TEACHING WRITING DESCRIPTIVE TEXT BY COMBINING BIOPOEM STRATEGY AND SENTENCE COMBINING STRATEGY
AT JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL
Oleh:
Revi Yuharman *)
**) Syayid Sandi Sukandi, S.S., M.A. Staff Pengajar Program Studi Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris STKIP PGRI Sumatera Barat
ABSTRAK
Salah satu strategi yang dapat dipilih oleh guru dalam mengajar teks deskriptif dengan efektif yaitu kombinasi Biopoem Strategy dan Sentence Combining Strategy. Dalam penerapannya guru menjelaskan kepada siswa definisi dan struktur kebahasaan dari teks deskriptif. Selanjutnya, guru memberitahu siswa bahwa mereka akan membuat tulisan mengenai seseorang dengan menggunakan pola Biopoem. Kemudian, guru menjelaskan dan mencontohkan cara menulis Biopoem. Guru menyiapkan kertas strips kemudian menempalkannya di papan tulis. Guru membagi siswa kedalam beberapa kelompok, tiap-tiap kelompok akan menulis di kertas strips sesuai dengan baris yang mereka dapatkan. Guru meminta siswa untuk membaca dengan lantang tulisan pada baris yang telah mereka buat. Jika ada kesalahan tulisan, guru akan membantu mereka untuk memperbaikinya.
Selanjutnya, siswa diminta untuk membuat Biopoem secara individu. Biopoem tersebut dapat mengenai diri mereka sendiri atau pun orang lain yang mereka kenal. Selanjutnya, hasil tulisan tersebut akan di gabung seperti instruksi dalam Sentence Combining Strategy. Melalui Sentence Combining Strategy siswa akan membuat sebuah teks deskriptif dengan lengkap. Dalam kegiatan ini, guru harus memantau dengan baik kegitan siswa dalam menulis. Sehingga, tujuan dari penerapan strategy ini akan tercapai dengan optimal.
Kata Kunci: Teaching Writing, Descriptive Text, Biopoem Strategy, Sentence Combining Strategy
*) Penulis
**) Pembimbing
INTRODUCTION
Teaching writing is not such an easy way to do by English teacher in classroom. Nowadays, English teachers understood that there are some considerations that should be watched carefully in teaching writing. Teacher should invite students to write as much as possible. Teacher should provide a special time to make sure that students can write down a good sentence or text. It is useful to support and to give attention related to the students‟ works.
Teacher should motivate the students to increase their ability in writing. Teacher should make the students believe that writing is easy to do if they can enjoy the process of writing. Last, teacher should make the students can get the standard of proficiency of writing related to the curriculum goals.
Related to the previous explanations, there are some ideas about what should to do by English teachers in teaching writing. On the other hand, based on the observation that researcher did at Senior High School, the writer found that the teacher did not use a specific strategy in teaching writing. Especially in teaching descriptive text for students. The teacher just asks the students to write a descriptive text. Then, after the students finished their writing, the teacher invites students to submit their works to be scored. These activities shows that the teachers are prefer to see and assess the result of students‟ work rather that seeing and assessing the students‟ process in writing activities.
Actually, as well known that writing is a process. It means that teachers have a responsibility to see and assess the students both process and product. By seeing and monitoring the students‟ process, it will help teachers to make sure whether the students are totally understood how to write a descriptive text, or they just copy paste their writing from a book or from a friend without understand well at all.
Connected to the factual conditions that existed above, the writer tries to find an alternative way that can be used by teacher in teaching writing.
The ways that can be used by teachers where they can see and monitor the students both process and product rather than the product only. After the writer gathered some informations about how to teach writing in an attractive way, the writer decides to choose the writing strategies that can be applied by English teachers at Senior High School.
The strategies that provided by the writer expected can be a good alterative for teachers in teaching writing for Junior High School students. Especially in teaching a descriptive text for students.
In this paper, the writer just discusses about the use of combining Biopoem Strategy and Sentence Combining Strategy in teaching writing descriptive text at Senior High School.
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE A. The Nature of Writing
Writing is broader than just write down something on a paper. According to Brumer and Clark (2008:4), the meaning of writing is a process of gathering the symbols of communication and transfer it into a text that can deliver the thought and opinion. It shows that writing is an activity of communication that can be done by using the symbols of words. Writing is a result of the writers‟ activities in gathering those symbols into a sentence or text. Then, writing commonly contains of the writers‟ ideas, opinions, or message.
In teaching writing, teacher not only asks students to write sentence or text as much as possible, but teacher should make sure that students can write a good sentence or text. It is supported by Brown (1999:2), in teaching writing the teacher should teach students to use writing implements, write legibly, spell correctly, use punctuation, satisfy grammatical rules, take account of an audience, construct and organize text, and select form a range of styles. It shows that there are some parts that should be considered well by teacher. The point is teacher has a big responsibility in helping students to make a good sentence or text. Then, the text can be used as a tool where the students can deliver their ideas to the readers.
In conclusion, related to the ideas above, it can be concluded that writing is a result of certain activities done by writers in creating a sentence or text. The activities in writing includes the process of gathering the ideas. Next, the ideas are changed by the writers into a sentence or text. Then, the writers should reread and revise the sentence or text into a good one. Then, the main meaning of teaching writing is the teachers not just need to make the students can write down a sentence or text. Teachers should teach students how to use all parts of writing.
That parts contain of content of text, diction, spelling, and grammatical rule. Teachers should lead students how to write a good sentence or text. In learning process, teachers need to monitor the students‟ writing activities. Then, teachers also need to motivate students in order to invite students to become a good and better writer.
B. The Nature of Descriptive Text
Descriptive text is one of the text which was included in curriculum for Senior High School Students. According to Dadang and Anggraini (2008:69), descriptive text is a text that describing the characteristics of
someone, thing, or place. It is stated that descriptive text is a text when the writer is required to write all information related to certain thing. The writer can write the characteristic of a pen, a cat, or person.
Moreoever, descriptive text has a generic structure that used to differentiate this text with another text. According to Priyana et al (2008:121), the parts of descriptive text are, the introduction and the main part. But, as an optional the writer can put a general comment at the end of the text. In the introduction part, the writer writes a general information about the person, object, or animal that will be written. Then, in the main part, the writer describes the person, object, or animal in details. Related to the optional, the writer can put his/her general comment at the end of the text. It can be wrote in one sentence, or more.
Thus, it can be understood that descriptive text is a text that can be used by writer to describe a thing, place, or person. In descriptive text, the writer just write a specific information about an object, people, or place that is going to write. The choosing of the topic is adjusted with the purpose of the writing itself. Then, descriptive text usually begin with the introduction part, where in this part the writer can put a general information about thing that will be wrote. Then, the following part is description part, where in this part the writer can put a specific description about thing that will be write.
Last, as an optional the writer can put a general comment at the end of the paragraph
C. The Nature of Biopoem Strategy
Biopoem Strategy is one of the writing strategy that can be used by teacher in teaching descriptive text. According to Barnard and Torres-Guzman (2009:159),
„biopoem is a (self) portrait in words‟. It means that through Biopoem Strategy teacher can lead students to describe people in a poem form. People refers to the students themselves, parent, friends, actrees/ actor, or characters in a story. Students will be easy to apply this biopoem, it because the things that they write are the things that they know well, and things that close to them.
Then, the purpose of Biopoem Strategy is to give a chance for students to display their knowledge about something. It is supported by Housel (2002:130), the purpose of Biopoem Strategy is to demonstrate the students‟ knowledge about people that they know. It means that the purpose of biopoem is to lead students in showing how good their understanding about someone that they know.
In this part, they have a chance to describe
someone by using their own words. They can express their feelings and ideas through the pattern of Biopoem that provided.
Biopoem Strategy has a specific pattern that can be differentiated this strategy with another strategy. According to Gentry et al (2012:133), the pattern of Biopoem Strategy are:
It shows that there are ten lines of Biopoem pattern. From the pattern, it can be seen that this pattern leads students to write a Biopoem about themselves or someone they know well.
Thus, it can be understood that biopoem strategy is a strategy that help the teacher in leading studens to write down a description about someone. Someone refers to students themselves, friends, parent, teachers, ad famous people. Through Biopoem Strategy, students will be easy to organize their thinking when they write.
D. The Nature of Sentence Combining Strategy
Sentence Combining Strategy is one of the attractive strategy that can be applied in classroom. In this strategy, students are accustomed to be active, especially in writing.
According to Wyse et al (2010:174), Sentence Combining Strategy is a strategy designed to ease the beginner writer to develop the ability to write more complex sentences. It shows that this strategy is suitable to apply for Junior High School students. This strategy leads students to wite the simple one to the complex one. This strategy can ease students to write, so they will think that writing is not such a difficult thing to do.
Furthermore, the purpose of Sentence Combining Strategy is to facilate students to increase their ability in writing. It is supported by Johnson (2009:111), Sentence Combining Strategy helps students develop sentence level maturity in their writing. It means that through Sentence Combining Strategy, students will learn optimally related to how to write down sentence or text in a right way.
First name
Who is ... (three words that describe person) Who is ... (son/daughter/brother/sister of ...) Who loves ... (three people, places, activities,
things)
Who feels ... (three feelings and what gives the feeling)
Who needs ... (three needs or would like to have) Who fears ... (three things that are most
frightening)
Who dreams of one day ... (three wishes or things most wish to accomplish)
Who lives ... (where or for what) Last name
Thus, their writing ability will be increased as it should be.
Then, there are some stepss that should be followed well by the teacher in applying this strategy in classroom. According to Brownell et al (2012:121), the steps in applying Sentence Combining Strategy are as follow: First, teacher asks students to combine smaller, simple sentences into complex sentences using a conjunction. Second, teacher asks students to insert adjectives or adverbs from one sentence into another sentence. Third, teacher asks students to combine sentences, adjectives, and adverbs, into complex sentence. Then, teacher needs to monitor carefully for each students whether the sentences are correct or not.
Thus, it can be concluded that Sentence Combining Strategy is a strategy that very attractive and useful to help the students as beginner writer to write from an incomplex to the complex one. This strategy is appropriate to be combined with Biopoem Strategy. It is because, in Biopoem Strategy the students can organize their ideas to write some words that can be used by them in describing someone. Then, in Sentence Combining Strategy, the students can use the words in Biopoem to be changed into several sentences to be a complete descriptive text.
DISCUSSION
In applying the procedures of those strategies, the writer as a teacher needs to do an important point; they are, preparation and teaching procedure. Procedure consists of three points; such as, selecting material or topic, selecting media, and time allocation. Then, teaching procedure divides into tree points; they are, pre teaching activities, whilst teaching activities, and post teaching activities. In preparation, the writer prepare the material or topic, media, and time allocation. Then, in teaching procedure there are three parts, pre- teaching, whilst-teaching, and post-teaching. In pre-teaching the teacher greets the sstudents in advance, checks the students attendance, and leads students to review last lesson that related to the topic being learned.
In whilst-teaching, there are some parts, they are; exploration, elaboration, and confirmation. In exploration teacher explains to students the definition and generic structure of descriptive text. Teacher tells the students that they will write about someone. Then, teacher shows and explains about the pattern of Biopoem. The pattern is used to help students in describing someone or something that will be wrote by them. Then, select the topic. In this case, teacher may ask students to write about themselves, friends, the one who they know well. Then, after teacher explained the
pattern and the content for each lines, teacher write down an example on the white board to make sure that students have understood. For example:
Then, teacher tells the students that for the next session they may write the one that they know more and they want to write. The decision is depend on them.. Teacher prepares strips of paper.
Then, fill each lines and tape it to the white board.
Teacher divides the class into groups and each groups will write the line that corresponds to the number of the strip. For example, the number of students at that class around 30 students then teacher will divides students into five groups. It means that each groups should write the poem on two lines. In this part, after do the discussion with the members of group.
Then, in elaboration, teacher asks students to read the poem aloud. Then, teacher leads students to revise the poem if necessary. In this part, teacher may ask the representative from each groups to read the poem, or teacher may ask them to read together. It is depend on the situation at that time, and it is also depend on the teacher‟s needs.
Furthermore, teacher may lead students to revise their poem if there is a mistake in their writing.
Teacher asks students to write the poem personally.
Next, to make sure that all students have understood how to write a Biopoem, teacher asks students to make a Biopoem related to the one they want. It is done individually. Teacher asks students to write a descriptive text individually. Then, teacher asks the students to take the words from Biopoem, and combine that words by using sentence combining strategy. Teacher asks students to combine smaller, simple sentences into complex sentences using a conjunction. In this part, students may take the words or sentences from the Biopoem made by them by combining sentences using a conjunction. In this part, students may take the words or sentences from the Biopoem made by them. For example, “Rahma is slim”, “Rahma is tall”. To become “Rahma is the one who slim and tall girl”. English teacher asks students to insert adjectives or adverbs from one sentence into another sentence. For example “Rahma is a young girl” and “she loves singing” becomes “Rahma is a young girl who loves singing”. “Rahma needs much money” and “Rahma needs a new phone”
Rahma
Who is slim, tall, curly hair Who is the daughter of Delila and Thor
Who loves browsing, riding, singing Who feels brilliant, pretty, young Who needs much money, new phone, love
Who fears no money, no love, no parent Who dreams of one day having good job, having
much money, traveling the world Who lives in Padang city
Maimunah
becomes “Rahma needs much money because she wants to buy a new phone”.
Furthermore, in confirmation, teacher asks students to combine sentences, adjectives, and adverbs into a complex sentence. Then, teacher needs to monitor carefully for each students whether the sentences are correct or not. From the biopoem that are created by them, students can write down a or some sentence (s). It is adjusted with the instruction from teacher. Teacher asks students to write a complex descriptive text by using the sentences that already wrote by them. In these activities, teacher needs to monitor carefully for each students whether the generic structure and sentences in descriptive text are corret or not. The possibility of descriptve text as a result the combination of biopoem and sentence combining strategy can be seen as follow:
Teacher invites students to submit their works.
Then teacher gives them score and appreciation related to their achievement in writing a descriptive text. It is needed to motivate them more in writing.
Last, in post-teaching, teacher should check and confirm the students understanding about all the materials that have been studied. Teacher leads students to conclude the material that had been studied. Teacher gives a confirmation related to students understanding. Teacher closes the material, and as an optional teacher may gives students a homework for students.
CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTION
In conclusion, related to the explanations on the previous chapters, it can be concluded that writing is one of communication tools between writer and reader. Writing is a complex process that should be done carefully. In teaching writing, the teacher has a big responsibility to make the students can write a good sentence or text. The teacher should provide a special attention to the students‟ writing activities in classroom. The teacher should understand all the students‟ needs in writing. The teacher should motivate students to be a good and better writer. Thus, the teaching learning objectives will be achieved as should be.
Then, through this paper, the writer suggests to the English teachers at Senior High School to use many ways to teach. The teacher should be creative and innovative in teaching.
Then, one of the creative and innovative strategies that can be implemented by the teacher in teaching a descriptive text is the combining of Biopoem Strategy and Sentence Combining Strategy that suggested by the writer in this paper.
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Priyana, Joko., Riandi and Mumpuni, Anita P.
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Rahma Maimunah is the daughter of Delila and Thor. She is usually called as Rahma.
Rahma is the one who slim and tall girl. Besides, she is also has a beautiful curly hair. Rahma always riding her bicycle to go to school. Rahma is a young girl who loves singing. The song that always sung by her is “who says” a song by Selena Gomez.
Rahma needs much money because she wants to buy a new phone. She is also dreams to have a good job because she wants to traveling the world. The things that frightened a lot by her is she has no money, no love, and no parent. Now on, the town where she live is Padang city. Rahma is my best friend ever. I like Rahma very much.
