were presented in contexts in order to provide the learners any clues to meaning. The learners can learn new vocabulary that they might not know the meaning by contextualizing the meant words, so they are able to guess the meaning of the words.
Creative curriculum is needed to increase students’ creativity, interaction,
and social communication with others. The purpose of pre-school students’ curriculum is to have the basic knowledge of information, skill, and creativity for students to adapt with their environment for their next step of development (Depdiknas 2004: 3).
3. Methods
bringing to conscious awareness the thinking that underlies their actions. Methods offer teacher alternatives to what they currently think and do.
In this study, the writer found several methods which are used in the teaching-learning process. Desuggestopedia, Multiple Intelligences (MI) and Total Physical Response (TPR) are the methods. Based on those methods, teaching vocabulary is applied. The methods are as follows.
a. Desuggestopedia
Desuggestopedia is a method the teacher used in this study. It was firstly introduced in the 1960s and 1970s by a Bulgarian psychiatrist-educator by the name of George Lozanov. Larsen-Freeman (2000: 73) stated that:
language learning can occur at a much faster rate than ordinarily transpires. Lozanov asserts that we set up psychological barriers to learning. Desuggestopedia is the application of the study of suggestion to pedagogy, has been developed to help students eliminate the feeling that they cannot be successful or the negative association they may have toward studying and thus, to help them overcome the barriers to learning.
you can do”) into the learning situation, (6) the teacher should present and explain
the vocabulary, but not dwell on them, (7) fine arts provide positive suggestions for students, (8) one way that meaning is made clear is through native language translation, (9) the fine arts (music, art, and drama) enable suggestion to reach the subconscious, and (10) errors are corrected gently, not in a direct, confrontational manner.
The teacher can use these following Desuggestopedia’s principles
meaningful to alter the classroom environment as stated in Larsen-Freeman (2000: 84).
1.) Classroom set-up
The challenge for the teacher is to create a classroom environment which is bright and cheerful, where the walls were decorated scenes from a country where the target language is spoken. The teacher should try to provide as positive an environment as possible.
2.) Peripheral learning
3.) Creative adaptation
The students engage in various activities designed to help them learn the new material and use it spontaneously. Activities particularly recommended for this phase including singing, dancing, and games.
b. Multiple Intelligences (MI)
Multiple Intelligences or MI is a method in teaching-learning English which proposed by Howard Gardner in 1983. According to Larsen-Freeman (2000: 172), “teacher has always known that the students have different strengths. In the language teaching field, some of the differences among students have been attributed to students’ having different learning or cognitive styles.” It means that
the students not only improve their cognitive and linguistic intelligences, but also to explore their ability through art, music, body movement, space, relationship with others, and to understand themselves. Gardner has a theory that the students have at least seven distinct intelligences. The seven intelligences are as follows.
1.) Logical-mathematical – is the ability to use numbers effectively, to see abstract patterns and to reason well, for example: puzzles and games. Logical-mathematical intelligence plays a larger role in thinking and learning. Gardner (in Campbell, 1996: 37) stated that by working with concrete objects, students become actively engaged in problem solving. 2.) Verb-linguistic – is the ability to use language effectively and creatively,
provided with opportunities to make meaningful choices and decisions.”
Pre-school students as young learners who born in into such an environment has a leading-edge on becoming a competent listener, speaker, reader, and writer in the future. Gardner (in Campbell, 1996: 2)
suggested that language is a “pre-eminent instance of human
intelligence” that has been indispensable to human society. Furthermore,
self-confidence grows when the students learn how to involve in discussion, speaking in front of the class, and any activities in class. It is good for the early young learners stronger their self-confidence.
3.) Bodily-kinesthetic – is the ability to use one’s body to express oneself and to solve problems, for example: body movement and hands-on activities. Gardner (in Campbell, 1996: 67) stated that bodily-kinesthetic intelligence includes the ability to unite body and mind to perfect physical performance.
soul and take the strongest hold there, bringing the grace of body and mind which is only to be found in one brought up in the right way.”
5.) Visual-spatial – is the ability to orient oneself in the environment, to create mental images, and to sense the shape, size, and color; for example: drawing. “Visual-spatial includes an aggregate of related skills including visual discrimination, recognition, projection, mental imagery, spatial reasoning, image manipulation and the duplication of inner or external imagery, any or all of which may be expressed by a single
person” (Gardner in Campbell, 1996: 96).
6.) Interpersonal – is the ability to understand another person’s moods, feelings, motivation and attention; for example: working in group. Gardner (in Campbell, 1996: 160) stated that interpersonal intelligence enabled students to understand and communicate with others, noting differences in moods, temperaments, motivation, and skills. Humphrey in Campbell (1996: 160) stated that the greatest creative use of the human mind is to maintain human society effectively.
mistake. The teacher should guide students’ intrapersonal condition to
avoid laughing at the mistake if there is a student did a mistake.
MI can be useful for reminding about the unique qualities of each student. Students cannot be forced to learn one of intelligence continuously. They are free to express and explore what they want to learn more based on their interest. The teacher guides them to learn their ability deeply.
c. Total Physical Response (TPR)
Total Physical Response (TPR) is a method developed by Dr. James J. Asher. The most important thing is that TPR is emphasized on students’ developing basic communication skills and vocabulary through their receiving meaningful exposure to the target language. The students listen to the teacher using the target language communicatively from the beginning of instruction. They do not speak at first. The teacher helps the students to understand the teacher by using pictures and occasional words in the students’ native language and by
being as expressive as possible.
According to Larsen-Freeman (2000:111), there are several principles of TPR as follows.
1.) Meaning in the target language can often be conveyed through action. Memory is activated through learner response. Beginning foreign language instruction should address the right hemisphere of the brain, the part which control nonverbal behavior.
3.) Students can initially learn one part of the language rapidly by moving their bodies.
4.) Students can learn by observing action as well as through performing the actions themselves.
5.) It is very important that students feel successful. Feeling of success and low anxiety facilitate learning.
6.) Students are expected to make errors when they first begin speaking. Teacher should be tolerant of them.
4. Teaching Media
purposes: to provide a preview of some of the ways that media can be employed to enhance student learning opportunities, to provide alternative settings for the transmission of information and give the teacher powerful new tools that can significantly improve the quality of learning experiences for students. Creative uses of a variety of media will increase the probability that students will learn more, retain better what they learn, and improve students’ performance of the skill
they are expected to develop.
According to Brown, Lewis, and Harcleroad (1977: 71), the generalized principles of media selection and media use are as follows.
a. No one medium is the best for all purposes
Recognize that no one medium, procedure, or student experience is necessarily best for learning a particular subject, for acquiring a particular skill, or for developing a specific desirable attitude or level of appreciation. b. Media uses should be consistent with objectives
Media should be fit with the goal in teaching process. As the example is by using flashcards if the objective is to make students understand about fruits or numbers.
c. Media must fit student capabilities
Because the students are early young learners whose age between 1 – 4 years old, media must fit student capabilities. They still like playing while studying, so media must fit with their condition of teaching-learning.
consist of objects and events / real places. Objects include anything such as puzzles. Events/ real places include any place to study such as bus station, market, and beach. Teachers as the coordinator of teaching-learning process in the classroom have a wide variety of media from which to choose. In this study, the writer concerns much about those kinds of media.
Two kinds of media according to Gerlach & Ely (1980: 22-24) are as follows.
a. Pictures
Pictures are one of the valuable aids. Pictures bring “images of reality into
the unnatural world of the language classroom” (Hill, 1990: 1). It means that pictures represent things in the real world. Pictures are functioned as a fun element in the class because they are colourful. There are several reasons for using pictures in language teaching. The first one, as Wright (1990: 2) pointed out, is that a picture is a motivation and it draws learners’ attention. Pre-school students as early young learners like things which have eye-catching colours.
Colourful pictures will grab students’ attention to focus on the teaching-learning
activities. The second one still referred to Wright (1990: 2), is that pictures provide a sense of the context of the language and give a specific reference point or stimulus. Students will be stimulated to learn new vocabulary through the combination of various pictures, colours, and methods in teaching. Third is that pictures are being suitable for any group of learners independently on age or level.
comparing, etc.), they are always fresh and different, which mean they come in a variety of formats and styles and moreover the learner often wonders what comes next.”
There are two types of pictures for teaching-learning process. The writer follows the classification offered by Kreidler (_: 21-25). They are context-oriented picture and structured-oriented picture as follows.
1.) Context-Oriented Picture
In this study, context refers to the general condition in which an event or action takes place. As stated in Kreidler (_: 4), context-oriented picture depicts a situation or topic that includes several people and actions such as market scene, mountain scene and birthday. It may be drawn by hand or people or cut from magazines. Colored pictures are preferable to pre-school students since they like something which is colorful.
2.) Structured-Oriented Picture
In this study, structure refers to anything formed of many parts. As stated in Kreidler (_: 4), structured-oriented picture depicts one person or one object, like a man or a girl. It should be simple, without distracting background or captions. Individual picture cards can be cut from magazines illustration or they can be drawn.
b. Real Things
1.) Objects
Brown, Lewis, and Harcleroad (1977: 270) stated that objects should be determined by the purposes for which they are to be used. In this study, objects show the things in its real size or shapes, such as whiteboards, cassettes, and tape.
2.) Events / Real Places
Events provide stimuli to the students by means of field trips. Therefore, event is also called real places because the students conduct direct observation (Gerlach & Ely, 1980: 375). It refers to buildings which has the real width and length, where people use it as a place to meet and to gather one another. The examples of real places are market, train station, and hotel.
5. Teaching Children in The Pre-School Ages
The discussion on pre-school students covers two major points. Those are the characteristics of children in school ages and principles of teaching pre-school students.
a. The characteristics of children in pre-school ages
The discussion of young learners in English course is taken up since the subjects of this study are children in the pre-school stage of “Speak First”.
According to Ritter (1950), “Young learners learn by seeing, hearing, feeling,
smelling, and tasting”. Their growths in this grade are indicated by special characteristics that differentiate them from others. “Those characteristics include
social characteristics” (Cole, 1956: 125). Further, the special characteristics of children as young learners will be explained.
Within physical characteristics, children grow through special characteristics. During the years of schooling, children grow physically as their bones, muscles, as well as nerve system develop. “The physical development of
the body requires children to do any physical activities at one moment that make
them easily exhausted” (Cole, 1956: 126). Therefore, it is better if children are not
burdened with too many complicated activities that demand great effort and concentration, since their nerve and muscular control will rapidly become worse if too much complex work is required over them.
“Within the intellectual development, children possess immature mind that
leads them to poor memories since their development has not been accomplished yet in this stage” (Cole, 1956: 127). It is quite hard for them to memorize all the
that is somehow unfamiliar and terrible for them. As they make repetition at the known and familiar things, hence, they are devoted to routine.
“Emotional development is indicated firstly by lack of self-control and inhibition and secondly by assortment of exaggerated fears over children” (Cole,
1956: 128). This means that they want to do something processed in their mind immediately. In other words, children intend to do a large variety of things at one moment. Secondly, the emotional development that is indicated by assortment of exaggerated fears is caused by little knowledge that children have on any point. For instance, they are afraid of thunder, wind, or darkness for they lack of information about them. In this phase, children experience intense feeling of insecurity. They always need some help from an adult to do or even to accomplish their work for they are not yet old enough to understand what is happening in their environment. In an ordinary school environment, children usually have a load of anxiety towards anything that they cannot concentrate upon pre-schoolwork. The anxiety often makes them ask several things to an adult until they feel that their curiosity has been satisfactorily fulfilled.
According to Cole (1956: 130), “the social characteristics of children are indicated by two significant characteristics”. They are highly individualistic in
they do not know how to get along with others. Thus, it is to say that they are intense individuals.
b. Principle of teaching pre-school students
Cole (1956: 317-321) “pinpoints two important principles in teaching pre
-school students.” The principles consist of study environment and directions for
studying. The principles will be clarified in the following paragraph.
“Study environment is considered important in building favorable environment to the learners’ mental effort to study” (Cole 1956: 317). Two
primary things included in study environment are that there should not be any competing activity going on in the classroom and the elimination of any whispering while the other learners are learning. When learning activities are carried out, it is better for teacher to manage the class that can support the learners to learn.
B. Theoretical Framework
Teaching vocabulary is introduced in very young ages. It is not easy to teach vocabulary to young learners whose ages between 3-4 years old. Knowing the importance of learning vocabulary, it is better to start teaching vocabulary when learners are still young. The teacher needs to use attractive methods to make the students excited. The writer uses the theories of Dr. James J. Asher, George Lozanov, and Howard Gardner to classify what kinds of methods applied by the teacher during teaching-learning process. The writer, then, uses those theories as the foundation to find the reasons why the teacher uses the methods.
To support the applied methods in teaching-learning process, media are
also used. Media can grab students’ attention to join the class. “Media will
activate students and as they learn actively, the teachers can enjoy the evidence of their learning progress” (Brown, Lewis, and Harcleroad, 1977: 2). The teacher
should avoid boredom, hence, it is needed interesting methods and supporting media to create pleasant teaching-learning atmosphere. The writer uses the theories of Brown, Lewis, and Harcleroad on media to analyze kinds of media used in the teaching-learning process. Kinds of media are pictures and real things. Pictures consist of context and structured pictures. Real things consist of objects and events / real places. The writer analyzes the media based on the applied methods by the teacher.
34 CHAPTER III METHODOLOGY
In this chapter, the writer will discuss the methodology used in this study. The discussion covers research method, research participants, research instruments, data gathering techniques, data analysis, and research procedures.
A. Research Method
The study aimed to help the English teachers to find out the methods the teachers applied in teaching-learning vocabulary as the foreign language and the media used to support the teaching-learning process. The study also aimed to know what the underlying reasons to apply the methods and media in teaching vocabulary for pre-school students in “Speak First”.
In the study, the writer used qualitative research as the research method. “Qualitative research is a study that is done to understand a phenomenon by focusing on the total picture rather than breaking down into variables” (Ary et al,
2002: 25). Qualitative research was a combination between the qualitative research and descriptive research, since one of the characteristics of qualitative inquiry is rich description. As stated by Merriam (2009, p.16) “… the product of a qualitative inquiry is richly descriptive”, which meant that words had been used
students. As this study offered, it examined the methods and media in teaching vocabulary used by the teachers as the object to be observed and the students as the supporting element of this study.
B. Research Participants
Research participants in this study consisted of the students and the English teacher of “Speak First”. The first participant was one of the English teachers of “Speak First” who would be interviewed. The teacher was chosen because of two reasons. Firstly, the teacher was graduated from ABA St. Pignatelli. The teacher joined seminars and trainings for children so the teacher was fluent in teaching English to early ages students. Secondly, the teacher had experiences in teaching vocabulary in this course for three years through various methods and media. Teacher’s experiences influenced the underlying reasons of why the teacher used the same methods with different media, why the teacher used the same media with different methods, and why the teacher used different methods and media in each meeting. The teacher was accompanied by two assistants in every meeting. The assistants helped the teacher to handle the class because the students actively moved around the class during the teaching-learning process.
There were active, passive, shy, and brave students in a class. The students were chosen because their characteristic started to appear between ages 3-4 years old.
The students were chosen since the students had different background. It meant that each student had his or her own characteristic in receiving the materials during the teaching-learning process and the English teacher had to know the students’ characteristic in order to deliver the materials well. Moreover, pre
-school students were young learners who needed guidance to learn. The teacher would always give guidance in teaching-learning process so that the students could follow the learning activities.
C. Research Instruments
This study used observations, field notes, and interview as the instruments. These instruments had a significant role in this study. They were used as a set of instruments to collect data or information from the subject under the research. The discussion of the instruments is divided into three sub-sections namely, the observation checklist, the field notes, and the interview.
1. Observation Checklist
interaction among teacher, student, and content. According to Ober, Bentley, and Miller (1971: 4), “observation will describe skills and/or methods that have been found to be useful for studying the behavior of a teacher as he or she operates in the classroom.” It could be said that teachers would be able to control the students
better in ways that will facilitate and result in maximum learning when actively engaged in a classroom situation as a teacher. All activities happened inside or outside the classroom could be clearly seen through observation.
The results of the observation, then, were put in the form of table 3.1. Table 3.1. Observation Checklist (Blank)
1. The teacher introduces the new topic of vocabulary.
2. The teacher explains to the students what kind of activity will be conducted. 3. The teacher speaks in English at the
most.
4. The teacher speaks in Indonesian. 5. The teacher ignores students’ mistake in
No Aspect to consider Yes No Note 10. The teacher motivates the students if
they lack of spirit in learning.
11. The teacher creates interesting teaching during teaching-learning process.
1. The teacher uses textbook.
2. The teacher writes on the black/white board.
3. The teacher uses pictures and movement to explain the vocabularies.
4. The teacher uses flashcards.
5. The teacher uses cassette and speaker to listen songs.
6. The teacher uses books of stories. 7. The teacher uses scrambled pictures. 8. The teacher conduct a game
2. Field Notes
Field notes are the written account of what the writer sees, hears, experiences, and thinks in the course of collecting and reflecting on the data in qualitative study (Bodgan and Blinker, 1982: 74). In this study, field note was used for writing everything that happened in the classroom during the observation. It contained the teacher’s talk, attitude, movement, and also the classroom
conditions including the students’ activity. The teachers’ word, attitude, and
movement gave influences for students’ learning process. Field notes were used in every meeting during the observation.
3. Interview
This study applied two types of questions in interview, namely structured (or closed) form and unstructured (or open) form of questions.
Open interview provides the interviewee with broad freedom of expression and elaboration and often resemble informal talks. In closed interview, there are specific core questions determine in advance from which the interviewer branches off to explore in-depth information, probing according to the way interview proceeds, and allowing elaboration, within limits (Seliger & Shohamy, 1989:167).
The interviews were conducted informally to the English teacher in “Speak First”. The writer interviewed a pre-school English teacher by using
Bahasa Indonesia, so that the teacher would simply catch the point of the
the difficulties found in students during learning vocabulary, how many words which had to be learnt by students, and the time to conduct a vocabulary test.
D. Data Gathering Techniques
There were two types of data gathering in this study. Firstly, the writer searched the literature books related to this study. Secondly, the writer went to “Speak First” to conduct the observation, the field notes, and the interview. The
data for conducting the research were gathered by observing the class situation during the teaching-learning process. The writer conducted direct observations in class and focused on how the teacher applied the teaching methods and what media used depends on the methods. The writer sat on the back row and sometimes helped the teacher handling the class. The writer observed teachers’
activities in teaching vocabulary based on the observation checklist. In addition, the writer also used field notes in which she wrote down the findings in the form of sentences. The observation would be done more than once in order to gain more methods and media that the English teacher used in teaching vocabulary.
Interview could be conducted before or after the teaching-learning process. The writer interviewed the English teacher once, after the observation had finished. From the interview, the writer asked the teachers’ reasons for applying
E. Data Analysis Techniques
Analyzing the data in qualitative research is essential. According to Moleong (1988: 88), “data analysis is the process of organizing and ordering data
into categories in such a way to find a red line of the data.” In this part, the process was elaborated. This study contained two part of data analysis techniques, namely the result of the class observation and the data from the interview.
The data from the class observation were the observtion checklist and field notes. The data would be gathered in order to be analyzed deeply in the form of classification. The analysis was to find out the way the English teacher in “Speak First” conducted teaching vocabulary. Hence, the analysis was employed to
answer the problem formulation number one. The writer then summarized the data she collected through the observation in order to formulate the research findings to answer the problem. In this step, the writer interpreted the data on teaching methods in order to obtain findings on what teaching methods the teacher applied. The findings were presented in the form of table of classification. The process of coding or classifying was based on the indicator of each method and media used during the teaching-learning process. The form of classification was in Table 3.2.
Table. 3.2 Classification of Methods and Media
Activities Methods Media
Activities Methods Media part of the language rapidly by
moving their bodies. The teacher emphasized spoken
language over written language. TPR The teacher used hanging
colorful pictures Desuggestopedia The teacher used songs. Desuggestopedia The teacher used authentic
pictures Desuggestopedia The teacher used posters to give
information about the words Desuggestopedia The teacher asked the students
to memorize the words. Memorization The students did various
F. Research Procedures
In conducting the research, the writer took the several steps. The steps covered all activities that were done from the preparation up to the data analysis, as follows.
1. The writer read related literature. The writer needed sources to strengthen the research.
2. The writer got the permission from Sanata Dharma University. The writer prepared research proposal along with research instruments namely field notes and interview guidelines. The writer then got the permission letter for the research from the secretariat of English Language Study Program that was signed by the chairperson of the Department of Language and Arts Education. 3. The writer asked the permission from “Speak First”. The writer obtained permission from the manager of “Speak First” in which the research was conducted. The writer sent the permission letter of the research along with its attachments of research proposal and instruments.
4. The writer observed the teaching-learning process. The writer needed more than one observation to gain the data.
5. The writer interviewed the English teacher to obtain the information about teaching-learning vocabulary. The writer asked some questions related to methods and media in teaching vocabulary.
7. The writer drew conclusion from the analysis. The research procedures could be drawn as follows.
Figure. 3.1
Reading related literature
Observing the teaching-learning process
Asking the permission from the manager of “Speak First”
Drawing conclusion from the analysis
Getting the permission from Sanata Dharma University
45 CHAPTER IV
RESEARCH FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION
This chapter presents the results and the discussion of the findings of the qualitative study. There are two major points that will be discussed. The first is the research findings. The second one is the results of classification of using methods and media, and the underlying reasons of using the methods and media during the teaching-learning process.
A. Research Findings
“Speak First” Pre-school consisted of one teacher and two assistants in
every meeting. One class consisted of nine students at the most; so, one teacher handled three students. “Speak First” Pre-school had twelve themes in one year and they were changed in every month. There were also different topics in one month which was based on the theme. When the writer conducted the research, “Celebration” was the theme and there were nine topics in that month. In every
meeting, the teacher used various methods and media to keep the activities interesting. Each meeting took two hours and each activity took thirty minutes. The topics for a month were as stated in Table 4.1.
Table 4.1. Teaching Topic
Meeting Topic Day/Date
1 Independence Day August 16th, 2010 2 Mother’s Day August 18th, 2010
3 Swimming August 20th, 2010
4 Patriot August 23rd, 2010
Meeting Topic Day/Date
6 Valentine’s Day August 27th, 2010
7 Greeting Cards September 1st, 2010 8 Mini trip to the post office September 3rd, 2010 The teaching-learning processes were carried out three times a week; those were on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 07.30 a.m. – 09.30 a.m. The schedules of each meeting were as stated in Table 4.2.
Table 4.2. Classroom’s Daily Activities
Time Activities
07.30 – 08.00 Arrival: the students come and then played in the playing ground
08.00 – 08.30 Circle time: the students wash their hands, do exercises, greet the teacher and friends, and study the new topic
08.30 – 09.00 Snack time: the students eat their snack and then brush their teeth
09.00 – 09.30 Outdoor play: the students play in the playing area.
09.30 Going home: the students put on their shoes by themselves and go home.
There were nine students, one teacher, and two assistants in one class. Since the comparison between the teacher and the students were 1:3, so one teacher handled three students at the most. Small classes gave advantages for the students. The students were guided and monitored intensively in every meeting.
