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English is known as international language in this global area. It raises problem in bilingual schools which use English as medium of instruction. This qualitative research investigates on what advantages and disadvantages of the bilingual approach in the science classroom in Indonesia, as well as to explain current issues regarding the use of two-languages, and some useful suggestions for teachers in Bethany School Salatiga for the use of English-Indonesian in English-medium classrooms. This paper is based on the interview with two Science teachers conducted in Bethany School Salatiga. It purposes to show of advantages and disadvantages of using bilingual language in teaching Science to Elementary School students. The discussion suggested that the purposes of using bilingual language give both advantages and disadvantages in teaching learning process. As the result, the researcher found that the use of bilingual language in Bethany School Salatiga has advantages such as; a compensatory strategy, to reduce students‘ misunderstanding, and improve their vocabulary. It also has disadvantages such as; waste more time and Indonesian is not as simple as English.
Key words: Bilingual, First language (L1), Elementary School, The Purposes of bilingual language.
Introduction
English is very important to communicate with foreigners because English has been
known as one of the international languages spoken in many countries and also in Indonesia.
It is used in many aspects of life, such as in business, tourism, and education. English known
as a global language nowadays and becoming popular because using English is highly
increasing. According Boey (1975, p.112) English as a foreign language is only taught as a
subject in school and is being the target language when it is taught in a country where it is not
the mother tongue of any community within it. Meanwhile, Richard (2002, p.2) says that
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Since it is important for the future, parents tend to think it is better for children to
learn English as early as possible. Therefore, many of them send their go to bilingual schools
which offer English as the medium of instruction. There the children will be able to learn two
languages at the same time: their mother tongue and their second language. People know that
some schools in Indonesia use international language as a standard competency especially for
education in elementary school. There are elementary schools uses English as medium
instruction in learning process in this global area. This program used to advance the
development of education in Indonesia accordance with the era globalization, even English is
a standard language that use in the world especially for some bilingual schools. We think that
using English as the medium of instruction will be effective for the students, but in this study
the writer aims to show about the advantages and disadvantages of using English as medium
instruction in elementary school.
According to Ellis (1994) ―The language classroom is defined here as a setting where the target language is taught as a subject only and is not commonly used as a medium
of communication outside the classroom, (for example, Japanese classes in the United States or English classes in China)‖. Dual language programmers are often referred to as ‗bilingual
minority immersion programmers‘. They are common in the United States, where they have been controversial. There has been considerable opposition to bilingual programs for
linguistic minorities, as reflected in the Official English Movement—the attempt to have English designated as the official language of the United States and to ensure that educational
resources are directed towards teaching English rather than some other language (Bingaman,
J. 1990).
The use of English as the language of classroom instruction has become significant
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countries. Bilingual schools exist to cooperate the use of English and official language in the
content classrooms, typically science and science. According to Cummins, bilingual education is defined as ―the used of two (or more) language of instruction at some point in a
student‘s school career‖ Crees & Blackledge (2010, p. 103).
The use of English as the medium of class instruction in science classrooms, however,
creates another barrier for students, besides mastering content subjects. It is undeniable that
teaching science in the bilingual classroom, when the language of learning and teaching (LOLT) is not the learners‘ mother tongue, is a complex issue (Setati, 2002).
The purpose of this study is to discuss the advantages and disadvantages of the
bilingual approach in the science classroom in Indonesia, as well as to explain current issues
regarding the use of two-languages, and some useful suggestions for teachers in Bethany
School Salatiga for the use of Indonesian-English in English-medium classrooms. The writer
also discuss about the reason why the teacher using Indonesian-English in teaching science in
classroom.
According to Ogletree (1978), associate Professor of Education in Chicago State
University, bilingual education was not a new phenomenon in United State. It was founded
by the first immigrant groups (Scotch-Irish, French, English, Welsh, German, and Dutch). In
1600-1880 this groups faced cultural and linguistic and developing to the American culture.
Moreover, they lost their nationalism and languages to become part of the common America
culture. Although English was the native language of United State, English brought to the
colonies (French, Spanish, Dutch, and German) by the settler. Then, this early groups started their own bilingual and native schools as a solution to meet their children‘s education needs.
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groups, both old and new, worked together with the larger society uniting the number of
immigrants into American society by teaching them English. However, after World War 1
and 2, interest in foreign languages decrease and only few public schools had bilingual programs until 1960‘s bilingual in school increased again.
The education approach which is famous as ―bilingual education‖ is not a new innovative approach in education. If we look from literature the term ―bilingual education‖ is used to
describe variety of education programs involving two or more languages as media of
instruction to varying degree (Josiane & Michel, 2000, p. 321). An expert, Anderson (1977) wrote the definition of bilingual education program under Title VII, which say that ―bilingual
education is an instruction in two languages and use of those two languages as medium of
instruction for any part of or the entire school curriculum‖ (Anderson, 1977).
Ogletree (1978) suggested another definition that ―bilingual education is instruction in two languages, enabling the person two functions in another language in addition two his
native language, with or without equal proficiency‖ (1978, p. 44). In addition, he explains that bilingual education was designed to hold non English speakers between three-18 years
old to speak fluently and littered either in their native language or English as their second
language (Ogletree, 1978, p. 52). According to Nation (2003)‖English is important and prestigious values for most of Indonesian parents nowadays. They send their children to
bilingual school hoping that their children can learn English well. Learning from that fact,
bilingual education is used to fulfill that demand‖. On the other hand, teachers face difficulties in that implementation sometimes. One of them is that students are not yet
accustomed to English.
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allowing them to express themselves. The learner is then willing to experiment and take risks
with English." According to Nation (1997), he stated that when the classes where learners all
share the same first language or national language, teachers need to use a range of options to
encourage learners to use the L2 as much as possible. Based on two experts‘ statement above,
the learners feel comfort and secure when they use L1 in L2 classroom. By using L1, it
encourages students to take risks to use L2. Students working in pairs and small groups tend
to experience higher levels of motivation and interest, collectively negotiate meaning, and
employ the L1 as a mediating tool to collaboratively and successfully complete difficult tasks
(Storch & Wigglesworth, 2003; Alegria de la Colina & Del Pilar Garcia Mayo, 2009).
Based on the writer of this essay, when she was learning L2 in her elementary school,
her teacher always use both of L1 and L2. Sometimes she found some difficulties in learning
when her teacher was explaining the materials using L2. That was the reason why her teacher
also used L1 to explain the material in order to make the students understand. This is similar
to Cook (2005), he suggests that if the L1 is always present in the learners‘ mind, its role in the classroom might have positive effects on learning and teaching as ―a way of conveying L2 meaning,‖ ―a short-cut for explaining tasks, tests, etc.,‖ ―a way of explaining grammar,‖ and ―practicing L2 uses such as code-switching‖. It means that students who are taught using
L1 will easily understand the materials and cut down their confusion of L2. Besides, using L1
also encourage students in making less error than the students teach using L2 because the
students usually use L1 as their communicative language. These findings imply that the fear
of using L1 in foreign language classrooms, which results in negative transfer, should be
reduced. So that, whenever the writer did not understand and had difficulties in understanding
the material when using L2, her teacher will repeat the explanation in L1 kindly. Using L1 in
teaching L2 really gives her benefits in understanding the material. It helps her to reduce
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gives more benefits, not only for the teacher, but also for the students. It can make students
understand more and reduce misunderstanding. Moreover, Krashen (1988) claimed that “first
language is several sources error in target language performance” (p.88). It means that the
first language can cause inference in L2 learning, especially when the learners translate
directly is not permitted.
The use of L1 for teacher is useful in explaining materials if there are some
difficulties in delivering the materials. For example, teaching grammar is more comfortable
and easier using L1; so the students are more receptive to the material that was explained. As the writer‘s experienced, many teachers use L1 in L2 classroom when they teach about
grammar, it is because grammar little bit confusing and has many patterns and exception.
Therefore, teachers prefer to teach grammar using L1 than L2. Teacher also use L1 to mix
knowledge that students have learned about the foreign language, such as its vocabulary,
sentence structures, and cultural aspects (Duff & Polio, 1990; Kim & Elder, 2008). It is important for teachers to realize the effectiveness of students‘ L1 and attempt to use it
positively.
Theoretical Framework
This study is especially attempted to answer this question:
What are the advantages and disadvantages of using English-Indonesian in
teaching Science in Bethany Elementary School?
When do the teachers use bilingual language in teaching Science in Bethany
School?
The purpose of this study is to discuss the advantages and disadvantages of the
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regarding the use of two-languages, some useful suggestions for teachers for the use of
bilingual language (English-Indonesia) in classrooms, and when the teachers use bilingual
language in teaching Science in Bethany School Salatiga. The use of L1 in L2 classroom
sometimes raises confrontation but although it is possible to use the L1 in L2 education, the
use of L1 should be adjusted with the portions. So, L1 here only serves as a bridge if there are
difficulties in the delivery of teaching materials. Based on Nation (2003) there are some
reasons of choosing the role of using L1 was because L1 gives more benefits in teaching L2;
such as first it is more natural to use the L1 with others who have the same L1. Second, it is
easier and more effective in communicative to use the L1, and third, using the L2 can be a
source of embarrassment particularly for shy learners and those who feel they are not very
proficient in the L2.
Ngugi wa Thiong‘o spoke Gikuyu as a child, in the fields, in the home and in the
community. However, he was sent to colonial school that taught solely through the medium
of English. The language of education was at variance with the language of his culture. Gikuyu was suppressed and said ‗In Kenya, English became much more than a language: it
was the language, and all others had to bow before it on deference. Thus once of the most
humiliating experiences was to be caught speaking Gikuyu around the school‘ (Ngugi wa Thiong‘o, 1985, pp.114-115). From that experience, the participant got problem in
understanding the material which taught by the teacher by using second language as the
medium instruction. Since his mother tongue was not English and he only use English in his
school, so that he got misunderstanding in learning the material. Richards (2002, p.2) says
that English as a foreign language may be important school subject, a prerequisite to enter a
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language (Birdsong, 1999). As the result, it can be concluded that children should learn English from the beginning and it will become their provisions for their future. Whereas, in
Indonesia itself, English is not used in daily life, but it is only as a subject that students have
to learn in school.
Based on the reasons above, the writer conducted a research about the language use in
bilingual elementary school. The writer investigated what language use in delivering
material, why and when the teachers use that language.
The Study
Context of the Study
The setting of the study was in Bethany School Salatiga, Central Java, Indonesia.
Bethany School was one of schools in Salatiga which used bilingual as the background
language. Every teacher who worked there should have English speaking skill. The writer
decided to choose this school because it used English as the primary language and also the
writer knew had a good relationship with the owner and some teachers in that school, so it
was easy for the writer to collect the data.
Participant
The participants of the study were science teachers in Bethany School Salatiga. There
were only two science teachers at the school. The writer decided to choose science as the
subject because language that used in science has specific language which is different with
English course. She also had a friend who was being a teacher at that school; so that it would
9 Instrument of data collection
For the past few years, several researches on language difficulties and how to
overcome it have been conducted. Some of their major findings were mostly about the causes
of language difficulties and the strategies that could be used to avoid language difficulties. As
far as the writer concern, none of them focuses their studies on what were the advantages and
disadvantages of using L1 in the nature of teaching. Thus, the writer believed that describing
and analyzing the advantages and disadvantages of using Indonesian in teaching by using
interview could be used to improve the teaching‘s success in producing spoken language. The data for this study would collect from two times interview of two teachers in Bethany School
Salatiga by recording and twice observation to see the situation and get the rest data that she
needed. The writer chose interview as the instrument of data collection because by
interviewing the teachers she could get a lot of information relevant to her research from the
two of teacher. The teachers would describe their answer in details and it could help the
writer to analyze the data. At last the writer hoped by this study it might help find out the
opinions, ideas, suggestion, and additional information about the advantages and
disadvantages of using Indonesian in teaching science.
Procedure of Data collection
In this research, the researcher will use qualitative analysis as the procedure of data
collection because she just need two until five teacher to be interviewed. The researcher will
create some question using Indonesia which is appropriate to her research question. Bethany
school is one of bilingual schools in Salatiga. The first step that she does is asking the Headmaster‘s of Bethany School permission to interview teachers there. After getting the
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interview. She uses her phone to record every single word teacher will say during the
interview. The researcher decides to interview two teachers because there are only two
teachers those delivering sciences there. In interviewing the teachers, the researcher recorded
the teachers which had length 9-10 minutes by using Indonesian in every interview. She uses
Indonesian as the language use because it makes the researcher easier in analyze the data.
Then the researcher transcribes all the conversation to get information that she needs
(appendix 2).
Findings & Discussion
In this discussion part, the writer presents about the data analysis from interview results.
She will explain what the advantages and disadvantages of using Indonesia-English in
teaching science and also when the teachers use bilingual language in teaching Science.
There are some advantages of using bilingual language and disadvantages that the researcher
found from the data.
A. The advantages of using Indonesian-English in teaching science
Based on the data that the researcher got, she found two advantages of using bilingual
language in delivering Science materials. They are a compensatory strategy and reduce
misunderstanding and improve the students‘ vocabulary.
1. As a compensatory strategy
This strategy used to convey the meaning and explain difficult material to the
students easily. The students can understand the material easier than listen to their
teacher when she/he uses English as medium instruction. It shows on the line of two
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“All material that I use is in English, then I deliver it in bilingual language
(English-Indonesian), so I use English first then translate it into Indonesian. But, I use full
English when I give instruction to the students. Sometimes, when I used full English the students didn‘t get the message of the material and since I teach the lower grade, I still using Indonesia to explain the material.‖ (Teacher A, Female, February 20, 2013.
My own translation)
―However, I still code-switching in explaining Science to the students to make sure
that they understand the content of material even though the material using English as the medium instruction.‖ (Teacher B, Male, February 20, 2013. My translation)
From Teacher A above, it shows that she uses bilingual language to deliver
and explain the material. She said that in every course teachers use
English-Indonesian as the language use of teaching. She used English for the first medium
instruction then re-explained it in Indonesian. The purpose of explaining the material
in Indonesia here is to get the message or main point of the lesson she gave, even she
taught the low level which did not have much knowledge like the higher level has. In
the second interview, the Teacher B also has similar reason why he used bilingual
language in delivering material in the classroom. He said that he used code-switching
in explaining the material. He uses English first then translates it into Indonesian.
Both of them argued that bilingual language was the proper language to make the
student easier in understanding the material.
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2. Reduce misunderstanding and improve students’ vocabulary
In this section, the teachers use bilingual language to reduce the
misunderstanding that proved in the line of interview below:
―Since the language capability of every students is different and Science language is
also different from English, so the students is more understand being taught by
bilingual than full English because they are not necessarily understand the material‖ (Teacher A, February 20, 2013. My translation)
From the lines above we can see that teacher A gave the materials by using
Indonesian as the language use to make the student understand easier since their
mother tongue is Indonesian. It means the teacher choose bilingual language in
teaching process to reduce misunderstanding of the main idea or message of
materials. Krashen (1988) claimed that “first language is several sources error in
target language performance” (p.88). It means that the first language can cause
inference in L2 learning. When the teachers use L1 in teaching learning process, it
gives benefits not only for themselves but also the students. Besides reducing
misunderstanding, bilingual language also can improve the students‘ skill such as vocabulary. When they listened to the teacher who was teaching the material by
bilingual language, automatically they learned many new unfamiliar words that they hadn‘t ever known before. Teachers also use L1 to mix knowledge that students have
learned about the foreign language, such as its vocabulary, sentence structures, and
13 B. The disadvantages of using bilingual language
According to the data the researcher got, she found two disadvantages in using
bilingual language to teach the material. They are waste much more time than using
monolingual language and Indonesian is not as simple as English.
1. Waste much more time than using monolingual language
When teachers use bilingual language, it makes the students easier to
understand the content of material, but it makes the teachers lose their time to
translate the same context but in different language. It proved on the lines of interview
below:
―When I explain the material in Indonesian only, the students will understand the
material immediately, but I have to use English-Indonesia in delivering the material. So, I need much more time when I teach Science.‖ (Teacher A, February 20, 2013)
Teacher A was teaching using English first then switching it into Indonesian;
she repeated the same explanation by only changing the language. Actually, it is
similar with doing the same thing twice and it waste much time then using only one language for explaining the material. But, if we look on the students‘ side, they
instead get benefits from the teachers. The students get more knowledge about the
language and they also can understand the material easily.
2. Indonesian is not as simple as English
The last disadvantages that the writer found from the interview was
Indonesian was not as simple as English. One of the teachers said that using bilingual
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make the students understand what he had explained to them. The writer proved her
statement on the line bellow:
―Actually, it is more effective to use full English than bilingual language
because English is more to the point than Indonesian. We use Indonesian to facilitate
the student when they will face UAN because the examination is in Indonesian, not English.‖ (Teacher B, February 20, 201. My translation)
C. When the teachers use bilingual language in teaching Science
From the data that the researcher got, she found that two of teacher that she
interviewed use only in explaining materials. The purpose of translating or switching the
language was to make the students catch the comprehension of the material. It showed on
the lines bellow:
―The problem is when I use full English in classroom; the students must not be gotten the
content of the material because their backgrounds are not native speaker.‖ (Teacher A, February 20, 201. My translation)
―Sometimes there are many terms that can‘t be explained in English, so I translate them into L1.‖ (Teacher B, February 20, 2013. My translation)
From the lines above, it proves that teachers switch the language into L1 when the
teacher will explain the content of material. Since English in Science material is different
with English material and there are many words that students don‘t understand because they still have less vocabulary, the teachers decide to use bilingual language in explaining
Science. The teacher only use bilingual when they were describing the material especially
for new material, they always use English-Indonesian language. It shows on the lines
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―I use bilingual language to re-explain the material especially for new material. The
percentage is 70% using English and 30% using Indonesian.‖ (Teacher A, February 20, 2013. My translation)
We can see that the teacher uses bilingual language only for evaluate the material or
make sure that the students get the point of the material from the percentage of using
English and Indonesian in teaching Science.
Conclusion
This study aimed about the advantages and disadvantages using bilingual language in
teaching Science in Bethany School Salatiga. The study had found that the advantages of
using English-Indonesian language were as compensatory strategy and reduced
misunderstanding and improved students‘ vocabulary, and then the disadvantages of using bilingual language were wasting much more time than using monolingual language and
Indonesian was not as simple as English. It also concludes when the teachers used bilingual
language to conduct the material.
In the advantages, teachers used compensatory strategy to explain the material in
Indonesia to get the message or main point of the lesson. Teachers used English first to
conduct the material then translated it into Indonesian. The purpose of switching the language
is to help the student in understanding the material. The second advantage of using bilingual language is to reduce misunderstanding and improve students‘ vocabulary. When teachers
taught students in English as the medium instruction then they translated the material in
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students‘ vocabulary because they could understand the meaning of new words that they did
not know before.
Beside found the advantages of using bilingual language, there are also two
disadvantages of using English-Indonesian language. They were wasting much more time
than using monolingual language and Indonesian was not as simple as English. Based on
Teacher A, she said that when she taught students in English first and then translated it into
Indonesian, the students would be more understand but it made her wasted time more than
used only one language. Then, last disadvantages was Indonesian is not as simple as English.
According to Teacher B, he said that it was more effective to use full English in conduct
Science material because English was more to the point than Indonesian.
From advantages and disadvantages of using bilingual language above, the writer can
know why and when teacher use bilingual language in teaching Science. The purpose of
translating or switching the language was to make the students catch the comprehension of
the material. Teacher A and B chose to conduct the material in bilingual language to explain,
describe and evaluate the material, especially for new material.
Acknowledge
First of all, I would like to say thank you to my Lord, Jesus Christ who always besides
me and strengthens me in doing this thesis. This thesis would not have been possible without
the valuable guidance from my supervisor, Mrs. Anne I. Timotius, M.Ed. Thank you so much
for my thesis examiner, Mrs. Suzana Maria LAF, M.Hum for the feedback for my thesis
improvement. To teachers in Bethany School Salatiga, thank you so much for helping me in
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My big gratitude also goes to my supermom, Pdt. Diana Chrisanty who never stops to
support and hear all my problems in doing this thesis. I also express my gratitude to my only
one brother Jonathan Victor G, Amd. K.A for the spirit he always gives for me. To my best
friends, Fany, Ririn, Momon, and all members of 68i who always make me happy when I was
tired and reminder me to finish this thesis. Without them, I surely cannot finish this thesis.
18 References
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Bingaman, J. (1990). On the English proficiency act. In K. Adams and D. Brinks (Eds.), Perspectives on official English: The campaign for English as the official language of the USA. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.
Boey, L.K (1975). An Introduction to linguistics for the teacher. Singapore: Singapore University Press.
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Cook, V. (2001). Using the first language in the classroom. The Canadian Modern Language Review, 57(3), 402-423.
Farrell (2005) Observation to describe.
Frank. (May 2009) School performance of international adoptees better than expected from cognitive test results.
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Harbord, J. (1992). The use of the mother tongue in the classroom. ELT Journal 46 (4), 350-355.
Harmer, J. (2001). The Practice of English Language Teaching.
Jones, H. (2010). First Language Communication in the Second Language Classroom: A Valuable. Newfoundland.
Josiane & Michel, (2000) Bilingual Education
Krashen, S. (2004) Bilingual education, frequently asked question . Retrieved July 19, 2005. From the World Wide
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Leask, Betty. (2007) International teacher and international learning school performance of international adoptees better than expected from cognitive test results. Lindblad, Frank, May 2009
Macaro, E. (2001). Analysing student teachers' codes witching in foreign language classrooms: Theories and decision making. The Modern Language Journal, 85(4), 531-548.
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Murphy, Sally (2010) Some Mistake That ESL Teachers Make.
Nation, I.S.P. 1997. L1 and L2 use in the classroom: a systematic approach. TESL Reporter 30, 2,p. 19-27.
Nation, P. (2003). The role of the first language in foreign language classroom: theories and decision making. The Modern Language Journal, 85(4), 531-548.
Olegetree (1978) Bilingual Education
Ricards J. C., & Theodore, S. R. (2000). Approaches and methods in language teaching. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
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Sharma, K. (2006). Mother tongue use in English classroom. Journal of NELTA, 11 (1-2), 80-87.
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20 Appendix 1
Sudah berapa lama Bapak/Ibu mengajar di sekolah ini?
Apakah sekolah Bapak/Ibu mengharuskan untuk menggunakan Bahasa Inggris pada
saat mengajar?
Apakah Bapak/Ibu menggunakan 2 bahasa (Inggis-Indonesia) pada saat
mengajar?Mengapa?
Pengajaran bilingual yang diterapkan di sekolah ini bagaimana?
Seberapa sering kah Bapak/Ibu menggunakan bahasa Indonesia dalam mengajar di
kelas?
Kapan Bapak/Ibu menggunakan bahasa Inggris dalam mengajar Science?
Kapan Bapak/Ibu menggunakan bahasa Indonesia dalam mengajar Science?
Berapa persen masing-masing penggunaan bahasa Inggris dan Indonesia?
Mengapa Bapak/Ibu menggunakan bahasa Indonesia pada saat mengajarkan materi?
Kendala apa yang Anda hadapi saat mengajarkan materi dengan menggunakan bahasa
Inggris?
Keutntungan apa yang Anda dapat saat menggunakan bahasa Indonesia dalam
mengajar?
Kerugian apa yang Anda dapat saat menggunakan bahasa Indonesia dalam mengajar?
Menurut Anda, lebih efektif menggunakan bahasa Inggris atau Indonesia pada saat
21 Appendix 2
No. Participant When / Date Length of Interview
1. Ms. A Wednesday, February 20, 2013 9 minutes
2. Mr. B Wednesday, February 20, 2013 10 minutes
First Interview
X: The researcher
Y: Teacher A (female)
X: Selamat siang Ibu, dengan kesempatan ini saya ingin menanyakan beberapa pertanyaan
dengan thesis saya. Pertanyaan yang pertama sudah berapa lama Ibu mengajar di sekolah
ini
Y: Ehmm, saya menagajar di sini sudah dari tahun 2009.
X: Lalu apakah sekolah ini mengharuskan untuk menggunakan bahasa Inggris pada saat Ibu
mengajar Science?
Y: Sebenarnya tidak, tapi memang semua materi kita pakai bahasa inggris, penyampaian
juga bilingual jadi bahasa Inggris dulu baru ke bahasa Indonesia, baru waktu kasih
instruction kita menggunakan bahasa Inggris.
X: Lalu kapan Ibu menggunakan bahasa Indonesia dalam mengajar?
Y: Biasanya setelah menjelaskan materi yang menggunakan bahasa Inggris, dijelaskan lagi
menggunakan bahasa Indonesia. Terkadang kalau menggunakan bahasa Inggris tidak
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murid-murid banyak yang mengerti, tapi ada juga yang tidak. Jadi saya tetap
menggunakan bahasa Indonesia .
X: Lalu kendala apa saja yang Ibu hadapi saat mengajar science dengan menggunakan
bahasa Inggris?
Y: Karena kemampuan anak dalam bahasa inggris beda-beda dan bahasa Science-English
itu kan beda dengan English yang biasa, jadi kadang ada istilah-istilah science yang
anak-anak tidak mengerti, kemudian basic-nya juga berbeda-beda ada yang berasal dari
sekolah yang kemampuan bahasa Inggrisnya kurang.
X: Lalu keuntungan apa yang Ibu dapat saat menggunakan bahasa Indonesia-Inggris pada
saat mengajar science?
Y: Yang pasti anak-anak akan jauh lebih mengerti materi yang ingin saya sampaikan.
Karena dengan bahasa inggris full anak-anak belum tentu paham materinya.
X: Lalu kerugian apa yang Ibu dapat jika menggunakan bahasa Indonesia-Inggris pada saat
mengajarkan science?
Y: Waktu ya, jadi kalau misalkan menggunakan bahasa Indonesia saja mungkin sekali jadi
mereka sudah bisa, tapi karena menggunakan inggris-indonesia, jadi waktu yang
dibutuhkan lebih lama dalam mengajar.
X: Ooo..begitu. Sedangkan di sini sekolah bilingual yang sebenarnya diharuskan untuk
menggunakan bahasa Inggris sebagai bahasa pengantarnya. Menurut Ibu sendiri, lebih
efektif menggunakan bahasa Inggris saja pada saat mengajar atau bahasa Indonesia saja
23
Y: Mungkin karena kita sekolah bilingual, kita harus mengajar pakai bahasa Inggris jadi
susah untuk menjawab pertanyaan ini. Karena saya belum pernah mengajar hanya
menggunakan bahasa Inggris saja, saya pasti menggunakan bahasa Indonesia untuk
menjelaskan atau sebaliknya saya full pakai bahasa Indonesia untuk mengajar. Tapi kita
kalau instruction, saya menggunakan bahasa Inggris. Ya, itu tadi masalahnya kalau kita
mengajar menggunakan full bahasa Inggris anak-anak pasti tidak dapat menyerap materi
secara maksimal karena background knowledge mereka bukan native speaker, tetapi
kalau menggunakan dua bahasa akan berdampak pada waktu
X: Nah ini ada pertanyaan tambahan, pengajaran bilingual yang diterapkan disini itu
bagaimana?
Y: Kalo dikelas saya sih biasanya menggunakan bahasa Inggris kemudian karena
kemampuan anaknya berbeda-beda, jadi setelah dari bahasa Inggris di jelaskan lagi ke
bahasa Indonesia; tapi untuk instruction kita selalu menggunakan bahasa Inggris seperti
perintah di test atau quiz. Kalo materi memang menggunakan bahasa Inggris dulu baru
di translate ke bahasa Indonesia.
X: Oo, jadi kalau untuk instruction menggunakan full bahasa Inggris, tapi kalau materi
menggunakan bilingual ya. Lalu berapa persen penggunaan bahasa Inggris dan bahasa
Indonesia yang Ibu lakukan saat mengajar?
Y: Bisa dibilang 70 persen bahasa Inggris dan 30 persennya bahasa Indonesia. Sebenarnya
kalau materinya gampang bisa full English seperti di kelas dua itu materinya lebih
mudah karena mereka juga sudah mendapat pelajaran bahasa Inggris dari kelas satu, jadi
24
X: Jadi karena mungkin sudah ada dasar yg mereka dapat ya Bu jadi bias lebih mudah
menangkap isi materi. Jadi Ibu menggunakan bahasa Indonesia hanya untuk menjelaskan
isi dari materi ya Bu?
Y: Iya, jadi saya menggunakan bahasa Indonesia hanya untuk menerangkan kembali isi
materi terutama kalau materi pembahasan baru.
X: Pernah tidak pada saat Ibu menggunakan full bahasa Inggris dalam mengajar Science
kelihatannya murid-muridnya paham, tapi pada saat test ada beberapa yang nilainya
jeblok karena tidak paham dengan materinya?
Y: Ada kasusnya tapi tidak banyak. Sebenarnya untuk Science asalkan mereka bahasa
Inggrisnya bisa pasti Science-nya juga bisa karena kan vocab nya juga uda banyak jadi
mereka sudah mengerti. Tapi kalau bahasa Inggrisnya sudah jelek ya sudah pasti Science
nya juga jelek karena kemampuan bahasanya dulu yang di liat.
X: Okee terimakasih banyak Ibu karena telah membantu saya dalam mencari data thesis
saya. Selamat Siang.
Second Interview
X: The writer
Y: Teacher B (male)
X: Selamat siang Bapak, dalam kesempatan ini saya mewawancari Bapak untuk mencari
data thesis saya. Pertanyaan pertama, sudah berapa lama bapak mengajar di sekolah ini?
25 X: Bapak mengajar di level berapa?
Y: Kelas satu sampai enam.
X: Lalu apakah sekolah ini mengharuskan Bapak untuk menggunakan bahasa Inggris untuk
mengajar Science?
Y: Tiga tahun pertama iya, tapi tahun terakhir ini tidak karena untuk kelas lima dan enam
sudah mendapat materi untuk UAN, jadi memakai bahasa bilingual.
X: Berarti Bapak menggunakan bahasa Inggris-Indonesia ya?
Y: Iya.
X: Lalu seberapa seringkah Bapak menggunakan bahasa Indonesia pada saat mengajar di
kelas untuk mata pelajaran Science?
Y: Tergantung materinya, kalau untuk instruksi itu menggunakan bahasa Inggris, tapi kalau
utnuk penjabarannya saya menggunakan bahasa bilingual, karena dengan begitu
murid-murid akan lebih cepat memahami isi materi. Contohnya pada saat memberi perintah
mereka supaya mengerjakan soal latihan di buku. Ini dalam satu semester ada 14 materi
pembahasan, 6 yang menggunakan bilingual dan 8 yang menggunakan full English.
X: Kendala apa saja sih yang Bapak alami saat mengajar science menggunakan bahasa
Inggris?
Y: Menurut saya me-rephrasing kalimat menjadi kalimat yang lebih mudah. Kalau untuk
kelas satu sampai empat science term nya masih sedikit, karena sesungguhnya yang
mereka butuhkan itu content base nya bukan language nya, sedangkan kelas lima dan
26
X: Lalu keuntungan apa yang Bapak dapat saat menggunakan bahasa Indonesia-Inggris
dalam menyampaikan materi?
Y: Tidak ada keuntungannya ya kalau menurut saya.
X: Kalau kerugian dari menggunakan bahasa Indonesia-Inggris itu sendiri apa menurut
Bapak?
Y: Justru bahasa Indonesia itu susah dipahami karena di lihat dari buku-bukunya, lebih
mudah kalimat-kalimat dengan bahasa Inggris kalau di mata pelajaran Science.
X: Lebih efektif menggunakan bahasa Inggris sepenuhnya atau bilingual language menurut
Bapak?
Y: Sebenarnya lebih efektif menggunakan full English, karena bahasa yang digunakan
dalam bahasa Inggris tidak bertele-tele seperti di bahasa Indonesia. Kita bilingual itu
karena memfalitiasi murid siap dalam UAN, juga dalam UAN soal-soalnya
menggunakan bahasa Indonesia. Jadi kita menggunakan bahasa Indonesia bukan karena
muridnya tapi karena utnuk assessment nya.
X: Kalau pengajaran bilingual yang diterapkan disini itu bagaimana menurut Bapak?
Y: Sebenarnya kalau untuk masalah content kita mengikuti, kalau Science kita
menggunakan masih dalam bahasa Indonesia karena untuk persiapan UAN, tapi kita
memakai buku Science yang dari Singapore dan menggunakan bahasa Inggris. Jadi kita
menggunakan bahasa Indonesia kalau mau UAN.
X: Oo, jadi diluar UAN menggunakan bahasa Inggris yaa?
27
X: Nah, buku yang Bapak gunakan itu kan menggunakan bahasa Inggris, lalu pada saat
mengaplikasikan buku itu kepada murid-murid menggunakan full English atau bilingual?
Y: Tidak, tetap di mixed ya karena bagaimanapun kalau pemahaman mereka belum dapat
pasti code-switching nya dikelas meskipun materi itu menggunakan bahasa Inggris.
Sebenarnya materi yang ada dibuku itu kan sama dengan yang akan diujikan di UAN,
jadi ini sebagai jembatan saja kalau yang diajarkan dalam bahsa Inggrisnya ini ya
Indonesia nya ini, gitu.
X: Lalu penggunaan bahasa Inggris nya berapa persen dan bahasa Indonesia nya berapa
Pak?
Y: Kalau materinya menggunakan bahasa Inggris ya hampir 80 persen, ya 80:20 persen,
kadang juga 70:30 persen gitulah.
X: Bapak menggunakan bahasa Indonesia hanya dalam menjelaskan conten atau
bagaimana?
Y: Ya dalam content nya, kadang pada kata-kata khusus atau term tertentu tidak bisa
dijelaskan dalam bahasa Inggris, kalau insrtuksi mereka sudah bisa dalam bahasa
