THE MASTERY OF PREPOSITIONS OF PLACE AT, IN AND ON AMONG THE SEVENTH SEMESTER STUDENTS AT ENGLISH LETTERS DEPARTMENT OF SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY
AN UNDERGRADUATE THESIS
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Sarjana Sastra
in English Letters
By
MARSILUS MARSELL WIBOWO Student Number: 084214032
ENGLISH LETTERS STUDY PROGRAMME DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LETTERS
FACULTY OF LETTERS SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY
i
THE MASTERY OF PREPOSITIONS OF PLACE AT, IN AND ON AMONG THE SEVENTH SEMESTER STUDENTS AT ENGLISH LETTERS DEPARTMENT OF SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY
AN UNDERGRADUATE THESIS
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Sarjana Sastra
in English Letters
By
MARSILUS MARSELL WIBOWO Student Number: 084214032
ENGLISH LETTERS STUDY PROGRAMME DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LETTERS
FACULTY OF LETTERS SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY
v
“
Hope is
a waking dream
”
(Aristotle)
“A journey of a thousand miles begins
with a single step”
(Lao tzu)
“And we know that God causes
everything to work together for the good
of those who love God and are called
according to His purpose for them”
(romansvi
This Thesis is Dedicated To
Jesus Christ, My Savior
My Beloved Parents and Families
and
vii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
First of all, I would like to thank God, the Lord of Heaven and Earth for His Blessing and His wonderful miracles along my life. I am so grateful for He who has given me a chance to learn in Sanata Dharma University up to now.
I would like to say my gratitude and love to my family. I thank my parents for their support, advice, care and love. I thank my big family for the given support for me. They are more than a family.
I am really indebted to my advisor, Anna Fitriati, S.Pd., M.Hum., who gives me suggestions and advices and because she guides me along the process of finishing my thesis with her valuable time and patience. Her advices will be unforgettable. Her suggestions were really helpful for me in the process of making this thesis. My gratitude is also dedicated to my co-advisor, Dra. Bernardine Ria Lestari, M.S., who guides me along the process before the examination.
My special thanks also go to the lecturers of INTET, who were Risang Baskara, S.S., Ni Luh Putu Rosiandani, S.S., M.Hum., and Linda Valentina Budiman, S.S., M.Hum., who gave me permission to administer the test in their classes. I would also like to dedicate my special gratitude to the seventh semester students of English Letters Department in academic year of 2012/2013. You were really helpful for my research. I would like to say thanks to Miss Ag. Kustulasari 81, S.Pd., M.A. for the given support, care and advice.
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and their support. I also thank Mary and Mas Putra for the great friendship we have. Thank you for your time and company.
The special gratitude of mine goes to Gandroeng Choir Community where I can spend my time to share my happiness, loneliness, sadness and friendship with them. I would like to give my thanks to all of my friends whom I cannot mention one by one. Thank you for the sweetness friendships we have. May the Lord have mercy on us and bless our life.
ix
LIST OF CHARTS AND APPENDICES ………. xi
ABSTRACT ………. xii
CHAPTER II THEORETICAL REVIEW ……….. 8
A. Review of Related Studies ………. 8
A. Students’ Mastery in Using English Prepositions of Place ……. 42
B. The Possible Factors that May Cause the Students in Mastering the Prepositions of place at, in, and on ……… 67
CHAPTER V CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION……… 70
A. Conclusion ……… 70
B. Recommendation ……….. 71
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LIST OF TABLES
Table 2.1 The relation of meaning among the English preposition of place at,
in and on ……….. 12
Table 2.2 A cause-and-effect relationship between the notions of simple position and destination ……… 15
Table 3.1 The Blueprint of the Distribution of the Prepositions of Place in the Questionnaire ……… 39 Table 4.1 The Students’ Achievements in Part A ………... 43
Table 4.2 The Students’ Achievements in Part B ……… 45
Table 4.3 Overall Students’ Achievements in the Test ……….... 47
Table 4.4 The Errors Classification ………. 49
Table 4.5 The Descriptive Analysis ………. 51
Table 4.6 The Students’ Achievements in the Test ……….. 53
Table 4.7 The Students’ Achievement in Preposition of Place on ………... 54
Table 4.8 The Students’ Achievement in Preposition of Place in ………… 54
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LIST OF CHARTS AND APPENDICES
Chart 1. The students’ Achievement in Part A……….………. 44
Chart 2. The students’ Achievement in Part B ……….………. 46
Chart 3. The students’ Achievement in the Test ….….………. 48
Appendix 1. Students’ Score ………. 77
Appendix 2. The Reliability of the Half Test ……. ………. 78
Appendix 3. The Reliability of the Half Test ……. ………. 78
Appendix 4. The Variables of the Questionnaire ………. 78
Appendix 5. The Questionnaire Outlook ………. 78
xii ABSTRACT
MARSILUS MARSELL WIBOWO (2012). The Mastery of Prepositions of Place at, in, and on among the Seventh Semester Students at English Letters Department of Sanata Dharma University. Yogyakarta: Department of English Letters, Faculty of Letters, Sanata Dharma University.
In a sentence, each part of speech takes an important place. One example of parts of speech in English is preposition. A Preposition links the relationship of meaning of a sentence between the things for which they stand. The prepositions of place are considered as the most complicated since each preposition of place has its own function underlying its form.
This study was aimed to answer two problems; 1) How accurate are the seventh semester students at English Letters Department in using English prepositions of place at, in, and on? and 2) What are the problems that cause the students’ error in using English prepositions at, in, and on?
The instrument which was used in order to answer the problems in the problem formulation was a questionnaire or a test. This was a survey research of which the object of the study was the seventh semester students at English Letters Department of Sanata Dharma University of academic year 2012/2013. A cluster random sampling was used to gather the data. There were two classes of INTET (Introduction to English Test) classes that were chosen as the data.
Based on the Academic Regulation 2010 of Sanata Dharma University, the writer found that the mastery of the seventh semester students in using the prepositions of place at, in, and on was sufficient. The students’ average score was 16.69 (66.76%) in which 64.10% students were considered to enter the category of sufficient. This achievement fell above the minimum passing grade according to the academic regulation of Sanata Dharma University. Based on this research, the writer found out that the students’ problem in mastering the prepositions of place at, in, and on was on the application of preposition at in which there was only 53% of correct numbers that the students made. It meant that there was 47% of incorrect numbers in the test.
xiii ABSTRAK
MARSILUS MARSELL WIBOWO (2012). The Mastery of Prepositions of Place at, in, and on among the Seventh Semester Students at English Letters Department of Sanata Dharma University. Yogyakarta: Program Studi Sastra Inggris, Fakultas Sastra, Universitas Sanata Dharma.
Di dalam sebuah kalimat, setiap jenis kata mempunyai posisi yang penting. Salah satu contoh dari jenis kata di dalam Bahasa Inggris ialah preposisi atau kata depan. Sebuah kata depan menghubungkan pertalian arti dari sebuah kalimat di antara hal-hal yang mereka tunjuk. Preposisi atau kata depan yang menunjuk tempat mempunyai fungsinya sendiri berdasarkan bentuknya.
Studi ini dimaksudkan untuk menjawab dua permasalahan; 1) seberapa akuratkah Mahasiswa semester ke-tujuh di Program studi Sastra Inggris dalam menggunakan kata depan yang menunjuk tempat at, in, dan on? dan 2) Apa yang menjadi masalah yang menyebabkan kesalahan pada mahasiswa dalam menggunakan kata depan Bahasa Inggris at, in, dan on?
Instrumen yang digunakan untuk menjawab permasalahan-permasalah dalam rumusan masalah adalah kuesioner atau tes. Ini merupakan penelitian survei dimana objek dari studi ini adalah mahasiswa semester ke-tujuh di program studi Sastra Inggris Universitas Sanata Dharma tahun akademik 2012/2013. Sebuah pemercontohan kelompok acak (cluster random sampling) digunakan untuk mengumpulkan data.
Menurut Peraturan Akademik 2010 Universitas Sanata Dharma, penulis menemukan bahwa penguasaan mahasiswa semester ke-tujuh dalam menggunakan kata depan yang menunjuk tempat at, in¸dan on adalah cukup. Rata-rata skor mahasiswa adalah 16,69 (66, 76%) di mana ada 64, 10% mahasiswa dianggap masuk ke dalam kategori cukup. Pencapaian ini jatuh di atas nilai kelulusan minimal sesuai dengan peraturan akademik Universitas Sanata Dharma. Berdasarkan penelitian ini, penulis menemukan bahwa permasalahan mahasiswa dalam menguasai kata depan yang menunjuk tempat at, in¸ dan on adalah dalam mengaplikasikan kata depan at di mana hanya ada 53% jawaban yang benar. Hal ini berarti bahwa ada 47% jawaban yang salah dalam tes.
Penulis juga menemukan kemungkinan faktor yang menyebabkan kesulitan-kesulitan pada mahasiswa dalam mempelajari kata depan yang menunjuk tempat at, in, dan on yaitu interference (masalah yang diakibatkan oleh pengaruh bahasa pertama, yaitu bahasa Indonesia), tumpang-tindih, dan generalisasi yang berlebihan.
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1 CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION
This chapter presents the introduction of the research. This chapter has five subtopics; the first subtopic is the background of the study, the second subtopic is problem formulations, the third subtopic is problem limitation, the forth subtopic is the objectives of the study, the last or the fifth subtopic is research benefits.
A.Background of the Study
In other words, the use of preposition in English sentences is obviously very important. David Crystal (2008: 59) stated that a preposition expresses a relationship of meaning between two parts of a sentence, most often shows how the two parts are related in space or time. He further explains that the main function of a preposition is to express meaning relationship, especially of space and time, between a noun phrase and other parts of the clause (2008: 59). Allen (1970: 307) in his book entitled Living English Structure states:
Prepositions are usually placed in front of the words they control. They indicate various relationships between words or phrases, the most usual being those of time, space (position, direction, etc), and mental or emotional attitudes. They can also come after the words they govern, notably in questions and in relative and interrogative clauses.
Based on several definitions and explanations of the function of the English preposition above, it can be concluded that a preposition has a special function, which is to link a sentence element to another. There are some examples that show how to use the preposition in correct English sentences:
1. We ate in a restaurant.
2. I met her at gate 3 in the airport.
3. Dina wrote something on your table yesterday.
place or time. Sometimes it is found that they will translate the preposition of place at, in, and on into pada, di atas, di dalam, and di. This becomes a problem for Indonesian learners. Meanwhile, they also have difficulties in translating the preposition di, pada, di dalam, and di atas into English. The Indonesian preposition di, pada, di dalam and di atas almost have the same meaning. This problem causes the students or English learners in Indonesia find difficulties to use the right prepositions in English. As the learners of English as a Second Language, Indonesian language may affect the learners in mastering the use of English prepositions. Other problem comes when the learners consciously understand about their weakness in using English prepositions correctly, but they do not have any attempts to solve it.
For example, this may have different meanings when there is a sentence, “the ball is on the box” compared to “the ball is in the box.” The first sentence, which is “there is a ball on the box” means that the preposition of location here points out the location of the ball, which is on the surface of the box. While on the second sentence, which is “There is a ball in the box,” shows that the ball is inside the box. Some students may not be aware of this problem. When they have these sentences to be translated into Indonesian, the translation will be the same, “Ada bola di (dalam) kotak.” In conclusion, the English prepositions have their own
function when they are used in sentences, therefore the English as a Second Language learners cannot randomly use them in sentences.
Transfer, according to Brown (1987: 81), is a general term describing the carryover of previous performance or knowledge to subsequent learning. He divides the language transfer into two parts, positive transfer and negative transfer. Positive transfer occurs when the prior knowledge benefits the learning task, which is correctly applied to present subject matter (Brown, 1987: 81). Meanwhile, the negative transfer occurs when the previous performance disrupts the performance on a second task (Brown, 1987: 81). Therefore, when students’
first language does not influence their second language learning, it means that the positive transfer occurs. On the other hand, when students’ first language influences their second language learning, it means that the negative transfer occurs within their language learning process. In conclusion, it is very important to see whether the students are influenced by their mother tongue or not in second language learning process.
B. Problem Formulation
The research problems of this study are formulated as follows:
1. How accurate are the seventh semester students at English Letters Department in using English preposition at, in, and on?
C. Problem Limitation
Warriner (1982: 17) says that a preposition is a word used to show the relation of a noun or pronoun to some other word in the sentence. Moreover, Yule (2004: 160-165) divides the preposition into two parts; they are preposition for location in space and location in time. To limit the study, the writer only focuses on the English prepositions at, in, and on for location in space since the use of English prepositions of place (at, in, and on) are usually confusing for the English learners in Indonesia.
D. Objectives of the Study
This research is conducted to reach the following objectives:
1. To find out the mastery in using English Prepositions of place (at, in, and on) among the seventh semester students at English Letter Department. 2. To find out the problems which cause errors or mistakes in using English
prepositions of place among the seventh semester students at English Letters Department.
E. Research Benefits
This study is conducted to reach some beneficial contributions as follows: 1. For the students of English Letters Department
about how to use them in sentences correctly. Besides, the students can see their levels in mastering the use of English prepositions of place. The writer hopes that this study can be used to help the students in improving their ability in using the most appropriate preposition in sentences.
2. For the lecturers of English Letters Department
The writer hopes that this study can help the lecturers to see the mastery levels in using the correct English prepositions to indicate place among the students of English Letters Department. The lecturers are expected to encourage the students and to solve the problem their students face in class, especially in choosing the right preposition. Therefore, it is hoped that the lecturers can help the students in improving their mastery in using English preposition of place in sentences correctly.
3. For the readers
4. For future researchers
8 CHAPTER II
THEORETICAL REVIEW
There are three subtopics which this chapter covers; they are Review of Related Studies, Review of Related Theories and Theoretical Frameworks. As the first part, which is in the Review of Related Studies, the writer puts previous studies about the English preposition of place done by previous researchers. The second part is Review of Related Theories, in which the writer elaborates the theories related to the main topic of the study. Then, the writer describes the contribution of related studies and theories in the last part, which is in the Theoretical Frameworks.
A. Review of Related Studies
1. An undergraduate thesis written by Puguh Alfath Tegar (2009) entitled A Study on the Mastery of Preposition of Place at, in, and on Among the First Semester Students of English Language Education Study Program of Sanata Dharma University. Yogyakarta: English Language Education Study Program, Sanata Dharma University.
to find out the possible causes of their difficulties in their attempt to master those prepositions. Tegar used a test (survey study) as the instrument of the study to collect the data. The technique that was used as the representative sample was Random Sampling. In this technique, the writer chose the students as the data randomly.
He argued that their average achievement score was 28.68, which fell slightly above the minimum passing score for the category of sufficient (28-35). He found out that the difficulty in mastering preposition of place at, in, and on was on the application of preposition of place at. The achievement of the students was 46.83 of correct answers. Meanwhile, the possible sources of error that he found out were interference from the first language (Bahasa Indonesia), overgeneralization, false concept hypothesis and context of learning.
2. An Undergraduate Thesis written by Nancy Paula Herin (2010) entitled The Mastery of Prepositions at, in, and on among the Fifth Semester Students of the English Language Education Study Program of Sanata Dharma University. Yogyakarta: English Language Education Study Program, Sanata Dharma University.
mastered preposition at, in, and on? And 2) what are the possible factors which cause the students’ errors in using prepositions at, in, and on? She administered a test to two classes of the fifth students in the academic year of 2009/2010 in order to answer the first question. In order to answer the second question, she used two research instruments, they were questionnaire and interview. Meanwhile, she did cluster sampling method in her research.
The researcher found that the mastery of prepositions at, in, and on among the fifth semester students of the English Language Education Study Program was sufficient according to the academic regulation of Sanata Dharma University. The research showed that the students’ mean score was 59.4 which meant that the
achievement was over the minimum standard of mastery, which is 56% of the maximum score as the lower margin to pass with grade C or ‘sufficient.’
Further, the research formulated several possible factors which cause the students’ errors in using prepositions at, in, and on that were divided into two;
they were the internal factors and the external factors. The internal factors consisted of the students’ perception of prepositions at, in, and on indicating time and place, the students’ motivation to learn prepositions at, in, and on, the students’ actions when they find difficulty in using prepositions at, in, and on, and the students’ considerations underlying their choice of using those prepositions.
From the above studies related to the mastery in using English Prepositions at, in, and on indicating place that have been done by the previous researchers before, the writer finds that there are several differences between those studies and the research that the writer is going to conduct in this study. The questionnaire, test and interview were used in the previous studies but this research only focuses on the questionnaire or the test. There are some differences between the two previous researches with this research of which the researcher is going to conduct. The data that are used in this research are different from both two previous researches in which the data are the seventh semester students of 2011/2012 academic year of English Letters Department of Sanata Dharma University. Further, the goals of the previous studies were used for education, but this research only focus on the mastery of the students in the seventh semester in using the prepositions of place at, in and on.
B. Review of Related Theories
1. A preposition can express position or movement in relation to something that the speaker imagines as a point or place (with one dimension, or with dimensions that do not matter);
2. A preposition can express position or movement in relation to something that the speaker imagines as a line (with one dimension); 3. A preposition can express position or movement in relation to
something that the speaker imagines as a surface on which something can rest (with two dimensions);
4. A preposition can express position or movements in relation to something that the speaker imagines as a space in which something can be enclosed (with three dimensions).
Quirk R., Sidney Greenbaum, Geoffrey Leech, and Jan Svartvik (1972: 307) explain the relations of meaning between the English preposition of place at, in, and on as follows:
Table 2.1 The relations of meaning among The English Preposition of Place at, in, and on
Quirk, R., et al (1972: 307)
dimensionless location, a vague ‘point on the map’, and no details concerning its shape or size come into focus (Quirk, 1972: 307). For example, in the phrase at the wall, the wall is considered as a dimensionless location.
The second dimension type of preposition is the dimension type 1 or 2. In this dimension, the preposition on is used. The preposition on in on the wall makes us see the wall as two-dimensional thing, which is a surface. Quirk (1972: 308) states that in this dimension, the preposition on, in fact, can indicate a location of either one or two dimensions (a line or surface).
The third dimension type of preposition is the dimension type 2 or 3. In this dimension, the preposition in is used to indicate three-dimensional object. For example, in the wall, the preposition in of that sentence makes us see the wall as the three-dimensional object, an object having volume. The preposition in, as further explained by Quirk (1972: 308-309), can also be applied to two-dimensional locations which are seen as ‘areas’ (typically enclosed or bordered
pieces of territory) rather than a ‘surface’. Therefore, the definitions of the
preposition according to the dimension they applied to are as follows: 1. The man looks at the clock on the wall.
2. The clock is on the wall.
3. There are many bricks in (inside) the wall.
These are some examples in using prepositions of place at, in and on based on their dimensions:
a. Dimension type 0
2. at the end of the road.
b. Dimension type 1 or 2 Line
1. on the River Thames. 2. on the Boundary. 3. on the coast.
Surface
On the ceiling On the wall
On the floor
Picture 2.1. Prepositions on as surface (dimension type 1 or 2)
1. on the ceiling. 2. on the wall. 3. on the floor.
c. Dimension type 2 or 3 Area
Volume
in the box
in the water
Picture 2.2. The prepositions in as volume (dimension type 2 or 3) 1. in a box.
2. in the water. 3. in the library.
Moreover, Quirk (1972: 307) states that between the notions of simple position (or static location) and destination (movement with respect to an intended location) a cause-and-effect relationship obtains:
Table 2.2 a cause-and-effect relationship between the notions of simple position and destination
DESTINATION POSITION
Tom went to Cambridge as a result: Tom was at Cambridge Tom fell on (to) the floor as a result: Tom was on the floor Tom dived in (to) the water as a result: Tom was in the water
1. English Preposition of Place at, in, and on a. Preposition of Place at
dimension unspecified, as in “Lucia stays at home while her parents are leaving.” Celce-Murcia (1983: 257) writes there are three functions or meanings of the preposition at indicating place, they are:
1. Preposition of place at is used to indicate a specific point or intersect: at the corner.
a. at the top (of the page).
at the bottom (of the page). b. at the front (of the line).
at the back (of the line).
On the picture above, pretend that they are some people who are heading to the north. The red star shows that the person is at the front (of the line) while the yellow star shows that the person is at the back (of the line).
2. Preposition of place at is used to indicate a target: Throw the stone at the wall.
3. Preposition of place at is used to indicate general area: Meet me at the Theater.
at the Portland Hotel. The preposition at indicating place is also used for a specific building or commercial concern, as in John is at the Public Library.
Funk and Wagnalls (1953: 12-13) add that the preposition of place at was derived from the Old English at which is originally connoting simple occupying of a point in space. There are some functions of preposition at indicating place. The preposition at indicating place is used as follows:
1. The preposition at indicating place is used to show a location in exact position, definite and precise point of contact, for example: the point at the center of the circle.
2. The preposition at indicating place is used to indicate a location in proximity to, in the vicinity or region of, as an example: the car is at the door.
3. The preposition at indicating place is used to indicate a location within the limits of or present in, for example: he is at the ball grounds.
4. The preposition at indicating place is used to indicate a location in or into contact with, upon, for example: he knocked at the door.
5. The preposition at indicating place is used to indicate by way of, through, for example: smoke came out at the windows.
b. Preposition of place on
also function to indicate location on a surface or two dimensions area, as in put that painting on the wall, please!. Thomson, A. J. and A. V Martinet (1980: 77) state that the preposition of place on can be used for both position and movement. The examples of the preposition of place on is as found in He went on board ship and He is on the way home.
Close (1975: 166) says that the preposition on is used in relation to a surface, two dimensions. He also divides the preposition on according to the movement and position, as follows:
1. Preposition on refers to a movement
For example: Go on (to) the platform. 2. Preposition on refers to a position
For example: Stay on.
According to Funk and Wagnalls (1953: 25), the preposition of place on was derived from the old English on. The preposition on indicating place is used to indicate a place for some reasons. They are stated as follows:
1. The preposition on indicating place is used to indicate that something or someone is in contact with the upper surface of, above and supported by, for example: the broken statue lay on the ground.
3. The preposition on indicating place is used that something is to overspread, strike, touch, without reference to elevation, for example: great storms beat on the coast.
4. The preposition on indicating place is used to indicate something in direction or movement along, for example: I’ll be on my way.
5. The preposition on indicating place is used to indicate something near or adjacent to, for example: the town is on the banks of the river.
c. Preposition of place in
Celce-Murcia (1983: 258) states that the preposition in is used to indicate an enclosure, as in the man is in the room. Frederick T. Wood (1962: 131) further explains some meanings or functions of preposition in to indicate a place. The preposition in is used to indicate a country or a large town, as in Daniel lives in Indonesia. The preposition in is also used for houses and places of residence, as in a cottage or a mansion. The preposition in is used whenever to talk about places for work, as in a shop, a bank, and an office; for example Garret works in BCA Bank and Lucia works in Shopie-Martin. Moreover, she explains that the preposition in is used for particular departments of a business. One of the examples is Lary works in the Accounts Department of the Electricity Board.
1. Preposition in refers to a movement in space
For example: Come in (to) my office.
2. Preposition in refers to a position in space
For example: Stay in your room.
In accordance to Funk and Wagnalls (1953: 22), the preposition in indicating place was derived from the old English in. The preposition in indicating place is used as follows:
1. The preposition in indicating place is used to indicate something is within the bounds of, contained or included within, for example: there are many rooms in the house.
2. The preposition in indicating place is used to show something is within the class or group of, included in the number of, for example: he is one man in a thousand.
3. The preposition in indicating place is used to indicate something is separated or excluded from all else and nearly equivalent to by, for example: he was wrapped up in himself.
5. The preposition in indicating place is used to indicate something is toward, so as to rely or rest on, for example: the accused trusted in his innocence.
2. The distinctions between the English prepositions at, in, and on a. The distinction between the preposition at and in
The prepositions of place at and in sometimes lead to the confusion or slightly incorrect statement that the choice of preposition depends upon the size of the town (Schibsbye, 1973: 324), as in ‘There were ‘seasons’ at Bath or in London. As explained further by Schibsbye, those prepositions express respectively the place regarded as a point, with a distinctive association, ‘address’;
and the place regarded as an area, with an association of its appearance (1973: 324). Schibsbye (1973: 325) says that the preposition at is used for addresses, as in “he lives at 141 Wood Street; the Commonwealth conference is at Marlborough House.” In the first sentence, the use of preposition at is to indicate the address where he lives. Meanwhile in the second sentence, the preposition at is used to indicate the building where the conference is being conducted. It is different when the preposition in is used for address as in “The conference office will be in 39 George Square, on the first floor.” In that sentence, the organizers are visualizing the interior of the building.
distinctively of a point, as in we stop at page 40; and in connoting the contents of the page as in a description was given in these pages last week.
According to Murphy (1986: 248), there are two distinctions between preposition at and in when they are used in sentences, as follows:
1. The preposition in is normally used with cities, towns and villages as in “Tom’s parents live in Nottingham (not ‘at’ Nottingham), the Louvre is a famous art museum in Paris (not ‘at’ Paris)”
2. Both preposition at and in can be used to consider a place as a point or station on a journey as in “do you know if this train stops at (or in) Nottingham? (=at Nottingham station), we stopped at (or in) a small
village on the way to London.”
Further Murphy (1985: 246) differentiates the use of preposition at and in, as follows:
1. The use of preposition in
a. It is said to be ”in the corner of a room”
The above picture shows that something is in the corner of a room because the room is seen as a space that has volume.
On the picture above, pretend that they are some people who heading to the north. The yellow star shows that the person is in the back of the line.
2. The use of preposition at
a. It is said to be “at the corner of a street”
The above picture shows that something or someone is at the corner of a street because the street is seen as an exact point or intersects.
b. It is said to be “at the back of the line” N
On the picture above, pretend that they are some people who heading to the north. The yellow star shows that the person is at the back of the line.
b. The distinction between the preposition at and on
244) gives a comparison between the uses of preposition at and on as in “There is somebody at the door. Shall I go and see who it is?” and “there is a notice on the door. It says ‘Do not disturb’.” We can see the difference between the use of the
preposition at and on indicating a place. The preposition at is used to emphasize the location that somebody is somewhere near the door. Meanwhile, the preposition on is used to emphasize the location where the notice is attached to, which is on the door.
c. The distinction between the preposition in and on
In using the preposition in and on, Schibsbye (1973: 357) explains that the preposition in denoting ‘enclosed by’, ‘inside’, ‘at the bottom’ of a space, when the preposition on denoting ‘outside’, ‘on top of’ an expanse, are in combination with many complements so different in content that there is no question of any approximation. The difference can bee seen in “she found the old man lying fully dressed on his bed” and “he kept the books locked up in a desk.” Moreover, Murphy (1985: 244) gives a comparison between the uses of preposition in and on as in “there some water in the bottle” and “there a label on the bottle.” In those
sentences, it is clear that the preposition in is used to indicate that something or someone is ‘inside’. Meanwhile the use of preposition on is to indicate that
3. Indonesian prepositions of place di, pada, dalam, and di atas
The following are the Indonesian prepositions of place di, pada, dalam, and di atas. The Indonesian prepositions are used to see the influence of the L1 (source language) in the process of learning the L2 (target language).
a. Indonesian preposition di
According to Ramlan (1980: 65), the preposition di is used to indicate a position of certain thing. This preposition usually precedes a noun that contains the idea of place (adverb of place), as in John yang masih bujangan ini sekarang tinggal di bangunan ke Sembilan di jantung Beverly Hills and aku menemukan seorang tua yang sudah sangan lemah terbaring di hutan ilalang. Meanwhile, Chaer (1987: 27) explains the use of preposition di according to its rule; they are:
1. The preposition di is used to indicate a position of certain place, where the preposition precedes a noun which contains an idea of certain place (a city, a village, a room, etc). For example: Danau Toba berada di pulau Sumatra.
2. The preposition di is used to indicate a detail position of certain thing where the preposition di is followed by a detail position where the things is attached. The words that are usually used to follow the preposition di are dalam, atas, bawah, samping, belakang, dekat, etc. As seen in examples: Bukumu saya letakkan di atas meja and mereka bermain di samping rumah kami.
maksudmu datang di sini sepagi ini? The preposition di above can be replaced by the preposition ke to indicate ‘movement.’ For example: banyak orang pergi ke Bali saat liburan tiba.
The preposition di could be used with other prepositions, like atas and dalam in order to state a detail of a place or state the location completely. Indonesian preposition di atas is used to indicate a higher place (Ramlan, 1980: 67-68), for examples wanita menjunjung beban di atas kepala and ada beberapa buah apel di atas meja.
In conclusion, it is obviously seen that the English preposition at has a similar meaning to Indonesian preposition di and pada. The English preposition in has a similar meaning to Indonesian Preposition di and (di) dalam. Moreover, the English preposition on has similar meaning to Indonesian preposition di, pada and di atas.
According to Sneddon (1996: 189), the preposition di (at, in, and on) indicates that the action occurs in the place indicated by the following noun; there is no movement, as an example: dia tinggal di kota.
b. Indonesian Preposition pada
does not show a certain point of place or position. On the other hand, the use of preposition di is to indicate a certain point of place or position.
c. Indonesian Preposition dalam
Chaer (1990: 30) states that Indonesian preposition dalam is used to indicate a ‘place of existence.’ It precedes a noun which is expected to have
volume, for examples:
1. Buku itu kusimpan dalam lemari.
2. Beberapa orang ada dalam rumah itu.
3. Dalam tubuh yang sehat terdapat jiwa yang kuat.
The preposition dalam above can be replaced by di dalam, as follows: (1) Buku itu kusimpan di dalam lemari.
(2) Beberapa orang ada di dalam rumah itu
(3) Di dalam tubuh yang kuat terdapat jiwa yang sehat.
4. Language Transfer a. Interference
may therefore be an indication of low acquisition (Krashen, 1981: 67). In learning English as a second language, interference becomes a problem on language acquisition for Indonesian learners since the first language, which is Indonesian, may affect them.
Another opinion comes from David, in his article entitled David’s English Teaching World, that language transfer, which is also known as interference, can occur in any situation when someone does not have a native-level command of a language, as when translating into a second language (David, accessed on April 5th, 2012). He also divides language transfer or language interference into two parts: positive and negative transfer that are explained as quoted bellow:
When the relevant unit or structure of both languages is the same, linguistic interference can result in correct language production called positive transfer – correct meaning in line with most native speakers’ notions of acceptability. … Negative transfer occurs when speakers and writers transfer items and structures that are not the same in both languages. (David, accessed on April 5th, 2012)
According to the explanation above, it is obvious that the language transfer may give a positive and negative result to the L1. When the transfer is acceptable for native speakers’ of the second language, it means that this language transfer
gives a positive result. Meanwhile, when the language transfer is unacceptable, this means that this language transfer gives a negative result to the L1.
b. Inter-Language
upon which the learner can draw. The examples of lingual transfer or inter-language can be found when some English students tend to say ‘hill’ for ‘heal’ or
‘the book of Rani’ rather than ‘Rani’s book’. Those sentences lead to the negative
inter-lingual transfer in learning English as a second language. Brown (1987: 177) says that the negative inter-lingual transfer or errors in language transfer are detectable in learner speech.
c. Intra-Language
Intra-language or intra-lingual transfer according to Brown (1987: 178) is a major factor in second language learning. The negative counterpart of intra-lingual transfer is overgeneralization. Brown (1987: 82) further explains that to generalize means to infer or derive a law, rule, or conclusion, usually from the observation of particular instances. The overgeneralization often occurs in second language learning as the process to acquire the target language. One example of overgeneralization can be seen in “I don’t know what time is it.” In that utterance,
the sentence is formed as a positive sentence though the structure should be a question since the NP of the sentence is a question. Another example of overgeneralization is “Does Jimmy can swim?” Therefore, those utterances are
examples of overgeneralization in second language learning.
C. Theoretical Framework
problem will be answered using the theory of English prepositions of place. This theory will be used to see the mastery level of the seventh semester students of English Letters Department in Sanata Dharma University in 2011/2012 academic year. To master the English prepositions is very important, since they are parts of English.
31 CHAPTER III METHODOLOGY
This chapter covers several parts of discussion, namely research method, participants, instruments of research, data collecting technique, data analysis technique, and research procedure.
A. Research Method
The descriptive research was used in this study since a descriptive research involves a collection of techniques used to specify, delineate, or describe naturally occurring phenomena without experimental manipulation (Seliger, Herbert W. and Elana Shohamy, 1989: 124). Seliger et al further explained that the descriptive research is useful for providing a picture of factors connected with second language development (1989: 129). Moreover, the descriptive research according to Cahon, as cited from Best (1970), is concerned with:
Conditions or relationships that exist; practices that prevail; beliefs, points of views, or attitudes that are held; processes that are going on; effects that are being left; or trends that are developing. At times, descriptive research is concerned with how what is or what exists is related to some preceding event that has influenced or affected a present condition or event (2000: 169)
University. There were two kinds of study to conduct in the research; they were survey study and library research.
According to Cohen Louis, Lawrence Manion and Keith Morrison (2000: 169), a survey research is a research that gathers data at a particular point in time with the intention of describing the nature of existing conditions could be compared, or determining the relationships that exist between specific events. Since this research used a survey method, a test should be administered towards the sample. A test as an assessment instrument in a survey study was conducted in order to get the data to be analyzed in studying the students’ mastery in using
English Prepositions of place. Meanwhile, the library research was conducted to get related theories to substantiate the arguments that the writer made.
B. Research Instruments
attempted to diagnose a particular aspect of a particular language (Brown, 1987: 225). Therefore, this kind of tests would differentiate someone’s ability from others’ in a particular language.
In his research, the researcher used a test that has been divided into two parts. The first part consisted of fill-in-the-blank type. The first part was used to see the students’ ability in differentiating the use of each prepositions of place in
sentences. The second part of the test was translation from Indonesian into English. In this part, the writer was trying to see the influences of students’
mother tongue, which was Indonesian, towards their second language learning process. In order to focus on the mastery in using the English prepositions of place, the researcher would not consider on the grammatical errors that the students might produce.
As mentioned before, the test has been divided into two parts; part A and part B. Part A contained 37 items while part B contained 35 items. Most of the questions were taken from the authoritative source grammar books.
A test that would be given to the students as the data should be reliable and valid. The following were the descriptions of the reliability and the validity of the test.
a. Reliability of The Test
say, it does not give different results whenever it is tested in different period of time. Moreover, Cohen Louis, Lawrence Manion and Keith Morrison (2000: 117) gives further and clearer explanation about reliability, that reliability is a consistency over time, over instruments and over groups of respondents. Therefore, a test would be said reliable when it is tested on a similar group in a similar context then the similar results are found.
In order to see whether the test is reliable or not, the researcher used split-half procedure. The split-half procedure requires a single administration of the test. When the results of the test were gathered, the test was divided into two parts. The first half (the odd-numbered items) was labeled X and the second half (even-numbered items) was labeled Y. Then, the researcher used The Pearson product-moment coefficient formula (Sugiyono, 2010: 255) to see the reliability of the test. The formula is as follows:
Where ∑ (xy) = sum of the x times y scores ∑ (x²) = sum of the x squared scores ∑ (y²) = sum of the y squared scores
r = Pearson
r = 2r (half-test) 1 + r (half-test)
Where r = The Spearman-Brown’s coefficient of reliability r (half-test) = The Pearson’s Correlation coefficient
b. Validity of The Test
A test would be valid if the degree to which the test actually measures what it is intended to measure (Brown, 1987: 221). It meant that a valid test should be in purpose what it was intended to measure about. When a researcher would like to conduct a research about driving, therefore he or she should make test dealing with driving and not about the other topic. Since in this research, the writer decided to measure the students’ ability in mastering the use of English prepositions of place (at, in, and on), the test would be about the English prepositions of place (at, in, and on).
Later in the test, the writer would provide the Indonesian translation as the question then the students would be asked to answer the English translation. In order to see whether the Indonesian translations were valid or not, the writer consulted to two Indonesian experts, who were lecturers in Sanata Dharma University.
were content validity and construct validity. The following were the explanations of the major types of validity:
1. Content Validity
Brown (1987: 222) has stated clearly that if a test actually samples the class of situations, that is, the universe of subject matter about which conclusions are to be drawn, it is said to have content validity. Therefore, when the test was related to the theory and the subject that would be analyzed, it could be said that the test fulfilled the content validity.
2. Construct Validity
In order to know if the test is considered to be construct validity we used such question: “does this test actually tap into the theoretical construct as it has
been defined?” (Brown, 1987: 223). He said that construct validity included
proficiency, communicative competence, and self-esteem (Brown, 1987: 223). Proficiency of the test means the contents of the test were being correlated with the context itself.
C.Research Participants
The object of the research was the seventh semester students of the 2012/2013 academic year, in English Letters Department of Sanata Dharma University Yogyakarta. The seventh semester students were chosen since they were expected to have mastered the English Grammar, since the department has administered the lectures from Structure 1 up to Structure V for five semesters, therefore they were expected to master the use of English Prepositions of place (at, in, and on) specifically.
D.Data Gathering Procedure
The instrument of the research was a questionnaire, meaning to say that the writer administered a test using questionnaire towards the seventh semester students of English Letters Department of Sanata Dharma University. Since the data were too wide to be analyzed, therefore the researcher used a cluster random sampling. The data were taken by using a test or questionnaire. The types of the test would be completion items and True or False items. What was meant as a questionnaire was, according to Cohen (2000: 245) as cited from Wilson and McLean (1994), as follows:
1. Completion Items
The completion test was made to measure students’ production rather than
their recognition (Heaton, 1975: 34). The completion items were a useful means of testing the students’ ability to produce the correct grammatical or structural
form of English. In order to measure the students’ mastery in using English
preposition of place at, in and on, therefore a completion item test was needed.
2. Multiple-choice grammar items: structure recognition test
According to Lado (1961: 150), testing language at the recognition level is a relatively simple matter which can be solved satisfactorily under any of the usual conditions found in testing. In short, the recognition test was one of the basic tests which aimed to know the level of student’s comprehension of related
languages. The structure recognition test was considered to aim the writer to administer the test since this test was used to present to the students an utterance containing the structure problem and to check whether or not he or she understands (Lado, 1961: 150). The recognition test of preposition was used to see whether the students have already known how to differentiate the difference among the prepositions of place.
Table 3. 1 The Blueprint of the Distribution of the Prepositions of
In proximity to; in the vicinity or region of
5
-
4. Within the limits of; present in 4 2
5. Viewed or considered from; with an
interval of - 8, 11
6. In the direction of; in pursuit or
quest of; in reference to - 9
7. In or into contact with; upon 2 15
8. By way of, through 1 3, 5
9.
On
In contact with the upper surface of;
above and supported by - 12, 20
10. So as to be supported by, as in
suspension or the like - 10, 14.
11. To overspread, strike, touch,
without reference to elevation - 13
12. In direction or movement along - 7
16. Separated or excluded from all else;
nearly equivalent to by - 16
17. Toward, so as to enter; into, so as to
remain within - 6
If the questionnaire had been administered to the seventh semester students of English Letters Department, then the data was gathered. When the data had been collected, the writer analyzed the students’ answers to see their errors in
using the English prepositions of place (at, in, and on).
E.Data Analysis Procedure
There were two steps in answering the research problem formulation. The first step was analyzing the data in order to answer the first question. The second step was finding the possible factors of failures in using the English prepositions of place in order to answer the second question.
In order to answer the first research question in problem formulation, the writer analyzed the students’ answers and identified the failures in using English
preposition of place (at, in and on). Before they were analyzed, there were some procedures that the writer did. They were checking the students’ answers, rating the percentage of the right and the wrong answers of the students’ writings test
and the last was identifying what seemed to be the problems that caused the students’ errors. The following were the scoring criteria of the answer:
ANSWER POINT
True 1
The criteria above were meant that each preposition in the question is not changeable. The first and the second procedures were used to identify how accurate the seventh semester students of English Letters Department were in using English prepositions of place in sentences. The third procedure, which was the last step that the writer did, was used to find the problems or possible reasons that caused the students’ error in using English prepositions of place in sentences.
This step was used in order to answer the second question dealing with the problems that caused the students’ errors in using English prepositions of place.
F. Research Procedure
In doing the research, there were some steps or procedures to use. First is reviewing related theories. In this part, the writer used some theories to study as the background of the research; they were the theory of English prepositions of place (at, in and on) and the theory of Indonesian prepositions of place (di, pada, dalam, dan di atas). Besides, the writer also used the theory of interference, inter-lingual transfer and intra-inter-lingual transfer to guide the writer to see the possible problems that caused the students’ error in using the English prepositions of place
as stated previously.
The third step was conducting the research. The research was done by giving the seventh semester students of English Letters Department in 2012/2013 academic year in INTET class (Introduction to English Test) A and B. The research was conducted on September 14, 2012. The respondents were only the seventh semester students of English Letters Department. Although the test was administered to all students in those classes, the students of 2006 up to 2008 academic year were eliminated from the data population of the research.
The fourth step of the research was checking the test result. In this part, the writer tried to apply the theory of English prepositions of place to the students’ answers to find out the wrong and the right answers. The next step was analyzing the data. There were two steps in analyzing the students’ works; the first was
checking the students’ works to see their achievement in mastering English
prepositions of place, the second were dividing the wrong and the right answers in tables and identifying the most common mistakes of the use of English prepositions of place.
42 CHAPTER IV
ANALYSIS
This part contains the finding of the research and the discussion of the study. There are two parts of discussion in this chapter. The first discussion is about answering the first question in the problem formulation. It presents the students’ mastery level on the preposition of place at, in, and on that was obtained
by administering the test. The second part, which is used to answer the second question in problem formulation, presents the possible factors that cause the students’ errors in using English preposition of place at, in, and on.
A. Students’ Mastery in Using English Preposition of Place at, in, and on.
1. Data Presentation
As it is mentioned in the previous chapter, the data were obtained by administering the test to the seventh semester students of English Letters Department of Sanata Dharma University in 2012/2013 academic year. The test was administered on September 14, 2012 in class INTET A and B in which the students were the seventh semester students of English Letters Departments. The population of this research was only the seventh semester students.
The questionnaire that was used to obtain the data was divided into two parts in which consisted of 25 items overall. The first part, which was consisted of 5 items, was completion items. In this part, the students’ were asked to fill
form of translation. In this part, the students were asked to choose either a or b that corresponds to their answer. In this part, the translation method was used. The translation was from Indonesian into English. The translation was used to see the possible factors that may cause students’ error in identify the use of those
prepositions of place.
As it was stated previously, the number of the respondent was taken from two of three classes of INTET. The detailed information of the students’
achievement in using english prepositions of place (at, in, and on) as follows; a. The students’ achievement in each part of the test
Table 4. 1 shows the score of the students in Part A. The score of each students was determined by dividing the total correct number of each students by the total number of question in the Part A. The result was in range of 0-100, in which the result was multiplied by 100.
Table 4. 1 The students’ achievements in part A
It is clearly seen in Table 4. 1 that there was no students (0%) who achieved the highest range of score in range of 90 – 100 and there was no students (0%) who achieved the lowest range of score in ranga of 0 - 9. There were four students (10.3%) of the total students who achieved the highest grade score in range of 70 – 89 and there were four students as well (10.3%) who achieved the lowest grade score in range of 10 – 29. Meanwhile, there were thirteen students (33.3%) who achieved grade score in range of 50 – 69 and there were eighteen students (46.2%) who achieved grade score in range of 30 – 49. If it is shown in a chart, Chart 1. shows the students’ achievement in Part A of the test as follows:
Chart 1. The Students’ Achievements in Part A
Table 4. 2 The students’ achievements in part B
No. Range of Grade
Number of Student Achieveing the Range of
Scores
The Number of the Students in
Percentage
1 90 – 100 0 0%
2. 80 – 89 11 28.2%
3. 70 – 79 20 51,3%
4. 60 – 69 5 12.8%
5. 50 – 59 2 5.1%
6. 40 – 49 1 2.6%
7. 30 – 39 0 0%
8. 20 – 29 0 0%
9. 10 - 19 0 0%
10. 0 - 9 0 0%
one student (2.6%) who achieved the grade score in the range of 40-49. The following chart is used to see the students’ achievements in Part B:
Chart 2. The Students’ Achievements in Part B
0
b. Overall students’ achievements in the test
The following table 4. 3, shows the overall students’ achievements in the
Table 4. 3 Overall Students’ Achievements in the Test
No. Range of Scores
Number of Student Achieveing the Range of
Scores
The Number of the Students in
Percentage
1 90 – 100 0 0 %
2. 80 – 89 3 7.7 %
3. 70 – 79 12 30.8 %
4. 60 – 69 21 53.8 %
5. 50 – 59 1 2.6 %
6. 40 – 49 2 5.1 %
7. 30 – 39 0 0 %
8. 20 – 29 0 0 %
9. 10 - 19 0 0 %
10. 0 - 9 0 0 %
score in the range of 60 – 69 and there was only one student (2.6 %) who achieved score in the range of 50 – 59. It also can be seen through the following chart 3:
Chart 3. The Students’ Achievements in the Test
0
Table 4. 4 The Errors Classifications
Linguistic Category and Error Type
Total Number of Errors
Items Tested Percentage
in replaced by on 54 195 27.7%
in replaced by at 10 195 5.1 %
at replaced by on 144 468 30.8 %
at replaced by in 76 468 16.1 %
on replaced by at 35 312 11.2 %
on replaced by in 26 312 8.3 %
3. Data Analysis
The data analysis covers the analysis of the data that the writer used in order to answer the questions in problem formulation. In order to answer the first question in the problem formulation, the statistical computation was necessarily needed.
a. Reliability of the test
As mentioned in chapter III, the method to measure the reliability of the test in this research was the split-half test. The writer divided the items of the test into two parts, the first-half consisted of odd-numbers and the second-half consisted of even-numbers to count the score of the both-halves test. The writer used The Pearson-Product Moment in determining the correlation of the test. The correlation coefficient or the reliability of the half test was 0.98 (see appendix 2). In determining the reliability of the whole test, the writer used The Spearman-Brown Prophecy formula. The result of the reliability of the whole test was 0.99 (see appendix 3). This result indicates that the test has high reliability (Best, 1986: 240).
b. Descriptive analysis presentation
Since this research was meant to see the students’ mastery in using English
prepositions of place, therefore a descriptive analysis presentation was needed. The descriptive analysis covers the mean, median, range, mode and standard deviation. Those scores help the writer to determine the students’ acquisition in
Table 4. 5 The Descriptive Analysis
No. Variables Score
1 Mean 16.69
2 Median 17
3 Range 17
4 Mode 11
The above table shows the descriptive analysis of the test. In order to answer the first question in the problem formulation, the determination of the score was needed. Therefore, the writer determines the students’ mastery in using English prepositions of place at, in and on on the basis of the Academic Regulation of Sanata Dharma University 2010 (Peraturan Akademik Universitas Sanata Dharma, 2010: 27).
According to the academic regulation of Sanata Dharma University (Peraturan akademik Universitas Sanata Dharma 2010), to determine the students’ mastery in using English prepositions of place at, in, and on, there is a
category of sufficient (C). It means that the students who achieved 56% of the highest score is said to pass the test and they are included in the category of sufficient. Whereas, the students who achieved score less than 56% of the highest score are considered to be in the category of insufficient. The grade category of very good (A) and good (B) are determined by the lecturer of the related study on the basis of the distribution of the score above the minimum passing grade of 56%.
In relating the academic regulation and the research that was being done by the writer, the score category of this research was determined. The highest score of the test that students could achieve was 25. Therefore the 56% of this highest score is 14. It means that this score is the minimum passing score to be considered in the sufficient category. The students who achieved the score less then the minimum passing score above are considered to be in the insufficient category and fail the test. The following is the score category:
Score Category
22-25 Very good
18-21 Good
14-17 Sufficient
10-13 Insufficient
≤ 9 Fail
Since the mean of the students’ score was 16.69 (66.76 %), based on the
