Teacher`s belief about English language exposure

TEACHER S BELIEFS ABOUT

ENGLISH LANGUAGE EXPOSURE

A THESIS

Presented as Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Degree ofMagister Humaniorain English Language Studies

BAYU ARIBOWO 116332005

ENGLISH LANGUAGE STUDY

SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY

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KARYA ILMIAH UNTUK KEPENTINGAN AKADEMIS

Yang bertanda tangan di bawah ini, saya mahasiswa Universitas Sanata Dharma:

Nama : Bayu Aribowo

Nomor Mahasiswa : 116332005

Demi perkembangan ilmu pengetahuan, saya memberikan kepada Perpustakaan

Universitas Sanata Dharma karya ilmiah saya yang berjudul:

TEACHER S BELIEFS ABOUT

ENGLISH LANGUAGE EXPOSURE

Beserta perangkat yang diperlukan. Dengan demikian saya memberikan hak

kepada Perpustakaan Universitas Sanata Dharma untuk menyimpan, mengalihkan

dalam media lain, mengelolanya dalam bentuk pangkalan data,

mendistribusikannya secara terbatas, dan mempublikasikannya di internet atau

media lain untuk kepentingan akademis tanpa perlu meminta ijin dari saya

maupun memberikan royalti kepada saya selama tetap mencantumkan nama saya

sebagai penulis.

Demikian pernyataan ini saya buat dengan sebenarnya.

Dibuat di Yogyakarta. Pada tanggal: 23 Januari 2014

Yang menyatakan,

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I would like to express my gratitude firstly to my parents who never stop

loving and caring for me, my brother who keeps his faith in me, as well as my

lovely beautiful girlfriend who is always so supportive in everything I do for the

present and future. Big respect is also paid to my friends in arms who are always

there for me in finishing this thesis until the last minute and for providing me

space to stand in the place where I can see things from the angle I never spotted

before. Never could I encounter such an adventurous path of life without their

presence. I would love to thank my mates in my hometown too since they really

know how to keep my sanity and insanity in its proper place. This thesis will

never be done without the help of the school I worked at, the teachers there, and

my magnificent students who might not know how they have influenced my life.

Therefore, the credit goes to all of them too. Lastly, the appreciation is given to all

/AB0E1F C12 /E2 /

TITLE PAGE ... i

ADVISOR S APPROVAL PAGE ... ii

DEFENCE APPROVAL PAGE ... iii

STATEMENT OF ORIGINALITY ... iv

LEMBAR PERNYATAAN PUBLIKASI ... v

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ... vi

TABLE OF CONTENTS ... vii

LIST OF FIGURES ... x

LIST OF CODES AND ABBREVIATION ... xi

ABSTRACT ... xii

ABSTRAK ... xiii

CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION A. Background of the study ... 1

B. Problem limitation ... 7

C. Problem formulation ... 7

D. Research goals ... 7

E. Research benefit ... 8

CHAPTER II LITERATURE REVIEW A. Theoretical review ... 9

1. Teacher s belief ... 9

a. Definition ... 9

b. Nature ... 14

c. Role ... 17

2. English as a foreign language learning ... 19

a. Overview ... 19

b. Characteristics of EFL learners ... 21

3. Theory of language exposure ... 23

1) Type of input ... 24

2) Sources of input... 28

a) Materials ... 28

(1) Authentic materials ... 29

(2) Modified/simplified materials... 30

b) Teacher talk ... 32

c) Classroom interaction ... 34

b. The role of first language in EFL class ... 36

B. Theoretical framework ... 39

CHAPTER III METHODOLOGY A. Research method ... 41

B. Nature and sources of data ... 43

C. Data setting and participant ... 43

D. Data collection method ... 45

1. Interview ... 46

2. Observation ... 47

E. Data analysis ... 48

F. Triangulation ... 49

CHAPTER IV FINDINGS AND DISCUSSIONS A. Introduction ... 50

B. English teaching and learning in the setting of the study ... 50

C. Teacher s belief about English language exposure ... 52

1. Material ... 53

a. The characteristics of the material... 53

b. The teaching method of the material ... 59

c. Focus of the material ... 61

2. Teacher talk ... 64

a. The use of teacher talk... 64

b. The limitation of teacher talk ... 67

3. Classroom interaction... 70

a. Teacher-student interaction ... 70

b. Student-student interaction ... 73

4. First language ... 75

D. Discussion ... 80

1. Material ... 80

2. Teacher talk ... 83

3. Classroom interaction... 85

CHAPTER V CONCLUSION

A. Conclusions ... 90

B. Implications ... 95

C. Recommendations ... 96

BIBLIOGRAPHY ... 98

APPENDICES ... 106

A. Interview transcription and coding ... 106

3I4 56F FIG7 8E4

1. Figure 2.1: Teacher cognition, schooling, professional education, and

classroom practice... 18

2. Figure 2.2: Three circles of English... 20

3. Figure 2.3: Resource and result of classroom interaction...36

4. Figure 3.1: Stages of data analysis adapted from Creswell... 48

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Abbreviations

RSBI : Rintisan sekolah berstandar internasional/Designated international standard school

SKL : Standar kompetensi lulusan/ Learning outcome EFL : English as a foreign language

ESL : English as a second language L1 : First language

L2 : Second language

Codes

MT-C : Material characteristics MT-TM : Teaching method MT-F : Material focus

TT-U : Teacher talk using English

TT-L : Teacher talk limitation using English

CIT-U : Classroom interaction using English between teacher and students CIT-P : The purpose of interaction using English between teacher and

students

CIS-U : Classroom interaction using English among students CIS-P : The purpose of interaction using English among students FL-U : The use of first language use

AB@ A BACA

Bayu Aribowo, 2013. Teacher s Beliefs about English Language Exposure. Yogyakarta: English Language Studies, Graduate Program, Sanata Dharma University

Language exposure is a means to provide students with English as much as possible to facilitate their English learning. However, English learning in the area of English as a foreign language has limited or less exposure since the students are exposed with English mostly in the classroom only. Related to this, the use of first language might also influence students in the exposure of English. Meanwhile, specific geographical and sociological condition can take part as well related to the exposure of English. Based on these facts and situations, it seems that observing the teacher s beliefs about English language exposure in such a setting of study is worth doing.

This study tries to see such beliefs from the point of view of several aspects as the sources of exposure. They are materials, teacher talk, classroom interaction, and the use of first language. The problem formulated to answer is

What beliefs does the teacher hold about English language exposure?

To give a thorough description and interpretation, a case study analysis was applied from the participant s experience. The interview was conducted to one 8th grade English teacher of a chosen state junior high school and classroom observations were performed to validate the findings.

ABC DEAK

Bayu Aribowo, 2013. Teacher s Beliefs about English Language Exposure. Yogyakarta: English Language Studies, Graduate Program, Sanata Dharma University

Pemajanan bahasa adalah salah satu cara untuk menyediakan pengetahuan bahasa Inggris sebanyak mungkin kepada siswa dalam memfasilitasi mereka dalam pembelajaran bahasa Inggris. Meski begitu, proses pembelajaran bahasa Inggris sebagai bahasa asing lebih terbatas karena para murid hanya mendapatkan pajanan bahasa tersebut di dalam kelas saja. Pemakaian bahasa ibu juga bisa mempengaruhi pembelajaran bahasa Inggris di dalam kelas dalam hubungannya dengan pemajanan bahasa Inggris. Sementara itu, kondisi sosio-geografis tertentu juga bisa ikut mempengaruhi tingkat pemajanan tersebut. Berdasarkan fakta dan situasi tersebut, keyakinan guru dalam pemajanan bahasa Inggris di lokasi semacam itu dianggap pantas untuk diteliti.

Penelitian ini dilakukan untuk melihat keyakinan guru tersebut dari sudut pandang yang berhubungan dengan pemajanan bahasa. Aspek-aspek tersebut mencakup materi, ujaran guru, interaksi di dalam kelas, dan pemakaian bahasa ibu. Permasalahan yang akan dijawab pada penelitian ini adalah Keyakinan seperti apa yang dimiliki guru mengenai pemajanan bahasa Inggris?

Untuk memberikan penjelasan dan interpretasi yang mendalam, diterapkanlah analisis studi kasus dari pengalaman partisipan. Wawancara dilakukan terhadap satu orang guru bahasa Inggris kelas 8 di salah satu sekolah menengah pertama negeri terpilih dan juga observasi terhadap kelas-kelas yang ditunjuk dijalankan sebagai media validasi temuan.

CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

This chapter covers introductory parts about this research such as

background of the study, problem limitation, problem formulation, research goals,

and the benefit of the study

.

A.Background of the study

Exposure is one way, either naturally or given, which will affect human s

brain or mental condition to recognize, comprehend, and be more aware about the

discussion being exposed. Related to the language learning as the focus of the

study, exposure becomes a significant aspect on how someone can acquire the

language. There are several experiences or studies in the past that show how

substantial exposure to language is in language learning or acquisition. One of

them is about Akbar, a 16th century Mogul emperor of India, as told in an article

in New York Times online (Galliot, 2007). He desired to learn whether language

was innate or acquired through exposure to the speech of adults. He had a belief

that people learn language by listening to each other and therefore a child could

not develop language alone. He then ordered a house built for two infants and

stationed a mute nurse to care for them. The result was obvious. The children did

not acquire speech, which seemed to verify Akbar s hypothesis that language is

acquired and does not simply emerge spontaneously in the absence of exposure to

The article also tells another experience about exposure in the more recent

era. The online newspaper shows the importance of exposure in language

acquisition by covering a news about Ana Gabriella Rodriguez, a 23 year-old

graduate student at the Institut d'Études Politiques in Paris, who had an impressive

ability to effortlessly switch among five languages; English, French, Spanish,

Portuguese, and Hungarian. It is related to her parents job as Venezuelan

diplomats since she moved frequently following them in several countries with

different languages including Caracas, Washington, Lisbon, and Budapest, in

addition to Paris. This demonstrates how someone can acquire a language with the

help of exposure, in this case from the place they live. Provided with the language

they are unfamiliar with yet, they are required to hear and practice the language

they have in contact every day, making them receive maximum amount of

exposure. As a result, language acquisition is inevitable.

In that article, Fred Genesee, a professor of psycholinguistics at McGill

University in Montreal, provides a scientific foundation for it that a child simply

needs to be exposed to a different language for at least 30 percent of his or her

waking time to acquire it. He also signifies the importance of immersion in an

environment where the new language is needed for adults who are in the process

of learning additional language. This suits Krashen s theory of second language

acquisition that concludes several studies stating that more exposure to a second

language results in increased proficiency (1985: 14).

The events above signify the importance of exposure in language learning

setting of this study. Since English becomes the focus in this study, it is quite

necessary to see the position of English nowadays in language learning. Hasman

(2004:21) suggests that English has been an international language for only 50

years

.

If the pattern follows the previous language trends, we still have about 100

years before a new language dominates the world . It is one reason why English is

learnt world-wide intensively even in the EFL context. Learning a foreign

language in the classroom obviously has several differences in its application if

compared to the story life of Rodriguez above in acquiring the language. Firstly,

there is a pattern that must be followed by the learners so that they can learn such

a language accordingly to their level of comprehension. This pattern is what is

called curriculum. Secondly, a figure is needed to guide the learners in learning

the language. This figure is the one who will direct the learner in the learning

process, provide them with the knowledge needed, and verify their understanding.

This important figure is the teacher.

It must be noted too that EFL students learn English mostly in the

classroom. It s also related to the role of English as the foreign language where

the language is not used as a daily basis or regularly as a means of communication

by the students. Then, most students treat English as one subject at school only,

meaning that they learn English with quite limited intensity and mark-oriented

instead of proficiency construction

.

Moreover, their primary source of English as

the input is received when they are at school, specifically from English lesson

only

.

Considering the story about how Rodriguez acquired the languages above,

Nation (2003) emphasizes that it is very important that L2 use is maximized in the

classroom where learners have little opportunity to meet and use the L2 outside

the classroom. These arguments then function as the essential starting point to see

the teacher s beliefs about language exposure in teaching English in the classroom

context.

Looking on the other side of such matters, the exposure of English is also

strongly related to the use of first language in the classroom practice, which in fact

is still in question whether it will help learners in acquiring the knowledge about

language or even become an obstacle for them to achieve the goal of language

learning

.

How the use of first language is scientifically debatable is confirmed by

Jadallah s (unknown year) research that shows a number of studies having been

conducted, which either support or oppose the use of first language in EFL

classroom, showing that each side has their own reason in the promotion or

restriction of first language based on the findings from those research

.

Meanwhile,

teachers, no matter if they care or not, realize this fact and it, either direct or

indirectly, affects their performance in the classroom mainly in how they use

either English or first language in the classroom

.

Therefore, seeing those realities

above, it is quite a meaningful interest to see what teachers, who hold an essential

position in education process, have in mind about exposing English to maximize

the input for the students while considering the role and part of the first language

in the classroom especially in the place where this research was conducted with its

To clarify the stance of this research, several studies with related topics are

considered worth to discuss in this part

.

There have been numerous research in the

past related to teachers belief

.

Borg (2003) explains how teachers belief has

been majorly discussed in its relationship with curricular aspect of language

teaching such as grammar teaching and literacy instruction in foreign and second

language context

.

Apart from biological factors, exposure is clearly of crucial importance in

enhancing language acquisition as well as learning

.

The significance of language

exposure has been discussed in previous discussions and studies in the same field

.

Lubega (1979), for instance, conducted a research which took Uganda as its object

of research where people there speak English as a second language

.

He found that

language exposure is vital to language learning and the type and level of

language proficiency that emanates from the language learning process is almost

entirely determined by language exposure

.

It shows how exposure takes a

significant value even if the language has the function as a secondary language

.

It

implies that even they already have people around them speaking the language,

they still need to maintain close contact to the language in their learning process

.

Another study by Solcova (2011) on teaching speaking skills, also brings

the indirect discussion about the importance of the way teacher interacts in the

class as the form of language exposure

.

In some part, he explains that the

teachers role in the exposure of learners to language should not be

are acquired subconsciously, teachers are a source of input for learners and even

more so in an EFL context where the language lessons might be the only

opportunity for some learners to listen to English being studied

.

This kind of

study tries to view that the language exposure is described to be substantial

moreover in the area where English is not a primary language spoken in the

society

.

Ajileye (1998) in her research sees the effect of exposure to English

language activities outside the classroom in students writing

.

It was observed that

there exists a significant mutual relationship between the degree of exposure to

English language use outside the classroom and performance in written English

.

She makes sure that an exploitation of opportunities for English language

activities would definitely enhance proficiency in English language

.

All of those studies indicate the same conclusion that language exposure

becomes one of many significant language learning aspects that can improve

learners proficiency in English

.

This research then is made to see how teachers

construct this fact as their belief which might or can affect or is reflected in their

experience and way of teaching in the classroom, especially in the place where the

object of the study performs her professional line of work

.

B.Problem limitation

There is a time constraint in carrying out this research

.

Therefore, I limit

belief about language exposure is the focus area of the research

.

Exposure in this

study refers to the total amount of contacts with the target language in the

classroom

.

Thus, the teachers belief s limitation covers several objects related to

things connected to the input the learners acquired in the classroom whenever the

lesson is performed such as teacher talk, teaching material, and classroom

interaction

.

It also considers the first language the teachers would likely use and

would obviously confront to the exposure of English

.

C.Problem formulation

This research is conducted to provide the answer for the following

research question: What beliefs does the teacher hold about English language

exposure?

D.Research goals

This research is brought up with a purpose as framed previously

.

The aim

of this research is to identify and describe the teacher s beliefs about language

exposure the students acquire in the classroom from several aspects covering it

like materials, teacher talk, classroom interaction, and the one that influence them

as done by the use of the first language

.

By having this goal, it is expected that the

readers will see and understand how the teacher s beliefs in the setting of the

study are reflected and later on can have the benefits as stated in the following

E.Benefit of the study

As any other research done in the area of English language teaching, this

study also has its own significance in its accomplishment

.

Such importance is

partitioned into two kinds

.

The first one is the practical benefit

.

This study was

done in an educational institution that had certain kind of demographical and

sociological characteristics

.

Because of that, this research hopefully could provide

some insight for other educational practitioners in such institution with similar

characteristics to construct, deconstruct, or even reflect their own belief about

language exposure which might affect them in their way of teaching

.

This

research is also beneficial for the teachers, mainly who teach in the same level of

education as the participant, to evaluate their use of English in the classroom for

maximum result of their students output or proficiency

.

The second one is scientific benefit

.

This research gives advantages in

providing valuable information related to the teachers beliefs about language

CHAPTER II

LITERATURE REVIEW

In this chapter, there are two sub-chapters that consist of theoretical review

and theoretical framework

.

The theoretical review will contain discussion and

portrayal about all the theories and the literature used for the research

.

Meanwhile, the theoretical framework as the second sub-chapter connects the

theoretical review with the assumptions, therefore determines the type of data and

how to analyze them

.

A.Theoretical review

In theoretical review, the theories related to the topic of this research are

presented and given in detail

.

It also covers the key constructs which is relevant to

answer the research question

.

Those theories are the theory of teachers belief,

theory of English as a foreign language, and the theories of language exposure

.

1.Teachers belief

a.Definition

As a previous trend, research on education were done covering aspects

such as techniques and methods of teaching

.

Then, like teaching techniques and

into more various grounds including not only about what people do in education

but also about what people think about education

.

Since the mid-1980s, research

on teaching and teacher education has shifted dramatically from a focus on

behaviors to an interest in cognition (Richardson, 1996)

.

One topic about this

concentration is about teachers belief

.

Before discussing about teachers belief, one must understand the meaning

of the word belief itself as the key concept

.

There are indeed many definitions

about beliefs

.

Dewey (1933), as one amongst the first to realize the importance of

beliefs in education, described belief as the third meaning of thought, something

beyond itself by which its value is tested; it makes an assertion about some matter

of fact or some principle of law (p

.

6)

.

For him, belief is crucial since it covers

all the matters of which we have no sure knowledge and yet which we are

sufficiently confident of to act upon and also the matter that we now accept as

certainly true, as knowledge, but which nevertheless may be questioned in the

future (p

.

6)

.

Derived from that, Pajares (1992) describes belief as an

individual s judgment of the truth or falsity of a proposition, a judgment that can

only be inferred from a collective understanding of what human beings say,

intend, and do (p

.

316)

.

Bernat (2005), for instance, has summed up the definitions about beliefs

from many researchers since the post-world war era

.

Some of those definitions

suitable for the theoretical background of this research is insights, culture of

conceptions of learning, and very strong filters of reality

.

Even though not too

detailed, these definitions however can become a really good base of

understanding to initially recognize what teachers belief is, later on, what it deals

with, and what it is related to

.

Pajares (1992), quoting Bandura (1986), Dewey

(1933), Nisbett & Ross (1980), and Rokeach (1968), signifies beliefs as the best

indicators of the decisions individuals make throughout their lives

.

Moreover,

although he sees belief as a messy concept, he states that beliefs and belief

systems serve as personal guides in helping individuals to define and understand

the world and themselves

.

M. Borg (2001: 186) states that there is as yet no

consensus on meaning and the concept has acquired rather fuzzy usage about

belief

.

However, she later on sums up that belief is a preposition that may be

consciously or unconsciously held, is evaluative in that it is accepted as true by

the individual, and is therefore imbued with emotive commitment

.

Going into the details, when we are talking about teachers belief, we

should see the understanding about it given by Nespor (1987) which has been

used as a foundation theory in every research related to the teachers belief

.

Without direct definition about teachers belief, he delivers the comprehension

about belief with the accepted idea that teachers way of thinking and

understanding are vital components of their practice

.

From this point of view, it is

noticeable that teachers belief, in the realm of ideas is what the teachers think and

what teachers know regarding to their profession which affect them in their

affects them in conceptualizing tasks

.

In the other way, their experience also

becomes a factor that shape teachers belief (Nespor, 1987: 317)

.

In another

source, Kagan (1992) gives her own classification about teachers belief

.

She

believes that teachers belief is a particularly provocative form of personal

knowledge that is defined as a pre- or in-service teachers implicit assumptions

about students, learning classrooms, and the subject matter to be taught (1992:

66)

.

In the matter of fact, she realizes that this definition is actually misleading

somehow knowing that the studies about teachers belief are mostly focused on

specific academic context such as beliefs about teaching math, science, history, or

else

.

However, she agrees with Feimar-Nemsen and Floden (1984) that pull a red

line on the research taking teachers belief as their attention that the goals on

studying teachers belief is to get inside the teachers heads to describe their

subjective knowledge and belief

.

Quoting Calderhead (1996), teacher beliefs, as well as teacher knowledge

and teacher thinking, comprise the broader concept of teacher cognition

.

Even so,

teachers belief and teacher cognition share the same characteristics, as Kagan

(1990) mention it as something that is somewhat ambiguous, because researchers

invoke the term to refer to different products, including teachers interactive

thoughts during instruction; thoughts during lesson planning; implicit beliefs

about students, classrooms, and learning; [and] reflections about their own

Starting from her definition about belief previously, M. Borg (2001: 187)

also comes up with a conclusion about teachers belief which refers to teachers

pedagogic belief or those beliefs of relevance to an individual s teaching

.

Furthermore, she claims that teachers belief serves as a guide to thought and

behavior

.

More recent discussion about the term teachers belief is brought by

Borg with his developing definition over time

.

Belief comes together with

knowledge, theories, assumptions, and attitudes to form personal pedagogical

systems that play a significant role in shaping teachers instructional decisions

(1998)

.

In another year, he implicitly alters his theoretical discussion about

teachers belief with similar concept he calls teacher cognition

.

Language teacher

cognition includes what second or foreign language teacher think, know, believe

and additionally, as part of teacher cognition constructs, attitudes, identities, and

emotion (2012)

.

Lastly, Flavell (1987) views beliefs about language learning as a

component of meta-cognitive knowledge, which include all that individuals

understand about themselves as learners and thinkers, including their goals and

needs

.

From all of the reviews about belief above, it can be inferred that

teachers belief is what teachers view, think, and assume to be true in their point

of view which will influence them in their professional performance and, on the

contrary, may be affected by their experience as well yet not all beliefs they

possess can be molded into doable action since there are limitations from many

perspectives, such as personal, social, administrative, or other teacher-related

b.Nature

Every entity always has its own distinctive nature, and so does teachers

belief

.

What comes first concerning the nature of teachers belief is that teachers

belief appear to be relatively stable and resistant to change (Brousseau, Book, and

Byers, 1988; Herman and Duffy, 1989; in Kagan, 1992)

.

Another assumption also

comes up and states that a teacher s belief tend to be associated with a congruent

style of teaching that is often evident across different classes and grade level

(Evertson & Weade, 1989; Martin, 1989 in Kagan, 1992)

.

Bryan (2003, in Irez, 2006) also concludes the nature of belief from the

contribution of many researchers and theorists

.

Accordingly, beliefs are

psychological constructs that include understandings, assumptions, images, or

propositions that are felt to be true

.

It is the one that drives a person s actions and

support decisions and judgments

.

Besides, teachers belief has highly variable and

uncertain linkages to personal, episodic, and emotional experiences of an

individual and, although undeniably related to knowledge, it is different from

knowledge in that beliefs do not require a condition of truth

.

From that latter grasp about the nature of teachers belief, it signifies the

importance of apprehending the difference between belief and knowledge

.

As

many researchers have found, it is not so much that knowledge differs from

beliefs, but that beliefs themselves constitute a form of knowledge (Murphy,

2000)

.

In another way, Ernest (1989, in Pajares, 1992) differentiates both terms by

affective outcome, but he acknowledged that beliefs also possess a slender but

significant cognitive component

.

Different from the others, Kagan (1992) directly

points out that he argues that most of a teacher s professional knowledge can be

regarded as belief

.

She claims that knowledge is considered a belief that has been

affirmed as true on the basis of objective proof or consensus of opinion

.

Murphy (2000) later makes a further distinction between beliefs and

knowledge based on Nespor (1987)

.

Beliefs are considered static , meaning

whereas knowledge can be evaluated or judged, beliefs are something in contrary

since there is usually a lack of consensus about how they are to be evaluated

.

Not

only in evaluative aspect, both terms also deal with their relationship with the

truth

.

Beliefs are said not to require a truth condition whereas knowledge must

satisfy the truth condition (Savasci-Acikalin, 2009)

.

Other than that, he also

concludes that beliefs refer to suppositions, commitments, and ideologies and

knowledge refers to factual propositions and the understandings that inform

skillful action

.

While knowledge is based on objective fact, belief is differently

based on evaluative judgment

.

The proper illustration of belief and knowledge is portrayed by Nespor

(1987)

.

Teachers may have similar scientific knowledge

.

They are likely to teach

in different ways because teachers beliefs are more powerful than their

knowledge in influencing the way in which they teach

.

For this too, Mansour

shows that there is an interactive relationship between knowledge and beliefs

.

The settled or developed teachers beliefs act as an information organizer and

priority categorizer, and in turn control the way it could be used

.

In the

interactions between knowledge and beliefs, beliefs control the gaining of

knowledge and knowledge influenced beliefs (p

.

28)

.

It must also be understood that teachers belief is something resistant to

change (Brousseau et al

.

, 1988)

.

However, Murphy (2010: 7) mentions that

changing belief is a complex, perhaps even mysterious, process

.

Though doable,

Woods (1996) clarifies that teachers cannot simply at will 'change' one belief by

itself

.

Instead, the change can only be encouraged but not mandated

.

Pajares (1992) mentions that Piaget s concepts of assimilation and

accommodation result in belief change

.

Assimilation is the process whereby new

information is incorporated into existing beliefs in the ecology; accommodation

takes place when new information is such that it cannot be assimilated and

existing beliefs must be replaced or reorganized (p

.

320)

.

Beside those

theoretical terms, reflection, that is intentionally, actively, and deliberately

examining one s experiences and beliefs, also the one that contributes to

conceptual change (Di Pietro and Walker, 2005)

.

It must be understood that changing belief is not about abandoning beliefs

but replacing them with more relevant beliefs (Nespor, 1987 in Murphy, 2010)

.

This opinion is supported by Dwyer et al (1990) who recommend implementing

gradually replacing them with more relevant beliefs shaped by experiences in an

altered context

.

Those concepts give a thorough comprehension on the way

teachers belief changes and how it works with the other belief

.

c.Role

What is also significant in the discussion about teachers belief is its role

in many aspects related to it, mainly to the teaching and learning practice, method,

and development

.

Nespor (1987) conducted teacher belief study and the result

suggests that beliefs and belief systems have two important uses for teachers

-task definition and cognitive strategy selection; and facilitation of retrieval and

reconstruction in memory processes-while serving the overall function of allowing

teachers to deal with ill-structured domains (p

.

321)

.

Practically, teachers belief

play a major role in teachers decision making about curriculum and instructional

tasks (Nespor, 1987;Pajares, 1992 in Savasci-Acikalin, 2009)

.

Richardson (1996) states, "attitudes and beliefs are a subset of a group of

constructs that name, define, and describe the structure and content of mental

states that are thought to drive a person s actions" (p

.

102)

.

To put it briefly,

teachers belief determines what the teachers do in their professional occupation

.

Additionally, teachers beliefs are closely linked to teachers strategies for

coping with challenges in their daily professional life and to their general

well-being, and therefore they shape students learning environment and influence

Borg (2003), placing teachers belief and teachers cognition in a par, tells

how teacher cognition plays a pivotal role in teachers life as explained in the

[image:32.595.99.496.188.557.2]

scheme below

.

Figure 2.1 : Teacher cognition, schooling, professional education, and classroom practice(Borg, 1997 in Borg, 2003: 82)

From the diagram above, it shows what teachers belief, which is a part of

teachers cognition, affect and is affected by

.

Several features that influence

teachers belief is firstly their experience in the classroom as a learner which form

their perception of their early training in teaching

.

Not only shaping their belief, it

also has effects their professional coursework

.

Professional coursework and

each other

.

Another aspect is the contextual factors, such as motivation,

expectations, society demand, standardized tests and school, which modify not

just teachers beliefs but practice in the classroom as well

.

Classroom practice

itself, as professional coursework, similarly intertwines with teachers belief

.

2.English as a foreign language learning

a.Overview

Talking about English language learning, we must understand first about

Kachru s 3 circles of English

.

World widely, the area of the English use is divided

into three areas of circle

.

These circles represent the types of spread, the patterns

of acquisition, and the functional allocation of English in diverse cultural context

(Kachru, 1992: 356)

.

The first is inner circle which refers to the traditional

cultural and linguistic bases of English

.

It covers countries using English as its

primary language for daily use

.

The second one is the outer circle that represents

the institutionalized non-native varieties in the regions that have through extended

period of colonization

.

In the other words, it is countries that use English as

second language

.

The third one is the expanding circle which includes regions

where the performance varieties of the language are used essentially in EFL

context or we can say, it includes those nations which acknowledge the

importance of English as an international language

.

There, English does not have

[image:34.595.99.498.114.514.2]

Figure 2.2: Three circles of English(Kachru, 1992: 356)

Not only representing what has been said before, this classification then

somehow influences the English language learning in every region because the

significance of such language also differs in each circle

.

In the case of English as

a foreign language, Broughton et al (1980) emphasizes that foreign language is

taught in schools, often widely, but it does not play an essential role in national or

social life (p

.

6)

.

In the expanding circle countries, English, as a world language,

is taught among others in schools, but there is no regional variety of English

which embodies such countries cultural identity

.

Even so, learners of English as a

language learners

.

He gives the example of Japan in which both British and

American varieties are equally acceptable and both are taught, foreign students of

English in Mexico and the Philippines tend to learn American English, Europeans

tend to learn British English, whilst in Papua New Guinea, Australasian English is

the target variety

.

Those choices of variety are partly influenced by the

availability of teachers, partly by geographical location and partly by political

influence (p

.

7)

.

Still, not only the function of English that is different in each circle, it also

has different use too especially for the learners

.

In a foreign language learning

situation, counting English, the language is not spoken in the immediate

environment of the learner, although mass media may provide opportunities for

practicing the receptive skills

.

There is little or no opportunity for the learner to

use the language in natural communication situations (Ringbom, 1987: 27)

.

It

indirectly shows the importance as well as the role of English in the countries

where English counts as foreign language

.

b.Characteristics of EFL learners

Ringbom (1987: 27) makes distinctions between second language learners

and foreign language learners under the heading of time, input, teacher s role, and

skills

.

From there, the characteristics of foreign language learners can be

summarized as follows

.

First, the foreign language learner can spend only a very

on learning is limited to the classroom hours and the time spent in preparation for

the lessons

.

Secondly, the foreign language learner is also exposed to a very

limited quantity of highly structured, selected and sequenced input

.

In fact, he

adds as the third one, foreign language learning mainly takes place in a classroom

situation and/or by study at home while there is little or hardly any learning from

peers

.

Fourth, talking about most classrooms, the dependence on written material

makes the oral skills less important since the classroom situation does not provide

a genuine need for practicing spoken language in a natural communication

context, even if various contrived oral uses of the language may be employed

.

The

sequencing of skills largely depends on the aims and methods of the course

.

He also demonstrates that, in the case of foreign language learning, the

learners success is somehow dependent on a number of factors, especially the

general attitudes to the teacher and the classroom situation and the learners

motivation

.

Since the foreign language learner's whole personality is not

involved in the learning process, most social and affective factors lose at least

some of their importance in a foreign language learning context

.

Culture shock is

hardly experienced at all, until the learner goes to the foreign country (Ringbom,

1987: 29)

.

Getting more specific, the characteristics of Indonesian EFL learners have

been a major topic in several discussions

.

Exley (2005) portrays how some

literature defines Indonesian students has the characteristics of more passive,

report that in EFL in Indonesia, teachers have significant value because they are

required to present a critical evaluation of ideas for students to memorize

.

One

study by Beh (1997, in Exley, 2005) found that students in urban areas have

higher levels of motivation in learning English than students in rural areas

.

The

reasons for this cover both teachers and students side, and the difficulties students

have concern with affording the required text

.

3.Theory of language exposure

The development of language depends on exposure to some specific

linguistic experience (Curtis et

.

al 1974)

.

This kind of experience could be in

various forms that later on will sharpen language skills such as what is read or

heard for the receptive skills and what is spoken or written as the ones enhancing

the productive skills

.

Although it is undoubtedly true, there is still debate about

whether language learning is biologically-based or is directly related to the

environment or language exposure and it has been a question for a long time

(Agah, 2011)

.

Related to this, there are different opinions rising up

.

Di Vesta (1974) and Chomsky (1970) propose that language is an innate

ability and exposure does not make a significant difference in gaining this ability

.

In the other hand, Olson (1970) believed that language learning is directly related

to the environment

.

Despite the fact that there are two opposite parties related to

language exposure, learners are automatically exposed with such language

and this input can be discussed together with the role of first language which

accompanies it in the practice of language learning

.

a.Input

1) Type of input

Krashen (1985: 14) portrays the conclusion from several studies that more

exposure to a second language results in increased proficiency while others show

little or no relationship between exposure and proficiency

.

However, according to

his review of those studies, such relationship exists in some school situation

where exposure really entails comprehensible input

.

In the opposite side, there is

weaker or no relationship where exposure does not entail comprehensible input

.

Input itself can be non-interactive in the form of texts that learners listen to

or read (Ellis, 2008)

.

In other words, input is everything given to the learners

about the language in any model of knowledge and skill

.

It may also come in the

form of active participation in conversation

.

Input that learners receive holds a

very important role in a language learning process since being exposed to a

language can be the best input for a learner (Agah, 2011: 9)

.

Ellis (1985)

suggests eight central conditions favorable for language acquisition and one, and

the first one, is a high quantity of input directed at the learner

.

With input also,

learners are given the opportunity to make sense of what they hear or see, to

notice the contexts in which the samples of the language are used, to interact with

line with what Krashen (1985), as the representation of the innatist point of view,

introduces as input hypothesis theory

.

In that theory, he proposes that language

acquisition depends solely on what is called comprehensible input, which is a type

of input slightly ahead of the learners current stage but which they can

comprehend through means such as situational cues

.

He formulates this into i+1

(the learners current level + a bit beyond current level of competence)

.

The input hypothesis has several corollaries (Krashen, 2003)

.

First is that

the speaking ability is not the cause but the product of acquisition

.

Although

speaking can indeed indirectly assist in language acquisition, the ability to speak

is not the cause of language learning or acquisition

.

Krashen insists that speech

emerges by itself as a result of building competence through comprehensible

input

.

This comprehensible input, according to Krashen, is most likely to be

gained from interacting with another speaker of the language

.

In this case, the

other speaker of the language is the teacher

.

Second, grammar knowledge will be automatically gained after enough

input is mastered

.

Krashen strongly believes that this is done and acquired by

exactly every language learner similarly using Chomsky s point of view about

language acquisition device and it is a better method of developing grammatical

As for the third, the teaching order is not based on the natural order

.

Instead, students will acquire the language in a natural order by receiving

comprehensible input

.

Comprehensible input itself is divided into several types

.

Park (2002)

suggests three potential sources of comprehensible input

.

One is pre-modified

language input

.

In this kind of input, any input, whether it is spoken or written,

can be simplified or modified in order to provide comprehension by presenting

less difficult vocabulary items and complex syntactic structures which are beyond

readers acquired language proficiency

.

Adjusting the syntactic and lexical feature

of the input can increase the comprehensibility of the text by, for example,

providing definitions of difficult vocabulary items, paraphrasing sentences

containing complex syntactic structures, or enriching semantic detail

.

Furthermore, elaboration can be a preferred manner because elaborated input

retains the material that language learners need for developing their interlanguage

and provides with natural discourse model (Kim, 2003 in Bahrani, 2012)

.

Other

than that, elaborated adjustments have the potential to supply the learners with

access to the linguistic items they have not acquired yet (Larsen-Freeman & Long,

1991)

.

Urano (2002, in Bahrani, 2012) and Kong (2007, in Bahrani, 2012) also

claim that lexical elaboration is more favorable than lexical simplification for the

sake of sentence comprehension in reading and incidental vocabulary acquisition

.

might help language acquisition, over-elaborated language input could be in fact

counter-productive

.

Two is interactionally modified input

.

It is represented by the changes to

the target structures or lexicons to accommodate potential or actual problems in

understanding a message in a conversation

.

It is a type of language input that is

interactionally modified through negotiation of meaning to make input

comprehensible

.

This kind of comprehensible input is concluded from the study

by Ellis (1994, in Bahrani, 2012) where three kinds of input conditions and their

potential to facilitate comprehension were considered; the unmodified input, the

pre-modified input, and interactionally modified input

.

The result shows that latter

significantly facilitates comprehension more than the other types of input

.

It is

necessary to put border between modified input and interactionally modified input

in order to make a clear distinction of them

.

According to Long (1982, 1983 in

Park, 2002), interactionally modified input only emerges when both parts of a

conversation negotiate meaning to make their speech more comprehensible

.

When

language learners face communicative problems and they have the opportunity to

negotiate solutions to them, they are able to acquire new language

.

Three is modified output

.

Modified output is the response to

interactionally modified input

.

Similar with interactionally modified input, it must

occur in an interactional environment (Ellis, 1999)

.

Negotiation of meaning in a

modified output of one learner will automatically turn into and work as another

learner s comprehensible input

.

2) Sources of input

In the classroom situation where the learners study the language, there are

various sources of input that are available during the learning activity

.

These

sources of inputs are commonly similar for regular language class in elementary,

junior high, or senior high school. They come from the materials, teacher talk,

and classroom interaction (either student with student or student with teacher)

.

a) Materials

Material in ELT, especially EFL as the point of interest in this study, is

one of the most important resources of input in language learning

.

Today, the

sources of material used in the school are various

.

It moves far from conventional

ones represented by written text in the form of books and advances in a variety of

forms such as interactive slides, audio, video, online source like websites, or in

the appearance of short functional text like posters, announcements,

advertisements, recipes, and many more fitting the necessity of the learners

.

However, in Indonesian context, these material sources are made following the

curriculum and the approach applied

.

English curriculum of 2006, as the one used

in this thesis object of the study, aims students English communication skill in

daily life as stated in its target competence

.

Therefore, the materials used often

mimic the real life as if the students are put into the factual situation where they

practitioners to make use of what is called as authentic material

.

In the other hand,

there are some limitations or obstacles that prevent the teachers in using such

materials and choose to use modified or simplified materials instead

.

(1) Authentic materials

The use of authentic materials in an EFL classroom is what many teachers

involved in foreign language teaching have discussed in recent years (Kilickaya,

2004)

.

Rogers and Medley (1988) defines authentic material as 'appropriate' and

'quality' in terms of goals, objectives, learner needs and interest and 'natural' in

terms of real life and meaningful communication (p

.

467)

.

While Harmer (1991)

regards authentic texts as materials which are designed for native speakers; they

are real text; designed not for language students, but for the speakers of the

language

.

Jordan (1997, p

.

113) refers to authentic texts as texts that are not

written for language teaching purposes

.

Nunan and Miller (1995) define authentic

materials as those which were not created or edited expressly for language

learners

.

This means that most everyday objects in the target language qualify as

authentic material

.

Authentic materials is confirmed to be useful in increasing students'

motivation for learning, makes the learner be exposed to the 'real' language as

discussed by Guariento & Morley (2001, p

.

347)

.

In short, authentic materials

are materials that we can use with the students in the classroom and that have not

been changed in any way for ESL students

.

A classic example would be a

(Sanderson, 1999)

.

There are some benefits in using this kind of materials (Philips

and Shettlesworth 1978; Clarke 1989; Peacock 1997, in Richards, 2001)

.

First,

they have positive effect on learner s motivation

.

Second, they provide authentic

cultural information

.

Third, they provide exposure to real language

.

Fourth, they

relate more closely to learners needs

.

The last one, they support a more creative

approach to teaching

.

However, in the other hand, Richards (2001) also points out that using

authentic materials also carries some disadvantages which often occur in the area

of EFL learning

.

It is obvious that authentic materials often contain difficult

language, unneeded vocabulary items and complex language structures, which not

only causes a burden for the teacher in lower-level classes but also cause

difficulties in comprehension for the learners

.

Related to this, Tamo (2009) agrees

that authentic materials should be used in accordance with students ability and

add that suitable tasks can be given to learners in which total understanding is not

important

.

She also consents about the opinion that in the earlier stages,

non-authentic materials can be used

.

However, she stresses too that upon students

dealing with materials from their own subject area, authentic materials should be

introduced

.

(2) Modified/simplified materials

For language learners, difficult language is the problem with authentic

have become the barrier in the language learning process in some cases

.

Too

many unrecognized words or structure is the main issue for the learner to study

the language

.

It will however still become the source of input

.

But if an utterance

in the material, as an instance, is presented but the message cannot be conveyed

because of so many foreign vocabularies, not only the learners will fail to at least

infer the message but also the input will not be a comprehensible one

.

As for this

reason, the education practitioner often choose to use or make modified or

simplified material to adjust the language knowledge they need to pass so that it

would be understandable for the learners

.

Day (2002) emphasizes that simplified materials carry an outstanding

strength which is they are the best material for teaching beginning and

intermediate students because they are already set to the right linguistic level

.

Widdowson (1978, in Guariento and Morley, 2001) believes that simplification

can take place, within the conventions of a given language field, while

maintaining authenticity in the sense of learner s response

.

To achieve this goal,

the text has to be simplified into a form which engage the learner s interest and

impress him as being in some way relevant to his concerns

.

At lower level,

materials do not have to be given an artificial genuine-look in order to be

accepted by the learner

.

What matters more is that they should be executed

(Guariento and Morley, 2001)

.

In other words, the simplified materials are more

suitably and preferably chosen for the junior level of language learner in the EFL

Even though simplified material is very helpful, it is not free from

infirmity

.

Guariento and Morley (2001) mention that not so little textbook writers

make recourse to simplification with a haste that is often undignified resulting in a

not well-executed text

.

In the other case, texts lose their redundant feature and

are shortened in the listening material

.

b) Teacher talk

Even in the most autonomous, learner-centered class of language learning,

the involvement of a teacher is obligatory and inevitable

.

Lewton-Brain (1993)

suggests that teachers should support the students to have an evaluation on their

work, guide the clarity of a lesson, conceptualizing and making a decision of

something

.

They should also give a help to the students so the students understand

where they go

.

This can be done by giving criticism, observation and sharing

experience

.

In other occasion, the teachers must be able to perceive the strong

points and interest of the students then helps the students to grow up

.

How teachers role takes part in the learning process significantly is

explained by Gass and Selinker (2001, in Leaver, Ehrman and Shekhtman, 2005)

.

They strongly emphasize that acquiring a second language truly depends on

acquiring the sound system of that language

.

In the class, the students can get the

real example directly

.

In the context of language class, they can learn the

pronunciation and accent from the teachers as well as sentence arrangement and

the source of assistance to learn English (Razak, 2003)

.

From this point, it is

evident to see the teacher as the one source of input in the classroom for the

learners especially from what is familiar with the term teacher talk

.

Several definitions of teacher talk are developed by some theorists

.

Richards (1992: 471) defines teacher talk as a various language which the teacher

uses in the learning teaching process

.

Meanwhile, Brown (2006) regards teacher

talk as simply the time when the teacher is speaking

.

In more detail, Osborne

(1999) classifies teacher talk as speech used by teachers that is characteristically

modified in four areas: phonology (consisting of morphology and vocabulary),

syntax, and discourse

.

By this definition, it is very important for the teachers to

adjust their talk to the students, such as using vocabularies accordingly to the

students level, for the sake of students comprehension

.

As a conclusion, teacher talk is the language used by the teacher to

communicate with the students which has been modified and adjusted to the

students level of language proficiency (Jonathan, 2008)

.

Practically, the

pedagogical system in most of the school in Indonesia is teacher-centered,

meaning that the teacher would likely do the most talking in the class

.

Therefore,

teacher talk is the main medium that is used by the teacher to pass the skills and

knowledge to the students

.

However, recent studies have been done with further findings about

not only function as input but in fact also shapes learners contributions to the

discourse as inhibiting or increasing learners participation and scaffolding

learners production (Walsh, 2002 in Ellis, 2008)

.

Seeing its effect and

significance, teacher talk can be regarded as one of the most significant resource

of input in the classroom

.

c) Classroom interaction

Classroom interaction is a media for learners mainly to increase students

oral proficiency because they can directly practice using the language they learn

.

Interaction provides learners with opportunities to encounter input or to practise

the L2 (Ellis, 2008: 784)

.

Derived from Krashen s input hypothesis, Long (1996)

concludes that interactional hypothesis referred to when learners engaged with

their interlocutors in negotiations around meaning, the nature of the input might

be qualitatively changed. In other words,

Language is acquired as learners actively engage in attempting to communicate in the target language

.

The hypothesis is consistent with the experiential philosophy of learning by doing

.

Acquisition will be maximized when learners engage in tasks that push them to the limits of their current competence

.

(Nunan, 1999: 51)

By interacting in the classroom, learners have not only the chance to perform their

language competency but also the opportunity to learn more from the interaction

because, instead of functioning as an output, classroom interaction also has a role

to be the input for the other learners since one s output can be others input as

previously mentioned

.

It emphasizes the importance of comprehensible input and

meaning

.

When the interaction is in progress, they may not fully understand the

utterances coming from the interlocutor, but they will try to understand and

interpret the meaning of the utterances

.

Long s interaction hypothesis supports that the development of language

proficiency is promoted by direct interaction and communication

.

Ellis (1988: 95)

also underlines that interaction contributes to development because it is the

means by which the learner is able to crack the code

.

Similar with what Nunan

says, he concludes that by interaction, learners can infer what is said even though

they still have the absence of understanding about some linguistic item in the

message because it is not yet a part of his competence

.

Acting as the source of input, classroom interaction comes in every

communication means inside the classroom either it s between teacher and

students or among students

.

Naimat (2011) in his research confirms as well about

the significance of interactional method in a foreign language class, stressing

about the interaction between teacher and students

.

Because teachers are

considered knowledgeable in their classroom, the interaction would likely initiate

the transfer of knowledge as the immersion of input for the learners

.

Teachers talk

as previously discussed can also reflect classroom interaction between students

and teacher

.

Teachers planning provided before the class would commence

classroom interaction too that later on will result in input like explained in the

[image:50.595.100.512.106.570.2]

Figure 2.3: Resource and result of classroom interaction

(Allwright and Bailey, 1991: 25 in Ellis, 2008: 784)

Johnson (1995, in Naimat, 2011) clarifies that interaction among students

provides a greater social context for prompting language use than traditional

instructions

.

Therefore, it would increase students chances to use the second

language

.

Meaning, more use of the language would provide more input as well

.

Rivers (1987) shares the same opinion about the interaction between students

.

Interaction involves not only the expressions of the learners view as the output

but also understanding the views of the others so the learners will share their ideas

among each other where one listens and responds to others and others as well

.

b.The role of first language in EFL class

As mentioned previously, teacher talk is one essential source of input in

the classroom

.

However, when speaking in the EFL context, it is unavoidable for

the teachers to utilize or make use of the first language in the classroom to help

them in transferring the language knowledge

.

In the other hand, the students are

often intrigued or forced to use their first language since they have insufficient

English language proficiency

.

Using first language in the EFL, or ESL, classroom is like a double-edged

sword

.

This concern is introduced by Yang (1992) after reviewing Robert Lado s

Syllabus Input

Method Practice Opportunities

Atmosphere Receptivity

concept of contrastive analysis hypothesis

.

It divides the role of first language into

two

.

The first one is called positive transfer, or simply transfer

.

It is a positive

transfer when the first language and the foreign language share similar elements,

such as structure, which result in correct utterance

.

This is the condition where

learners can take advantage of such situation to learn the correct form of the

language

.

On the other side, there is also negative transfer or usually called with

the term inference

.

It is the contrast circumstance where both language have

different structure and do not share similar element, which may result in error in

production of the foreign language

.

The first language has long been considered the villain in second

language learning, the major cause of a learner s problems with the new

language

.

(Dulay, Burt, an