INDONESIAN IN THE EFL CLASSROOM
THESIS
Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of
Sarjana Pendidikan
Danny Agus Wahyudi Hartono 112008010
ENGLISH DEPARTMENT
FACULTY OF LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE
SATYA WACANA CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY
SALATIGA
TEACHERS‟ PERCEPTION ABOUT THE USE OF ENGLISH AND
students?”. There are also three major theories from experts that will be used as the foundation of
this research. The theories are definitions of perception, the use of L1 in EFL classroom, and the use of L2 only in EFL classroom. The participants in this research are three English teachers from a private Senior High School in Salatiga. Observation and interview are the chosen method of data collection for this research. Four major findings will also be discussed in details later.
Those findings are teachers‟ experiences and beliefs about the use of Indonesian and English in
EFL classroom, the use of English in EFL classroom, the use of Indonesian in EFL classroom,
and teachers‟ respond toward students‟ use of Indonesian.
Keywords: perception, Indonesian and English, EFL classroom
INTRODUCTION
As the student of Language faculty in Satya Wacana Christian University, It has become a must for me to do Teaching Practicum for one semester. Teaching Practicum is a course where I am trained to be a professional teacher in the real educational context (ex: in elementary or junior or senior high school).
Based on Harmer‟s (2001) description above, I will focus more on a teacher‟s role as the
language model for his/her students in the classroom. I become interested with this topic because of a teacher from a private Senior High School, who taught my Micro Teaching class. She always told that she never allowed her High School students to use their native language (Indonesian) during the teaching learning process in her classes. If the students were caught to
use Indonesian even for one word, they would get an „untrophy‟ hat from her as the
consequence. This situation makes me wonder if the other English teachers in that private High School also have the same way of teaching like her.
Using my curiosity about this question, I decide to choose an issue “TEACHERS‟
PERCEPTION ABOUT THE USE OF ENGLISH AND INDONESIAN IN THE EFL
CLASSROOM OF SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS”. In my opinion, teachers should include the use of Indonesian in the EFL classroom, because the mixing of Indonesian and
English during the explanation can help teachers to strengthen students‟ comprehension about
These theories above, lead me to a conclusion that teachers should allow the use of first language (in this case is Indonesian) in the way that can support teaching learning process of EFL classroom. Therefore, I decide to formulate the following research questions that will be answered in this research. The question is:
“What are teachers‟ perceptions about using English and Indonesian during the teaching learning process in the EFL classroom of Senior High School students?”
The aim of this research is to learn about teachers‟ opinion about the use of Indonesian in
the English classroom. I want to know the purpose of whether they apply/erase L1 in their EFL class. I also want to find out about how teachers use Indonesian in their real EFL classroom context.
In the end, I hope that this research can become a reference material for the English teachers to imply a positive point of view that combining the use of English and Indonesian is very effective way to build students understanding in English class. Therefore, the students can gain maximum comprehension about the materials that they get in the EFL classroom.
THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
In order to analyze about teachers‟ perception about the use of Indonesian and English in
EFL classroom, there are some theories from experts that will be used to support the findings of this research
Definition of perception
person selects, arranges, and interprets information (identifying something) to create meaningful
image (using their five senses). Mar‟at (1991) stated, “Perception is affected by a person‟s
experiences, learning process, and knowledge about the psychological object” (as cited in Adrian, 2010). In conclusion of those definitions above, Brem and Kasin (as cited in Adrian, 2010), stated that Perception had some elements:
1. Person: someone who appraises the others
2. Situational: an event based on someone‟s experiences to appraise something 3. Behavior: Something which is done by others.
In relationship of those definitions and elements with my topic, the term of “persons” who have perceptions are “teachers”. The “perception” itself means the selection and interpretation process. The “situation” which creates the perception is “the use of Indonesian in EFL classroom”. The term of behavior is “to support the teaching-learning process”.
The use of L1 in EFL classroom
There are some reasons why the use of first Language should be allowed in the EFL classroom. Eldridge (1996) stated that code switching between L1 (in this case is Indonesian) and L2 (English) was a natural developmental process (as cited in Harmer, 2001). However in that code switching process, students (in the context of this study is Senior High School Students) tended to use L1 when performing pedagogical tasks, especially when one student was explaining something to others. Harbord (1992) also supported Eldirdge statement by adding that the tendency to use L1 was a habit that in most cases will occur without the encouragement from teachers (as cited in Harmer, 2001). Auerbach (1999) gave agreement to the statement above by saying that to start classroom interaction using L1 provided a sense of security and validated the
depend on their first language was because the self identity of monolingual persons were inextricably bound up with their native language. (Brown, 2000 as cited in Meyer, 2008)
One way to give students a great deal of comprehensible input is through classroom management (Nation, 2003 as cited in Meyer, 2008). This is also the reason why the use of L1 is important in EFL classroom. Some studies show the effectiveness of L1 to help classroom
management in EFL classroom. Atkinson (1987), Cook (2001a), Lucas & Katz (1994), and Macaro (1997) stated that giving instructions in L1 had been considered to be helping students achieving the goal of classroom (as cited in Manara, 2007). He also added that the use of L1 could help maintain discipline in the classroom. Another agreement about the use of L1 to support classroom management also comes from Atkinson (1987) and Deller & Rinvolucri (2002), who reported about the use of L1 in checking for sense and explaining grammar (as cited in Manara, 2007).
The use of L2 only in EFL classroom
be more confident and challenges them to communicate with others through their limited language.
In agreement with Macdonald (1993) statement, Madylus (2001) (as cited in Crawford, 2004) also gave opinion about why EFL classroom should use L2 (English) only in class. It was because target language use had considerable value as it gave the message that languages are different but not to be feared, that the students can understand, and that it is fun when they do.
Atkinson (1987) (as cited in Kenenisa, 2003) directly listed the possible dangers behind the overuse of L1:
1. The teacher and/or the students began to feel that they have not „really‟ understood any item of the language until it has been translated.
2. Students spoke to the teacher in the mother tongue as a matter of course, even when they
were quite capable of expressing what they mean.
3. Students failed to realize that during many activities in the classroom it was crucial that they used only English.
THE STUDY
Context of the study
always using Power Point, video, and music to present their materials. Therefore, the students will not be bored and become excited in studying English. All of the materials are presented mostly in English whether it is written or oral. These teachers are the main reason why I choose this school for my research, so that I can analyze further and compare if other teachers also have
the same or different perception about language use to achieve students‟ comprehension in EFL
classroom. Participants
The participants for this research were 3 English teachers who worked in the private Senior High school in Salatiga. Pseudo name were used instead of mentioning the real name of participants (teachers) in this research. Those participants were Teacher A, Teacher B, and Teacher C. All of them have been working in that Senior High School for more than 10 years. There were 2 reasons why I choose these teachers to be the subject for my research:
1. These teachers were experienced in the teaching learning process of real EFL classroom context. They knew the best about the purpose their decision to set/ divide the language use in class.
2. English teachers in that Senior High School had different perception about language use in EFL classroom. Each of them had their personal reason to set an English only classroom or to mix the usage of L1 and English in class.
There were also some main reasons why I chose English teachers from this school as the subject of my research. In the beginning of my introduction, I have stated that there was a teacher from this school who never allowed me to use Indonesian during my Micro Teaching
course. I wanted to know her perception about the use of Indonesian in class, why she didn‟t
perception in the real context of EFL classroom. I also wanted to find whether the other teachers had the same or different perception with her and how they would manage the use of Indonesian and English for their students during the class.
Aside from the reasons above, this school is one of the favorite private schools in Salatiga. I believe that the teachers there have a high credibility and various teaching experiences which can help me provide detail information for my research.
Data Collection Instrument and Procedures
This study used two methods data collection: 1. Observation
The observations were conducted twice for each English teacher. There were 3 main points that I observed from the teachers:
A. The language that they used as the language of instruction/communication with the students during the teaching learning process in EFL classroom. (English all the time or a mixing between Indonesian and English)
B. Class situations/activities which made teachers use Indonesian to help them convey the meaning their explanation to the students.
C. Teachers‟ responses toward the students‟ use of Indonesian in the EFL classroom.
The reason why these observations were done twice was because I wanted to get more accurate data about teachers teaching style (especially related to points A, B, and C above). This observation was video recorded for two purposes:
a. To provide more information about the actual teaching learning activities in the classroom.
2. Stimulated Recall Interview
The focus of this interview was to help the teachers recall their teaching experiences during the observation time by letting them see the video of their teaching. In this interview, I
also wanted to know about teachers‟ opinions/interpretations toward the use of Indonesian to
support teaching learning process of EFL classroom and the reason why they had such opinions/interpretations. These interviews were done once per teacher. It was around 10 questions for 15-25 minutes in this interview to each teacher. The interview processes were also recorded and transcribed for data analysis.
Procedures of Data Analysis
There were two steps used to analyze the data in this research. Those steps were: 1. Interview Data Analysis
In this step, the statements from each teacher during the interview were presented. The statements which had the same theme (for example: teachers‟ opinions about the use of
Indonesian) would be put together into a group. Therefore the statements wouldn‟t be mixed and
could be divided neatly according to the themes. 2. Observation Data Analysis
In the second step, the observation of teachers‟ language of instructions and their
responses toward students‟ use of Indonesian and English during the real context of EFL
FINDINGS
There were four main themes discussed in this finding. Those themes were: teachers‟ experiences and beliefs about the use of Indonesian and English in EFL classroom, the use of English in EFL classroom, the use of Indonesian in EFL classroom, and teachers‟ responses
toward students‟ use of Indonesian.
1. Teachers‟ experiences and beliefs about the use of Indonesian and English in EFL
classroom
There were three subtopics discussed in this part. Those topics were: teachers‟
experiences about the use of Indonesian and English in EFL classroom during their school days,
teachers‟ beliefs about the use of Indonesian and English in their EFL classroom, and the
relationship between teachers‟ experience and beliefs about the use of Indonesian and English in
EFL classroom.
a. Teachers‟ experiences about the use of Indonesian and English in EFL classroom
during their school days
In this section I discussed about teachers‟ experiences and what they felt about the English lesson which they received in the past. During the interview, all three teachers gave statement that they received insufficient amount of English practice in class during their high school days.
This was a statement from Teacher A which showed her disappointment toward the insufficient portion of English in communication practice. From her statement, it could also be
seen clearly that she didn‟t feel confident with her English skills, unless it was used in daily communication.
In agreement with Teacher A statement, Teacher C also gave quite similar story about her experience in English class. She said,
During my school days (in Junior and Senior High School), I always got good grades in English. However, everything was different after I entered English Department of Satya Wacana University because all courses were taught in English. I could only get 8/9 from reading and structure courses, but my listening and speaking results weren‟t that good. (Teacher C, October, 9 2012)
From Teacher C opinion, it could be seen that the lack of English practice in communicative context during her school days made her grade in listening and speaking were not good enough compared to written English course such as: reading or structure.
Another participant, Teacher B gave a different story about her past experience in her English class during her school days. However, the meaning was still about the lack of English use in communication context. She also added the detail about the language that was usually used in the classroom. She said,
This statement showed that she was disappointed with her teacher‟s use of Indonesian in
the English class which made her could not keep up well with the course in English Department which usually used English as the language of instructions.
From all of the participants‟ statements above, it can be concluded that they were disappointed because their teachers didn‟t provide enough tasks to practice their English in the
classroom, especially in communication context. These unpleasant experiences are the factor
which influences teachers‟ view and decision about the priority of Indonesian and English use in
their classes. This view is supported by Noordhof and Kleinfield (1993) who wrote, “Teachers‟
backgrounds influence what is taught, interpretations of classroom situations, and students‟ behavior, and pedagogical decision” (as cited in Smith, 2000). Foster (1995) also gave an
additional statement to strengthen the opinion above by giving argument, “Teachers‟ previous life experiences -their identities, cultures, and the critical incidents of their lives- help shape their
teaching as well as essential elements of their practice” (as cited in Smith, 2000).
b. Teachers‟ beliefs about the use of Indonesian and English in their EFL classroom
All of the English teachers had the same belief about the use of English in their EFL classroom. This was what I found during the interview process. All of them had a belief that
„language is a habit which must be constantly practiced in order to make the students become
accustomed to it‟. There were some statements from the participants which clearly show that
belief. The first participant Teacher A stated,
The statement from Teacher A was strengthened by Teacher B. She also added a reason about her belief. Teacher B said,
I want to make the students to become accustomed to the use of English. Therefore, if they are accustomed to listening and speaking English in class, they can use English properly (Teacher B, September, 26 2012)
Teacher C also gave a similar statement with the two statements above about her belief. However, she added more detail about the skill that should be developed well in English. She said,
The purpose of using of English in class is to give them exposure. Therefore, they can be accustomed to listening English language. When they are accustomed to listening it, they can subconsciously learn how to pronounce it and construct sentences correctly in English through daily learning at school. (Teacher C, October, 10 2012)
All participant teachers also had the same opinion about their belief in the usage of Indonesian in EFL classroom. All of them believed that the use of Indonesian should be limited. The only difference is the degree of limitation which was set by each teacher. Teacher A had the highest percentage of limitation for the use of Indonesian. She said,
I am not against the use of Indonesian in class. However, I don‟t want to use it (Indonesian) frequently in class. May be it‟s only about 5 %. (Teacher A, October, 9
2012)
Teacher C also stated the percentage of limitation for Indonesian in her class. However, it
Teachers cannot completely avoid using Indonesian. It is because Indonesian is students‟ daily language. However, we must limit it. It is better if we use 75% of English and 25% of Indonesian. English must get more portions. Therefore, the students can be encouraged to improve their skills. (Teacher C, October, 10 2012)
Teacher B who didn‟t state about the percentage gave a statement which was strongly
disagreeing about the use of Indonesian in English class. She said,
Teachers and students should constantly use full English in the English class without Indonesian. (Teacher B, September, 26 2012)
From all of the teachers‟ statement above, it can be concluded that teachers preferred
giving more priorities to the use of English than Indonesian in EFL classroom in order to make students accustomed to the use of English in communication contexts. Therefore, they can speak and listen to English well.
c. The relationship between teachers‟ experience and beliefs about the use of Indonesian
and English in EFL classroom
There is a relationship between teachers‟ experience and their belief about the use of
language in EFL classroom. It is because past experience is the basic which created their belief and what they wanted to achieve from their students through their teaching. This statement is supported by the research from Lubinski (1993), Varella (1997), Farrow (1999), and King (2002)
which stated that prominent variables which influenced students‟ achievement were teachers‟
Iheanachor, 2007) study. In the discussion above, it has been stated about participants‟ disappointment because their teachers didn‟t provide enough English practice for them in class.
This experience made them think that they must not let their past experience to be repeated again to the students in their English class. Therefore, using one of their role as language model for their students (Harmer, 2001), they created a belief that „English is a habit
which has to be practiced until their students become accustomed to it‟.
In relation with experts‟ opinions, Krashen (1981) stated, “Teachers talk is now generally
recognized as a potentially valuable source of comprehensible input for learner, since this is
essential for language acquisition” (as cited in Cullen, 1998). “Teachers Talk” itself, according to
Wajnryb (1992) meant the language a teacher uses to allow the various classroom processes to happen, that is, the language of organizing the classroom (as cited Anggorowati, 2004).
“Teachers Talk” in this study is English. The participants (teachers) prioritize the use of
English and limit the use of Indonesian in their EFL classroom in order to give their students
more chance to practice their English skills and be accustomed to it. The teachers‟ goal from
implementing this belief is to make students become better in English not only in written context but also in oral context for communication purpose, which is through using English as the language to organize the classroom (Wajnryb, 1992 as cited in Anggorowati, 2004).
2. The use of English in EFL classroom
In this part, I discussed about the use of English in the EFL classroom by teachers and the student. The discussion focused on how the teachers used English in their class and how they
They were: Teachers‟ use of English in EFL classroom and students‟ use of English in EFL classroom.
a. Teachers‟ use of English in EFL classroom.
English is the main language of instruction in EFL classroom. This is the teachers‟ principle when they were teaching their students in classroom. The participants (teachers) really
applied their belief „language is a habit‟ in the real teaching learning process. During my
observation in the teachers‟ classes, they rarely used Indonesian in their class. Almost all of the
explanation and activities in class were done in English. They tried their best to always communicate with their students using English, although some students asked questions in Indonesian. They still also used English even though the students had difficulties to comprehend their explanation. Teacher A shared some methods when she met situation like that. She said,
In this case I will use contextual approach in teaching students. Therefore, when they find difficult words, I will not describe the words in textual definitions. I will explain it using the daily language which they could understand (of course in English). If I want to explain about the usage of difficult words, I will slow down my explanation. (Teacher A, October, 9 2012)
In a condition if the slow learners really cannot understand about my explanation, I will directly ask the fast learners to explain in their own language but still in English, so
that those slow learners can learn from their friends. (Teacher B, September, 26
2012)
The students who understand the materials can give explanation and those who
don‟t can learn from their friends. So the students can learn each other from their
friends and teacher doesn‟t have to tell the meaning directly to students. (Teacher C, October, 10 2012)
From all of the displayed result above, we can learn that English teachers in that private school wanted to create a situation where English can be used optimally during the English class. That was why they always explained their lessons in English and made the students to learn each other when they faced difficulties in comprehending the material. These methods implementation are in agreement with the statement from Halliwell & Jones (1991) which claimed that to achieve success in learning L2, students should be encouraged to take risks in practicing both speaking and understanding in L2 (as cited in Nofaie, 2010).
The teachers took risk by always making students to use English all the time because they wanted their students to practice the use of English and build their deep understanding in English through the difficulties they met in the teaching learning process. With that, teacher could provide feedback to students when they made mistakes or had difficulties in their practice.
b. Students use of English in EFL classroom
Students‟ use of English always depended on the teachers. It was because each teacher
result. Students in Teacher A‟s class always used English all the time, when they communicated
with their friends, asked questions, or asked permission to the teachers. It happened because she encouraged her students to actively use English in her class. She was also very strict with
students‟ use of English in class. During the interview, she stated the rule of her English class,
I always encourage the students to use English in every aspect, such as; conversation, morning service, diary (for expressing idea). The use of 95% English in class is more important because I always pay attention to the usage of English in communication context. (Teacher A, October, 9 2012)
A different situation happened in Teacher B‟s classes. The students in her class rarely
used English They preferred using Indonesian all the time. She didn‟t encourage her students to
actively used English in her class even though she had used English all the time in class.
The use of English was still well maintained in Teacher C classes. During my observation, the students in her class always used English every time they communicated with her. The students usually used English when they were asking questions, asking permissions, or
responding to teachers‟ questions. Students also bravely used English to deliver their idea to Teacher C although there were still some grammatical mistakes in their sentences. The use of English could still be maintained among the students because she always warned the students when they spoke too much in Indonesian.
During the interview, there was also an interesting statement from her about her feeling in encouraging students to always use English in her class. She stated,
You know, as a human, teacher like you and me can make mistakes. It is the same case
English skills. That way, students can show their bravery in the use of English by forcing them to use it. (Teacher C, October, 10 2012)
From the combination of Teacher A and Teacher C statement we can learn that the teachers always encouraged students to use English, not to make them afraid about it, but to make them realize that English is fun. Therefore, they will become more confident in using English. In agreement with this statement, Madylus (2001) (as cited in Crawford, 2004) also gave opinion about why EFL classroom should use L2 (English) only in class. It was because target language use had considerable value as it gave the message that languages are different but not to be feared, that the students can understand, and that it is fun when they do. In the end, we
can conclude that the purpose of teachers‟ encouragement for students of English in their
classroom is not only to make them accustomed to English usage, but also to build their bravery in using their English skills.
3. The use of Indonesian in EFL classroom
This part discussed about teachers and students‟ use of Indonesian in EFL classroom.
a. Teachers‟ use of Indonesian in EFL classroom
I will insert in “In Indonesian….”. Therefore, if some students in class seem confused
about my explanation, I will use my magic words, “In Indonesian…..”. That way,
students will not complain to their teacher if he/she uses English in class. (Teacher A, October, 9 2012)
Teacher B, who never used Indonesian in her teaching, gave agreement with Teacher A‟s
statement and also added some details about the material which needed to use Indonesian. She said,
However, if the students really cannot comprehend our explanation, we can say, “In
Indonesian meaning…..”. Therefore, the students who understand can guess the meaning.
We can also mix together the use of Indonesian and English for grammar teaching because grammar is difficult for students to understand. (Teacher B, September, 26 2012)
Teacher C also agreed with those two teachers‟ statements that Indonesian should be used if students really could not understand teachers‟ explanation. However, there was a different
opinion about the materials which needed Indonesian to explain. She said,
The use of Indonesian is just for complicated instructions and vocabularies. I don‟t think
that grammar needs the use of Indonesian. (Teacher C, October, 10 2012)
relationship of this theory with the participants (teachers) situation, the teachers would be naturally forced to use Indonesian (L1) when the slower learner students got difficulties to comprehend their explanation in English (L2). Therefore, the students could fully understand the materials.
From all of the statements above, we can also learn that there were two materials which needed Indonesian to explain. They were grammar and vocabularies. Other than materials, sometimes the use of Indonesian was also needed to make students understand when teachers gave them complicated instructions in English. The use of Indonesian to certain materials and complicated instructions are really well matched with the report from Atkinson (1987) and Deller & Rinvolucri (2002) which stated that L1 was used to check for senses and explain grammar ( as cited in Manara, 2007).
b. Students‟ use of Indonesian in EFL classroom
The students‟ use of Indonesian in classroom also depended on the teachers. It was
because each teacher had different rules to allow students‟ use of Indonesian. Students in
Teacher A class rarely used Indonesian during teaching learning process. They used Indonesian only for certain words during the vocabulary section. When they wanted to use Indonesian they
had to say, “In Indonesian….” first. It was just like Teacher A‟s teaching style who wants the use
of English in all activities and only allows the use of 5% Indonesian in her class.
Students‟ use of Indonesian was also different in Teacher C classes. The students used
Indonesian during the communication with their friends and doing group work in class. However, they still remembered to use English to ask questions or to communicate with her (Teacher C)
From the students‟ use of Indonesian in class, we can learn that they had tendency to
naturally use Indonesian even if they were in English class. It was because Indonesian is their mother tongue. A study from Harbord (1992) supported this statement by stating that the tendency to use L1 was a habit that in most cases would occur without the encouragement from
teachers (as cited in Harmer, 2001). Auerbach (1999) supported Harbord‟s statement by saying that to start classroom interaction using L1 provided a sense of security and validated the
students‟ experiences (as cited in Usadiati, 2009). Despite of students‟ tendency to use
Indonesian in the English class, teachers could still control students‟ use of Indonesian by always giving rules about their language usage in order to prevent the overuse of Indonesian in English classroom.
4. Teachers‟ responses toward students‟ use of Indonesian.
Every teacher in that private Senior High School had different responses toward their
students‟ use of Indonesian in English class. During my observation in Teacher A‟s X5 (tenth
she used this „untrophy‟ method to limit students‟ use of Indonesian. During the interview, she
also stated other purposes of „untrophy‟. She said,
The purpose of ‘untrophy’ is to help teacher to reduce the students‟ noise. Students will not talk too much if we use ‘untrophy’ because they are afraid of wearing it. It is also to encourage students to be actively using English in class. (Teacher A, October, 9 2012)
However there was still a time when she didn‟t give ‘untrophy’ to her students who used Indonesian. It happened to her class in XII BAHASA (language class). During the interview she
stated that she forgot to bring „untrophy’ in that class. However, I found out the real reasons why
she didn‟t give untrophy to that class through her statement,
I also differentiate the students because XII BAHASA students are slower learners compared to IPA 1 or IPA 2 students. (IPA is the term for science class) (Teacher A, October, 9 2012)
A different situation happened during my observation in Teacher B‟s class in XI
BAHASA (language class) and XI IPA 1 (science class). The students were allowed to use Indonesian freely during the class. Only a few of them were willing to use English. Teacher B
could not bring her believe, „English should be used constantly in class to make students become accustomed to it‟. During the interview, she stated that she would give warning, “Hey, speak in
English!” to the students who used too much Indonesian. However, this method didn‟t seem to give any effect to change students‟ use of language in the reality. She also stated the reason why she allowed students use of Indonesian in her class. She said,
didn‟t know how to express it. They had a good listening skill. They understood what
people say in English. However they got difficulties in speaking it out themselves. That was why I let them to speak in Indonesian to make it easier for them to deliver their ideas. (Teacher B, September, 26 2012)
In Teacher C classes, a different respond also happened. During my observation in XII IPA1 (science class) and XII IPS 1 (social class), She always gave a warning to students who spoke Indonesian by saying, “Hey, what class are you in?”. This warning was done in order to encourage students to actively speak English in class. During the interview, she also stated the reason why she preferred giving warning than using untrophy. She said,
I had ever used ‘untrophy’ method. However, I thought the students would feel more pressured because they were afraid to speak actively. That was why I decided to just give them warning. (Teacher C, October, 10 2012)
However, there was still a time when she didn‟t warn the students who used Indonesian. During my observation in XII IPS 1 (social class), She let her students used Indonesian during group work in class. She also gave the reason why she let it happened. She said,
For Social class, students‟ English skills are not really good. The time was limited to do the assignment. Therefore, I needed the students to finish it within the allocated time. That was why I tolerated the students to use Indonesian because it was very difficult for them to make a sentence in English. (Teacher C, October, 9 2012)
1. Students in her classes spoke to her in the mother tongue as a matter of course, even when they were quite capable of expressing what they meant in English.
2. Students in her class failed to realize that during many activities in the classroom it was crucial that they use only English.
The students (Language classes) could actually use English well, because they spoke
English actively during my observation in Teacher A‟s class. However, they weren‟t motivated to use it in Teacher B‟s class.
These dangers happened because Teacher B didn‟t give strict rules toward students‟ use
of Indonesian in her English class. A different situation occurred in Teacher A and Teacher C
classes because they tried very hard to limit students‟ use of Indonesian, in order to make them
actively speak English in class. Although Indonesian can still be used, its usage must be limited and controlled in order to prevent the overuse of Indonesian (L1) in English class.
CONCLUSION
This research analyzed teachers‟ beliefs and opinions about the proper use of Indonesian
and English in EFL classroom. It also found out about how they (the teachers) practiced their beliefs and opinions in the real context of EFL classroom. From the discussion results above, it can be seen clearly that all teachers believed about the use of English as a habit which must be made accustomed to the students in their English classes. Therefore, the teachers always
encouraged their students to use English class actively in class in order to develop students‟
English skills well. The teachers also had many ways to encourage students to use English actively, such as; having morning service in English, giving explanation and activities using
didn‟t use English in their classes. They also used contextual approach and CLL (Community
Language Learning) method in explaining difficult materials in order to maintain students‟ use of
English during the communication with their friends or asking questions to the teachers.
However, the use of Indonesian to support teaching learning process cannot be ignored too. It is because Indonesian is the mother tongue which provides students a sense of security during EFL classroom (Auerbach, 1999 as cited in Usadiati, 2009). This secure feeling made students develop the tendency to naturally use it in their English class, especially during communication or doing group work with their friends. There were also some moments when the teachers needed to use Indonesian, especially in explaining about grammar and vocabularies. The use of Indonesian is also very helpful to the teachers when students were really slow to
comprehend teachers‟ explanation about some difficult words.
Finally, it can be concluded that the use of Indonesian and English in the EFL classroom should be well balanced. Teachers may have perception that the use English should be used more and the use of Indonesian should be avoided during English class in order to optimally improve
students‟ English skills. However, teachers should also realize that we live in Indonesia which mother tongue is Indonesian. Therefore, the use of Indonesian is still needed in order to
strengthen students‟ comprehension about the materials that are taught during English class.
In the end, as the suggestions for further research, researchers should find transition
methods between Indonesian and English which can effectively improve students‟
comprehension in EFL classroom. Therefore, the future teachers would create a perception that a well-balanced usage of Indonesian and English in EFL classroom is very helpful to improve
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
First, I would like to thank Almighty God for his grace and blessing to my family and me. I wish to sincerely appreciate all people who helped me to finish this study. I am highly indebted to, Mrs. Victoria Usada Palupi, MA- ELT, for her guidance as the supervisor of my study and her corrections of my mistakes during the making process of this thesis.
I am very grateful Prof. Dr. Gusti Astika, MA, for his guidance as the second reader (examiner) during the finishing process of this thesis I am also greatly indebted to my parents, Tan Soen Lie and Amelia Rijanto. who have been working hard to support my study in Satya Wacana Christian University.
REFFERENCES
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APPENDIX
INTERVIEW TEACHER A1. During my observation in your classes, I noticed that you mostly use English as the
instruction language. Why is that?
Language is a habit. So we must use it in daily life until we are accustomed to it. That is why I always encourage the students to use English in every aspect, such as; conversation, morning service, diary (for expressing idea).i want language to be put into practice so that they can communicate well in English. I don‟t want they master English grammar only. Therefore, I force them to use English in my classroom in order to give them chances of practicing their English ability in class. Using this method, I can also control students‟ English skills in class.
2. Do you think that your method of forcing students to use English all time in class will help them to comprehend the teaching-learning process?
In this case I will use contextual approach in teaching students. Therefore, when they find difficult words, I will not describe the words in textual definitions. I will explain it using the daily language which they could understand (of course in
English). If I want to explain about the usage of difficult words, I will slow down my explanation. If they still could not understand about my explanation, I will use my
magic words, “In Indonesia, we call this….”.I am very strict with the students in the
tenth grade because they come from various background. Some of them can use them can use English very well and some of them cannot. Learning from my experiences, I was great in English writing, however I could not use English well in conversation. That was why I learned that no matter how good my writing is, it will be useless if I cannot use it in communications
3. The students’ comprehension levels are different. There are also slow learners in the class. How will you handle this situation?
I will insert in “In Indonesian….”. Therefore, if some students in class seem
confused about my explanation, I will use my magic words, “In Indonesian…..”, that way, students will not complain to their teacher if he/she uses English in class.
4. Which one is important to you? The use of 99% English in class or the mix of Indonesian
and English?
The use of 95% English in class is more important because I always pay attention to the usage of English in communication context. I want to give them more exposure about their English skills. That is why I prefer using more English in class.
5. How is your opinion about the mix of Indonesian and English in class?
I am not anti with the use of English in class. However, I don‟t want to use it
6. So, do you agree that the use of Indonesian should be erased from English class? Like what I have said before, Indonesian is not a taboo language. It can be used if
it‟s needed. I want to suggest that the use of English is more important so that we
can do more exposure about the language (English) in class. It is because we as a
teacher cannot control students‟ use of language outside the class. I can say that
Indonesian can be used in English class, but the percentage is limited.
7. What goals do you want to achieve (for the students) by not allowing students to use Indonesian in class?
I want the students to create the mindset that English is a habit. I also want them to not only knowing about the usage of language but also the use of language both written and oral
8. What‟s the use of unthrophy system?
To help teacher to reduce the students‟ noise. Students will not talk too much if we
use untrophy because they are afraid of wearing it. It is also to encourage students to be actively using English in class.
9. I saw different attitudes you gave toward the students in X5 and XII BAHASA in your teaching last time You give untrophy to X5 students who use Indonesian, but you let go of XII BAHASA students who use Indonesian or even Javanese. Why is that?
Honestly, I forgot to use untrophy system in XII BAHASA.I also differentiate the students because XII BAHASA students are slow learners compared to IPA 1 or IPA 2.
10.How do you measure students comprehension in your English class?
By using activity and games. I will always give comprehension questions in the end of the activity. If they can answer correctly, that means they have understood the materials. The essential is measuring their comprehension by using fun way of teaching.
INTERVIEW TEACHER B
1. During my observation time, I noticed that you always use English as the only language
of instruction in class. Why is that?
I want to make the students to become accustomed to the use of English. Therefore, if they are accustomed to listen and speak English in class, they can use English properly. Therefore, they will not be surprised if they go to college. Based on my experiences during high school, my teacher usually used Indonesian in English class. That was why when I entered UKSW I got many difficulties in following materials. 2. When you use full English in class, do you think that it’ll be difficult for the students to
comprehend the lesson?
I always train the students to be accustomed to use English. If they don‟t understand about my explanation, I will explain with other words in English to make them guess the meaning by themselves. Therefore, they can actively learn through the guessing process.
3. It is true that by explaining with English can make them learn more. However, why don’t
you also use Indonesian? There are also some slow learners in the class.
In a condition if the slow learners really cannot understand about my explanation, I will directly ask the fast learners students, so that those slow learners can learn from their friends. I prefer making them think first than telling the Indonesian meaning directly.
4. During my observation time, I also found out that you allow students to ask or communicate with the students using Indonesian. Why is that?
Actually I always make them to be accustomed to use English in communication during the class. Whether they have a chat or conversation if. I hear students who talk with Indonesian or Javanese, I will have them wear the untrophy as the consequence.
5. Talking about untrophy I didn’t see you use untrophy system during my observation in your class. Why is that?
That was because I forgot to bring the untrophy to the class.
6. According to your opinion, which one is more important; the use of full English in class
or the mix of Indonesian and English?
As a teacher, we should give number one priority to the use of full English in class.
However, if the students really cannot comprehend our explanation, we can say, “In
We should constantly use full English in the English class without Indonesian. It is because we learn English, Therefore we have to constantly use English to make the students well trained and know the difference of English and other language.
8. Do you think that there is no room for Indonesian in English class?
The use of Indonesian is mainly to explain about grammar. We cannot say that Indonesian should be erased. We can use it to emphasize our explanation so that the students can be clearer about it.
9. What goal do you aim from the students by forcing them to use English (out of education
context)?
The students come from very different educational background. Some of them have
high intelligence and the others don‟t. Sometimes they wanted to say in English, but
they didn‟t know how to express it. They listened English well. They understood what people say in English, but they got difficulties in speaking it out by themselves. That was why I let them to speak in Indonesian to make it easier for them to deliver their idea.
11.How will you respond to the students who speak too much in Indonesian or Javanese?
I will give warning to them, “Speak in English!”. That is what I always warn them. I
force them to try speaking in English, so that they will think how to deliver their idea in English.
12.How will you measure students your understanding toward your explanation?
I have recognized their ability one by one through speaking and listening lessons from their tenth grade. I always use personal approach to measure whether they have understood about the materials or not. It is because the abilities of each student is different When I meet slow learners, I will teach them slowly until he/she understands the materials.
INTERVIEW TEACHER C
1. During my observation time, I noticed that you created a condition where the students must use mostly English as the language of instructions. Why is that? Why don’t you combine it with Indonesian?
First, it is because my students have been in twelfth grade. I consider that they have enough and better skills to comprehend the teaching-learning process in English rather than tenth or eleventh graders. It is also to give them exposure, so that they can be accustomed to listen English language. When they are accustomed to listening it, they can subconsciously learn how to pronounce it and construct sentences correctly in English through daily learning at school.
2. Do you think by using mostly English as the language of instructions, it can help your teaching learning process in English class?
I think yes, because every time I teach in class, I always find students who want to follow the intonations/word stress correctly. They are not only learning about English vocabulary, but also how to pronounce words correctly in a good Department of UKSW because all courses were taught in English. I could only get 8/9 from reading and structure courses, but my listening and speaking results
weren‟t that good. These experiences made me realize that my students must get a good education in English whether it is in written or oral.
4. It is impossible to make all students understand about our explanations in English. How
is your strategy to handle students who don’t understand about it?
This problem often occurs in tenth graders. Teaching this grade is more difficult than others (eleventh and twelfth). Therefore, when we encounter this problem, we have to teach really slowly, pay attention to our word choices not to make the
students confused. We can also check their understanding by asking, “Do you understand that?”. The students who understand the materials can give explanation
5. According to your opinion, which one is more important; The use of mostly English or the mix of Indonesian and English in the class?
It depends on the situation. However, I don‟t agree if it is 50:50. It is better if 75;25.
English must get more portions, so that the students can be encouraged to improve their skills. If it is in twelfth grade, I agree with the use of 100% English because they have gotten more skills.
6. Do you agree if the use of Indonesian should be erased from English class?
We cannot completely erased Indonesian. It is because Indonesian is students‟ daily language. However, we must limit it, for example, when we are discussing about
vocabularies. Teachers don‟t directly give the meaning. But if a student answers the
meaning in Indonesian, we can still tolerate it because it can help other friends to understand the meaning. Therefore, we cannot 100% erase the use of Indonesian in English class, especially when we discuss about vocabulary.
7. During my observation, you gave warning to students who speak in Indonesian. What is
your goal by giving that warning?
To make students speak in English. It is because in the beginning of the semester teachers have made a rule to students that „They have to speak English in English class‟. This is not to scare them, but to make them encourage themselves to speak
English actively. Students don‟t have to produce perfect English. At least they speak
English. It is to make them discipline in improving their English skills.
8. I also found out that the students would speak in English when you speak. But when you
don’t give instructions, they are back to use Indonesian. Why did you let them off?
For Social class, students‟ English skills are not really good. The time was limited to do the assignment. Therefore, I needed the students to finish it within the allocated
time. That‟s why I tolerated the students to use Indonesian because it was very difficult for them to make a sentence in English. However, I still paid attention to them. I would warn students who can actually speak in English but keep talking in Indonesian.
9. In your opinion, how is the right timing to use Indonesian in English class?
When I give a really complicated instruction and the students still don‟t
comprehend the meaning of it, it is the right time to use Indonesian.
10. According to you, what is the material other than vocabularies which need the use of Indonesian?
Just for complicated instructions and vocabularies. I don‟t think that grammar
needs the use of Indonesian. It can still be explained in English.
11. Other than warning what strategies do you use to force students to use English?
I have ever used untrophy method. However I thought, the students would feel more pressured because they were afraid to speak actively. That was why I decided to just give them warning. However if I find the difficult class to deal with, I offer them
speak in Indonesian while wearing untrophy?”. Usually after the agreement,
students will automatically speak in English.
12. What is your method to measure students’ understanding about the materials?
I will check their understanding by asking “Do you understand what to do?”
(especially for 10th graders). However for the 12th graders, I will give exercises and activities to check whether they have understood or not.
