v i o
T Papa and Mama,
xiii
TABLE OF CONTENTS
TITLE PAGE ... i
APPROVAL PAGES ... ii
DEDICATION PAGE ... iv
STATEMENT OF WORK’S ORIGINALITY ... v
PERNYATAAN PERSETUJUAN PUBLIKASI ... vi
ABSTRACT ... vii
ABSTRAK ... ix
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ... xi
TABLE OF CONTENTS ... xiii
LIST OF TABLES ... xvii
LIST OF APPENDICES ... xviii
CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION ... 1
A. Research Background ... 1
B. Research Problem ... 5
C. Problem Limitation ... 6
D. Research Objectives ... 6
E. Research Benefits ... 7
xiv
CHAPTER II: REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE ... 10
A. Theoretical Description ... 10
1. Scaffolding ... 10
a. Scaffolding as Metaphor ... 10
b. Scaffolding Defined ... 12
c. Scaffolding as a Teaching Technique ... 15
2. English Conversation Class ... 24
a. The Nature of Conversation ... 24
b. English Conversation Class in SMAN 1 Kalasan ... 25
3. The Second Grade Students of High School ... 27
B. Theoretical Framework ... 31
CHAPTER III: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ... 33
A. Research Method ... 33
B. Research Setting ... 34
C. Research Participants ... 34
D. Research Instruments and Data Gathering Technique ... 36
1. Interview ... 36
2. Observation Checklist ... 37
3. Field Notes ... 39
4. Video Recording ... 40
E. Data Analysis Technique ... 42
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2. Triangulation ... 43
F. Research Procedure ... 45
CHAPTER IV: RESEARCH FINDINGS ... 48
A. The Use of Scaffolding and Its Types in English Conversation Class 48 1. The Elements of the Activities ... 48
a. Opening ... 49
b. Getting Ready ... 49
1) Non-Verbal Warming Up Activity: Mirror Hands ... 49
2) Non-Verbal Cooling Down Activity: Breathing ... 50
3) Group Formation Activity: Mix and Mingle ... 51
c. Working from/into Scenarios and Scripts ... 52
1) One-Word Dialogues ... 52
2) Dialogue Interpretation ... 53
3) Role-Play ... 56
2. The Occurrence of Scaffolding and Its Types during the English Conversation Class ... 57
a. Offering Explanation ... 59
b. Inviting Students’ Participation ... 63
c. Verifying and Clarifying Students Understandings .... 68
d. Modeling of Desired Behaviors ... 71
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B. The Advantages of Scaffolding as a Teaching Technique ... 76
CHAPTER V: CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ... 79
A. Conclusions ... 79
B. Recommendations ... 82
1. For Other Teachers ... 82
2. For Other Researchers ... 84
REFERENCES ... 85
xvii
LIST OF TABLES
Table Page
3.1 Question for Interview ... 37
3.2 Data Gathering Techniques ... 41
xviii
LIST OF APPENDICES
APPENDIX A Statement from SMAN 1 Kalasan ... 88
APPENDIX B The Result of the Observation Checklist ... 89
APPENDIX C The Result of the Field Notes ... 91
APPENDIX D The List of Interview Questions ... 95
APPENDIX E The Result of the Interview ... 96
1
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
This first chapter consists of six parts. They are the research background, research problem, problem limitation, research objectives, research benefits, and definition of terms.
A. Research Background
Recently, active English spoken mastery is an essential requirement demanded for many purposes. Speaking English is one aspect to support best communication as well as for absorbing and developing science, technology, culture, arts and other aspects of life. Being concerned that speaking English is important for students’ future, some schools consider that English is not only taught as a main subject applied by the government, but also supported by designing an English program to endorse the English subject.
SMAN 1 Kalasan designs an English program in addition to formal
yet. Since the use of scaffolding as a teaching technique was observed to bring benefits to students’ learning process, the writer considered to conduct this study.
However, recently English teachers are challenged to deal with the fact that the world of teaching is revolutionizing. The prior concept in teaching students was transferring knowledge in one way of communication which mostly happened along the process. Teachers gave the comprehended knowledge to the students. Students’ objective was to decode the knowledge. Teachers provided them with rules and skills in order to achieve the objective. In the end of the teaching process, students had to acquire the knowledge. Yet, it was led to proficiency. However, the main idea of teaching and learning today has changed to a concept that builds students to be the primary subject of the teaching and learning process. Students are demanded to be able to actively construct their knowledge and understanding.
in the teaching-learning process. Teachers’ task is to ensure that students actively join the process while providing assistance until the students are able to perform the given tasks independently.
Since the role of teachers is still essential, teacher’s assistance during the learning process is necessary. According to Bruner, teacher’s assistance is the major component of teaching activity (as cited in Roehler and Cantlon, 1997, p. 9). The assistance that exists during students’ learning process is called scaffolding. Scaffolding as a teaching technique gives the solution for such case that challenges English conversation teachers in SMAN 1 Kalasan.
The term scaffolding is relatively new for educators, even though the notion has been applied for a long time under the other names. When people hear the word scaffolding, they directly relate it with the new buildings construction, or skyscrapers that need renovation. Therefore, the concept of scaffolding as a teaching technique is adopted from the concept of scaffolding used on construction site, which acts momentary to support a job based on the needs, and will be removed when it is no longer required.
temporary supporting process which is presented by an expert to assist learners to connect the existence space between the area that they have known and can do and the area they must achieve and accomplish so they can be successful in the learning process (p. 169).
Numerous research about scaffolding shows that scaffolding is an important tool in language teaching. In the result of their research, Roehler and Cantlon (1997) emphasize that “scaffolding is an important instructional tool because it supports students’ learning (p. 39).” Moreover, Gaskins et al. (1997) state that scaffolding assistance constructs students to internalize knowledge of content, strategies, and thinking disposition, and how to use them productively (p. 71). As a teaching technique, the writer believes that scaffolding can be implemented in teaching English conversation effectively as the technique has been implemented in the English conversation class.
According to Hartman, the ultimate goal of the educator when using scaffolding is “for the student to become an independent and self-regulating learner and problem solver” (as cited in Van Der Stuyf, 2002). Roehler and Cantlon (1997) mention that there are five types of scaffolding, namely; offering explanations, inviting students participation, verifying and clarifying student understandings, modeling of desired behaviors, and inviting students to contribute clues (pp. 16- 30).
advantages of scaffolding is that it can be applied for individual as well as for group of learning. It also can be used in the area where the range of understanding and the level of intelligences or capacities of the students exist.
Recognizing the facts, this study aims to the use of scaffolding to teach the second grade students of SMAN 1 Kalasan in English conversation class. In
conducting the study, the writer uses a set of material developed by Maley and Duff (2005) to provide suitable teaching and learning materials and activities related to the study. English conversation class is chosen to conduct this study since it is a quite new program that still needs development in the teaching learning process and since the observation had been conducted for three semesters in this class. The second grade high school students are selected because they experience the second year of learning English conversation in which they were not in the time of adapting or preparing final examination like what the first grade and the third grade students experienced. Thus, this study is undertaken in order to identify the occurrence of the five types of scaffolding proposed by Roehler and Cantlon (1997), and to investigate their functions to teach second grade students of SMAN 1 Kalasan during English conversation class.
B. Research Problem
By considering the research background above, there are three problems to be formulated:
2. When do they occur during English conversation class?
3. What are the advantages of implementing scaffolding and its types in English conversation class?
C. Problem Limitation
Referring to the problems formulated above, this study makes some limitations. This study focuses on the use of the five types of scaffolding as a teaching technique proposed by Roehler and Cantlon to teach second grade students of SMAN 1 Kalasan during English conversation class.
CLT (Communicative Language Teaching) is one method that mostly used in teaching speaking. The goal of CLT is to enable students to communicate in the target language, which shares the similarity with the goal of English conversation class. It means that the principles of CLT as a teaching method might be used during the teaching learning process. However, this study limits the discussion on the investigation of scaffolding as a teaching technique implemented in English conversation class since scaffolding teaching technique is adjustable to teach many kinds of aspects especially in language teaching, not on the method used in the teaching learning process. In this study, there will not be further discussion on the CLT in English conversation class.
D. Research Objectives
of scaffolding, to identify their occurrence during the English conversation class, and to investigate their advantages to teach second grade students of SMAN 1 Kalasan.
E. Research Benefits
By conducting this research, the writer hopes that this study brings benefits for the better development of English teaching. For being more specific, this research is aimed to yield benefits for:
1. English Teachers
The study is conducted to introduce scaffolding to teachers, especially English teachers who are willing to discover other techniques, which are fresher and more innovative. It is addressed particularly to deal with the situation and the condition of the education today which put students as primary subject in teaching learning process, instead of having the teachers as the center of the learning. This study is expected to help English teachers to understand more about scaffolding. The writer recommends scaffolding to be implemented as alternative technique in language teaching, especially English.
2. Other researchers
a guidance to conduct an in-depth study in the future and even result a better performance.
F. Definition of Terms
This study concerns with some variables. Hence, it is important to define some variables clearer in order to avoid and to prevent misunderstanding. The terms to be defined in this thesis are as follows:
1. Scaffolding
Scaffolding is a teaching technique that first proposed by Bruner. According to Wood, Bruner and Ross (1976), scaffolding is a form of assistance offered by the adults that essentially occur during a learners’ learning process (p. 199). The concept of scaffolding as teaching technique is teachers’ or adults’ assistance in teaching learning process.
In this study, the writer investigates some types of scaffolding, which are elaborated by Roehler and Cantlon (1997), and their advantages during English conversation class. According to them, there are five types of scaffolding that can be provided in the class, namely, offering explanations, inviting students participation, verifying and clarifying student understandings, modeling of desired behaviors, and inviting students to contribute clues (p. 16). The types of scaffolding will be identified during the activities occur in English conversation class.
order to carry out particular tasks. The scaffolding teaching technique can be used when another technique are being implemented. In this study, for instance, scaffolding occurs in the middle of discussion and role play. Scaffolding and its types can be distinguished from principles, as they are not only rules, but ways of assisting students’ learning. The underlying concept of scaffolding teaching technique is adults’ or teachers’ assistance.
2. English Conversation Class
English conversation class is a special program or extracurricular designed by the school board of SMAN 1 Kalasan to support English curriculum that has
been established nationally. This program aims at improving students’ spoken English in English conversation. It focuses on the practice of conversation as a part of speaking skill, instead of learning only the theory of English. Even though it is an extracurricular, every student has to attend the class since it is put inside the regular schedule along with other main subjects.
3. Second Grade of SMAN 1 Kalasan
Second grade students are the students around 16-17 years old who are in the second year of high school. According to the latest curriculum, the second grade students have taken their certain majors determined by the school, namely, science and social major. In this study, the writer selects the students of XI IPS 2 of SMAN 1Kalasan in the first semester during 2011/2012 academic year.
10 CHAPTER II
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
This chapter has two major parts to discuss, namely theoretical description
and theoretical framework. The theoretical description presents few theories
related to the study, while the theoretical framework discusses about the
guidelines that is used in conducting the study.
A. Theoretical Description
In this section, there are three main topics to discuss, namely Scaffolding,
English Conversation Class, Second Grade Students of High School. On the
discussion of scaffolding, there are three subtopics addressed. Namely,
scaffolding as metaphor, scaffolding defined, and scaffolding as a teaching
technique.
1. Scaffolding
a. Scaffolding as Metaphor
The writer is motivated to conduct this study since scaffolding as teaching
technique has not been well known among the educators. Therefore, it is
necessary to know the adoption of term scaffolding in educational field, especially
for the educators who are going to learn and apply scaffolding as a teaching
technique.
Scaffolding is not a new word for many people. They know scaffolding as
principle, the word of scaffolding is used in educational field by borrowing its
nature. The Oxford American Dictionary and Thesaurus defines scaffolding, used
on construction sites, as “a temporary structure formed of poles, planks, etc.,
erected by workers and used by them while building or repairing a house, etc.”
Scaffolding physically supports workers and it also facilitates them to move up
and down, here and there, and anywhere around the site in order to complete their
job. According to Herber and Herber (1993), scaffolding provides workers with
both a place to work and the means to reach work areas that they could not access
on their own (p. 138). Here, the principle of scaffolding that is used as a teaching
technique is the principle of assisting and supporting. Scaffolding as teaching
technique provides educators’ or adults’ assistance and support to learners in the
area that they cannot reach by themselves when they are completing the given
tasks.
When it is seen from the outside of the building, scaffolding looks like an
external skeleton erected surrounds the building, even though it has nothing to do
with supporting its weight. The nature of scaffolding is temporary, which is
designed to disassemble quickly according to the needs. It can be stretched higher
or dropped lower, spread north or retreated west. When the job has done and it is
no longer required, scaffolding is taken apart and removed, as its nature is
physically momentary. Although a temporary structure, it can be used again on
the next job. Significantly, scaffolding is attached to the building, not the workers
(Axford, 2009). In teaching and learning process, scaffolding also shares the
learning process. Similar with the use in construction site, scaffolding will be
reduced gradually or removed when the learners no longer need the assistance
because they can do the task independently.
McKenzie gives another example of scaffolding as a physic structure in a
deep metaphor, “the workers cleaning the face of the Washington Monument do
not confuse the scaffolding with the monument itself. The scaffolding is
secondary. The building is primary.” The concept of scaffolding is adopted as a
metaphor. It has meaning that scaffolding is addressed secondary, while the
learners are the primary in the teaching learning process.
b. Scaffolding Defined
After knowing scaffolding as a metaphor, it is important to know the
definition of scaffolding as a teaching technique since scaffolding is the main
topic to discuss in this study. According to Bruner (2006), the nature of tutorial
process is “the means whereby an adult or ‘expert’ helps somebody who is less
adult or less expert” (p. 198). The statement explains that teaching learning
process happens when someone or adult who is more knowledgeable and skillful
is present to assist somebody who is less knowledgeable and less skillful. It can
happen anywhere and anytime where there is a process of teaching and learning
happens, both formal and informal. What comes to teaching and learning process
is a problem to be solved. The function of tutoring itself then directs to an effort
of problem solving. The issue of problem solving in achieving skill acquisition is
preconditioned by an assumption that a learner is unassisted. In this condition, the
modeling or imitation. Wood, Bruner, and Ross emphasize the statement that is
stated:
“Discussion of problem solving or skill acquisition are usually premised on the assumption that the learner is alone and unassisted. If the social context is taken into account, it is usually treated as an instance of modeling and imitation. But the intervention of a tutor may involve much more than this” (199).
According to them, in learning situation, more often than not, it involves a
kind of scaffolding process that support a learner to solve a problem, carry out a
task or achieve a goal which would be more effective than his unassisted efforts.
The concept of the study is brought into the use of the term of scaffolding in
educational field that was introduced for the first time. The scaffolding “consists
essentially of the adult ‘controlling’ those elements of the task that are initially
beyond the learner’s capacity, thus permitting him to concentrate upon and
complete only those elements that are within his range of competence” (p. 199).
By using scaffolding in the process, they believe that it can bring much more
benefit for the learners than undertaking a complete assistance of the task. Thus,
the goal is to be successful. “The task thus proceeds to a successful conclusion.
We assume, however, that the process can potentially achieve much more
eventually, in development of task competence by the learner at a pace that would
far outstrip his unassisted efforts” (p. 199).
The term of scaffolding as a technique in educational field has not been
popular enough in the group of teachers, but some academic researchers have
studied it for years, including Graves and Braaten. They define scaffolding as the
associate the existence space between the area that they have known and can do
and the area they must achieve and accomplish so that they can be successful in
the learning process. It means to relate the previous learning with the new
information that the learners get during the learning process, to bring them to
succeed in obtaining the goal of the learning process.
Gaskins, et al. also support the idea of scaffolding for education field.
According to Rogoff, in relation with the intelligent behavior, scaffolding refers to
supportive situations where adults help children or learners extending their current
skills and knowledge to a higher level of competence (as cited in Gaskins, et al.,
1997, 45). Gaskins, et al. (1997) quoted the significance of scaffolding by Pearson
and Fielding that, in school setting, scaffolding is whatever teachers say or do to
enable children to complete the tasks they could not complete without assistance
(p. 45). Scaffolding is employed not only to encourage the development of
contents and strategies, but also to help students modify aspects of their personal
style that interfere within the learning (p. 63). Ideally, scaffolding should take
place in a friendly, lively, and enjoyable atmosphere and also collaborative
environment where children feel free and motivated to contribute ideas. It is
because they are accepted as worthy consideration and their understandings are
frequently assessed. The situation, where there is an adult assistance, gives an
opportunity for children to internalize knowledge of content, strategies, and
dispositions. It is expected that in the future, they will use this knowledge to guide
support must be gradually shifted and the learner should take on more
responsibility for completing the task (p. 45-6). Gaskins, et al. conclude that:
scaffolding means explaining, demonstrating, and jointly constructing an idealized version of a performance. Scaffolding includes recruiting the student’s interest, reducing the number of steps so the task is manageable, maintaining students’ persistence toward the goal, making critical features evident, and controlling frustration and risk (p. 47).
Above all, Riley (2011) states in his book that, “the scaffold is the
potentiality of each individual to act and react” to a guidance, guided by “those
who have been entrusted with their care, because they cannot do it on their own.”
Scaffolding is provided assistance in order to bring out learners’ potentiality to
respond to it because they cannot complete the task by their own. He also supports
that the term of scaffolding in an educational field is a useful and appropriate term
since “it is a solid and yet transitory structure, semi permanent, rather than fixed,
changeable with will be unlike a foundation, able to be modified without
destroying the structure itself” (p. 21). He gives an understanding that scaffolding
is not the same with building a foundation on students since a foundation is a
permanent structure that becomes a base before going further to the next process
of learning. Scaffolding can be modified, based on the condition and the situation
happen around the students and along the process of learning. Scaffolding is
flexible by following the happening moment and it will not destroy the structure.
On the other hand, scaffolding will develop the base.
c. Scaffolding as a Teaching Technique
Sometimes students find difficulties in completing their tasks by their own.
mastering some skills in a collaboratively way. This idea becomes the strategy of
scaffolding. According to Herber and Herber, as quoted by Lange (1993), there
are processes to be applied in the use of scaffolding. The instructor (to call
someone who assists a student or students in their learning) initially comes with
extensive instructional support. The instructor then continues with some
assistance in building students’ understanding of new content and process. When
these processes have been done, the instructor is no longer assisting the students
since they internalize the content and the process and later they are assumed to
have full responsibility for controlling the progress of a given task. It means that
the instructor has removed the temporary scaffolding and shifts to build the
permanent structure of students understanding (pp. 138-9).
Turnbull et al. shares the similar idea with Herber and Herber in relation to
scaffolding processes. According to Turnbull et al., scaffolding involves two
major steps. The first step is the instructional plans to lead the students to
associate the knowledge they have already known and possessed with the new
material in order to acquire deeper understanding. Thus, they can perform the
progress of the learning process in the future. The second step is the fulfillment of
instructor presenting support for the students while completing every step to be
taken in the learning process (as cited in Lange, 1999).
The significance of scaffolding is the adult’s direct contribution in
assisting and monitoring students learning process. Teachers or instructors must
provide all information that students need to complete given tasks in order to
direction of the students’ attention, and watch the sequence of students’ activities.
These are necessary in order to perform students’ ability within the scaffolded
teaching environment. Jones states that “gradually, with scaffolding, children are
able to direct their own attention, plan, and control their activities” (as cited in
Henry).
According to Roehler and Cantlon (1997), there are five different types of
scaffolding, yielded from the research they had established. They are (pp. 16-7):
1) Offering explanations
The first type of scaffolding consists of explanations. To contribute the
scaffolding in teaching learning process, the teacher provides detail and explicit
explanations to the students about the knowledge they are learning, the purpose of
the learning, when they can apply the knowledge, and also the application of the
knowledge. It is to prepare the students to go further and deeper to the material
they will learn.
Explanations are explicit statements adjusted to fit the learners’ emerging scaffoldings about what is being learned (declarative or prepositional knowledge), why and when it is used (conditional or situational knowledge), and how it is used (procedural knowledge) (p. 17).
2) Inviting students participation
The second element of scaffolding that teacher can use in the classroom is
inviting students participation. Through this type of scaffolding, teacher can
explicitly or implicitly allow the students to be involved in the process of
learning. To accommodate the students to feel invited, teacher firstly gives them
task. Being given the activity, students are provided a time to comprehend the
knowledge.
In this type of scaffolding, learners were given opportunities to join in the process that was occurring. After the teacher provided illustrations of some of the thinking, feelings, or actions that were needed to complete the task, the learners had opportunities to fill the pieces they knew and understood.
3) Verifying and clarifying student understandings
This type of scaffolding is also the important element to apply. Teacher
has to check the students’ understanding that appears when the learning process is
in progress. There is a condition when students present their understandings and it
seems to be reasonable. Teacher’s duty is to confirm that their thoughts are
acceptable. If students say their understanding but it seems unreasonable, the
teacher can clarify their responses.
Teachers checked the students’ emerging understandings. If the emerging understandings were reasonable, the teacher verified the students’ responses. If the emerging understandings were not reasonable, the teacher offered clarification.
4) Modeling of desired behaviors
Duffy, Roehler, and Hartman state that “modeling was defined as a
teaching behavior that showed how one should feel, think, or act within a given
situation” (as cited in Roehler and Cantlon, 1997, p. 20). A teacher is the role
model that teaches the students such required behavior. Later on, students are
expected to follow, imitate, and process the feeling, thought, and action like what
they are modeled. The teacher demonstrates how to make a process of thinking
aloud in order to accomplish the task. Hereby, the students are given such model
The modeling, based on Roehler and Cantlon analysis, are broken down
into two main functions. The first function is called making thinking visible,
including thinking aloud. It occurs when the teacher models how to think
sequentially to construct own understanding. The students follow the same way in
order to attempt to solve an issue. Indeed, this process is difficult since it can be
obtained usually after a number of students contribute clues. The second type of
modeling is found as question and comment generation. It can be categorized as
talk-aloud modeling.
5) Inviting students to contribute clues
In the learning process, the teacher should give students motivation and
stimulation to contribute clues when completing the task given. When few
students can take part in contributing clues, the teacher can help them interpreting
their opinion and verbalizing them. While the process is taking place, the teacher
encourages the students to say aloud about what clue they are trying to reveal.
The fifth type of scaffolding was one in which several students contributed clues for reasoning through the issue or problem. In this form of scaffolding, learners were encouraged to offer clues about how to complete the task. Together, the teachers and students verbalized the process (27).
Having learned the types of scaffolding, the writer hereby managed a
study to identify the occurrence of those five types of scaffolding and figure out
what functions are obtained from the use of scaffolding during the English
conversation class best fitted. This theory is used to seek the answer of the first
According to Henry (2002), scaffolding is not an isolated teaching
technique. Instead, teacher should employ scaffolding technique by increasing the
difficulty constantly. In other words, scaffolding should be rotated in the use.
Nevertheless, student centered is the majority of the instruction, yet, the presence
of the teacher to support the students is essential.
According to Bransford, Brown, and Cooking (2000), the scaffolding
provided in learning process exists for kind of activities and tasks that:
1) Motivate or enlist the child’s interest related to the task
2) Simplify the task to make it more manageable and achievable for a child
3) Provide some direction in order to help the child focus on achieving the goal
4) Clearly indicate difference between the child’s work and the standard or
desired solution
5) Reduce frustration and risk
6) Model and clearly define the expectations of the activity to be performed
Van Der Stuyf quotes Hartman’s statement that scaffolding in the
educational setting may include models, cues, prompts, hints, partial solutions,
think-aloud modeling and direct instruction. A teacher can also use a problem and
complete a task. The teacher will get various responds from the students after
giving questions. The correct answers must be expected, but the fact is, the
answer can always be wrong. Therefore, the teacher can increase the level of
questioning or specificity until the students are able to provide a correct response.
This kind of scaffolding is presented in the following example. According to
“… if you receive no response or an incorrect response after asking the question, ‘How do we change lady to ladies?’ you should proceed with a more intrusive verbal prompt, ‘What is the rule?’ to remind the student that there is a rule. If necessary, continue with, ‘What do we do when a word ends in y to make it plural?’ to give the student a part of the rule.”
When the teacher observes that the students’ comprehension have evolved,
the amount of questions should be decreased step by step until students can do the
task independently without prompting.
As the consequences of following scaffolding technique, a teacher can
have their students working collaboratively. It means that students do their task
within their groups as well as individually, but still with teachers’ assistance.
Hartman states that, “this can serve as a step in the process of decreasing the
scaffolds provided by the educator and needed by students” (as cited in Van Der
Stuyf, 2002).
According to McKenzie (2000), there are eight characteristics of
scaffolding:
1) Provide clear directions
A teacher provides step-by-step instructions that give clear explanation
about what students must do to complete their task and to reach the goal. It is
done in order to avoid problems or misunderstanding that students might
encounter during the learning process. Through scaffolding, teachers reduce
students’ confusion. Avoiding the confusion can support the effort to achieve
2) Clarify purpose
A teacher explains the learning purpose and keeps students’ motivation
during the lesson. By using scaffolding, the teacher helps students to understand
the meaning and the worth of the lesson. Students are led to consider about why
they are doing the work and why it is important. With understanding the purpose
of the lesson clearly, the students can be motivated to do the process as they keep
in mind about where they will go and what they will achieve.
3) Keep students on task
According to McKenzie (2000), scaffolding is “somewhat like the guard
rail of a mountain highway.” Scaffolding provides pathway for the learners to
keep on track. When the teacher provides clear directions, they are more than just
directions, but also structure and guidance, which provide steps to keep students
on the designated task. There will be more than one step to choose, but students
will not be lost because they are controlled while the activities are in progress.
Along the process of the scaffolding, the presence of the teacher is essential to
guide the students, until there is a right time to let students learn without the
teacher assistance, but the teacher keep watching them ever since.
4) Offer assessment to clarify expectations
Assessment is one important aspect in teaching learning process. From the
very beginning, the teacher has given examples of work quality done by others.
The examples given are the way the teacher offers the assessment. The teacher
shows standards that define expectations. Students accept the standards so they
clarified. In the end of the teaching learning process, the expectations are fulfilled
by students, as well as by the teacher.
5) Point students to worthy sources
In order to complete a task, a teacher provides sources to avoid students
from being confused and frustrated. The sources are also useful to shorten the
time in carrying out the task given. Provided by sources, students are about to
decide which sources they will use.
6) Reduce uncertainty, surprise and disappointment
A teacher examines every step taken by students during the lesson to see
what possibly goes wrong. It is to reduce frustrations within students so the
learning process can be effective and efficient. Then, the teacher refines the lesson
to eliminate the difficulties that might happen. The teacher hereby watches the
students to carry out the activities, in which they gain new insights of what they
have carried out.
7) Deliver efficiency
Since scaffolding used in the lesson shows focus, clarity, and time on task,
scaffolding offers efficiency because students are channeled to their task in such
good ways. “Scaffolding lesson still require hard work, but the work is so
well-centered on the inquiry”. Scaffolding encourages students to create work effort in
order to do tasks and activities given in the class.
8) Create momentum
“The channeling achieved through scaffolding concentrates and directs
are provoked and inspired to have thoughts in their mind and to accumulate
insight and understanding.
2. English Conversation Class
Since this study is conducted in English conversation class, the
understanding of its aspects is important in order to understand deeper the
purposes of why this class or program is held.
a. The Nature of Conversation
From its name, the primary aspect to concern is conversation.
Conversation has its own characteristics. First, according to Hymes, conversation
is “a type of speech event” (as cited in Richards, 1980, p. 14) which is different
from lectures, interviews and courtroom trials. Richards (1980) points out that
conversation involves cooperative construction which based on contributions,
assumptions, expectations, and interpretations of the participants’ utterances (p.
414). Therefore, conversation, according to Nunan (1999), becomes negotiated
and self-regulated process (226). Thornbury and Slade (2006) state that
conversation is fragmented and constructed through short, frequent turns that
consist of phrases and clauses (p. 13). The varying levels existing among the
students tend to inhibit conversational flow in English conversation class.
Second, according to Dornyei and Thurrell (1992), conversation is
characterized as a cooperative discourse that is managed by interactive rules and
routines (p. 3). It means that there are turn-taking mechanisms which exist in
conversation and are done frequently. Third, Thornbury and Slade (2006) affirm
social element such as, mutual relationship and agreement, phatic language, the
maintaining and modification of social identity, and the involvement of
interpersonal skills (p. 17). This social element is expressed through wishes,
feelings, attitudes opinions and judgments, which will influence the formal nature
of the classroom when teaching English conversation. As stated by McLuham,
conversation is also multi-sensory (as cited in Cane, 1998, p. 32). It consists of
features which influence the conversational flow, such as eye contact, facial
expressions, body language, tempo, pauses, voice quality changes, and pitch
variation. There is also culture that seems to integrate in the construction of
conversation and will affect the way English conversation is taught and learned.
According to Nunan (1999), conversation is a way to communicate
verbally for interactional and transactional purposes (p. 228). Interactional
language is purposed to use in social interaction, while transactional language is
for service encounters like ordering food or buying tickets. Conversation is also
used to do some speech acts or speech functions, such as apologizing, promising,
and inviting. Another function of conversation is to remark relationships, which
suspend social distance, status, and power as stated in Richards and Sukwiwat
(1983, p. 117). These functions must be present in English conversation class.
b. English Conversation Class in SMAN 1 Kalasan
Related to this study, English conversation class is an extracurricular held
by SMAN 1 Kalasan. English conversation is a special program that aims to effectively improve students’ spoken English in conversation. Through English
English confidently and rapidly. The teachers are demanded to create materials
and activities that suitable to meet the needs of the students.
In order to come up with the answers, a study was conducted. The
teaching-learning process was conducted on learning English conversation in the
classroom within some literacy activities, namely, reading, writing, listening, and
speaking, with the topic of drama. The material used in the teaching learning
process is suggested by Maley and Duff (2005). They state that drama can
integrate both verbal and non-verbal communication and it can make the
classroom situation alive (p. 1). Moreover, Maley and Duff suggest techniques
and activities that will be substantially useful to the development of students’
language ability, especially English spoken ability. The essential part that teachers
can take is that teachers do not need to be a trained drama expert to introduce and
offer the whole drama materials. Teachers need to be convinced when doing the
activities so the students will not sense any nervousness. Teachers can be the key
to the success of the activities (p. 4).
To create and build students’ eagerness in order to start the new topic, the
writer led the students to do some preparation. It was a warming-up activity,
which was done within a pair for getting ready to the main activity. It was done
for more or less ten minutes or whenever the teacher felt enough. After the
warming-up activity was finished, the teaching-learning process was started. The
first teaching-learning experience was initiated through a discussion in which the
students were encouraged to be involved in a brainstorming session about their
motivated to contribute and speak up their ideas about words and elements they
already know, in relation to drama. It was to prepare and direct students’
enthusiasm to go to the topic, which was about drama. Along this activity, the
investigation of the occurrence of scaffolding and its types had been started. After
the introduction about the topic was done, the students were going to the next
activity, which was called working from scenarios or scripts, as suggested by
Maley and Duff (2005, p 207- 208). The students worked in pairs. Each pair was
given a same short dialogue that was a part of scenario or scripts. They were
asked to interpret the same short dialogue. The determined scripts were the words
to be spoken, and the students were given the opportunity and time to think about
the detailed description of the characters and the way they moved and spoke, and
even the setting that might happen, according to the given scripts. With the same
dialogue given to all of the students on each time, each pair would have their own
interpretations, event though they were circumscribed by the script. Along this
activity, the teacher provided her support and assistance whenever the students
needed it. In the end, the students were going to perform the short dialogues in
front of the class. There were various stories that were performed, as the results of
their own interpretations.
3. The Second Grade Students of High School
In this study, the writer took second grade students of SMAN 1 Kalasan to
be the participants. Hence, it is important to understand about the second grade
high school students’ characteristics as human beings and as learners. According
adolescence. This period of life is generally considered to run from age ten to age
twenty-five. This period is said to be a time of “storm and stress” (as cited by
Eccles, 2002, p. 8). Adolescence is a time when an individual faces significant
change on many levels of human being. This includes the change of the shape of
the body, the increasing of hormones, and the change in brain architecture. Since
the study focused on the second grade students of senior high school, it is
important to recognize their characteristics.
Adolescence is a period when individuals start making choices in life and
involving in developed behaviors as they can influence their future lives. For
instances, adolescents decide where high school to go, which courses to take,
which major to choose, which after-school activities to participate in, and which
groups to join. These are in line with their plans to prepare their future education
and occupation.
Erikson explains that the key challenges for the adolescence period of life
are developing a sense of mastery, a sense of identity, and a sense of intimacy (as
cited in Eccles, 2002, p. 8). Furthermore, Eccles hypothesizes these challenges
into more specific tasks:
“(1) changing the nature of the relationship between youth and their parents so that the youth can take on a more ‘‘mature’’ role in the social fabric of their community; (2) exploring changing social-sexual roles and identities; (3) transforming peer relationships into deeper friendships and intimate partnerships; (4) exploring personal and social identities; (5) focusing some of this identity work on making future life plans; (6) and participating in a series of experiences and choices that facilitate future economic independence or interdependence” (p. 8).
Change in cognition is one specific change that happens during
well as it is real. They are able to engage in more complex and elaborate
information and strategies, consider multiple problems all at once, and think on
one’s self and on complicated problems. It is found that in their time, adolescents
are going on a stable increase in learning strategies, knowledge of various topics
and subject areas, the ability to apply their base or prior knowledge to the new
situations of learning, and being aware of their strengths as well as their
weaknesses as learners.
Considering the special characteristics of adolescents, the writer believed
that the second grade students of high school are able to achieve the material and
activities provided because they can evolve by connecting their prior knowledge
with the new learning. The students of this age could process and increase
learning strategies, therefore, they could encounter the implementation of
scaffolding in English conversation class. Recognizing the characteristics of
students of their age also helps to determine and to design the suitable materials
and activities to best meet the learning objectives in English conversation class.
Many theories say that the adolescence period is a transition from child to
more mature person, called as adolescent. As adolescent, he or she is in the
process of finding his or her self-concept, starting to think about future life, and
understanding others. In relation to future life, in this time, adolescents consider
being focus in life planning issues, which connected to educational, occupational,
recreational, and marital options (p. 9). Based on those facts, the writer hopes that
determined for the English conversation class. They could process in mind that
every attempt to learn would bring benefit to their life.
In fact, the second grade students of SMAN 1 Kalasan reflected several
characteristics that are described by Erikson (as cited in Eccles, 2002, pp. 8-9).
They were in the period where they were changing their behaviors from children
to be adults. Here, the writer observed that most students in this year were trying
to build their characters to get a self-image. Several behaviors were following the
process of characters building, such as, such behaviors that show about them
being creative, whether being passionate or even ignoring learning, being
sensitive about surroundings, showing desire of some aspects of life, looking for
more attention, and wanting to be acknowledged. Hence, the teacher’s
contribution played an important role to support their characters building. They
preferred to build friend relationship with their teachers. Teachers whom they
thought knowing much about ‘teenage world’ would be more acceptable. It would
be useful to influence the learning atmosphere in class.
Since SMAN 1 Kalasan is well known as one of favorite public schools in
Sleman, they make high standard for the students especially in academic and
non-academic field. The students are demanded to fulfill and achieve the set standards.
They are demanded to work harder to get a good achievement in academic and
non-academic field. The writer noticed that sometimes that high expectation
coming from the school pressed students. Having tight schedule and the
expectation to get a good achievement, sometimes some students started to
benefits to their final score. One of things they considered unimportant was
related to some extracurricular subjects, such as English conversation class. Since
English conversation class was an extracurricular subject, score they got from this
class would not affect their final score reported every semester. Some students
who ignored the important goal of English conversation class did not take this
lesson seriously. It showed that sometimes students assumed that the score was
everything. The process of absorbing knowledge was forgotten. This fact
challenged the English conversation class teachers to provide suitable techniques,
tasks, and activities that could help students to understand the importance of
learning.
B. Theoretical Framework
In this study, there are three problems to be formulated. In order to answer
the first research problem, which is proposed to address the types of scaffolding
teaching techniques, the writer uses the theory from Roehler and Cantlon (1997).
They propose five types of scaffolding, namely, offering explanations, inviting
students participation, verifying and clarifying student understandings, modeling
of desired behaviors, and inviting students to contribute clues (p. 16).
After knowing and understanding the five types of scaffolding, the study is
continued to seek the answer of the second research problem, which is formulated
to identify the occurrence of the five types of scaffolding during the English
conversation class. In order to answer the second research problem, the writer
scaffolding and its five types are useful to understand the scaffolding teaching
technique. In this study, the five types of scaffolding were used as teaching
technique to teach second grade students of SMAN 1 Kalasan. Scaffolding, which
was first promoted by Bruner, is defined as the temporary supporting process that
is presented by an expert to assist learners to associate the existence space
between the area that they have known and can do and the area they must achieve
and accomplish so that they can be successful in the learning process. The
understanding of scaffolding and its five types, proposed by Roehler and Cantlon,
is useful to recognize each types that occurs in English conversation class. After
recognizing each type, the writer can identify when the types of scaffolding occur
during the teaching learning process. To identify the scaffolding occurrence, the
one essential aspect to consider is teacher support as the concept of scaffolding.
The theory of second grade students of high school helps the writer to
consider about what way of teaching is best implemented in teaching students
who are in the period of adolescence. According to Erikson (2002), second grade
students of senior high school are in the period of adolescence. This period of life
is generally considered to run from age ten to age twenty-five. It is said to be a
time of “storm and stress” (as cited by Eccles, p. 8). The theory is considered as
the supporting theory. This theory is also applied in considering the material and
activities that suitable with the students’ needs. Thus, students are interested,
which are good to boost their passion and motivation in the learning process. The
materials and activities are prepared. They are designed by Maley and Duff
33 CHAPTER III
METHODOLOGY
This chapter presents the methodology used in conducting the research.
The methodology covers research method, research setting, research participants,
instruments and data gathering technique, data analysis technique, and research
procedure.
A. Research Method
The study was conducted by employing qualitative descriptive research. It
was due to the reason that this study allowed the writer to observe a phenomenon
naturally in a particular setting. According to Fraenkel, Wallen, and Hyun (2012),
“Research studies that investigate the quality of relationships, activities, situations,
or materials are frequently referred to as qualitative research” (p. 426). It is
qualitative research since this study did not use any statistical data. It is
descriptive research because this study discussed “what goes on in a particular
activity or situation” (p. 426). To be exact, this study was conducted to investigate
the use of scaffolding technique during the process of English conversation class
to seek the answers of the advantages of implementing scaffolding and its types in
English conversation class.
When the study was accomplished, it was presented in a descriptive
explanation. Ary, et al. (1990) state that “descriptive research is designed to obtain
determine the nature of a situation, as it exists at the time of the study which has a
purpose to tell what it is” (p. 381). Fraenkel, Wallen, and Hyun (2012) state that
the data in qualitative research are gathered from interview, transcripts, field
notes, photographs, audio recordings, videotapes, diaries, personal comments,
memos, official records, textbook passages, and anything else that can support
people’s action and utterances (p. 427). Meanwhile, the data of this study were
gathered from interviews, observation checklist, field notes and video recording.
The writer analyzed the data into descriptions in which it presented the sequence
of the process, the activities and the results, in a form of paragraphs.
B. Research Setting
The research was conducted in SMAN 1 Kalasan, Yogyakarta in XI IPS 2
class. The research was conducted during the English conversation class. The
allocation time of this lesson was one hundred minutes. The research was
conducted on November 4, 2011 since the materials and activities were
accomplished in one meeting.
C. Research Participants
The participants were the subjects who took part in the research.
Therefore, the writer had decided to have the English conversation teacher and
second grade students of SMAN 1 Kalasan to be the participants. The participants
consisted of the teacher and the students from XI IPS 2 in the first semester of
directly the materials in classes where the study was conducted. Meanwhile, the
participants of XI IPS 2 consisted of twenty-seven students who attended the
English conversation class on November 4, 2011. The second grade students were
chosen to be the participants since they were not in the condition of adapting the
new environment like what the first grade students experienced, and they were not
busy preparing the final examination like what the third grade students did.
Since this study employed qualitative research, the sample that becomes
the subject of the study was purposive sample. According to Fraenkel, Wallen,
and Hyun (2012), the sample in purposive sampling is selected based on personal
judgment of the researcher. The researcher is assumed to have worth knowledge
that conveys whether or not the selected sample will be the representative of the
study (p. 100). In this study, second grade high school students were selected to
be the subject of this study since they experienced the second year of attending
English conversation class. It means that English conversation class was not a
new program for them in which they had more experience about the teaching
learning process that occur in this class. XI IPS 2 students were specifically
selected to be the participants of this study because they were assumed to
represent the characteristics of second grade high school students. Moreover, they
showed the condition where there was different level of intelligences,
understanding, and motivation among the students seemed in the learning process
of English conversation. In this condition, scaffolding and its types could take a
role. Therefore, the writer expected that scaffolding and its types that occur in the
D. Research Instruments and Data Gathering Techniques
To conduct a study, instruments are needed so the study will be easily
managed and the information or the data will be obtained and well organized.
There were four types of instruments used in this study, namely interview,
observation checklist, field notes, and video recording.
1. Interview
The writer applied interview as the first instrument. Ary, et al. (1990)
states that interview is a flexible instrument in conducting research because the
interviewer can observe the subject as well as the whole situation where he or she
can respond directly (p. 418). By interviewing, the writer is able to avoid
misinterpretation. If there is an unclear question, the interviewer is able to explain
it again to the interviewee. There are two types of questions in the interview,
namely open-ended and closed questions (p. 418). In the open-ended questions,
the interviewee is free to provide answers. Whereas, closed questions limit the
interviewee since the answers or the alternatives are already provided to choose.
According to Hopkins (2008), the uses of interview are to focus on a
specific aspect of teaching, and to provide general diagnostic information (p. 112).
In this study, open-ended interview was employed to obtain information about the
occurrence of scaffolding and its types proposed by Roehler and Cantlon (1997).
This was essential to determine if the scaffolding can be the appropriate technique
in teaching English conversation class and presented their functions in the
In this study, the writer used guided-interview. It means that the questions
had been prepared before so the interviews would go effectively and could be
focused to the expected answers. The writer asked three students to be
interviewed. The interview conducted right after the class was over. Those three
students were chosen randomly among twenty-seven students. Based on the result
of the interview, the students’ opinions were representative because those three
students showed that they did well during the activities in class just the way most
of their friends did. The conclusion was drawn since the writer and partner’s who
acted as the observer shared the same opinion that the atmosphere built during the
process was positive. It means that most of the students played their role actively
when carrying out the activities and given tasks. The questions would be
presented in the following table:
Table 3.1 Questions for Interview
No. Questions Data Obtained
1. Did you feel enthusiastic in doing all activities and in
completing the given tasks? Why? The advantages of
implementing scaffolding and
its types (research problem no.
3)
2. How far did you feel assisted/supported by the teacher
in carrying out the tasks today?
3. How far did you feel actively involved in carrying out
the tasks today?
2. Observation Checklist
The writer also employed observation checklist that was given to the
teacher assistant in the meeting (see Appendix B). Since there were always two
presence of the teacher assistant as an observer was no longer a matter for the
students. Hence, the natural process of the observation could be kept along the
activities. The observation checklist was done to minimize the subjectivity
resulted from the writer’s point of view in interpreting the data later. Checklist
was provided when the study was conducted in classroom. According to Hopkins
(2008), checklist should give the information that the researcher needed (p. 87).
Checklist could be the effective way of monitoring. Besides, it did not make
students feel inhibited when being observed. They could act as natural as possible
when the observation was taking place.
In this study, the writer had prepared the observation in the form of list
presented in the table (see Appendix B). The observation checklist gave several
technical variables related to scaffolding teaching technique that the writer did
when she was teaching. Those technical variables were categorized into five types
of scaffolding proposed by Roehler and Cantlon (1997). The observer was to
check in the available column the variable occurred during the observation. The
writer’s partner observed while the writer was teaching. It was done so because it
was difficult to teach and do the observation at the same time. This technique was
used in order to get another’s perspective about the activities, instead of the
writer’s, to avoid a bias and to reduce subjectivity. The observation was
conducted during the teaching learning process, in order to identify teacher’s
teaching technique related with the types of scaffolding technique and their
occurrences, and students’ reaction and behavior during the teaching-learning
3. Field Notes
In this study, field notes were employed to collect and record the data
during the teaching learning activities, in a form of descriptive and reflective
written (see Appendix C). It is to say that field notes were written to verbalize the
result of the observation and what happened during the teaching learning process
in the classroom. Thus, field notes should be made as soon as possible so what
had been recorded was still fresh in mind. The successful study relied on detailed,
accurate and extensive field notes.
According to Ary (2002), field notes have two components, namely the
descriptive part and the reflective part (p. 431). The descriptive part included the
description of setting, participants and their reactions, and accounts of events. On
the other hand, the reflective part included the observer’s personal feelings or
impressions of the events, and speculations about the data analysis.
Hopkins (2008) lists four uses of field notes in classroom research, they
are: 1) focusing on a particular issue or teaching behavior over a period of time, 2)
reflecting general impressions of the classroom and its climate, 3) providing a
constant description of students that are responsive to interpretation and use in
case study, 4) recording the development of the teacher (p. 105).
In this study, the writer took the notes directly after the study was
conducted. Field notes referred to descriptive part and reflective part. In the
description part, the writer described the setting of the research, the participants
and their responses, and the events and occurrences during the English
