PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHERS

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHERS

By: Zulhidah (www.zulhiddahpbiuin.webs.com)

A. Introduction

English is one of the international foreign languages formally and non-formally learned by most of Indonesian people. It is a compulsory subject, which is taught from Elementary School up to Universities. It seems that everybody who wants to continue his/her studies in his/her country or abroad, have a good job position in a prestigious company with higher salary, and participate effectively in global community and maintain standard of living in the context of increasing global competition and cooperation needs English.

As the twentieth-century draws to a close, more and more Indonesian people especially young professionals are starting to understand that a new, highly interdependent global marketplace of producers and consumers has emerged. Leaders in many professions now realize that fluency in English and multicultural sensitivity is essential in their fields.

As we know that Indonesia lack citizens in many professional fields who can communicate in foreign languages including English and understand other cultures and value systems. Most of schools in Indonesia do not incorporate global perspectives in their curricula. Most university students do not develop the expertise to understand even one of the foreign languages and cultures. Consequently, most Indonesian professionals lack the basic skills needed to cultivate working relationships with colleagues in Indonesia itself and foreign countries and do not have easy access to new ideas and developments from abroad.

On the other hand, to have a good proficiency in foreign languages in particular English is not easy. It is influenced by a number of factors such as the language learner’s qualification, interest, and efforts, the English learning facilities they have, and qualified teachers. Nowadays, in many third countries in the world including Indonesia, the foreign language teaching profession in particular English is faced with increasing enrollments and a shortage of qualified teachers. At the same time, a rapidly increasing student number, nationwide education reform, and the development of national standard for foreign language learning are placing a lot of new demands on qualified English language teachers.

Curtain and Pesola suggest that foreign language teachers today “require a combination of competencies and background that may be unprecedented in the preparation of language teachers” and that professional development is critical one. Clearly one of the goals of teaching English is to make the students able to communicate, to understand and be understood by native speakers and nonnative speakers of the language. In order to help the students reach this goal, the teacher should be able to apply effective teaching in the process of teaching and learning English that has relationship with their professional development.

This paper tries to describe the challenges for English language teachers, skills and knowledge needed by them, and opportunities for professional development of the English teachers.

B. Challenges for English Language Teachers

Teaching English as a foreign language is not an easy job especially for nonnative speaker teachers of the language. There are many factors that make the teaching of foreign languages in particular English challenging for teachers’ professional development. Pertaining to the issues, Curtain and Pesola (1994) and Tedick and Walker (1996) in Joy (1997) recognize that factors as follows:

1. The cultural, socioeconomic, linguistic, and academic diversity typical in today’s student population requires foreign language teachers to work with students whose needs, educational experiences, and native language skills are very different from those of students they have typically taught.

2. The variety of reasons students have for learning foreign languages and the different ways they approach this learning require that foreign language curricula and instruction address a range of student goals and learning styles.

3. The current emphasis on exclusive use of the target language in the classroom requires that teachers have strong language skills.

4. The emphasis on thematic learning demands that teachers have to be skilled in thematic areas explored, competent in the vocabulary related to these areas, responsive to student interests in various topics, and able to work in teams with content-area teachers.

5. The emphasis on collaborative learning and student self-directed learning requires that teachers be able to act as facilitators, guides, counselors, and resources, not just as language experts.

6. The increase in foreign language enrollments and the shortage of qualified teachers may require foreign language teachers to teach at more grade levels than they have in the past.

7. The emphasis on technology for language learning and teaching requires teachers to keep informed about new technologies and their instructional uses.

The previous challenging factors absolutely emphasize the need for strong professional development of the English language teachers. English language teachers should be able to cope with the seventh challenges above in order to fulfill strong professional development needed by them to help the students able to accelerate the reaching of English teaching goals. To face that challenges is not easy for English teachers. They need to improve their language skills in modalities of listening, speaking, reading, and writing and their general knowledge.

In accordance with the statement above, Met says that good foreign language teachers need the following skills and knowledge:

1. A high level of language proficiency in all of the modalities of the target language; speaking, listening, reading, and writing.

2. The ability to use the language in real-life contexts, for both social and professional purposes.

3. The ability to comprehend contemporary media in the foreign language, both oral and written, and interact successfully with native speakers in the United States and abroad4 (Philips, 1991)

4. A strong background in the liberal arts and the content areas.

5. Understanding of the social, political, historical, and economic realities of the regions where the language they teach is spoken.

6. Pedagogical knowledge and skills, including knowledge about human growth and development, learning theory and second language acquisition theory, and a repertoire of strategies for developing proficiency and cultural understanding in all students(Guntermann, 1992).

7. Knowledge of the various technologies and how to integrate them into their instruction.

In Indonesia, many colleges have developed teaching English as a foreign language program to prepare good and qualified English teachers. To master then competencies in the general areas of education, interpersonal skills, and professional education above, the English teachers need experiences for developing those competencies and resources that available to aid in their professional development. In fact, many of English teachers in Indonesia still lack of those competencies because they lack of experiences and resources needed.

English language teachers must maintain their proficiency in the target language taught and stay up to date on current issues related to the English language teaching and the target culture. So, they have to study cross-cultural understanding to make them easy to teach the language.

In recent years, various Universities in many countries in the world have developed many programs for professional development in the teaching of foreign languages and cultures for specific purposes. In addition to this condition, language teachers also try to seek training needed in the application of foreign language and cultural instruction.

Language proficiency in all four-language skills is key to academic achievement for both teachers and students. Regardless of the skills and knowledge that foreign language teachers possess when they commence teaching, maintenance and improvement must be an ongoing process. We know that most teachers must continue to accumulate academic credits while teaching, in order to keep their teaching license current. These can be done through seminars, lectures, workshops, on higher education training and researches offered by governance, professional associations or universities.

To fulfill both of them is not easy for most of English teachers in Indonesia in particular when they want to develop their students’ competence in the language and literacy of instruction across the curriculum demands. It needs five pedagogy standards for effective teaching and learning for all students and we have known that our students have individual differences that require us to have good preparation and well-organized program and activities for them. They are (1) teachers and students producing together; (2) developing language proficiency; (3) connecting school to students’ lives; (4) teaching complex thinking, and (5) teaching through conversation.

To make these five standards run well needs hard work of the teachers. These standards emerge from five principles of practice that have proven successful with majority and minority at-risk students in numerous classrooms in many countries. They incorporate the broadest base of knowledge available and reflect the emerging professional consensus about the most effective ways to educate linguistically, intelligently, and culturally diverse students. For many years, researchers have attempted to integrate studies of diverse students into literature reviews encompassing thousands of studies carried out worldwide.

First, teachers should facilitate learning for the students through joint productive activities among teachers and students. Learning takes place best through joint activity – when experts and novices work together for a common product or goal, and during the activity have opportunities to converse about it. In many schools, however, opportunities for this kind of shared experience are rare, which in turn limits students’ opportunities to develop common systems of understanding with their teachers and with their peers. Discourse, which builds basic schooled competencies, can take place only if the teacher shares in these experiences. Joint productive activity between teacher and students helps to create a common context of experience within the school itself.

Second, teachers should develop students’ competence in the English language and literacy of instruction throughout all instructional activities. Language and literacy development should be fostered through meaningful use and purposive conversation between teacher and students, not through drills and decontextualized rules. The ways of using language that prevail in school discourse are frequently unfamiliar to English language learners and other at risk students. Third, teacher should contextualize teaching and curriculum in the experiences and skills of home and community. The teachers should provide the following indicators:

1. Listen to students talk about familiar topic

2. Respond to students’ talk and questions, making on the spot changes that directly relate to their comments.

3. Assist language development through modeling, eliciting, probing, restating, clarifying, questioning, and praising, as appropriate in purposeful conversation.

4. Interact with students in ways that respect their speaking style, which may be different from the teacher’s, such as paying attention to wait-time, eye contact, turn taking, and spotlighting.

5. Connect student language with literacy and content area knowledge through speaking, listening, reading, and writing activities.

6. Encourage students to use content vocabulary to express their understanding.

7. Provide frequent opportunities for students to interact with each other and with the teacher during instructional activities.

8. Encourage students to use their first and second languages in instructional activities.

To increase student language development and promote student understanding, the teachers should use the following strategies:

1. Presenting information in known contexts.

2. Modeling appropriate language and vocabulary.

3. Providing visuals and other materials that display language.

4. Using familiar language from students’ funds of knowledge.

5. Using sentence patterns and routines frequently.

6. Adjusting questioning to meet students needs.

7. Asking students to explain their reasoning.

8. Inviting students to paraphrase often.

9. Simplifying sentences and syntax.

10. Playing with words.

Students can develop their language skills if the teacher can create an environment that provides a variety of social contexts to emphasize the explicit connections among the students’ experience, language, literacy, and academic knowledge. There are three levels of contextualization that must be addressed. They are as follows:

1. At the level of instruction, teachers should try to establish patterns of classroom participation and speech that are drawn from conversational styles of family and community yet help students develop the academic style of talk suited for schools.

2. At the curriculum level, cultural materials and skills are the media by which the goals of literacy, numeracy, and science are contextualized. The use of personal, community-based experiences as the foundation for developing school skills.

3. At the policy level, the school itself is contextualized. Effective school-based learning is a social process that affects and is affected by the entire community. Longer-lasting progress has been achieved with children whose learning has been explored, modified, and shaped in collaboration with their parents and communities.

In connecting teaching and curriculum by using experiences and skills from students’ home and community, the teachers can provide the following indicators:

1. Begin with what students already know from home, community, and school.

2. Design instructional activities that are meaningful to students in terms of local community norms and knowledge.

3. Learn about local norms and knowledge by talking to students, parents, and community members and by reading pertinent documents.

4. Assist students to connect and apply their learning to home and community.

5. Plan jointly with students to design community-based learning activities.

6. Provide opportunities for parents to participate in classroom instructional activities.

7. Vary activities to include students’ preferences, from collective and cooperative activities to individual and competitive ones.

8. Vary styles of conversation and participation to include students’ cultural preferences, such as co-narration, call-and-response, and choral.

Fourth, teachers should challenge students toward cognitive complexity. There is a clear consensus among researchers that at-risk students require instruction that is cognitively challenging, that is, instruction that requires thinking and analysis, not only rote, repetitive, detail-level drills. This does not mean ignoring phonics rules or not memorizing the multiplication tables, but it does mean going beyond that level of curriculum into the deep exploration of interesting and meaningful materials. There are many ways in which cognitive complexity has been introduced into the teaching of at-risk students.

Fifth, teachers should engage students through dialogue, especially the instructional conversation. Basic thinking skills are most effectively developed through dialogue, that is, through the process of questioning, answering, and sharing ideas and knowledge. Language development, both oral and written, is best acquired through interaction with more linguistically proficient users.

The instructional conversation is the means by which teachers and students relate formal, schooled knowledge to the student’s individual, community, and family knowledge. This concept may appear to be a paradox; instruction implies authority and planning, while conversation implies equality and responsiveness. True dialogue teaching transforms classroom and schools into “the community of learners” they can become” when teachers reduce the distance between themselves and their students by constructing lessons from common understandings of each others’ experience and ideas and make teaching a warm, interpersonal and collaborative activity.

C. Opportunities for Professional Development

Indonesian government has offered many programs for development of English teachers to continue education, have broad insight of English teaching methodology and strategies by joining seminars, workshops, and projects in curriculum and material development in particular since Competency-Based Curriculum has to be implemented in the process of teaching and learning in every school in Indonesia for all subject matters including English.

Most of language centers and professional organization like Linguistic Society in Indonesia have tried to provide many programs that can be followed by English teachers to improve their teaching profession. One of the most important programs needs by the English teachers is a training of trainers on language teaching method. In fact, there are a variety of strategies and techniques used in content-centered foreign language instruction.

Nowadays, in many countries in the world, there is a phenomenon where there is a variety of training opportunities exists for language teachers has increased especially for the language teachers who want to teach English for a Specific Purposes, such as English for Secretary, English for business, English for Hotel, English for Tourism, and so on. Many young professional businessmen need English for development of their future career in their business world. English becomes a vehicle for them to run their business well in particular when they want to have joint-venture with foreign investors that can invest much money to their companies.

In colleges and universities, internationally focused courses have been created, and interdisciplinary programs of study requiring foreign language proficiency and cultural knowledge have been developed. The application of foreign language and cultural studies to the field of business has emerged as a prominent component in these recent reforms. Besides, many of the new interdisciplinary business and foreign language programs encourage students to spend some time acquiring practical experiences by working for a company in their country and even abroad. Some institutions in Indonesia have created study abroad opportunities focused specially on international business practices and foreign language use.

Relating to the issues, in fact, foreign locations offer many advantages of total immersion, direct contact with foreign business people in a variety of economic sectors, and personal observation of foreign business operations. To combine foreign language and cultural studies with business is access to examinations leading to certificates and diplomas in business foreign languages offered by foreign educational, business, and governmental organizations.

Language teachers seeking training in the application of foreign language and cultural instruction to business, as well as business educators wanting to internationalize their courses and programs can also draw on a significant body of published information. Hundreds of articles and more than a dozen books covering these new academic fields have been published in the past decade. A bibliography listing over 200 such publications was printed in the Modern Language Journal in 1991.

Teaching English as a foreign language in Indonesia in particular in formal educations from Elementary school up to university seems fail to produce successful outcomes that can possess the language for their need and future career in developing and improving the condition of Indonesian economy. It seems as a challenge for both teachers and government to build a competent nation for the sake of this country development.

Pertaining to the problem faced by the English teachers, here are the recommendations for teacher education that will give benefits for their professional development in the future:

1. Teacher education must shift from a focus on pre-service training alone to lifelong professional development.

2. Rather than separating language teacher preparation into different departments-English as a second language, foreign language, bilingual, and immersion-teachers should be prepared to teach in more than one second language context. For example, in both English as a second language and foreign language classes, or both the intermediate level and advanced level.

3. Rather than beginning with academic coursework and educational theory and moving later to classroom practice, theory and practice must be integrated from the very start.

4. Teacher preparation programs need to expand their criteria for graduation beyond language proficiency and academic achievement alone, to include experience with different cultures, ability to work with diverse learners from many educational backgrounds and in many different educational settings, and ability to use the state of the art technologies in their instruction.

5. In response to widespread teacher shortages due to high enrollments, teacher retirement, and teacher attrition, many countries are granting emergency certification to individuals who meet certain criteria such as a college degree, proficiency in the language, teaching experience, and pedagogy coursework.

6. Teachers in English as a foreign language and second language classrooms need to form strong partnerships that allow for the sharing of information, curricula, strategies in teaching, and support across disciplines, departments, schools, and levels. Partnerships also need to be formed across Institutions, Schools, Professional Organizations, Universities and Community Colleges, and local and country leaders all need to collaborate to enhance the quality of foreign language education.

C. Conclusion

Foreign language teachers especially teachers of English as a foreign language are encountering educational reform, a rapidly changing student clientele, technological development, and new views on assessment. So, High priority should be given to English teachers in accordance with how to provide first class instruction for the students, keep up with a growing list of demands, support for high quality teacher preparation, and continue their professional development. Without giving those priorities, it is impossible for the English language teachers to have good professional development.

References:

1. Curtain, H., & Pesola, C.A. (1994). Languages and Children: Making the Match. White Plains, New York Longman, page 241.

2. Joy Kreeft Peyton, (1997). Professional Development of Foreign Language Teachers. ERIC Digest. Washington, DC: ERIC Clearing House on Languages and Linguistics.

3. Met, M., & Rhodes, N. (1990). Priority: Instruction. Elementary School Foreign Language Instruction; Priorities for the 1990s. Foreign Language Annals, 23, 433-443.

4. Philips, J.K. (1991). Upgrading the Target Language Proficiency Levels of Foreign Language Teachers. ERIC Digest. Washington, DC: ERIC Clearing House on Languages and Linguistics.

5. Guntermann, G. (1992). Developing Tomorrow’s Teachers of World Languages. ERIC Digest. Washington, DC: ERIC Clearing House on Languages and Linguistics.

6. Rogoff, B. (1991). Social interaction as apprenticeship in thinking: Guidance and participation in spatial planning. In L. B. Resnick, J.M. Levine, & S. Teasley (Eds.), Perspectives on socially shared cognition. Washington: APA Press.

7. Berman, P., et al. (1995). School reform and student diversity, I. Santa Cruz, CA: National Center for Research on Cultural Diversity and Second Language Learning.

8. John-Steiner, V.P., & Osterreich, H. (1975). Learning styles among Pueblo children: Final Report to National Institute of Education. Albuqurque: University of New Mexico. College of Education.

9. Collier, V.P. (1995). Promoting academic success for ESL students: Understanding second language acquisition for school. Elizabeth, NJ: New Jersey Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages-Bilingual Educators.

10. Dalton, S. (1989). Teachers as assessors and assistors: Institutional constraints on interpersonal relationships. Paper presented at the meeting of American Educational Research Association, San Francisco, CA.

11. Grosse. C.U. & Voght, G.M. (1990). Foreign Languages for business and the professions at US Colleges and Universities. Modern Journal, 75. pp. 36-47.

SEKOLAH, ORANG TUA DAN MASYARAKAT

SEKOLAH, ORANG TUA DAN MASYARAKAT

I. PENDAHULUAN

Pendidikan itu merupakan usaha sadar untuk mengembangkan kepribadian anak baik di luar dan di dalam sekolah dan berlangsung seumur hidup. Dan pengertian tersurat suatu pernyataan bahwa pendidikan berlangsung di luar dan di dalam sekolah. Pendidikan diluar sekolah dapat terjadi dalam keluarga dan didalam masyarakat. Jadi pendidikan itu berlangsung seumur hidup dimulai dari keluarga kemudian diteruskan dalam lingkungan sekolah dan masyarakat. Dalam proses pendidikan terjadi hubungan timbale balik antara keluarga, sekolah, dan masyarakat untuk tercapainya suatu tujuan pendidikan.

Dengan demikian kami, mencoba untuk memaparkan uraian tentang Hubungan Timbal Balik Antara Keluarga, Sekolah, dan Masyarakat.

II. PEMBAHASAN

Hubungan Timbal Balik Antara Keluarga, Sekolah, dan Masyarakat

Pada umumnya, anak-anak semenjak dilahirkan sampai menjadi manusia dewasa, menjadi orang yang dapat berdiri sendiri dan bertanggung jawab sendiri dalam masyarakat, harus mengalami perkembangan. Baik atau buruknya hasil perkembangan anak itu terutama bergantung kepada pendidikan yang diterima anak itu dari berbagai lingkungan pendidikan yang dialaminya itu. Dan dapat digolongkan macam-macam lingkungan menjadi tiga golongan besar, yaitu:

a) Lingkungan keluarga.

b) Lingkungan sekolah.

c) Lingkungan masyarakat.

A. Hubungan Keluarga dengan Sekolah

Keluarga sebagai satuan organisasi terkecil di masyarakat mendapat peranan sangat penting karena membentuk kepribadian dan watak anggota keluarganya. Sedangkan masyarakat terdiri dari keluarga-keluarga. Dari satuan terkecil itu terbentuklah gagasan untuk terus mewariskan standar watak dan kepribadian yang baik yang diakui oleh semua golongan masayarakat, salah satu institusi yang mewarisakan kepribadian dan watak kepada masayarakat adalah sekolah. Sekolah tidak akan terus berdiri jika tidak di dukung oleh masyarakat, maka dari itu kedua sistem sosial ini saling mendukung dan melengkapi. Jika di sekolah dapat terbentuk perubahan sosial yang baik berdasarkan nilai atau kaidah yang berlaku, maka masyarakat pun akan menaglami perubahan sosial.

Sebagai salah satu wujud sekolah sebagai bagian dari masyarakat maka terbentuklah sekolah masyarakat (community school). Sekolah ini bersifat life centered. Yang menjadi pokok pelajaran adalah kebutuhan manusia, masalah-masalah dan proses-proses social dengan tujuan untuk memperbaiki kehidupan dalam masyarakat. Masyarakat dipandang sebagai laboratorium dimana anak belajar, menyelidiki dan turut serta dalam usaha-usaha masyarakat yang mengandung unsur pendidikan.

Menurut Oqbum fungsi keluarga itu adalah sebagai berikut :

 Fungsi kasih sayang

 Fungsi ekonomi

 Fungsi pendidikan

 Fungsi perlindungan/penjagaan

 Fungsi rekreasi

 Fungsi status keluarga

 Fungsi agama

B. Pengaruh Sekolah Terhadap Masyarakat

Pengaruh sekolah terhadap masyarakat pada dasarnya tergantung kepada luas-tidaknya produk serta kualitas dari produk sekolah itu sendiri. Semakin luas sebaran produk sekolah di tengah-tengah masyarakat, tentu produk sekolah tersebuut membawa pengaruh positif yang berarti bagi perkembangan masyarakat bersangkutan. Sekolah dapat disebut sebagai lembaga investasi manusiawi. Investasi jenis ini sangat penting bagi perkembangan dan kemajuan masyarakat. Rendahnya kualitas faktor manusia disetiap masyarakat, akan berpengaruh terhadap prestasi yang bisa dicapai oleh masyarakat bersangkutan.

Terdapat empat macam pengaruh pendidikan sekolah terhadap perkembangan masyarakat, yaitu:

1. Mencerdaskan kehidupan masyarakat

2. Membawa pengaruh pembaharuan bagi perkembangan masyarakat.

3. Mencetak warga masyarakat yang siap dan terbekali bagi kepentingan kerja di lingkungan masyarakat.

4. Melahirkan sikap-sikap positif dan konstruktif bagi warga masyarakat, sehingga tercipta integrasi social yang harmonis ditengah-tengah masyarakat.

Hubungan sekolah dan masyarakat memiliki hubungan rasional berdasarkan kebutuhan. Adapun gambaran hubungan rasional diantara keduanya:

a. Sekolah sebagai lembaga layanan terhadap kebutuhan pendidikan dimasyarakat yang membawa konsekuensi-konsekuensi dan konseptual serta teknis yang bersesuaian antar fungsi pendidikan yang diperankan sekolah dengan yang dibutuhkan masyarakat. Untuk menjalankan tujuan pendidikan yang rasional dan ideal, maka sekolah memerlukan mekanisme informasi timbal balik yang rasional, objektif dan realitas dengan masyarakat

b. Sasaran pendidikan yang ditengani lembaga persekolahan detentukan kejelasan formulasi kontrak antara sekolah dengan masyarakat. Diperlukan pendekatan komprehensif didalam pengembangan program dan kurikulum untuk masing-masing jenis dan jenjang persekolahan.

c. Pelaksanaan fungsi sekolah dalam melayani masyarakat yang dipengaruhi oleh ikatan-ikatan objektif diantara keduanya. Ikatan objektif tersebut berupa perhatian, penghargaan dan lapangan-lapangan tertentu seperti dana, fasilitas dan jaminan-jaminan objektif lainnya.

C. Membina Hubungan Sekolah, Keluarga, dan Masyarakat

Dalam Pelaksanaan lingkungan inklusif ramah terhadap pembelajaran membutuhkan peran dan tanggung jawab berbagai pihak yang terlibat baik secara langsung maupun tidak, pihak-pihak tersebut antara lain:masyarakat, guru, dan orangtua.

Masyarakat yang dimaksud adalah orang tua atau wali peserta didik, anggota keluarga yang lain atau semua orang yang tinggal di sekitar lingkungan sekolah. Dalam konteks menyeluruh masyarakat merupakan tempat anak hidup dan belajar kemudian menerapkannya dalam kehidupan sehari-hari.

III. KESIMPULAN

Dalam Pelaksanaan lingkungan inklusif ramah terhadap pembelajaran membutuhkan peran dan tanggung jawab berbagai pihak yang terlibat baik secara langsung maupun tidak.

Hubungan efektif sekolah, orang tua dan masyarakat dapat dilakukan melalui:

 Mengadakan pertemuan dengan keluarga dan kelompok masyarakat untuk memperkenalkan diri anda.

 Jadwalkan diskusi informal, satu atau dua kali dalam setahun dengan orang tua dan komite sekolah untuk menggali potensi belajar anak mereka.

 Kirim hasil karya anak ke rumahnya agar orangtuanya mengetahui perkembangan potensi anaknya kemudian mintalah pendapat mereka.

 Biasakanlah anak membahas apa yang telah dipelajari di rumah dengan memanfaatkan informasi pelajaran yan diperoleh dari sekolah.

 Lakukan kunjungan sumber belajar di masyarakat

DAFTAR PUSTAKA

Purwanto, M. Ngalim. 1995. Ilmu Pendidikan Teoritis dan Praktis. Bandung: PT. Remaja Rosda Karya.

Tim Dosen FIP- IKIP Malang. 1987. Pengantar Dasar-Dasar Pendidikan. Surabaya: Usaha Nasional.

http://pakguruonline.pendidikan.net/buku_tua_pakguru_dasar_kpdd_162.html#top

http://rahmankumbohu.blogspot.com

http://www.idp-europe.org/toolkit/Buku-2.Pdf

Teori-Teori Belajar Proses Perubahan Tingkahlaku & Belajar

Oleh:

Arie Asnaldi, S.Pd

Jika menelaah literatur psikologi, kita akan menemukan banyak teori belajar yang bersumber dari aliran-aliran psikologi. Namun dalam kesempatan ini hanya akan dikemukakan lima jenis teori belajar saja, yaitu: (a) teori behaviorisme; (b) teori belajar kognitif menurut Piaget; (4) teori pemrosesan informasi dari Gagne, dan (5) teori belajar gestalt.

1. TEORI BEHAVIORISME

Behaviorisme merupakan salah satu pendekatan untuk memahami perilaku individu. Behaviorisme memandang individu hanya dari sisi fenomena jasmaniah, dan mengabaikan aspek-aspek mental. Dengan kata lain, behaviorisme tidak mengakui adanya kecerdasan, bakat, minat dan perasaan individu dalam suatu belajar. Peristiwa belajar semata-mata melatih refleks-refleks sedemikian rupa sehingga menjadi kebiasaan yang dikuasai individu.

Beberapa hukum belajar yang dihasilkan dari pendekatan behaviorisme ini, diantaranya :

1.1. Connectionism ( S-R Bond) menurut Thorndike.

Dari eksperimen yang dilakukan Thorndike terhadap kucing menghasilkan hukum-hukum belajar, diantaranya:

a. Law of Effect; artinya bahwa jika sebuah respons menghasilkan efek yang memuaskan, maka hubungan Stimulus - Respons akan semakin kuat. Sebaliknya, semakin tidak memuaskan efek yang dicapai respons, maka semakin lemah pula hubungan yang terjadi antara Stimulus- Respons.

b. Law of Readiness; artinya bahwa kesiapan mengacu pada asumsi bahwa kepuasan organisme itu berasal dari pemdayagunaan satuan pengantar (conduction unit), dimana unit-unit ini menimbulkan kecenderungan yang mendorong organisme untuk berbuat atau tidak berbuat sesuatu.

c. Law of Exercise; artinya bahwa hubungan antara Stimulus dengan Respons akan semakin bertambah erat, jika sering dilatih dan akan semakin berkurang apabila jarang atau tidak dilatih.

1.2. Classical Conditioning menurut Ivan Pavlov

Dari eksperimen yang dilakukan Pavlov terhadap seekor anjing menghasilkan hukum-hukum belajar, diantaranya :

a. Law of Respondent Conditioning yakni hukum pembiasaan yang dituntut. Jika dua macam stimulus dihadirkan secara simultan (yang salah satunya berfungsi sebagai reinforcer), maka refleks dan stimulus lainnya akan meningkat.

b. Law of Respondent Extinction yakni hukum pemusnahan yang dituntut. Jika refleks yang sudah diperkuat melalui Respondent conditioning itu didatangkan kembali tanpa menghadirkan reinforcer, maka kekuatannya akan menurun.

1.3. Operant Conditioning menurut B.F. Skinner

Dari eksperimen yang dilakukan B.F. Skinner terhadap tikus dan selanjutnya terhadap burung merpati menghasilkan hukum-hukum belajar, diantaranya :

a. Law of operant conditining yaitu jika timbulnya perilaku diiringi dengan stimulus penguat, maka kekuatan perilaku tersebut akan meningkat.

b. Law of operant extinction yaitu jika timbulnya perilaku operant telah diperkuat melalui proses conditioning itu tidak diiringi stimulus penguat, maka kekuatan perilaku tersebut akan menurun bahkan musnah.

Reber (Muhibin Syah, 2003) menyebutkan bahwa yang dimaksud dengan operant adalah sejumlah perilaku yang membawa efek yang sama terhadap lingkungan. Respons dalam operant conditioning terjadi tanpa didahului oleh stimulus, melainkan oleh efek yang ditimbulkan oleh reinforcer. Reinforcer itu sendiri pada dasarnya adalah stimulus yang meningkatkan kemungkinan timbulnya sejumlah respons tertentu, namun tidak sengaja diadakan sebagai pasangan stimulus lainnya seperti dalam classical conditioning.

1.4. Social Learning menurut Albert Bandura

Teori belajar sosial atau disebut juga teori observational learning adalah sebuah teori belajar yang relatif masih baru dibandingkan dengan teori-teori belajar lainnya. Berbeda dengan penganut Behaviorisme lainnya, Bandura memandang Perilaku individu tidak semata-mata refleks otomatis atas stimulus (S-R Bond), melainkan juga akibat reaksi yang timbul sebagai hasil interaksi antara lingkungan dengan skema kognitif individu itu sendiri. Prinsip dasar belajar menurut teori ini, bahwa yang dipelajari individu terutama dalam belajar sosial dan moral terjadi melalui peniruan (imitation) dan penyajian contoh perilaku (modeling). Teori ini juga masih memandang pentingnya conditioning. Melalui pemberian reward dan punishment, seorang individu akan berfikir dan memutuskan perilaku sosial mana yang perlu dilakukan.

Sebetulnya masih banyak tokoh-tokoh lain yang mengembangkan teori belajar behavioristik ini, seperti : Watson yang menghasilkan prinsip kekerapan dan prinsip kebaruan, Guthrie dengan teorinya yang disebut Contiguity Theory yang menghasilkan Metode Ambang (the treshold method), metode meletihkan (The Fatigue Method) dan Metode rangsangan tak serasi (The Incompatible Response Method), Miller dan Dollard dengan teori pengurangan dorongan.

2. TEORI BELAJAR KOGNITIF MENURUT PIAGET

Dalam bab sebelumnya telah dikemukan tentang aspek aspek perkembangan kognitif menurut Piaget yaitu tahap (1) sensory motor; (2) pre operational; (3) concrete operational dan (4) formal operational. Menurut Piaget, bahwa belajar akan lebih berhasil apabila disesuaikan dengan tahap perkembangan kognitif peserta didik. Peserta didik hendaknya diberi kesempatan untuk melakukan eksperimen dengan obyek fisik, yang ditunjang oleh interaksi dengan teman sebaya dan dibantu oleh pertanyaan tilikan dari guru. Guru hendaknya banyak memberikan rangsangan kepada peserta didik agar mau berinteraksi dengan lingkungan secara aktif, mencari dan menemukan berbagai hal dari lingkungan.

Implikasi teori perkembangan kognitif Piaget dalam pembelajaran adalah :

a. Bahasa dan cara berfikir anak berbeda dengan orang dewasa. Oleh karena itu guru mengajar dengan menggunakan bahasa yang sesuai dengan cara berfikir anak.

b. Anak-anak akan belajar lebih baik apabila dapat menghadapi lingkungan dengan baik. Guru harus membantu anak agar dapat berinteraksi dengan lingkungan sebaik-baiknya.

c. Bahan yang harus dipelajari anak hendaknya dirasakan baru tetapi tidak asing.

d. Berikan peluang agar anak belajar sesuai tahap perkembangannya.

e. Di dalam kelas, anak-anak hendaknya diberi peluang untuk saling berbicara dan diskusi dengan teman-temanya.

3. TEORI PEMROSESAN INFORMASI DARI ROBERT GAGNE

Asumsi yang mendasari teori ini adalah bahwa pembelajaran merupakan faktor yang sangat penting dalam perkembangan. Perkembangan merupakan hasil kumulatif dari pembelajaran. Menurut Gagne bahwa dalam pembelajaran terjadi proses penerimaan informasi, untuk kemudian diolah sehingga menghasilkan keluaran dalam bentuk hasil belajar. Dalam pemrosesan informasi terjadi adanya interaksi antara kondisi-kondisi internal dan kondisi-kondisi eksternal individu. Kondisi internal yaitu keadaan dalam diri individu yang diperlukan untuk mencapai hasil belajar dan proses kognitif yang terjadi dalam individu. Sedangkan kondisi eksternal adalah rangsangan dari lingkungan yang mempengaruhi individu dalam proses pembelajaran.

Menurut Gagne tahapan proses pembelajaran meliputi delapan fase yaitu, (1) motivasi; (2) pemahaman; (3) pemerolehan; (4) penyimpanan; (5) ingatan kembali; (6) generalisasi; (7) perlakuan dan (8) umpan balik.

4. TEORI BELAJAR GESTALT

Gestalt berasal dari bahasa Jerman yang mempunyai padanan arti sebagai “bentuk atau konfigurasi”. Pokok pandangan Gestalt adalah bahwa obyek atau peristiwa tertentu akan dipandang sebagai sesuatu keseluruhan yang terorganisasikan. Menurut Koffka dan Kohler, ada tujuh prinsip organisasi yang terpenting yaitu :

a. Hubungan bentuk dan latar (figure and gound relationship); yaitu menganggap bahwa setiap bidang pengamatan dapat dibagi dua yaitu figure (bentuk) dan latar belakang. Penampilan suatu obyek seperti ukuran, potongan, warna dan sebagainya membedakan figure dari latar belakang. Bila figure dan latar bersifat samar-samar, maka akan terjadi kekaburan penafsiran antara latar dan figure.

b. Kedekatan (proxmity); bahwa unsur-unsur yang saling berdekatan (baik waktu maupun ruang) dalam bidang pengamatan akan dipandang sebagai satu bentuk tertentu.

c. Kesamaan (similarity); bahwa sesuatu yang memiliki kesamaan cenderung akan dipandang sebagai suatu obyek yang saling memiliki.

d. Arah bersama (common direction); bahwa unsur-unsur bidang pengamatan yang berada dalam arah yang sama cenderung akan dipersepsi sebagi suatu figure atau bentuk tertentu.

e. Kesederhanaan (simplicity); bahwa orang cenderung menata bidang pengamatannya bentuk yang sederhana, penampilan reguler dan cenderung membentuk keseluruhan yang baik berdasarkan susunan simetris dan keteraturan; dan

f. Ketertutupan (closure) bahwa orang cenderung akan mengisi kekosongan suatu pola obyek atau pengamatan yang tidak lengkap.

Terdapat empat asumsi yang mendasari pandangan Gestalt, yaitu:

a. Perilaku “Molar“ hendaknya banyak dipelajari dibandingkan dengan perilaku “Molecular”. Perilaku “Molecular” adalah perilaku dalam bentuk kontraksi otot atau keluarnya kelenjar, sedangkan perilaku “Molar” adalah perilaku dalam keterkaitan dengan lingkungan luar. Berlari, berjalan, mengikuti kuliah, bermain sepakbola adalah beberapa perilaku “Molar”. Perilaku “Molar” lebih mempunyai makna dibanding dengan perilaku “Molecular”.

b. Hal yang penting dalam mempelajari perilaku ialah membedakan antara lingkungan geografis dengan lingkungan behavioral. Lingkungan geografis adalah lingkungan yang sebenarnya ada, sedangkan lingkungan behavioral merujuk pada sesuatu yang nampak. Misalnya, gunung yang nampak dari jauh seolah-olah sesuatu yang indah. (lingkungan behavioral), padahal kenyataannya merupakan suatu lingkungan yang penuh dengan hutan yang lebat (lingkungan geografis).

c. Organisme tidak mereaksi terhadap rangsangan lokal atau unsur atau suatu bagian peristiwa, akan tetapi mereaksi terhadap keseluruhan obyek atau peristiwa. Misalnya, adanya penamaan kumpulan bintang, seperti : sagitarius, virgo, pisces, gemini dan sebagainya adalah contoh dari prinsip ini. Contoh lain, gumpalan awan tampak seperti gunung atau binatang tertentu.

d. Pemberian makna terhadap suatu rangsangan sensoris adalah merupakan suatu proses yang dinamis dan bukan sebagai suatu reaksi yang statis. Proses pengamatan merupakan suatu proses yang dinamis dalam memberikan tafsiran terhadap rangsangan yang diterima.

Aplikasi teori Gestalt dalam proses pembelajaran antara lain :

a. Pengalaman tilikan (insight); bahwa tilikan memegang peranan yang penting dalam perilaku. Dalam proses pembelajaran, hendaknya peserta didik memiliki kemampuan tilikan yaitu kemampuan mengenal keterkaitan unsur-unsur dalam suatu obyek atau peristiwa.

b. Pembelajaran yang bermakna (meaningful learning); kebermaknaan unsur-unsur yang terkait akan menunjang pembentukan tilikan dalam proses pembelajaran. Makin jelas makna hubungan suatu unsur akan makin efektif sesuatu yang dipelajari. Hal ini sangat penting dalam kegiatan pemecahan masalah, khususnya dalam identifikasi masalah dan pengembangan alternatif pemecahannya. Hal-hal yang dipelajari peserta didik hendaknya memiliki makna yang jelas dan logis dengan proses kehidupannya.

c. Perilaku bertujuan (pusposive behavior); bahwa perilaku terarah pada tujuan. Perilaku bukan hanya terjadi akibat hubungan stimulus-respons, tetapi ada keterkaitannya dengan dengan tujuan yang ingin dicapai. Proses pembelajaran akan berjalan efektif jika peserta didik mengenal tujuan yang ingin dicapainya. Oleh karena itu, guru hendaknya menyadari tujuan sebagai arah aktivitas pengajaran dan membantu peserta didik dalam memahami tujuannya.

d. Prinsip ruang hidup (life space); bahwa perilaku individu memiliki keterkaitan dengan lingkungan dimana ia berada. Oleh karena itu, materi yang diajarkan hendaknya memiliki keterkaitan dengan situasi dan kondisi lingkungan kehidupan peserta didik.

e. Transfer dalam Belajar; yaitu pemindahan pola-pola perilaku dalam situasi pembelajaran tertentu ke situasi lain. Menurut pandangan Gestalt, transfer belajar terjadi dengan jalan melepaskan pengertian obyek dari suatu konfigurasi dalam situasi tertentu untuk kemudian menempatkan dalam situasi konfigurasi lain dalam tata-susunan yang tepat. Judd menekankan pentingnya penangkapan prinsip-prinsip pokok yang luas dalam pembelajaran dan kemudian menyusun ketentuan-ketentuan umum (generalisasi). Transfer belajar akan terjadi apabila peserta didik telah menangkap prinsip-prinsip pokok dari suatu persoalan dan menemukan generalisasi untuk kemudian digunakan dalam memecahkan masalah dalam situasi lain. Oleh karena itu, guru hendaknya dapat membantu peserta didik untuk menguasai prinsip-prinsip pokok dari materi yang diajarkannya.

APRIL MOP

Sejarah Di Balik “April Mop” – Masihkah kaum muda muslim mengikuti???

Disadur dari: “Valentine Day, Natal , Happy New Year, April Mop, Hallowen – So What?”, Rizki Ridyasmara, Bab 4, hal.71-77, Pustaka Al-Kautsar, Desember 2005

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Apaan sih April Mop? Biasanya orang akan menjawab bahwa April Mop, yang hanya berlaku pada tanggal 1 April, adalah hari di mana kita boleh dan sah-sah saja menipu teman, orang tua, saudara, atau sejenisnya, dan sang target tidak boleh marah atau emosi ketika sadar bahwa dirinya telah menjadi sasaran April Mop. Biasanya sang target, jika sudah sadar kena April Mop, maka dirinya juga akan tertawa atau minimal mengumpat sebal, tentu saja bukan marah sungguhan.

Walaupun belum sepopuler perayaan tahun baru atau Valentine’s Day, budaya April Mop dalam dua dekade terakhir memperlihatkan kecenderungan yang makin akrab di masyarakat perkotaan kita. Bukan mustahil pula, ke depan juga akan meluas ke masyarakat yang tinggal di pedesaan. Ironisnya, masyarakat dengan mudah meniru kebudayaan Barat ini tanpa mengkritisinya terlebih dahulu, apakah budaya itu baik atau tidak, bermanfaat atau sebaliknya.

Tahukah anda, bahwa perayaan April Mop yang selalu diakhiri dengan kegembiraan dan kepuasan itu, sesungguhnya berawal dari suatu tragedi besar yang sangat menyedihkan dan memilukan???

April Mop, atau The April’s Fool Day, berawal dari satu episode sejarah Muslim Spanyol di tahun 1487, atau bertepatan dengan 892 H. Sejak dibebaskan Islam pada abad ke- 8M oleh Panglima Thariq bin Ziyad, Spanyol berangsur-angsur tumbuh menjadi satu negeri yang makmur. Pasukan Islam tidak saja berhenti di Spanyol, namun terus melakukan pembebasan di negeri-negeri sekitar menuju Perancis. Perancis Selatan dengan mudah dibebaskan. Kota Carcassone, Nimes, Bordeaux, Lyon, Poitou, Tours, dan sebagainya jatuh. Walaupun sangat kuat, pasukan Islam masih memberikan toleransi kepada suku Got dan Navaro di daerah sebelah Barat yang berupa pegunungan.

Islam telah menerangi Spanyol. Karena sikap para penguasa Islam yang begitu baik dan rendah hati, banyak orang-orang Spanyol yang kemudian dengan tulus dan ikhlas memeluk Islam. Muslim Spanyol bukan saja beragama Islam, namun sungguh-sungguh mempraktikkan kehidupan secara Islami. Tidak saja membaca Al-Qur’an, namun bertingkah laku berdasarkan Al-Qur’an. Mereka selalu berkata tidak untuk musik, bir, pergaulan bebas, dan segala hal yang dilarang Islam. Keadaan tenteram seperti itu berlangsung hampir enam abad lamanya.

Selama itu pula kaum kafir yang masih ada di sekeliling Spanyol tanpa kenal lelah terus berupaya membersihkan Islam dari Spanyol, namun selalu gagal. Maka dikirimlah sejumlah mata-mata untuk mempelajari kelemahan umat Islam Spanyol. Akhirnya mereka menemukan cara untuk menaklukkan Islam, yakni dengan pertama-tama melemahkan iman mereka melalui jalan serangan pemikiran dan budaya.

Maka mulailah secara diam-diam mereka mengirimkan alkohol dan rokok secara gratis ke dalam wilayah Spanyol. Musik diperdengarkan untuk membujuk kaum mudanya agar lebih suka bernyanyi dan menari daripada membaca Al Qur’an. Mereka juga mengirimkan sejumlah ulama palsu untuk meniup-niupkan perpecahan ke dalam tubuh umat Islam Spanyol. Lama-kelamaan upaya ini membuahkan hasil.

Akhirnya Spanyol jatuh dan bisa dikuasai Pasukan Salib. Penyerangan oleh pasukan Salib benar-benar dilakukan dengan kejam tanpa mengenal peri kemanusiaan. Tidak hanya pasukan Islam yang dibantai, tetapi juga penduduk sipil, wanita, anak-anak kecil, orang- orang tua. Satu-persatu daerah di Spanyol jatuh. Granada adalah daerah terakhir yang ditaklukkan . Penduduk-penduduk Islam di Spanyol (juga disebut orang Moor) terpaksa berlindung di dalam rumah untuk menyelamatkan diri. Tentara-tentara Salib terus mengejar mereka.

Ketika jalan-jalan sudah sepi, tinggal menyisakan ribuan mayat yang bergelimpangan bermandikan genangan darah, tentara Salib mengetahui bahwa banyak muslim Granada yang masih bersembunyi di rumah-rumah. Dengan lantang tentara Salib itu meneriakkan pengumuman, bahwa para Muslim Granada bisa keluar dari rumah dengan aman dan diperbolehkan berlayar keluar Spanyol dengan membawa barang-barang keperluan mereka. Orang-orang Islam masih curiga dengan tawaran ini. Namun beberapa dari orang Muslim diperbolehkan melihat sendiri kapal- kapal penumpang yang sudah dipersiapkan di pelabuhan . Setelah benar- benar melihat ada kapal yang sudah disediakan, mereka pun segera bersiap untuk meninggalkan Granada dan berlayar meninggalkan Spanyol.

Keesokan harinya, ribuan penduduk muslim Granada keluar dari rumah-rumah mereka dengan membawa seluruh barang-barang keperluan, beriringan berjalan menuju pelabuhan. Beberapa orang Islam yang tidak mempercayai pasukan Salib, memilih bertahan dan terus bersembunyi di rumah-rumah mereka. Setelah ribuan umat Islam Spanyol berkumpul di pelabuhan, dengan cepat tentara Salib menggeledah rumah-rumah yang telah ditinggalkan penghuninya. Lidah api terlihat menjilat-jilat angkasa ketika mereka membakari rumah-rumah tersebut bersama dengan orang-orang Islam yang masih bertahan di dalamnya. Sedang ribuan umat Islam yang tertahan di pelabuhan, hanya bisa terpana ketika tentara

Salib juga membakari kapal-kapal yang dikatakan akan mengangkut mereka keluar dari Spanyol. Kapal-kapal itu dengan cepat tenggelam. Ribuan umat Islam tidak bisa berbuat apa-apa karena sama sekali tidak bersenjata. Mereka juga kebanyakan terdiri dari para perempuan dengan anak-anaknya yang masih kecil-kecil. Sedang para tentara Salib telah mengepung mereka dengan pedang terhunus.

Dengan satu teriakan dari pemimpinnya, ribuan tentara Salib segara membantai umat Islam Spanyol tanpa rasa belas kasihan. Jerit tangis dan takbir membahana. Seluruh Muslim Spanyol di pelabuhan itu habis dibunuh dengan kejam. Darah menggenang di mana-mana. Laut yang biru telah berubah menjadi merah kehitam-hitaman. Tragedi ini bertepatan dengan tanggal 1 April. Inilah yang kemudian diperingati oleh dunia Kristen setiap tanggal 1 April sebagai April Mop (The April’s Fool Day). Pada tanggal 1 April, orang-orang diperbolehkan menipu dan berbohong kepada orang lain. Bagi umat Kristiani, April Mop merupakan hari kemenangan atas dibunuhnya ribuan umat Islam Spanyol oleh tentara Salib lewat cara-cara penipuan. Sebab itulah, mereka merayakan April Mop dengan cara melegalkan penipuan dan kebohongan walau dibungkus dengan dalih sekedar hiburan atau keisengan belaka.

Bagi umat Islam, April Mop tentu merupakan tragedi yang sangat menyedihkan. Hari di mana ribuan saudara-saudaranya seiman disembelih dan dibantai oleh tentara Salib di Granada, Spanyol. Sebab itu, adalah sangat tidak pantas juga ada orang Islam yang ikut-ikutan merayakan tradisi ini. Siapapun orang Islam yang turut merayakan April Mop, maka ia sesungguhnya tengah merayakan ulang tahun pembunuhan massal ribuan saudara-saudaranya di Granada, Spanyol, 5 abad silam.

Wahai saudara-saudariku sesama Muslim, sampai hatikah Anda semua merayakan April Mop sekarang ini, setelah mengetahui apa yang sebenarnya melatarbelakangi perayaan yang diadakan dunia Barat setiap tanggal 1 April itu???

Allah SWT akan menjadi saksi bagi kita semua.

Wallahu a’lamu Bishawab.

THE PRONUNCIATION PROBLEM IN THE CLASSROOM

THE PRONUNCIATION PROBLEM IN THE CLASSROOM

(By: SUBHAN SHABRI)

2009

1. INTRODUCTION

The target of teaching and learning English is to enable students to communicate in the language. It is expected that the students have ability in four language skills; listening, speaking, reading and writing. All the language skills support one another. There must be a balance among the skills. Each skill consists of three components; they are grammar, vocabulary, and pronunciation. The components will be parameter for the learners in measuring the progress of their learning activities. How they use the correct grammar, the choice of words or vocabulary, and, of course, how they pronounce the words or vocabularies they use in spoken English (for listening and speaking skills).

However, teaching English in senior high schools means facing learners or students who have got English lesson for years in previous school levels. They are not beginners who do not know English at all. They have got a number of English vocabularies in their own mind, and even some of them are good in grammar. But, since English is taught as a foreign language, they do not have enough time and opportunities to practice this language naturally. English is not used as the means of communication. Consequently, their English is passive.

Brown (2000: p.1) says that learning a second language is a long and complex undertaking. Your whole person is affected as your struggle to reach beyond the confines of your first language and into a new language, a new culture, a new way of thinking, feeling, and acting. Total commitment, total involvement, total physical, intellectual, and emotional responses are necessary to successfully send and receive messages in a second language.

Learning and teaching English as a foreign language will be more complicated than Brown’s statement above since English is not used as a means of communication. There is only a little opportunity to communicate in this language. For that reason, the senior high school students have known about English, but they do not want to practice their English because they have problem with pronunciation.

Practice is the key word for the four basic skills in English. Concerning with the speaking skill, the learners of English as the foreign language have to be able to pronounce the English vocabulary correctly when they practice this language. So, the problem is how well they pronounce all vocabularies which they use, so that their audience can understand what they mean. Mispronunciation will make miscommunication.

2. DISCUSSION

a. Problem

The tenth year students of MAN Teluk Kuantan have English subject three times a week, each meeting is ninety minutes. The subjects are delivered in English. The teaching and learning activities cover four language skills; listening, speaking, reading and writing. The students pay full attention to the teacher and the subjects. In fact, the students still have some problems. Among all of the problems, the most serious one is about pronunciation. The students tend to pronounce the English vocabularies as the phenomenon above. Mispronunciation is something happens frequently.

The writer would like to give an example as the illustration of the pronunciation problem of the students. One of the students wants to make sure whether his friend will come today or no. He phones the friend and says ‘Are you going here to die?’ [a: ju goiŋ hie tu dai]? Actually he wants to ask ‘Are you going here today?’ [a: ju goiŋ hie tude]?, but he mispronounces day [de] as die [dai].

He pronounces the word day as [dai] because he is influenced by his habit reading the word in the Indonesian language, there is no difference between spelling and pronunciation in Indonesian as their mother tongue. They tend to pronounce the words they use as what the spelling are. The mispronunciation case as the example above happens frequently.

The problems can be described as follows:

1. They mispronounce the homonyms such as:

day [de] and die [dai]

work [wə:k] and walk [wo:k]

snake [sneik] and snack [snæk]

other [Λðә] and order [o:de:]

fool [fu:l] and full [ful]

four [fə:] and for [fə]

love [lΛf] and laugh [laf]

feel [fi:l] and fill [fil]

high [hai] and hike [haik]

2. They mispronounce the -ed in the ending of past forms (V2) and past participle forms (V3). For example, how to pronounce looked, warned, needed, or wanted.

b. Problem Solving

The significance of pronunciation in English can be proved by numerous English pronunciation dictionaries. A standard English dictionary always includes the pronunciation phonetically of each entry of the word. It means that an English learner will find from the dictionary not only the meaning of the word, but something which is also important is how to pronounce the word correctly. If he knows the spelling of the word only, possibly he will be able to write the word, but he will mispronounce it if he or she does not know the pronunciation of the word.

Actually the teacher has implemented a number of approaches and methods to help the students in order to reduce their weaknesses in pronouncing English vocabularies. The teacher has asked them to ensure or clarify the pronunciation of the words on the dictionary by themselves. Dictation and Drill Method have also been implemented by the teacher to make them familiar with the vocabularies of this foreign language. In fact, the efforts are not useful enough to help them in overcoming the pronunciation problem.

There must be an approach or method to overcome this pronunciation problem. The approach or method must belong to practical things. Littlewood (1981: p.8) states that the criterion for success in communication is not so much whether he or she has managed to convey an intended meaning, but rather whether he or she has produced an acceptable piece of language. However, by emphasizing the communicative nature of this language, the activities also aim to help the learner develop links with meaning that will later enable him or her to use this language for communicative purposes.

The term ‘practice’, as used here, includes not only activities where the learner’s response is expected to be immediate, but also those where the learner has more time to reflect on the operations he or she is performing.

To gain the purpose of teaching, a teacher should be creative to choose the appropriate way of teaching. In this case, a teacher must be able to combine some techniques, methods, or approaches to make students pronounce the words easily. Because the appropriate way chosen by the teacher can influence students’ interest, motivation and their ability in pronunciation.

In teaching and improving the English pronunciation, usually teachers use Drill Method. The teachers ask the students to repeat the words they say after them. It is useful enough to make the students able to know about the English pronunciation, but there are also some weaknesses of this method. The students will merely know the pronunciation of the words which have been asked by the teachers to be repeated in the Drill Method. It is impossible for the teachers to always use this method in teaching and increasing the pronunciation ability of the students. It will spend too much time. This way tends to be far away from the term of contextual and seems to be textual. The purpose of learning a language communicatively will be out of target.

The writer offers Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) as the way out or solution of the pronunciation problem if the students in the classroom. CLT is a kind of approach in teaching and learning a language communicatively, or we can say learning a language by using (or practicing) it immediately. Finocchario & Brumfit (1983) in Brown (1994: p.79) say the characteristics of CLT seems to be the answer of how to improve the students’ pronunciation ability. They are:

1. Communicative competence is the desired goal.

2. Meaning is paramount.

3. Dialog, if used, center around communicative functions and are not normally memorized.

4. Contextualization is a basic premise.

5. Language learning is learning to communicate.

6. Effective communication is sought.

7. Drilling may occur, but peripherally.

8. Comprehension pronunciation is sought.

9. Attempts to communicate may be encouraged from the very beginning.

10. Translation may be used where the students need or benefit from it.

11. Linguistic variation is a central concept in materials and methods.

12. Language is created by the individual often through trial and error.

13. Fluency and acceptable language is the primary goal: accuracy is judged not in the abstract but in context.

14. Students are expected to interact with other people, either in the flesh, through pair and group work, or in their writings.

15. Teachers help students in any way that motivates them to work with the language.

In implementing CLT in teaching English pronunciation, teacher has to remember that the characteristics of CLT; there must be a communication activity, in this case, the listening and speaking skills must be the targets in teaching and learning activity. The activity itself can be dialogs between teacher and students, or among the students themselves, it also can be interviews, role plays, and so on. The activities have to be able to force the students to get involved in the communicative activities. They have to listen to what people say to them and try to recognize and understand, then how to respond them by speaking (producing by them). Promadi (2008: p.54) says that the activities taken by the teacher into the classroom have to be able to help the students in reaching the communicative target. The activities make them active in communication such as sharing information, negotiating, and to fulfill the information gap.

Furthermore, he says that CLT activities are begun by structural mastering exercises and other exercises which are close to the communication itself.

The stages of communicative activities in CLT

The picture shows that the stages of communicative activities in CLT are begun from pre-communicative activities to the communicative activities. In the pre-communicative activities stages, the students do not have any motivation to communicate. The learning activities target is to master the structure of the language which is learnt. Alkusyairy (1998) in Promadi (2008: p.55) states that in the pre-communicative stage, the students are trained with half of the communication mastery by giving drilling and asking questions in order to make them have basic knowledge about the language. In this stage, Al-Ribaki (1973) in Promadi (2008: p.55) says, teacher can also ask the questions whose answers have been recognized by the students to make them have possibility to speak or to use the language.

The writer can say that the pre-structural activities as the requirements for the students to be able to recognize and understand then to speak in having communication. How can anyone get involved in a communication if he or she does not know any basic knowledge about the language itself? For that reason, it is clear that pronunciation as one of the basic knowledge in learning a language (in this case is English) is necessary to be understood by the students.

The teacher will present a contextual thing as the material in the teaching and learning activities. The material should be easy to be understood by the learners in order to make them not having problem in the content of the material, so they will just pay attention how they will try to speak (pronounce) about the topic.

The opportunity in practicing the language means that the teaching and learning activities have come into the term of Communicative Language Teaching (CLT). The student or learners will increase their pronunciation ability communicatively and contextually.

3. CONCLUSION

Learning by practicing are the key words in learning a language. Pronunciation as a sub-component of language skills is one of a number of serious problems faced by the learners of English as a foreign language. By always taking time to practice it, it is possible for them to be close and closer to the right way to pronounce the words of this foreign language.

Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) is a kind of approach which can help the learners in increasing their pronunciation ability. The learners have possibility to listen how people speak then to try to recognize the speaking, and to compare with their own way in pronouncing the words or utterances used in the conversation. For example, how they differentiate the sounds between ‘day’ and ‘die’, or between ‘God’ and ‘goat’.

The approach of Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) has the same sense with the term of Contextual Teaching Learning (CTL) because by taking the contextual things in teaching and learning process, the expectation to have the communicative activities in the teaching and learning seems to be able to be reached.

4. REFERENCES

Belchamber, Rebecca. 2007. The Advantages of Communicative Language Teaching, An article. Melbourne.

Brown, H. Douglas. 1994. Teaching by Principles; An Interactive Approach to Language Pedagogy. San Francisco: San Francisco State University.

Brown, H. Douglas. 2000. Principles of Language Learning and Teaching. San Francisco: San Francisco State University.

Harmer, Jeremy. 1991. The Practice of English Language Teaching. Cambridge: Longman

Hornby, A. S. 1994. Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Larsen-Freeman, Diane. 1986. Techniques and Principles in Language Teaching. Hong Kong: Oxford University Press.

Littlewood, William. 1981. Communicative Language Teaching; An Introduction. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Promadi. 2008. Pendekatan Komunikatif dalam Pembelajaran Bahasa Arab melalui Kelas Maya. Pekanbaru: Suska Press.