CHAPTER IV
FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION
4.1 Description of Research Settings
This research was conducted in Pesantren Hidayatullah Muaro Jambi. It is an educational entity that is part of Hidayatullah Islamic Educational Institutions across Indonesia under the auspices of central Hidayatullah. This school was built on a land area of approximately 1 hectare, which is located at Lintas Timur Street, KM 26, Bukit Baling Village, Sekernan sub-district, Muaro Jambi district, Jambi, Indonesia. This Pesantren was established in 2002 based on the Decree of the Regional Head of the Ministry of National Education of Jambi Province No. 51215070/2007.
4.1.1 Vision and Mission of Pesantren Hidayatullah
The vision of Pesantren Hidayatullah is to establish an excellent and competitive Islamic educational institution that will produce a generation who is capable to carry out the mandate of Allah SWT as His servant and caliph. While the mission of Pesantren Hidayatullah is to organize Islamic educational institution with an integrated of academic, spiritual, and life skills in order to produce pious students.
4.2 Description of Research Participants
In this qualitative case study, researcher investigated the challenges faced by the English teachers in Pesantren Hidayatullah and the strategies they used to overcome those challenges. The researcher also did the interview to some students in order to complement the data findings from the teachers’ interview. The criteria for the participants involved are (1) middle school English teachers, both who teach male
(santri) and female students (santriwati), (2) ninth-grade students, only for the female
students (santriwati).
By using convenience case strategy Creswell (2007), the researcher obtained eight respondents or participants in total who were willing to be interviewed, two English teachers and six female students. The researcher used pseudonym in order to remain the participants’ privacy.
The first respondent was P1 (pseudonym). She is one of the English teachers in Pesantren Hidayatullah. She teaches middle school students, especially female students (santriwati). She has eighteen years of teaching experience and continues to do so
today. P1 was interviewed in May 27, 2022.
The second respondent was P2 (pseudonym). He is also an English teacher in Pesantren Hidayatullah and teaches middle school male students (santri). He has been teaching for seventeen years until now. P2 was interviewed in May 27, 2022.
The other six participants involved in this research were R1, R2, R3, R4, R5, and R6 (all of them were pseudonym). They are the ninth-grade students in Pesantren Hidayatullah. There were no specific criteria for choosing them to be the participants of the interview. They were recommended by their English teacher, P1, to do the interviews and were willing to be interviewed by the researcher. They were interviewed in the same day on September 1, 2022.
4.3 Findings
Challenges that occurred in teaching are natural and unavoidable. Not all classroom teaching and learning processes will always go smoothly. According to Songbatumis (2017), the challenges in teaching English arise from students, teachers, and the
school’s facility. In this chapter, the researcher obtained the data by interviewing the participants in order to investigated the challenges occurred in teaching English in Pesantren Hidayatullah and the strategies used in overcoming those challenges.
The findings of a qualitative data analysis based on in-depth interviews with eight informants done by researcher revealed a variety of new information or data on the challenges experienced by teachers when teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah.
Data analysis was carried out both individually and between informants showed that there are two major themes that were related with the research questions of this study and several emerging themes that supported the main themes. Important findings in this qualitative research are classified depending on what was categorized in the research questions based on the research objectives to be achieved. The main themes and sub- themes that related with the research questions were showed in figures 4.1 and 4.2.
Students’ challenges in learning English and how they overcome those challenges are also included in this research to support the data findings, as illustrated in figures 4.3 and 4.4. In addition, the emerging themes about teaching English in Pesantren Hidayatullah were added to strengthen the data findings that showed in figures 4.5 and 4.6.
Figure 4.1 below shows the findings related to main themes and sub-themes:
Challenges in teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah.
Figure 4.1 Themes and Sub-Themes: Challenges in teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah
Figure 4.1 shows that there are six sub-themes related to challenges in teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah. The first sub-theme is the common challenges that faced by the teachers in teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah. The second sub-theme is the most difficult challenges faced by the teachers in teaching English. The third sub-theme is the challenges in teaching English that arise from students themselves. The fourth sub-
Teachers Challenges in Teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah
a. Common challenges in teaching English
b. The most difficult challenges in teaching English
c. Challenges that arise from students
d. Challenges that arise from teachers
e. Challenges that arise from the school
f. Unexpected challenges in teaching English
theme is the challenges in teaching English that arise from the teachers. The fifth sub- theme is the challenges that arise from the school’s facilities. The sixth sub-theme is the unexpected challenges that occur when teaching English.
Next, Figure 4.2 below shows the findings related to main themes and sub- themes: Strategies in overcoming the challenges in teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah.
Teachers’ Strategies to overcome the challenges
b. Strategies to overcome the most difficult challenges in teaching
English
a. Strategies to overcome the common
challenges in teaching English
c. Strategies to overcome the challenges that arise
from students
d. Strategies to overcome the challenges that arise
from teachers
e. Teachers’ hopes for the school in overcoming the
challenges
f. Strategies to overcome the unexpected challenges in teaching
English
Figure 4.2 Themes and Sub-Themes: Strategies to overcome the challenges in teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah
Figure 4.2 shows that there are six sub-themes related to strategies in overcoming the challenges in teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah. The first sub-theme is strategies in overcoming the common challenges that faced by the teachers in teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah. The second sub-theme is strategies in overcoming the most difficult challenges faced by the teachers in teaching English. The third sub- theme is strategies to overcome the challenges in teaching English that arise from students themselves. The fourth sub-theme is strategies to overcome the challenges in teaching English that arise from the teachers. The fifth sub-theme is teachers hopes for the school in overcoming the challenges that arise from the school itself. The sixth sub- theme is strategies in overcoming the unexpected challenges that occur when teaching English.
Figure 4.3 below shows the findings related to main themes and sub-themes: Challenges faced by the students in learning English at Pesantren Hidayatullah.
Figure 4.3 Themes and Sub-themes: Students’ challenges in learning English at Pesantren Hidayatullah
Figure 4.3 shows that there are four sub-themes related to students’ challenges in learning English at Pesantren Hidayatullah. The first sub-theme is common challenges that the students faced in learning English at Pesantren Hidayatullah. The second sub-theme is the most difficult challenges faced by the students in learning English. The third sub- theme is challenges in learning English that arise from the school itself. The fourth sub- theme is unexpected challenges that faced by the students in learning English.
Challenges faced by the students in learning English at Pesantren
Hidayatullah a. Common challenges
in learning English
b. The most difficult challenges in teaching English
c. Challenges in learning English that arise from
the school’s facilities
d. Unexpected challenges in learning English
Figure 4.4 below illustrates the findings related to main themes and sub-themes:
Strategies to overcome the challenges faced by the students in learning English at pesantren hidayatullah.
Figure 4.4 Themes and Sub-themes: Students’ Strategies in overcoming the challenges in learning English at Pesantren Hidayatullah
Figure 4.4 shows that there are four sub-themes related to students’ strategies to overcome the challenges in learning English at Pesantren Hidayatullah. The first sub- theme is strategies in overcoming the common challenges in learning English at Pesantren Hidayatullah. The second sub-theme is strategies in overcoming the most difficult challenges in learning English. The third sub-theme is student’s hopes for the
Strategies in overcoming the challenges faced by the students in learning English at
Pesantren Hidayatullah a. Strategies to
overcome the common challenges
b. Strategies to overcome the most difficult challenges in learning
English
c. Students’
expectations of the school in overcoming
the challenges
d. Strategies to overcome the unexpected challenges
in learning English
school to overcome the challenges in learning English. The fourth sub-theme is strategies in overcoming the unexpected challenges in learning English.
In addition, Figure 4.5 below shows the findings related to the emerging themes:
Teachers’ side.
a. English Language Teaching in Pesantren
Hidayatullah
b. Number of students in the class
c. Duration of teaching
d. Teaching Media
e. Ability to use technology
f. Language Use in Teaching
g. Students Understanding
h. Curriculum Implementation
i. Teaching Materials
j. Urgency in Learning English
k. Urgency in Parents Role for Students
Learning Emerging Themes
(Teachers)
Figure 4.5 Emerging Themes: Teachers’ Side
Figure 4.5 shows that there are eleven emerging themes. The first emerging theme is about English language teaching in Pesantren Hidayatullah. The second emerging theme is the number of students in the class. The third emerging theme is the duration of teaching. The fourth emerging theme is about teaching Media. The fifth emerging theme is teachers’ ability to use technology. The sixth emerging theme is the language use in teaching. The seventh emerging theme is about students understanding. The eighth emerging theme is about curriculum implementation. The ninth emerging theme is the teaching materials applied by the teachers. Next is about the urgency in learning English at Pesantren Hidayatullah. The last emerging theme is the urgency in parents’ role for students’ learning.
Figure 4.6 below shows the findings related to the emerging themes: Students’ side.
Figure 4.6 Emerging Themes: Students’ Side
Figure 4.6 shows that there are nine emerging themes. The first emerging theme is about English language learning in Pesantren Hidayatullah. The second emerging theme is the duration of teaching and learning process. The third emerging theme is about teaching media. The fourth emerging theme is students’ opinions about teachers’ ability to use
Emerging Themes (Students) a. English Language
Learning in Pesantren Hidayatullah
b. Duration of Teaching
c. Teaching Media
d. Ability to Use Technology
e. Language Use
f. Students Understanding
g. Learning Materials
h. Learning Environment i. Urgency in Learning English
technology. The fifth emerging theme is the language use in teaching. The sixth emerging theme is about students understanding. The seventh emerging theme is about the teaching materials applied by the teachers. The eighth emerging theme is about the learning Environment. The last emerging theme is about the urgency in learning English.
4.3.1 Teachers Challenges in Teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah
The findings of the qualitative case study research on the challenges experienced by the teachers when teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah are divided into six sub- themes. The first sub-theme is common challenges that the teachers faced in teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah. Second, the most difficult challenges faced by the teachers in teaching English. Third, the challenges in teaching English that arise from students themselves. Fourth, the challenges in teaching English that arise from the teachers. Fifth, the challenges that arise from the school itself. The last sub-theme is the unexpected challenges that occur in teaching English. All these six sub-themes will be explained in depth below which will be supported by the findings of interviews based on the results of data analysis.
4.3.1.1 The Common Challenges Faced by the Teachers in Teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah
The results of interviews showed that there are some challenges that the teachers usually faced when teaching English in Pesantren Hidayatullah. As stated by P1:
“Yang pertama ya paradigma terhadap belajar Bahasa Inggris ya. Ada beberapa paradigma yang perlu diluruskan, khususnya untuk anak-anak. Jadi selama ini karna mereka di pesantren, menurut mereka Bahasa inggris itu bukan bahasanya kita ya, bahasanya orang barat, jadi kadang ada yang masih suka malas-malasan.
Yang kedua asal dari santri ini yang bermacam-macam sehingga standarnya itu tidak sama. Apalagi Bahasa inggris itu antara bacaan dan tulisan itu kan berbeda. Sementara anak-anak ini mereka kadang dari dusun dari kampung yang baca Bahasa Indonesia aja kadang masih terbata-bata harus membaca Bahasa
inggris. Terus di pesantren ini jadwalnya memang banyak sekali ya, pelajaran itu kan banyak ya beda sama di sekolah luar. Kalau di sekolah luar itu kan paling pelajaran umum sama Bahasa inggris, kalau di pesantren itu ada Al-qur’an hadits, Aqidah akhlak, Bahasa Arab, terus kitab kuning, tahfidz dan lain sebagainya, sehingga memang fokus ke Bahasa inggris itu menjadi tantangan kita sebagai guru Bahasa inggris untuk lebih serius lagi.” (First, the paradigm towards learning English. There are several paradigms that need to be clarified, especially for children. Since they are in pesantren all this time, according to them, English is not our language, it is western, so there are still some of them that like to be lazy. The second is that the background of the students vary, so that the standards are different. Moreover, there is a distinction between reading and writing in English. Meanwhile, these children are occasionally come from the village. They still struggle to read in Indonesian, let alone having to read English.
Then, at this pesantren, the schedule is indeed hectic. There are many different lessons with the regular schools. In regular schools, there are general lessons and English, however in pesantren, there are Al-qur’an hadith, Aqidah morals, Arabic, the yellow book, tahfidz, and so on, so focusing on English is our challenge to be more serious as English teachers.) [Partisipan-P1-Tema 1]
Based on the result of the interview above, there were some common challenges in teaching English. First, the concepts of learning English in pesantren. Many students think that English was not really necessary to be learned in pesantren, since it is not our language. They often used Indonesian, Arabic, or vernacular to communicate with others, so they were lazy to learn English. Second, the different background of each student.
There were some students that come from the village, so they were still not familiar with English. Even they sometimes still found it difficult to read in Indonesian, let alone English. Moreover, in English, the way we say something in English and how the writing is different. Then, the hectic schedule in pesantren was also become a challenge. There were various subjects that should be learned in pesantren, not only regular subjects that the same with regular schools, but also about Islamic teachings, such as Al-qur’an hadith, Aqidah morals, Arabic, the yellow book, tahfidz, and others. However, P1 found it challenging to teach English in pesantren hidayatullah.
Challenges in teaching English in pesantren hidayatullah are numerous as stated by P2:
“Sarana prasarana ya, di samping itu juga padatnya pelajaran lain, jadwal lain jadi untuk itu kayaknya berat, ada juga saat materinya sulit jadi tergantung daripada waktu dan kondisinya.” (Infrastructure and facilities, besides, the busy schedule of other subjects, so it seems difficult, and when the materials are difficult, so it depends on time and conditions.) [Partisipan-P2-Tema 1]
Based on the result of interview with P2, there were several common challenges in teaching English at pesantren hidayatullah. The hectic schedule of student was a challenge for teachers in teaching English. They did not give much attention and focus on learning English, since they have a lot of activities should be done and many other lessons to be learned.
In addition, when the topic of the lesson was getting hard, it made students feel lazy and unmotivated to learn English. P2 said that challenges in teaching English usually occurred because of the lack of time in teaching English and based on various situations and conditions.
The findings of the interviews of two English teachers at pesantren hidayatullah showed that there were some common challenges in teaching English faced by the teachers. Teachers found that students were still unfamiliar with the concepts on learning English at pesantren. Students found it was not really important to learn English at pesantren since English is not our language. Students’ different background also became the challenge for teachers in teaching English. Many students come from various villages and werre still not familiar with English. Then, both teachers agreed that the hectic schedules in pesantren was become a challenge for teachers. There were various subjects that should be learned in pesantren, not only regular subjects being taught in regular
schools, but also about Islamic teachings. Other than that, the difficult material and topic made students feel lazy and unmotivated to learn English. In addition, the challenges in teaching English usually occurred because of the lack of time in teaching English and based on various situations and conditions being faced.
4.3.1.2 The Most Difficult Challenges in Teaching English
Challenges in teaching English are vary in every aspect, as well as the level of its difficulty. The findings of the interviews showed that there are some difficult challenges in teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah. As stated by P1:
“Kalau saya memang susah untuk menangani anak-anak yang di bawah standar.
Artinya kemampuan mereka memang lemah karena kita kan masuk pesantren itu tidak ada seleksi, semuanya masuk gitu. Tapi kalau siswa yang memiliki kemampuan rata-rata sih tidak ya. Jadi, yang sulit itu menurut saya kompetensi siswanya.” (According to me, it is hard to handle the students who are below the standards. It means that their abilities are indeed weak, since there is no selection in entering the pesantren, everyone can study in pesantren. But, for students who have average skill is not hard to handle. In my opinion, the most difficult challenge in teaching English is the students’ competence.) [Partisipan-P1-Tema 1]
Based on the result of the interview above, teacher found it difficult to teach students whose competence is below average. To sum up, the most difficult challenge in teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah is students’ competence.
Along with the above statement, P2 also stated that:
“Kalau menurut saya, yang paling susah ya itu tadi menyediakan sarana prasarana.” (In my opinion, the most difficult challenge is providing infrastructure and facilities.) [Partisipan-P2-Tema 1]
According to the above statement, providing infrastructure and facilities is the most challenging for the teacher in teaching English.
The findings of the interview showed that the most difficult challenges in teaching English faced by the teachers are dealing with students’ competence and providing adequate infrastructure and facilities.
4.3.1.3 Challenges in Teaching English that Arise from Students
Challenges in teaching English can arise from a variety of sources, one of which is students themselves. According to the results of the interview, there are several challenges that arise from students themselves. As stated by P1:
“Iya motivasi siswanya, karena kalau anak ini kurang semangat atau motivasinya kurang cukup berat juga mereka untuk belajar Bahasa inggris, apalagi Bahasa inggris ini cukup asing di telinga anak-anak. Apalagi anak-anak ini asalnya dari desa-desa, berbeda mungkin dengan masyarakat perkotaan yang sudah tidak asing dengan Bahasa inggris ini.” (The students’ motivation, because if they lack of excitement or motivation, it will be hard for them in learning English; also, English is rather foreign to children’s ears. Furthermore, many children come from rural, which may be distinct from urban communities who are already familiar with English.) [Partisipan-P1-Tema 1]
Based on the statement above, P1 stated that the challenge emerged from students was the students’ motivation. The unfamiliarity of English for children that come from rural areas was a challenge for the teacher in teaching English. Therefore, students lose enthusiasm and motivation in learning English.
The above statement is supported by the following statement stated by P2:
“Ya, yang terpenting memang motivasi mereka ya, karena kalau kata orang, Bahasa Inggris itu pelajaran tersulit kedua setelah matematika, jadi ya perlu motivasi. Mereka perlu sering dibuat pembiasaan untuk speaking, reading dan yang lain jadi biar mereka juga merasakan langsung efeknya, maksudnya bisa untuk berkata-kata seperti ini nanti akan ada kebanggaan tersendiri” (The most important thing is their motivation, because people said English is the second most difficult subject after mathematics, so motivation is needed. They need to be accustomed to speaking, reading, and so on so that they can feel the effect
immediately, which means they can say things like this and feel proud of themselves.) [Partisipan-P2-Tema 1]
The findings of the interview with two English teachers at Pesantren Hidayatullah showed that there was a challenge in teaching English that emerged from students. It was related to students’ motivation. Since English was still foreign at this Pesantren, especially for students who came from rural areas. Furthermore, students were not used to speak and read or communicate with English. In conclusion, students’ motivation became a challenge for teachers in teaching English.
4.3.1.4 Challenges in Teaching English that Arise from Teachers
Challenges in teaching English can also emerged from the teachers themselves.
This can be shown in the findings of the interviews with two English teachers at Pesantren Hidayatullah. As stated by P1:
“Kalau dari kita ini sebagai guru bahasa Inggris sebenarnya memang harus meng-upgrade kemampuan Bahasa Inggris ya, tapi karna banyaknya kesibukan sehingga waktu itu rasanya seperti padat sekali. Nah itu mungkin yang kesulitannya, waktu itulah yang cukup berat membaginya. Background saya juga bukan Bahasa Inggris ya, itu juga menjadi tantangan saya.” (As English teachers, we need to improve our English skills, but, because of the busy schedules, the time seemed very hectic. Perhaps that is a challenge, it is hard to divide the time.
My background of education is not English either, that is also my challenge.) [Partisipan-P1-Tema 1]
According to the statement above, challenges in teaching English that arise from teachers were the teacher’s hectic schedules, so that she cannot improve her English skills and the background of education that is not English.
P2 added some challenges that arise from teachers in teaching English, as stated below:
“Kompetensi ya. Selanjutnya, untuk bisa membuat berbagai macam metode pengajaran yang tidak monoton. Ini mungkin yang perlu banyak belajar lagi ya seperti itu.” (It is competence. Then, to be able to create a variety of non- monotonous teaching methods. This might be something that needs to be studied further.) [Partisipan-P2-Tema 1]
Based on the statement stated by P2, it can be concluded that the challenges in teaching English that emerged from teachers were the competence and creativity in developing non-monotonous teaching methods.
According to the findings from the interviews with two English teachers at Pesantren Hidayatullah, it can be found that there were some challenges that appeared because of the teachers themselves. They were the busy schedules of the teachers, a different educational background than the one they teach, teachers’ competence, and creativity to make a variety of teaching methods that are non-monotonous.
4.3.1.5 Challenges Faced by the Teachers in Teaching English that Arise from the School
The school itself can also be a challenge for the teachers in teaching English. This is supported by the results of the interviews with two English teachers at Pesantren Hidayatullah. As stated by P1:
“Kalau ini memang harus kreatif ya, jadi menggunakan media yang ada di sekitar kita, karna memang secara fasilitas kita masih sangat kurang. Kalau lingkungan mendukung sih, hanya perlu dimaksimalkan lagi aja dari kita, guru, dan dari anak-anaknya. Kalau secara lingkungan sangat mendukung sekali sebenarnya karna 24 jam kan anak-anak ada di pondok pesantren.” (In this case, we have to be creative, so we use the media that is available for us because our facilities are still severely lacking. The environment is supportive, it just needs to be maximized once more by us, teachers, and the students. The environment is actually very supportive because students are in Pesantren for twenty-four hours.) [Partisipan-P1-Tema 1]
Based on the statement mentioned by P1, it can be concluded that the existing facilities at Pesantren Hidayatullah were still lacking, but the environment was very supportive for students in learning English.
Along with the statement given by P1, P2 also stated that:
“Iya, yang seperti saya katakan tadi kurangnya sarana dan prasarana, kalau lingkungan sih menurut saya sudah mendukung ya.” (As I said before, the lack of infrastructure and facilities, and in my opinion, the environment is already supportive.) [Partisipan-P2-Tema 1]
The above statement stated that the challenges in teaching English that arise from school was the lack of infrastructure and facilities and there was no problem with the environment because it was already supportive.
Based on the findings of the interviews with two English teachers in Pesantren Hidayatullah, it can be concluded that lack of facilities and infrastructure in this Pesantren was a challenge for the teachers in teaching English. Besides, both teachers agreed that the environment in this Pesantren was already supportive for students in learning English.
4.3.1.6 Unexpected Challenges in Teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah In every teaching and learning process, there must be challenges, including challenges that we did not expect to happen. As stated by P1:
“Mungkin gini biasanya, ada anak itu anaknya guru Bahasa Inggris yang kadang itu kan menurut kita tantangan ya, karna otomatis ibunya lebih pandai ya apalagi kalau guru Bahasa inggris tingkat menengah atau tingkat Aliyah. Terkadang di situ bikin kaget, oh ternyata ibunya guru gitu, sementara kita ini latar belakang studinya bukan Bahasa inggris ya. Lalu, siswa itu biasanya suka ngantuk. Mereka itu tidur jam 10, bangun jam 3, kadang setengah 3 mereka sudah dibangunkan untuk sholat sampai waktu subuh, habis itu otomatis saat belajar mereka jadi ngantuk ya. Kalau dari sarana-prasarananya itu dulu sering mati listrik sehingga dapat mengganggu proses pembelajaran.” (Perhaps this is typical; there is a
student whose parents are English teachers which sometimes we consider a challenge because the mother is automatically smarter, especially if the English teacher is at the middle or Aliyah level. It is sometimes shocking and turns out the mother is an English teacher, while our study background is not English. Then, the students are sometimes sleepy. They sleep at ten p.m., wake up at three a.m.
They are sometimes woken up at half past three to pray until dawn, after that, they automatically feel sleepy while studying. As for the facilities, the electricity used to frequently go out so that it could interfere with the learning process.) [Partisipan-P1-Tema 1]
Based on the statement mentioned by P1, it showed that the unexpected challenges in teaching English was an unexpected situation where the teacher lack confidence in her teaching ability because her study background did not correspond to the lesson she taught.
Besides, an unexpected situation such as power outer also became a challenge for teachers in teaching English.
About the unexpected challenges in teaching English, P2 also expressed his statement below:
“Kadang ada pertanyaan-pertanyaan yang kita tidak terlintas sebelumnya ya, maka dari itu mungkin kita perlu upgrade lagi. Terkadang juga siswa mengantuk karna jadwalnya yang begitu padat, Kalau dari sarana prasarananya itu kalau pas habis token ya dan beberapa kali juga ada kabel konslet itu kan akhirnya jadi terganggu semuanya seperti itu.” (Sometime there are some questions that we did not think of before, so maybe we need to improve ourself. Sometimes students also feel sleepy because of the busy schedules. As for the facilities, when the electricity token runs out and there are short-circuit cables that end up being disrupted.) [Partisipan-P2-Tema 1]
According to the above statement, unexpected challenges in teaching English at pesantren hidayatullah sometimes happened because of the unexpected questions asked by the students and the disruptions occurred in the school facilities.
The findings of the interviews with both English teachers at Pesantren Hidayatullah showed that there were some unexpected challenges when teaching English.
First, teacher’s lack of confidence in teaching English. As stated before, the first participant, P1, was not majoring in English, so that she occasionally felt unconfident when she met students whose parents were also English teachers. Then, there were unexpected questions asked by students that the teacher never thought of. Both teachers also mentioned about facilities as the challenges for them in teaching. For example, suddenly there was a power outage or there was short-circuit cables, as a result it became an obstacle for both teachers and students in teaching and learning process.
4.3.2 Teachers’ Strategies to Overcome the Challenges in Teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah
Based on the findings of the interview, teachers have implemented some strategies in overcoming the challenges that occurred when teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah as illustrated in figure 4.2. They are divided into six sub-themes. The first sub-theme is teachers’ strategies to overcome the common challenges in teaching English.
The second sub-theme is strategies implemented by the teachers to overcome the most difficult challenges in teaching English. The third sub-theme is strategies to overcome the challenges that arise from students. The fourth sub theme is strategies to overcome the challenges that emerged from the teachers themselves. The fifth sub-theme is about teachers hopes for the school in overcoming the challenges. The last sub-theme is strategies applied by the teachers to overcome the unexpected challenges that occur when teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah. These sub-themes will be explained
thoroughly below, and supported by the findings of interviews based on the results of data analysis.
4.3.2.1 Strategies to Overcome the Common Challenges in Teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah
The results of interview showed that there are some strategies to overcome the challenges implemented by the teachers in teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah.
As stated by P1:
“Kalau saya, pertama memberikan motivasi ke anak-anak ya karena memang terkait dengan paradigma, jadi banyak memberikan motivasi, banyak memberikan pencerahan, cerita, dan lain sebagainya. Untuk yang ini memang perlu penanganan khusus untuk anak-anak yang memang dari segi ini ada kekurangan ya, kadang kita panggil khusus dia diajak ke rumah atau kita kasih jam tambahan di luar jam sekolahnya.” (First, I motivate the students since it is related to the paradigm, so giving a lot of motivation, enlightenment, stories, and so on. In this case, it requires special handling for students who have shortcomings. Sometimes, we call him specifically to be invited to the house or we give extra hours outside of school hours.) [Partisipan-P1-Tema 2]
The statement mentioned by P1 showed that strategy in overcoming the common challenges when teaching English was giving them a lot of motivation or special handling such as, giving them additional hours outside the school hours to learn English.
P2 also mentioned about the strategies to overcome the challenges in teaching English, as stated below:
“Karena kurangnya di sarana prasarana tadi jadi apa yang bisa kita lakukan, kita lakukan ya. Yang kedua, ya kita doain semoga mereka sukses kedepannya seperti itu.” (Because of the lack of facilities, so what we have to do, we will do, then we pray for their success in the future.) [Partisipan-P2-Tema 2]
Based on the above statement, teachers said that do what we have to do and wish the students’ success in the future.
Based on the results of the interview, there were several strategies in overcoming the challenges in teaching English, first, teacher gave motivation to the students related to the paradigm or approach in learning English. Teacher provided special attention and handling to the students who have difficulties in learning English by invited them to learn in teacher’s house and give them extra hours outside the school hours. Besides, we need to do what we can do and wished the students success in the future.
4.3.2.2 Strategies to Overcome the Most Difficult Challenges in Teaching English at Pesantren Hidayatullah
The results of the interview showed that there are several strategies implemented by the teachers in overcoming the most difficult challenges in teaching English. As mentioned by P1:
“Kalau saya, karna kompetensi tadi memang kita panggil khusus anaknya, semacam privat karena mereka tinggal di asrama ya jadi tinggal dipanggil aja di waktu kita luang dan mereka juga kosong untuk mengejar ketertinggalan anak- anak itu dan biasanya tidak banyak, dari 20 siswa paling 3, 2 gitu.” (For me, because of their competence, we did call them specifically, it is like private class since they live in dormitories, so we just need to call them in our spare time and they are also free, in order to catch up the students’ who left behind, which is not many, out of twenty students, at least three or two.) [Partisipan-P1-Tema 2]
Based on P1’s statement above, it can be showed that the strategy to overcome the most difficult challenge in teaching English was motivating the students and giving them additional lessons outside of the school hours, so that they can catch up with the other students.
Along with P1 statement, P2 also stated that:
“Kalau kita, ya kita harus bisa modifikasi berbagai macam cara pengajaran untuk mengakali kekurangan daripada sarana prasarananya. Yang kedua ya kita minta ke pihak-pihak yang mempunyai kepentingan di situ untuk bisa menyediakan, seperti Yayasan pemerintah ataupun mungkin LSM ataupun yang lain yang bisa seperti itu.” (For us, we must be able to modify various teaching methods to overcome the challenges of the infrastructure. Second, we ask parties with an interest in providing them, such as government foundations or maybe non- governmental organization or others who can.) [Partisipan-P2-Tema 2]
It can be concluded that teacher should be able to utilize various teaching methods due to the lack of school’s facilities. Besides, teacher also asked for help from the interested parties for providing the lacking infrastructure and facilities.
According to the results of the interview with two English teachers as stated above, teachers’ strategies in overcoming the most difficult challenges in teaching English were teacher focused in teaching students whose competence was still below the standard by providing additional lessons outside the school, so that they can catch up with other students. Then, due to challenges in infrastructure and facilities, teacher also modified the various teaching methods. Besides that, teacher also asked for help to the interested parties to provide the lack of facilities at Pesantren Hidayatullah.
4.3.2.3 Strategies to overcome the challenges that arise from students
The findings of the interview showed some strategies implemented by the teachers to overcome the challenges in teaching English that emerged from the students. As expressed by P1:
“Upaya yang biasanya kami lakukan ya memotivasi dengan cara menceritakan kisah-kisah tentang sosok yang sudah sukses ketika mereka belajar Bahasa Inggris, sehingga itu dapat menjadi motivasi yang luar biasa untuk anak-anak.”
(The effort that we usually do is motivate the students by telling them stories about
people who have been successful when learning English, which can be a great motivation for students.) [Partisipan-P1-Tema 2]
According to the above statement, the strategy used by the teacher to overcome the challenges that arise from students was always motivate the students. It can be done by telling them about the people’s successful stories when they learned English.
Along with the statement stated by P1, P2 also mentioned that:
“Ya, salah satunya motivasi tadi. Memotivasi dengan cerita-cerita yang membuat mereka semakin semangat untuk belajar ya seperti itu. Peran orangtua juga sangat penting ya. Kita ini kan sebenarnya adalah perwakilan daripada orangtua, jadi orang tua sendiri perlu disadarkan untuk bisa memotivasi anaknya biar bisa mereka mendorongnya lebih semangat lagi untuk belajar.” (One of them is motivation. Motivating with stories that make them even more enthusiastic to learn. The role of parents is also critical. We are actually the representatives of parents, so parents themselves need to be made aware to motivate their children in order to encourage them to be even more enthusiastic in learning.) [Partisipan- P2-Tema 2]
Based on the statement above, P2 stated that the strategy to overcome the challenges that arise from students was giving them a lot of motivation through the motivational stories that raising students’ interest in learning. Besides, the teacher also made parents aware to give motivation in learning for their children.
According to the results of the interview about strategies to overcome the challenges in teaching English that arise from students, there are some strategies that utilized by the teachers. First, both teachers were mentioned about giving students a lot of motivation by telling them motivational stories that can make students feel interest and enthusiastic to learn. In this case, parents’ role was also important. Teacher needed to make parents aware of the importance of learning English, so that they can encourage
their children to be more interested in learning. To summarize, both teachers and parents were responsible to give motivation to the students in order to make students feel interested in learning.
4.3.2.4 Strategies to Overcome the Challenges that Arise from the Teachers
Challenges in teaching English are not only caused by external factors, they can also arise from the teachers themselves. As mentioned by P1 in this following statement:
“Seperti yang saya katakan tadi, harus meng-upgrade diri lagi. Keinginan kedepannya itu ingin meningkatkan lagi keilmuan yang sudah ada, kalau perlu dengan jalur formal, mungkin ngambil S2 bahasa Inggris ataupun S1 mengulang lagi Bahasa Inggris, jadi memang kita lagi cari waktu ya untuk mencari peluang sekaligus mencocokkan dengan kesibukan yang ada.” (As I said previously, I have to upgrade myself once more. In the future, I want to improve the existing knowledge, possibly through a formal way, perhaps by taking an English master’s degree or an undergraduate degree in English, so we are really looking for time to look for opportunities as well as match the existing activities.) [Partisipan-P1- Tema 2]
Based on the statement above, strategy to overcome the challenges in teaching English that emerged from teachers was to improve teacher’s skills and knowledge.
The below statement was mentioned by P2:
“Kalau saya banyak baca ya salah satunya. Kemudian ya buka-buka media sosial, internet, nanti akan ada beberapa ide ataupun ada beberapa pengetahuan baru yang bisa menunjang kemampuan kita, untuk meningkatkan kemampuan kita. Seorang guru juga harus senantiasa punya jiwa untuk upgrade ya, senantiasa untuk terus meningkatkan kemampuannya. Di samping itu juga dia harus punya banyak ide untuk membuat media pembelajaran yang kreatif dan menyenangkan.” (For me, read a lot is one of the ways. Then, go through social media and the internet; there will be some ideas or new knowledge that can support and improve our abilities. A teacher also must have a spirit to improve, to constantly improve their abilities. Besides, teacher also must have many ideas to create creative and fun learning media.) [Partisipan-P2-Tema 2]
Based on the statement mentioned by P2, in overcoming the challenges that come from teachers themselves, P2 did some strategies, such as, read a lot and seek the information and new knowledge through the internet. Then, teacher also must have an interest to always improving their abilities. To be able to make creative and fun teaching and learning media was also the strategy used by the teacher in overcoming the challenges.
In conclusion, there were several strategies that implemented by the teachers to overcome the challenges that arise from themselves. Both teachers mentioned that improving their skills and abilities was one of the ways to overcome the challenges.
Teachers need to always be motivated to improve their skills and abilities. Other than that, be able to create various creative and fun teaching and learning media was one of the strategies to overcome the challenges, so that students did not feel bored and uninterested in learning English.
4.3.2.5 Teachers’ Hopes for the School to Overcome the Challenges that Arise from the School Itself
As mentioned previously in the first theme, the lack of infrastructure and facilities was a challenge that arise from the school. Teachers have expressed their hopes for the school in overcoming the challenges. As expressed by P1:
“Kalau selama ini, kami minta ada dianggarkan dari dana BOS untuk melengkapi fasilitas, minimal peralatan dasar lah untuk mengajar Bahasa Inggris.” (So far, we have requested a budget from School Operational Assistance to complete the facilities, at least the basic equipment for teaching English.) [Partisipan-P1-Tema 2]
According to the statement above, teacher have requested for a budget from the school operational assistance to provide the lacking facilities, especially for basic equipment for teaching English.
Along with the statement stated by P1, P2 also mentioned that:
“Dari Yayasan ataupun mungkin yang berkepentingan ya bisa melengkapi ataupun mengadakan yang seminimal mungkin yang perlu kita minta, setidaknya seperti itu.” (From the foundation or perhaps for those who are interested can complete or provide at least the minimum we need to ask for.) [Partisipan-P2- Tema 2]
Based on the statement above, teacher just asked the foundation or other parties who are interested to provide the lacking facilities.
From the findings of the interview with two English teachers at Pesantren Hidayatullah, both teachers hoped that any interested parties or foundations can help them to complete the lack of facilities. They did not ask for completing the lacking facilities at once, at least starting from the basic equipment to teach English.
4.3.2.6 Strategies to Overcome the Unexpected Challenges in Teaching English The results of the interview showed that there are several strategies implemented by the teachers in overcoming the unexpected challenges in teaching English. As mentioned by P1:
“Kita memotivasi diri sendiri, terus menguatkan diri biar tetap percaya diri, dan tidak rendah diri. Kalau yang ngantukan tadi ya dengan kreatifitas kita memberikan yang segar-segar ke anak-anak sehingga mereka bisa fokus kembali, tapi tidak pernah kita marahi, karena kita tahu jam mereka kan sangat padat ya gitu.” (We motivate ourselves and continue to strengthen ourselves, so that we can maintain our confidence and do not have low self-esteem. For those who are sleepy, we use our creativity by giving them something fresh, so that they can continue to focus, but we never get angry because we know how hectic their schedules are.) [Partisipan-P1-Tema 2]
Based on the statement above, strategy to overcome the unexpected challenges in teaching English according to P1 were keep motivated ourselves, always maintain our confidence and avoid to have low self-esteem. Then, for the students who were sleepy because of busy schedules, we provide something interested that can make their sleepiness disappeared.
In addition, according to the strategies to overcome the unexpected challenges in teaching English, P2 also mentioned that:
“Ya intinya kembali pada diri kita sendiri untuk menghadapi hal yang tidak terduga seperti itu ya, bagaimana ide dari kita ketika ada pertanyaan yang tidak terduga seperti itu. Yang kedua misalnya walaupun saat mati listrik ataupun mungkin ada suasana yang tidak mendukung, terkadang kita melakukan hal sekreatif kita agar bagaimanapun belajar itu tetap berjalan seperti itu.” (The point is in ourselves to deal with the unexpected things like that, what are our ideas when there are unexpected questions or something like that. Second, for example, even when there is power failure or perhaps there is unsupportive situations, sometimes we do something as creative as we can in order to keep the learning going.) [Partisipan-P2-Tema 2]
According to the above statement, strategy to overcome the unexpected challenges was to be able to anticipate the unexpected things by utilizing the ideas and creativities to make the teaching and learning process run smoothly.
To summarize, strategies implemented by the teachers in overcoming the unexpected challenges in teaching English were always self-motivated to be better and believed in our own abilities, created a comfortable and fun learning environment so that the students did not feel bored when learning, also used the idea and creativities in creating a learning media that appropriate to the situations.
4.3.3 Students’ Challenges in Learning English at Pesantren Hidayatullah
The findings of the qualitative case study research on the students’ challenges in learning English at Pesantren Hidayatullah were divided into five sub-themes. The first sub-theme is common challenges faced by the students in learning English at Pesantren Hidayatullah. Second, the most difficult challenges in learning English. Third, the challenges that arise from the school itself. The last sub-theme is the unexpected
challenges that occur in learning English. All these five sub-themes will be explained in depth below which will be supported by the findings of interviews based on the results of data analysis.
4.3.3.1 Common Challenges Faced by the Students in Learning English at Pesantren Hidayatullah
The results of interviews showed that there are some challenges that students usually faced when learning English at Pesantren Hidayatullah. As stated by R1:
“Mentraslit kak, dan kalau bacanya itu suka berbelit belit dan sering salah.”
(Translating and reading, it is complicated and often wrong.) [Partisipan – R1-1]
According to R1, the challenges that she usually faced were translating and reading.
Along with the above statement, R2 also stated that:
“Mentranslit dan membacanya kak.” (Translating and reading.) [Partisipan – R2- 1]
Based on the statement mentioned by R2, the common challenges in learning English were translating and reading.
R3 also mentioned her statement that:
“Mentranslit, selain itu cara ngomong Bahasa inggrisnya belum bisa.”
(Translating, besides, still cannot pronounce the word in English.) [Partisipan-R3- 1]
From the statement above, R3 said that translating and pronouncing the word in English were the challenges that she usually faced.
Along with the statement stated by R3, R4 mentioned that:
“Susah ngomongnya dan mentranslitnya.” (It is difficult to pronounce and translate it.) [Partisipan-R4-1]
Based on statement stated by R4, hard to pronounce and translate the word were the challenges in learning English.
Along with all the statements that mentioned above, R5 also stated that:
“Pertama, mentranslit, lalu cara membacanya juga susah, kadang ada juga yang satu kata tapi artinya banyak. Kadang juga merasa malas karena susah tadi.”
(First is translating, then, how to pronounce it is also difficult, sometimes there are also one word that has multiple meanings. Sometimes I also feel lazy because it was difficult.) [Partisipan-R5-1]
From the above statement, challenges that R5 usually faced were difficult in translating, pronouncing the word, and laziness in learning English because of the difficulties.
Last statement about common challenges in learning English was mentioned by R6 that:
“Susah menyusun kalimatnya, susah menambah-nambah hurufnya gitu kak.” (It is hard to arrange the sentence and add the letter.) [Partisipan-R6-1]
According to R6’s statement, the challenges in learning English were arranging the word and adding the letter.
In conclusion, the findings of the interview with six students showed that common challenges in learning English were difficult in translating, reading, pronouncing, arranging, and adding the word in English. Therefore, students feel lazy to learn English.
4.3.3.2 Most Difficult Challenges Faced by the Students in Learning English
From the findings of the interview, there are some difficult challenges faced by the students in learning English. As stated by R1:
“Yang paling sulit masih sama kak, mentranslate tadi.” (The most difficult challenge is still the same, translating.) [Partisipan-R1-2]
From above statement, R1 stated that most difficult challenge in learning English was translating.
And then, R2 mentioned that:
“Juga sama kak mentranslate.” (Still the same, translating.) [Partisipan-R2-2]
R2 claimed that the most difficult challenge in learning English was translating.
Besides that, R3 stated that:
“Menyebutkan kata-kata dalam Bahasa inggris dengan benar.” (Pronouncing words in English correctly.) [Partisipan-R3-2]
According to R3, pronouncing words in English was the most difficult challenge in learning English.
Along with the above statement, R4 also stated that:
“Menyebut kata-kata dalam Bahasa inggris.” (Pronouncing words in English.) [Partisipan-R4-2]
R4 also thought that pronouncing words in English was the most difficult challenge in learning English.
Next, R5 mentioned her statement:
“Mencari arti translit tadi” (Looking for the meaning of the translation.) [Partisipan-R5-2]
Based on the statement above, R5 claimed that translating was the most difficult challenge in learning English.
Furthermore, R6 mentioned that:
“Mencari kata-kata yang artinya yang tidak ada di kamus.” (Searching for the meanings of words that are unavailable in dictionary.) [Partisipan-R6-2]
According to R6, the most difficult challenge in learning English was looking for the meanings of some words that are not in dictionary.
From the results of the interview above, the most difficult challenges that students faced when learning English were translating, pronouncing words in English, and discovering the meaning of words not found in dictionary.
4.3.3.3 Challenges in Learning English that Arise from the School
According to the findings of the interview, there are some challenges in learning English that emerge from the school itself. As mentioned by R1:
“Fasilitasnya itu kurang memadai kak, kalau lingkungan sih lumayan mendukung.” (The facilities are not adequate, but the environment is quite supportive.) [Partisipan-R1-3]
From the above statement, the challenge in learning English that caused by the school was the inadequate facilities.
Then, R2 also stated her statement that:
“Fasilitasnya masih kurang mencukupi” (The facilities are still insufficient.) [Partisipan-R2-3]
R2 claimed that the challenge in learning English that arise from the school was insufficient facilities.
Along with the statements above, R3 stated that:
“Kurangnya fasilitas, kalau lingkungan sekolahnya sudah cukup mendukung.”
(The lack of facilities, while the school’s environment is quite supportive.) [Partisipan-R3-3]
Still the same with other statements, R3 also stated that the lack of facilities at Pesantren Hidayatullah became a challenge for students in learning English.
Next, R4 stated her statement that:
“Kurangnya fasilitas sih, kalau lingkungannya sudah mendukung.” (The lack of facilities, while the environment is already supportive.) [Partisipan-R4-3]
According to R4’s statement, the challenge in learning English that emerge from the school was the insufficient facilities.
Another statement mentioned by R5 that:
“Kurangnya fasilitas, kalau lingkungan sekolahnya sudah lumayan mendukung.”
(Not enough facilities, while the school environment is quite supportive.) [Partisipan-R5-3]
Same with the other statements, lack of facilities was a challenge that emerged from the school.
Moreover, R6 also claimed that:
“Fasilitasnya juga kurang mendukung, tapi kalo kondisi lingkungan sekolah sudah lumayan.” (The facilities are also not supportive, but the environmental condition is fine.) [Partisipan-R6-3]
From the statement mentioned by R6, the challenge in learning English that caused by the school itself was the unsupported facilities.
From the results of the interview with six students at Pesantren Hidayatullah, it can be known that the challenge in learning English that emerge from the school itself was the inadequate facilities. All the participants mentioned that there were not enough facilities that can support English Learning at Pesantren Hidayatullah. Other than that, they also stated that there was no problem with the school environment. It was quite supportive for learning English.
4.3.3.4 Unexpected Challenges Faced by the Students in Learning English
Unexpected events are bond to occur during the learning process. We can see this in the following statements. Starting from statement that mentioned by R1:
“Tantangan yang tidak terduga itu ngantuk kalau saat belajar.” (The unexpected challenge is being sleepy while studying.) [Partisipan-R1-4]
According to the above statement, being sleepy while learning was an unexpected challenge in learning English.
Along with the statement above, R2 also stated that:
“Kadang itu ngantuk dan kadang juga bosan.” (Sometimes sleepy and bored.) [Partisipan-R2-4]
R2 claimed that unexpected challenge in learning English were sometimes sleepy and feel bored.
Next, R3 stated her statement that:
“Tiba-tiba sakit perut mau ke toilet, itu kan mengganggu pelajaran.” (Sometimes having a stomach-ache and need to go to the restroom, it is interfering with the lesson.) [Partisipan-R3-4]
From the statement above, R3 said that having sudden stomach-ache that made you want to go to the restroom was an unexpected challenge that can disturb the learning process.
Then, R4 stated her statement that:
“Tiba-tiba mengantuk.” (Suddenly sleepy.) [Partisipan-R4-4]
R4 claimed that suddenly feel sleepy was an unexpected challenge in learning English.
Besides, R5 also stated that:
“Ulangan mendadak, selain itu guru tiba-tiba menyuruh membaca, kadang juga mengantuk.” (“Sudden test, besides that, teacher suddenly asked us to read, sometimes also sleepy.”) [Partisipan-R5-4]
From the statement stated by R5, there were activities that student did not expect to happen before, such as unexpected tests and suddenly being told to read. Besides that, feel sleepy was also an unexpected challenge in learning English.
Along with the other statements above, R6 mentioned that:
“Mengantuk dan bosan sih, kalau menjelaskan yang tidak mengerti itu kadang suka buat bosan.” (Drowsy and bored, if the explanation is not understandable, sometimes it becomes boring.) [Partisipan-R6-4]
Based on the statement above, R6 claimed that being sleepy and bored were the unexpected challenges in learning English. Incomprehensible explanation also caused boredom.
According to the findings of the interview with six participants about the unexpected challenges in learning English at Pesantren Hidayatullah, most of the students mentioned that being sleepy and feel bored were the unexpected challenges in learning English. The other unexpected challenges that faced by the students when learning English were having a certain illness, such as stomach-ache that required a student to go to the restroom, therefore the learning process was disrupted. In addition, there was a sudden test or another unexpected activity that students never thought would happen, it was also an unexpected challenge for students in learning English.
4.3.4 Students’ Strategies to Overcome the Challenges in Learning English at Pesantren Hidayatullah
In overcoming the challenges in learning English at Pesantren Hidayatullah, students have implemented some strategies. As illustrated in figure 4.4, there were divided into four sub-themes. First, strategies to overcome the common challenges in
learning English at Pesantren Hidayatullah. Second, strategies to overcome the most difficult challenges in learning English. Next, students’ expectations of the school in overcoming the challenges. The last is students’ strategies in overcoming the unexpected challenges when learning English. All these four sub-themes will be explained in depth below which will be supported by the findings of interviews based on the results of data analysis.
4.3.4.1 Students’ Strategies to Overcome the Common Challenges in Learning English
There were several strategies that applied by the students in overcoming the common challenges in learning English. As stated by R1:
“Kalau mentranslate biasanya cari di kamus, kalau masalah ngomong-ngomong tadi itu nanya ke gurunya.” (When translating, I usually look it up in the dictionary, and for how to pronounce it, I ask the teacher.) [Partisipan-R1-2]
From the statement above, the strategy applied by R1 was looking for the translation in the dictionary, and asking for help about how to pronounce the word from the teacher.
Along with the statement above, R2 mentioned that:
“Kadang saya nanya ke guru, kadang juga dari kamus, kadang juga bertanya sama teman.” (Sometimes I asked the teacher, sometimes also from dictionary, and asked my friends.) [Partisipan-R2-1]
Strategy used by R2 in overcoming the common challenge in learning English was by asking the teacher, friends, also searching for the translation in the dictionary.
Then, R3 stated her statement that:
“Sering baca buku cerita gitu kan kadang sering ada Bahasa inggrisnya.” (Often read story books, sometimes there is English.) [Partisipan-R3-1]
Based on R3’s statement, frequently reading story books that contained English was a strategy to overcome the common challenge in learning English.
Next, R4 also mentioned that:
“Belajar terus, kadang menggunakan kamus kadang bertanya sama guru.” (Keep studying, sometimes using a dictionary and ask the teacher.) [Partisipan-R4-1]
From the statement above, continue to learn, use a dictionary, and ask the teacher were strategies in overcoming the common challenge in learning English.
Along with the statement above, R5 stated that:
“Bertanya sama teman, selain itu juga bertanya sama guru, yang mentranslit tadi coba mencari di kamus dulu.” (Asking friends and the teacher, and for translating, I try to search in the dictionary first.) [Partisipan-R5-1]
Still the same with other statements, R5 claimed that tried to look for translation in the dictionary first, and then asked the teacher and friends.
Furthermore, R6 also stated that:
“Dibaca dulu, disesuain sama kata-kata sebelumnya dan lihat kamus juga.”
(Read it first, match with the previous words, and look at the dictionary too.) [Partisipan-R6-1]
Based on the statement above, in order to overcome the common challenge that mentioned by R6 before, the strategy was read the sentence first, match it with the previous words, and after that look at the dictionary for the reference.
According to the findings of the interview with six participants, it can be concluded that, most of the students use the dictionary to find the translation of the words.
Besides that, they also asked the teacher and their friends for how to pronounce or read the words. Keep studying and read a lot of books that contained English were also the strategies to overcome the common challenges in learning English.
4.3.4.2 Students’ Strategies to Overcome the Most Difficult Challenges in Learning English
Based on the results of the interview, there were some strategies implemented by the students in overcoming the most difficult challenges when learning English. As mentioned by R1 that:
“Masih sama kak, lewat kamus dan bertanya sama guru.” (Still the same, through dictionary and ask the teacher.”) [Partisipan-R1-2]
From the above statement, R2 said that the strategy to overcome the most difficult challenge was still the same, found the translation through dictionary and ask the teacher.
And then, R2 stated that:
“Bertanya dengan guru dan teman atau mencari di kamus.” (Ask the teacher and friends or look up in the dictionary.) [Partisipan-R2-2]
Asking the teacher and friends or looking up the translation in the dictionary was the strategy used by R2 to overcome the most difficult challenge in learning English.
In addition, R3 also mentioned that:
“Banyak belajar, banyak berlatih pengucapan.” (Learn and practice the pronunciation a lot.) [Partisipan-R3-2]
R3 claimed that in order to overcome the most difficult challenge in learning English was to learn and practice how to pronounce the words in English a lot.
Along with the above statement, R4 also stated that:
“Banyak berlatih.” (Practice a lot.) [Partisipan-R4-2]
Practiced the pronunciation diligently was R4 strategy to overcome the most difficult challenge in learning English.
Besides that, R5 stated her statement that:
“Kayak hmm, kan saya sering dengarin lagu, sambil mendengarkan lagu itu catat liriknya terus lihat terjemahannya.” (Like hmm, I often listen to songs, while listening to them, take notes on the lyrics, and then look up the translation.) [Partisipan-R5-2]
According to R5, the strategy to overcome the most difficult challenge in learning English was by listening to the songs, taking notes on the lyrics and finding the translation in the dictionary.
Last statement was mentioned by R6 that:
“Banyak membaca lagi.” (Read a lot.) [Partisipan-R6-2]
R6 claimed that read a lot was a strategy to overcome the most difficult challenge in learning English.
In conclusion, the strategies implemented by the participants were not really different from the ones that they have mentioned previously. The strategies to overcome the most difficult challenges in learning English were finding the translation of the words
