“That’s the biggest impact!” Pedagogical values of movies in ELT classrooms

Since many say watching movies can have a positive effect on language learning outcomes, this research was done to find out which skills movies can contribute most to, whether speaking, listening, reading, writing, vocabulary, grammar or cultural aspects. A qualitative research method was used for this study. This study was done to find out the teachers’ perceptions of using English movies in English Language Teaching (ELT) processes. Teachers from three different levels: primary, secondary, and senior high-school teachers were asked to answer a questionnaire set in accordance with the research topic. Five of them were senior high school teachers, two of them were junior high school teachers, and three of them were elementary school teachers. Creative interviews were also used as an additional data source. The results showed that most of the teachers agreed that movies play their biggest role and considerable advantages in developing cultural aspects and listening skills. Furthermore, some integration is possible between listening and speaking as well as with reading and writing because watching movies works better with integration of skills. Apparently, even though vocabulary can develop with this technique, grammar is not enhanced alone without being accompanied by writing

Using the Process Approach for teaching English descriptive writing

This study focused on the application of the Process Approach for teaching English descriptive writing. The purpose of this study was to find out whether this approach would work well for the teaching-learning of EFL descriptive writing by 10th grade students at MAN 1 Takengon. An experimental research method was used for this study. The subjects of this study were 61 students of the 10th grade at MAN 1 Takengon that were divided into an experimental group of 31 students and a control group of 30 students. The experimental group was treated by teaching using the Process Approach. Each group was given a pre-test and a post-test. The pre-test and post-test each consisted of one task which asked them to describe their family and Indonesia, respectively. The data were analyzed using SPSS. Before the data were processed, the normality and the homogeneity of the data were tested. The results of the normality and homogeneity tests showed that the data was normal and homogenous. Based on the t-test results the alternative hypothesis Ha was accepted hence the study concluded that there was a positive improvement in the results for writing a descriptive text from the students taught with the Process Approach

TEACHERS BEHALF ON LANGUAGE TEST CONSTRUCTION

There are four steps necessarily to be conducted when designing multiple-choice test items, namely setting the objective, building both concise stems and options, determining one correct answer, employing item indices to accept or discarding items (Brown, 2004). As a matter of fact, most teachers in Aceh are not very well-informed about the fourth step and they accept all items as they are. This study focuses on high school teachers who undergo all of the steps offered in the framework when constructing multiple-choice items for English summative test(s). The qualitative method using framework analysis was used in obtaining the data. A questionnaire was distributed to 15 teachers. The analysis process was carried out through three-step analysis (Miles, Huberman, Saldana, 2013). The results depict that the teachers hardly conduct the index determining step or try-outs when constructing a test. This implies that there is no empirical warrant that all items are worth tested and can be the fundamentals for decision-making when assessing and evaluating students test results.DOI: doi.org/10.24071/llt.2017.20020

Peer-Discussion in TOEFL Preparation Class

ABSTRACT The aim of this study was to see whether the technique of peer-discussion during the TOEFL preparation class benefits the students in increasing their score in Section Two of TOEFL Test,  Structure and Written Expression. According to Porter et al. (2001), during the process of students’ interaction with their peer(s), students have more open chances to ask conceptual questions; and as their peer(s) respond, they can understand more correctly and individually the questions. This study adopted quasi-experimental design involving  one class consisting of 24 second semester college students at Economics Faculty, Syiah Kuala University, Aceh, Indonesia. The result showed that the technique posed positive result on the students’ score in Section Two of TOEFL. The findings revealed that the Ha is accepted for the tvalue is 0.37 (df 22, α=0.05, -0.404 ≤ t ≥ 0.404 ). Also, it is significant for the sigvalue is 0.9 (sigvalue ≥ α=0.05). Hopefully, the result can contribute to the  theoretical gap in the TOEFL domain since there have not been many experimental studies about this technique used in TOEFL class. The technique indeed helps the students in overcoming the problems that they face in the Section Two of TOEFL. Besides, it can also boost their motivation in preparing for the TOEFL test.   ABSTRAK Tujuan dari studi ini adalah untuk melihat apakah diskusi dengan teman selama kelas persiapan TOEFL dapat memberi manfaat kepada siswa dalam meningkatkan skor mereka di bagian kedua tes TOEFL, yakni Structure and Written Expression. Seperti dikatakan oleh Porter et al. (2001) bahwa selama proses interaksi dengan teman, siswa mempunyai lebih banyak kesempatan untuk menanyakan pertanyaan konseptual; dan diwaktu mereka merespon, mereka mampu untuk mengerti dengan lebih baik dan secara individu pertanyaan tersebut. Studi ini menggunakan desain quasi-experimental yang melibatkan satu kelas yang terdiri dari 24 siswa dari semester 2 di Fakultas Ekonomi, Universitas Syiah Kuala University, Aceh, Indonesia. Hasil penelitian ini menunjukkan bahwa teknik ini mempunyai hasil positif terhadap skor siswa dalam bagian kedua tes TOEFL. Hasil yang didapat menerima Ha dengan nilai t 0.37 (df 22, α=0.05, -0.404 ≤ t ≥ 0.404 ). Dan hasil ini juga signifikan dengan nilai signifikansi 0.9 (sigvalue ≥ α=0.05).  Diharapkan hasil dari studi ini dapat memberi kontribusi kepada kajian teoritis dalam karena masih belum banyak studi eksperiment tentang ini dalam pengajaran TOEFL. Teknik ini mampu membantu siswa dalam menghadapi masalah dalam TOEFL di bagian kedua. Di samping itu, teknik ini juga mampu meningkatkan motivasi siswa di dalam menghadapi tes TOEFL.   How to Cite: Ismail, N. M. Wahyuni, S. (2017). Peer-Discussion in TOEFL Preparation Class. IJEE (Indonesian Journal of English Education), 4(1), 63-70 doi:10.15408/ijee.v4i1.4837.DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.15408/ijee. v4i1.483

Improving Reading TOEFL Score through Note Taking Strategy

There are still a number of less skilled readers in higher degree education where academic texts are staple needs (Hellekjaer, 2009). This study investigated a technique to help students increase their reading ability in TOEFL reading section. A technique named Notetaking technique was implemented during two cycles of classroom action research. There were 3 meetings for each cycle. The participants were 17 Economics students who are taking TOEFL Preparation course at Universitas Syiah Kuala, Aceh, Indonesia. The result from cycle one showed no increase since the average only incline to 38.58. Then in cycle 2, there was a significant increase reaching 45.11 (which is the minimum TOEFL standard for the university). It can be deduced that this technique might not be appropriate for large classes as it demands individual assistance. Besides, a good skill of organizing information is fundamental in this strategy to maximize the students’ effort in answering the TOEFL questions during the test

VISUALIZATION AND COMPREHENSION: Corroborating children’s reading ability

This study aimed at finding out the influence of visualization on students’ reading comprehension ability. Quantitative approach was employed in carrying out this research. The data were collected through test as it was the main instrument of this study. The data analysis was carried out using manual statistics calculation to find out the mean score before and after the treatment. From the result, it was obtained that the most effect that visualization has is on the inferring; second, it is on details; then it is followed by main idea. The smallest influence is made on vocabulary. Thus, it can be concluded that visualization while reading can help students a lot in terms of inferring, details, and main idea

COMPARING LEXICAL DENSITY IN TEACHER TALKS: ELEMENTARY SCHOOL AND HIGHER EDUCATION LEVEL

Teacher talk must be specific, clear, concise, and comprehensible for students as the target interlocutors. This study aimed to characterize lexical density in teacher talks of elementary school teachers and university lecturers during teaching. A qualitative descriptive technique was used involving lexico-grammar analysis from an SFL perspective. The subjects of this study were three elementary school teachers (6th-grade teachers) and three university lecturers (English lecturers) who were voluntarily recorded during their teaching time; once for each. Hence, the object of this study is the transcriptions of teacher talks from these six research subjects which were then analyzed using documentation techniques of data analysis namely selection, categorization, classification, identification, and verification. The results show that the lexical density used in elementary school teacher talk is 42.65% (low) and that one employed at the university level is 36.76% (low). Unexpectedly, the rate for elementary school is somewhat higher than that for the university level. This case appears to have an intervening aspect because the elementary school is an international school. It is learned that an educational institution—regardless of its level—with a distinct learning target would certainly influence the lexical density employed in the teachers’ spoken discourse during classes

THE IMPACTS OF MODELED-READING STRATEGY ON STUDENTS’ REASONING SKILL ABILITY

In spite of being included into receptive skill, reading is no longer considered as a passive activity of learning. It is known that readers should be actively engaged during the reading process in attempt to achieve comprehension. This study sought the impacts of the application of modeled reading in increasing students’ reasoning skill, both verbally and logically. Conducted by following quasi experimental characteristics, this study employed one-group pretest post-test design. There were 23 college students involved as the samples who were given a pretest, teaching treatment, and a post-test. The instruments used were two types of test: verbal reasoning test and logical reasoning test. Each set consists of 10 questions. During the data collection or test, the students were given 25 minutes to answer each set, for both the pretest and the posttest. Later, the data were analyzed using normality test and t-test to see if there is any significance increase after the treatment. The results unveil that both skills enhance after the treatment with modeled reading. First, students’ ability in verbal reasoning ability increases from 34.7 to 77 and logical reasoning ability increases from 65 to 83.4 in average. In conclusion, applying modeled reading can expand students’ cognitive ability in sharpening their verbal and logical reasoning which are beneficial during their learning, especially in reading comprehension

The overview analysis of the movie Sense and Sensibility

Movies have been everybody’s favorite across all ages. Some movies are not suitable for certain ages and the parents’ assistance is needed during the watching movie process so that they can show the morals conceived in the movie. This study tries to shed lights on the elements contained in  a movie entitled “Sense and Sensibility”,  a movie made based on a novel by Jane Austen. This study was carried out in qualitative approach using visual feature analysis technique. The object of this study was the movie with the duration of 140 minutes. The data obtained were then classified based on its elements such as realism, local color, narratives, and symbolism. The result portrayed that the realism given in this movie is the condition of a noble family who had lost all of their wealth and life had been becoming crude. The local color depicts the social status in the mid-eighteenth century. The story was narrated in the linear plot and finally, the symbolism in this movie exposed much about the calming and melancholic nature of Devonshire

COHESION IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE WRITING

It is important to keep the cohesion and coherence when writing; this is where the use of cohesive devices starts to be taken into account. This study sought the types of cohesive devices used by undergraduate students in their writing. The qualitative discourse analysis was used as the design of this research. The data were collected from seven undergraduate students as the respondents who were in the 6th semester at a private university in Aceh. These respondents were asked to write a descriptive text approximately 200 words in length and they were given forty-five minutes to finish their writing. The result unveiled that the type of cohesion devices which was majorly used was addition, as there are 94% of the additive device usage. Then, 75% refers to the use of cohesive devices as comparison, 56% as consequential, and 40% as temporal device. In can be concluded that the students use more addition in writing. As a suggestion, it is essential to shed light on their ability to employ cohesive devices more on other types in balance as it is necessary in contrasting, comparing, sequencing, giving exception, and illustrating