Handling Students' Lack of Attention Towards Teacher's Instructions in Seven Speaking Classes at Saint Angela High School in Bandung.

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Universitas Kristen Maranatha

ABSTRACT

Speaking adalah salah satu keterampilan Bahasa Inggris yang

menantang sekaligus memuaskan. Aktivitas percakapan sebagai sarana untuk meningkatkan keterampilan berbicara dalam Bahasa Inggris biasanya membutuhkan suatu instruksi yang jelas. Namun, beberapa siswa di SMA Santa Angela Bandung - tempat saya melakukan magang – memiliki kecenderungan untuk tidak memperhatikan instruksi yang

diberikan guru. Masalah yang ingin saya temukan solusinya adalah mengapa beberapa siswa tidak memperhatikan instruksi yang guru berikan dan bagaimana seorang guru dapat menyampaikan instruksinya dengan efektif. Adapun tujuan yang ingin dicapai adalah agar siswa dapat menunjukan peningkatan yang baik dalam keterampilan berbicara dengan penyampaian instruksi yang efektif.

Masalah yang dibahas memiliki beberapa sebab dan akibat. Sebab pertama adalah kejelasan guru yang kurang. Sebab kedua adalah topik dari aktivitas percakapan yang tidak menarik (menjemukan). Sebab terakhir adalah kurangnya harga diri siswa. Selain ketiga sebab tersebut, ada pula tiga akibat yang timbul dari masalah yang dibahas. Akibat pertama adalah siswa tidak dapat mengikuti instruksi dengan benar. Akibat kedua adalah siswa dapat melakukan hal lain seperti mengobrol pada saat pelajaran berlangsung. Akibat terakhir adalah kemajuan keterampilan berbicara siswa dalam Bahasa Inggris yang tidak memuaskan.

Selain sebab dan akibat, masalah tersebut juga memiliki beberapa solusi yang dapat diusulkan. Tiga solusi tersebut adalah meningkatkan frekuensi penggunaan kontak mata, penggunaan alat bantu visual, dan menyederhanakan instruksi dengan menggunakan kata yang dikenal.

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FLOWCHART

Problem: Problem:

Students lack attention towards teacher’s

Potential solution 2:

A teacher uses more visual aids

Potential positive effects: 1. It will raise students’

concentration 2. It will built a trust in

the teacher Potential negative effect:

1. Not all students like to be looked at.

Potential solution 1: A teacher uses more frequently of eye contact

Effects:

1. The students cannot follow the instruction correctly

2. The students prefer to do other things 3. Slow progress gained

by the students

Potential negative effects: 1. Limit the teacher-

student interaction 2. It will spend more

time.

Potential positive effects: 1. It will increase

students’ interest 2. It will provide a better

digestion of information Potential solution 3:

A teacher uses more familiar and meaningful words

Potential negative effects: 1. It will not stimulate

students’ learning in new vocabulary

Potential positive effects: 1. It can raise students’

self-esteem

Chosen Solution: A teacher uses more

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CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION

A. Background of the Study

English has been a language of international communication. Its usage as "The world’s primary language for international communication has obviously been continuing for several decades” (Graddol 5).

Nowadays, it can be seen there are lots of textbooks, computers, announcements, and speeches that are written in English. That is why scholars, businessmen, managers, government officials, and also teachers might need to have English competence.

Learning English is challenging and rewarding for Indonesians. It is challenging because of some reasons. First, it is not easy to have English competence in Indonesia. English is learnt as a foreign language in Indonesia, and it is not used extensively in the daily life of Indonesians (Lauder 11). Second, it is because it requires a complex set of skills in English. Louma (1) points out, “The testing of pronunciation (both

segmentals and suprasegmentals), spoken grammar, spoken vocabulary, and even sociolinguistic applications of speech all fall into the construct of speaking.” Last, it is because there are only limited places to practice

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English such as English classroom in schools and courses. However, learning English is also rewarding. It is rewarding because it might be very helpful for someone to acquire knowledge or his expertise in any other fields. In Indonesia, “The knowledge of English has become a symbol of modern identity and the mark of an educated person (Renandya qtd. in Siregar 5). The educated person will also find it easier to have a better job, as it is stated, “Those who become multilingual are at least leaving options open for themselves and even improving their chances of being hired, receiving a greater salary, and being retained by the company” (“The Importance of Foreign Language Study”). Consequently, the demand of Indonesians who have proficiency in English has been increasing.

Indonesian High School students mostly only have opportunities to practice English in class if they do not join any English courses. That is to say, their time of practicing English is limited, so they need to maximize the time given in speaking activities conducted in applicable classes. In order to achieve maximum students’ performance, the instructions given to the students have to be effectively delivered.

However, I realize that some students at St. Angela High School in Bandung – where I do my internship - do not pay attention to my instructions and it makes them unable to improve their English. For example, when being instructed to discuss what to bring to an isolated island in a group of five, some students did not truly read the facts about the island and how many items were allowed to bring as had already been instructed.

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Therefore, in this term paper I am interested to discuss handling the students’ lack of attention towards teacher’s instructions in seven speaking classes at St. Angela High School in Bandung by analyzing its causes and effects, and I try to present some possible solutions to solve it, and choose the best solution to be adopted.

B. Identification of the Problem

Having mentioned the background of the study, the problem in this term-paper is identified as follows:

1. Why do some students at Saint Angela High School not pay attention to their teacher’s instructions during English speaking activities?

2. How can teachers give more effective instructions so that their students would pay attention to them and then give their optimum performance in each speaking activity?

C. Objectives and Benefits of the Study

Based on the identification of the problem, the objectives and benefits of my study are as follows:

The objectives:

1. To know why some students at Saint Angela High School do not pay attention to their teacher’s instructions during English speaking

activities.

2. To know how teachers can give more effective instructions so that

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the students would pay attention to them and then give their optimum performance in each speaking activity.

The benefits:

1. For the institution, by getting passionate students on studying, the students will show a great improvement in academic skills,

particularly in English conversation.

2. For the readers of this term-paper - either educators or

non-educators – they will understand how students behave on the instruction they give in the very beginning of the class.

3. For myself, I will be more able to give an effective instruction to engage the students in each speaking activity with an optimum result.

D. Description of the Institution

Saint Angela High School is one of the highly-reputable schools in Bandung. It was built in 1956 with the name “SPG Saint Angela”. The name was changed into “SMA Saint Angela” some years later.

This private high school got an “A” accreditation in 1985, which has been maintained until today. The supporting factor to the school’s value is its balance between good education, soft-skill, and religion. The soft-skills development is mostly concerned with the school’s OSIS. The OSIS does very well in each period. The board arranges various activities either regionally and nationally.

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E. Method of Study

In writing this term-paper, the data and information collected are from different resources. They are from library research, my internship journal, and direct observations in the class.

F. Limitation of the Study

This term-paper has some limitations. The limitations of my study are as follows:

1. The participants of the study are the eleventh and twelfth grade students at Saint Angela Senior High School in Bandung. 2. The data gathering was done for 18 hours a week in a period of

July 22 – August 20, 2009.

3. The main problem discussed is students’ lack of attention towards teacher’s instructions in seven speaking classes.

G. Organization of the Term Paper

I organize this term-paper in four chapters. Chapter One deals with the introduction about the study. It includes the Background of the Study, Identification of the Problem, Objectives and Benefits of the Study, Description of the Institution, Method of Study, Limitations of the Study, and Organization of the Term Paper. Chapter Two provides the analysis of the Problem. Causes and effects of the problem are discussed, with

support from different resources: observation, internship journal, and relevant theories. Chapter Three contains the proposed solutions with

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each of their positive and negative impact. The last chapter provides the conclusion of combined best solutions. The term paper ends with the Bibliography which consists of information of publication from all sources cited and an Appendix which consists of a flowchart.

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CHAPTER 4 CONCLUSION

Previous chapters have discussed the problem that happens in seven speaking classes where the students lack attention towards their teacher’s instructions. The problem has been initiated by teacher’s lack of clarity, uninteresting topics (both are about teacher’s capability), and students’ lack of self-esteem. On the other hand, the problem produces some effects. First, students will have difficulty in following the instruction correctly. Second, there is a chance that the students will do something else, such as having a chat in Indonesian during the class. Third, and also the last, there is a risk that only a slow progress might be gained by the students. The first potential solution offered is to maintain eye contact with the students, which can raise their concentration and give students trust in their teacher, while it can also be perceived as dislike. The second solution offered is to use more visual aids, which can raise students’ interest and improve digestion of information for both the time and accuracy. Nevertheless, the limitations of using visual aids are that it can weaken

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teacher-student interaction, and it is also time consuming. The last solution presented is to simplify the instruction, which can increase students’ self-esteem and students’ willingness to listen to the teacher’s instruction. However, it can also slow down the progress students make in learning vocabularies.

In this chapter, the best solution to solve the problem is discussed, together with its justification from theories and the context. The solution considered as the best is a combination of the first and third solutions. They are deliver instruction by using familiar words and maintaining eye contact at the same time.

In teaching speaking, the importance of the instruction at a beginning part of a class activity is usually emphasized. For the students, having trust in the teacher and high self-esteem is the most important thing in starting the learning process, while the use of visual aids might not be efficient because each class has a time limit of approximately 40 minutes. It is better to be used fully for the speaking activity. Moreover, negative effects of the chosen

solution are not very compelling. From the first solution, the use of eye contact in Indonesia nowadays is hardly perceived as a state of dislike; and from the second chosen solution, learning vocabularies by providing difficult words is not a main focus in developing speaking skill. Therefore, the teacher can give a more effective instruction by developing their skills in using eye contact and simplified words so that students can pay attention to their teacher’s instructions and give their best performance.

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To close this chapter, I would say that teaching will never be apart from its problems. However, only from the problems teachers can be better human-beings by analyzing them and finding the solutions. In reading this term-paper, teachers must have learnt how to get more optimum result in speaking activity by practicing eye contact and using familiar and meaningful words in their instruction (as it is considered as to give an effective

instruction).

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Handling Students' Lack of Attention Towards Teacher's Instructions in Seven Speaking Classes at Saint Angela High School in Bandung.

ABSTRACT

TABLE OF CONTENTS

FLOWCHART

CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION