an analysis of students’ problems in academic writing …
Post on 19-Feb-2022
5 Views
Preview:
TRANSCRIPT
AN ANALYSIS OF STUDENTS’ PROBLEMS IN ACADEMIC
WRITING AT ENGLISH DEPARTMENT STUDENTS IN 2019
ACADEMIC YEAR OF UNISMUH
A THESIS
Submitted to the Faculty of Teachers Training and Education Muhammadiyah
University of Makassar in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirement for the
Degree of Education in English Department
KHADIJAH
10535629715
ENGLISH EDUCATION DEPARTMENT
FACULTY OF TEACHER TRAINING AND EDUCATION
MUHAMMADIYAH UNIVERSITY OF MAKASSAR
2020
MOTTO AND DEDICATION
Motto :
Isy Kariman aw Mut Syahidan (Hidup mulia atau
mati syahid)
“Tuntutlah ilmu sampai ke liang lahat.”
Dedication:
A Thesis for My Beloved Family
Especially for My Beloved Father,
My Beloved Mother,
My Beloved Husband,
also,
For My Self
ABSTRACT
KHADIJAH 2019. An Analysis of Students’ Problems in Academic Writing at the
Fifth Semester Students of English Department Students in 2019 Academic Year
of Unismuh. Under the Thesis of English Education Department, the Faculty of
Teacher Training and Education, University Muhammadiyah Makassar,
Supervised by Bahrun Amin and Muh. Arief Muhsin.
This research has two objectives that were: (1) to find out the students’
ability in academic writing (2) to find out the problems faced by the students in
the academic writing of the fifth-semester students of the English department in
2019 academic year of Universitas Muhammadiyah Makassar.
The method of this research was descriptive quantitative research. This
research used two instruments: academic writing tests and the questionnaire about
students‟ problems in academic writing. The subject of this research was fifth-
semester students of the English department at Universitas Muhammadiyah
Makassar in the 2019 academic year. This research used a purposive sampling
technique. This research used samples that consisted of 32 from 220 students as
the total population.
The result of this research identified the students‟ ability that categorized
as good with the mean score 81.02. The students‟ problem in the plagiarism
aspect reaches 23%, grammatical error 25%, lexical difficulties 25%, and lack of
planning 27%. It indicated that most students have various problems in academic
writing.
Keywords: Academic Writing, Students’ Ability, Students’ Problems.
ABSTRAK
KHADIJAH 2019. An Analysis of Students’ Problems in Academic Writing at the
Fifth Semester Students of English Department Students in 2019 Academic Year
of Unismuh. Skripsi Jurusan Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris Fakultas Keguruan dan
Ilmu Pendidikan, Universitas Muhammadiyah Makassar. Dibimbing oleh Bahrun
Amin dan Muh. Arief Muhsin.
Penelitian ini memiliki dua tujuan yaitu: (1) untuk mengetahui kemampuan
siswa dalam penulisan akademik (2) untuk mengetahui masalah yang dihadapi
oleh siswa dalam penulisan akademik siswa semester lima jurusan bahasa Inggris
pada tahun 2019 tahun akademik Universitas Muhammadiyah Makassar.
Metode penelitian ini adalah penelitian kuantitatif deskriptif. Penelitian ini
menggunakan dua instrumen: tes menulis akademik dan kuesioner tentang
masalah siswa dalam penulisan akademik. Subjek penelitian ini adalah mahasiswa
semester lima jurusan Bahasa Inggris di Universitas Muhammadiyah Makassar
pada tahun akademik 2019. Penelitian ini menggunakan teknik purposive
sampling. Sampel penelitian ini berjumlah 32 dari 220 siswa sebagai total
populasi.
Hasil penelitian ini mengidentifikasi kemampuan siswa yang
dikategorikan baik dengan skor rata-rata 81,02. Masalah siswa dalam aspek
plagiarisme mencapai 23%, kesalahan tata bahasa 25%, kesulitan leksikal 25%,
dan kurangnya perencanaan 27%. Diindikasikan, bahwa sebagian besar siswa
memiliki berbagai masalah dalam penulisan akademik.
Kata kunci: Penulisan Akademik, Kemampuan Siswa, Masalah Siswa.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
There are no more appropriate words to say than Alhamdulillah, all praise
is only for Allah, in His hands are all greatness and power, the Lord of the
universe, master of the day of judgment, God Almighty, for all blessings and
mercies so the researcher was able to finish this thesis. Peace and blessing be upon
the final chosen religious messenger, the Prophet Muhammad Shallallahu „alaihi
wasallam and his followers in this world.
Alhamdulillah, with Allah‟s permission and gift, the researcher could
finish her thesis after a long struggle and hard effort. Thus, the researcher also
intended to express her most enormous gratitude to her beloved parents
(Syamsuddin and Nur Amsi), who always pray, support, and motivate her of
every part of her life, especially in doing this research. Also, she would like to
express the enormous thanks and gratitude to her beloved husband (Muhammad
Taqiyuddin), who gave his permission to live separately during the researcher
finish this study, always gives his support, motivation, and pray especially in
finishing this research.
The researcher was realized many people were already helped her in
arranging and writing this final project directly or indirectly. So in this
opportunity, the researcher would like to express the deepest appreciation to:
1. Prof. Dr. H. Abd Rahman Rahim SE., MM. as the rector of Makassar
Muhammadiyah University and Erwin Akib M.Pd., P.Hd as the Dean of
FKIP for their support and motivation during her study at UNISMUH.
2. Ummi Khaerati Syam, S.Pd, M.Pd. As the head of the English Department
of FKIP, also for her signature, support, and motivation.
3. The Researcher‟s supervisor are Dr. H. Bahrun Amin, M.Hum., and Muh.
Arief Muhsin, S.Pd., M.Pd., who have given guidance, valuable advice,
and correction during the development of this research.
4. Dr. Syamsiarna Nappu, S.Pd., M.Pd. as the researcher‟s lecturer and also
the lecturer of academic writing course of the fifth-semester students as the
subject of this research, who always gives her help and support in
completing the researcher‟s data of the study.
5. The researcher‟s beloved sisters, brothers, and all big family, who always
give inspiration and motivation to continue her studies.
6. The researcher‟s friends who always help and motivate her in
accomplishing this research in the English Education Department Class C
2015 (CHAZTALS) whose name can not be mentioned, may Allah give
His blessings.
7. Her beloved friends who have always been on the researcher's side in
facing all the laughter and tears during her study Sam Pravita Sari, S.Pd.,
and Mirdawaty, may Allah give His blessings.
8. The researcher‟s beloved sisters in Al-Qanitaat, Kakanda Irmayani Idris,
Kakanda Sulistiawaty Hardiani, Kakanda Fika Sholeha Ilyas, Kakanda
Desy Filda Zulkifli, Kakanda Afifah Hadju, Kakanda Miftahul Jannah,
may Allah give His blessings.
9. The researcher‟s beloved friends in Haamilal Qur‟an, Zakiyyah Darajat,
Musdalifa M, Nurayu Rezki, Nurul Faizah, Nur Afiah, Mukhlisah Nurul
Khair, and Nadiah Nursalam, may Allah give His blessings.
10. The students of the Muhammadiyah University of Makassar, especially the
fifth-semester students of the English Department, have a great study.
May the Almighty bless us now and forever, and this thesis can be useful,
Aamiin!
Finally, the researcher realizes that this thesis surely has lacks and deficiencies.
Therefore, the researcher intended to express her gratitude to accept any
suggestions and corrections from anyone for better writing.
Makassar February 2020
Researcher
LIST OF CONTENTS
TITLE ............................................................................................................. i
LEMBAR PENGESAHAN ........................................................................... ii
APPROVAL SHEET ..................................................................................... iii
COUNSELLING SHEET 1 ........................................................................... iv
COUNSELLING SHEET 2 ........................................................................... v
SURAT PERNYATAAN............................................................................... vi
SURAT PERJANJIAN .................................................................................. vii
MOTTO.......................................................................................................... viii
ABSTRACT ................................................................................................... ix
ABSTRAK ..................................................................................................... x
ACKNOWLEDGMENT ................................................................................ xi
LIST OF CONTENTS ................................................................................... xiv
LIST OF TABLES ......................................................................................... xvi
LIST OF FIGURES........................................................................................ xvii
LIST OF APPENDICES............................................................................... xviii
CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION
A. Background ........................................................................................ 1
B. Problem Statement ............................................................................. 5
C. Objective of the Study ........................................................................ 5
D. Significance of the Study ................................................................... 5
E. Scope of the Study ............................................................................. 6
CHAPTER II REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
A. Some Previous Related Findings ....................................................... 7
B. Some Partinent Ideas .......................................................................... 9
1. The Concept of Writing ............................................................... 9
a. Definition of Writing.............................................................. 9
b. Elements of Writing ............................................................... 10
c. The Process of Writing........................................................... 12
2. The Concept of Academic Writing .............................................. 13
a. Definition of Academic Writing ............................................ 13
b. Features of Academic Writing ............................................... 15
c. Problems in Academic Writing .............................................. 16
C. Conceptual Framework ................................................................... 19
CHAPTER III RESEARCH METHOD
A. Research Design ................................................................................. 20
B. Research Variable and Indicators....................................................... 20
C. Population, Sample, and Sampling .................................................... 20
D. The Instrument of the Research ......................................................... 21
E. Data Collecting Procedure ................................................................. 22
F. The Technique of Data Analysis ........................................................ 23
CHAPTER IV FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION
A. Findings .............................................................................................. 26
1. Result of Students‟ Academic Writing Test................................. 26
2. Result of Students‟ Questionnaire ................................................ 29
B. Disscussion ......................................................................................... 34
1. Students‟ Ability in Academic Writing........................................ 35
2. Students‟ Problems in Academic Writing .................................... 36
CHAPTER V CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTION
A. Conclusion ................................................................................................. 39
B. Suggestion ................................................................................................. 39
BIBLIOGRAPHY .......................................................................................... 40
APPENDICES
LIST OF TABLES
Table 3.1 Final Score of Students‟ Ability..................................................... 24
Table 3.2 Score of Students‟ Answer in Questionnaire ................................. 25
Table 4.1 Categories of Students‟ Ability in Academic Writing ................... 27
Table 4.2 Percentage of Students‟ Ability in Each Aspect of Writing .......... 28
Table 4.3 Questionnaire of Students‟ Problems in Plagiarism ...................... 30
Table 4.4 Questionnaire of Students‟ Problems in Grammatical Error ......... 31
Table 4.5 Questionnaire of Students‟ Problems in Lexical Difficulties ........ 32
Table 4.6 Questionnaire of Students‟ Problems in Lack of Planning ............ 32
Table 4.7 Percentage of Students‟ Problems of Each Category..................... 33
LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 2.1 The Conceptual Framework ......................................................... 19
LIST OF APPENDICES
APPENDIX 1 Scoring Rubric of Students‟ Ability in Academic Writing
APPENDIX 2 Test Instrument of Students‟ Academic Writing
APPENDIX 3 Questionnaire of Students‟ Problems in Academic Writing
APPENDIX 4 List Name and Code of the Samples
APPENDIX 5 Result of Students‟ Academic Writing Test
APPENDIX 6 Percentage of Each Aspect of Writing
APPENDIX 7 The Score of Students‟ Problems in Academic Writing
Questionnaire
APPENDIX 8 Percentage of Each Category Problem
APPENDIX 9 Result of Students‟ Academic Writing Test
APPENDIX 10 Documentation
APPENDIX 11 Result of Students‟ Questionnaire
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
A. Background
One of the skills in majoring English Language is writing. Brown in
Ramadani (2013) stated that writing is the other forms of spoken language that
represented graphically or symbolically. In Oxford Living Dictionaries, writing is
a sequence of letters, words, or symbols marked on a surface. From all the
definitions mentioned, it can conclude that writing is the process of the way
people express their ideas or thoughts using language symbols or words. When
writing something, people must have their purpose. One of the writing purposes is
for academic interests or more often called academic writing that usually done by
the students of schools or colleges.
Teachers or lecturers often give academic writing in schools or universities
or, moreover, occur in the educational curriculum. Bowker in Swarni (2016) said
that academic writing is a particular genre of writing that prescribes its own set of
rules and practices. In my.cumbeia.ac.uk site, academic writing is a specific style
used in formal essays and other assessments for the course. It requires official
language, a logical structure, and should prop by evidence. Swarni (2016) said
that some urgent things should be paid attention in writing such as grammar,
choice of word, punctuation, capitalization, spelling, vocabulary, and unity among
the paragraph. Leo in Dwinhandini et al. (2013) claims that three basic principles
that considered in a piece of academic writing are content, register, and topic. In
short, the definition of academic writing is a type of script that has an educational
purpose with particular rules. The rules should be applied to reach the goal of
academic writing.
There are some types of academic writing, such as essay, research,
summary, journal, book review, proposal, thesis, and so on. An essay is a kind of
writing that describe or show the writer‟s perspective or story about a subject.
While research, according to Nordquist, R (2019), is the collection and evaluation
of information about a particular essay. A summary is the small or simple type of
writing that rewritten from a long text. A book review is the commentary of book
content. A proposal, thesis, and dissertation are the academic writing that usually
occurs in colleges as the obligation task for the students that write about a subject.
Before doing research, students in college mostly asked to write a proposal first as
a college requirement. Academic writing has its specific purpose and
characteristics.
In writing any academic writing, many undergraduate students, especially
in the English Education Department, face some problems that influence their
writing task, writing skills, and further might also their writing of proposal and
thesis. Many students in college cannot write some academic papers such as
essays, research proposals, thesis, dissertations, and so on. That lacks skill in
academic writing makes some students do plagiarism in any task of their college
activity. The students‟ problems caused by some factors, internal or external, such
as the minim of knowledge they understand in English, lack of doing exercise,
lack the motivation to learn more, and so on. Cause of some factors, some
students have problems doing their academic research primarily to fulfill the
requirements of academic writing.
Abdulkareem (2013) researched a related study aimed to investigate the
academic writing problems encountered by Arab speaking postgraduate students
at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM). The findings of the research showed
that participants were mostly made errors in simple writing task. The result
described that students have many errors in the sentence structure, vocabulary,
and expressing ideas in academic writing. The errors are varies from high
percentage to low in the aspects of academic writing problems.
Alfaki (2015) also conducted related research aimed to identify university
students‟ writing problems in the English language and to encourage ways of
solving those problems. The findings revealed that those university students have
various writing problems: language problems at the levels of morphology and
syntax, usage errors, and mechanical mistakes, that is, spelling, punctuation and
capitalization, lack of several writing development skills, cognitive problems and
graphomotor problems.
Al Mubarak (2017) has researched a related study aimed to look into
various challenges encountered by English second language students in academic
writing in ordinary graduation project in the context of universities, specifically
focused on identifying the problems faced by the Arts Colleges within the
University of Al-Imam Al Mahdi, Sudan. He found that the students faced
numerous challenges relating to academic writing at the university level. It
discovered that many problems with academic writing experienced by the students
while writing were articles, punctuation, prepositions, irregular verbs, weak
expressions, consistency paralleled structure, and use of verb tense.
This study may have similarities with previous studies in terms of
students‟ problems in academic writing such as the mechanical mistakes, sentence
structure and grammar, the cause of the issues, the purpose of plagiarism, and so
on. The thing that makes this study is different from the previous research is the
place where this study took. This study took place in the Muhammadiyah
University environment, especially in the English Education Department. The
subject of this study was also different. This research subject is the students in the
2019 academic year of Unismuh in the English Education Department. The
condition of the students also has some particular situation based on their
experiences and environment while doing or learning academic writing. The
methods applied, the techniques in learning, the media used and other learning
conditions also influenced their interest and motivation in learning academic
writing course.
Over time, the problems faced by college students in academic writing in
many changes by the times. Some issues reduced with the existence of solutions
that implemented correctly, but not a few problems that developed. Besides, the
researcher observed themselves and people in the researcher‟s environment,
which are the student friends who still lack the knowledge of academic writing so
that they often make mistakes and face many problems when working on tasks
with educational goals. Base on this, the researcher intends to research under the
title “An Analysis of Students’ Problems in Academic Writing at English
Department Students in 2019 Academic Year of Unismuh” The research
focused on the analysis of the problems do the students face in doing their
academic writing.
B. Problem Statement
Based on the description in the background above, the researcher
formulated the research questions that are:
1. What are the categories of the students‟ ability in academic writing?
2. What are the problems that students face in academic writing?
C. Objectives of the Study
Based on the problem statement above, the goals of this research are:
1. To find out the students‟ ability in academic writing.
2. To find out the problems students face in academic writing.
D. Significance of the Study
There are some significances of this research that are;
1. This research will be beneficial to the writer who researched to find out the
objective of the study as the answer to the research question.
2. This research would provide information that can be a benefit to the
English teacher or lecturer about the students‟ problems in academic
writing.
3. This research also would be beneficial to the reader or the researcher who
will conduct further research.
E. Scope of the Study
This research focused on analyzing the students of the English Department
of Unismuh of 2019 academic year about their ability in academic writing with
five categories of assessment that are content, organization, vocabulary, grammar,
and mechanics. And also, the analysis of the problems faced by them in academic
writing based on four categories of common problems that are plagiarism,
grammatical errors, lexical difficulties, and lack of planning.
CHAPTER II
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
A. Some Previous Related Findings
Abdulkareem (2013) researched a related study aimed to investigate the
academic writing problems encountered by Arab speaking postgraduate students
at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM). The result of the study showed that
students committed many mistakes in academic writing concerning sentence
structure, vocabulary, and expressing ideas. The results presented the most errors
made by the participants in a simple writing task. The mistakes ranged from the
highest percentages to the lowest about the aspects of academic writing problems.
Alfaki (2015) also conducted related research aimed to identify university
students‟ writing problems in the English language and to encourage ways of
solving those problems. The findings revealed that those university students have
various writing problems: language problems at the levels of morphology and
syntax, usage errors, and mechanical mistakes, that is, spelling, punctuation and
capitalization, lack of several writing development skills, cognitive problems and
graphomotor problems.
Raza (2015) researched a related study aimed to identify problems that the
students encountered in writing their academic papers and which strategies they
reported to be employing to find solutions to their problems. The findings of the
study indicated the most significant difficulties in „cause of plagiarism‟, „deciding
whether the citation is needed or not, and „paraphrasing that results in over
quoting. Yet the least difficulty in „using block quotations. The other least delicate
three items were paraphrasing because of insufficiency in „grammar, „vocabulary,
and „in-text citation rules.
Al Mubarak (2017) has researched a related study aimed to look into
various challenges encountered by English second language students in academic
writing in ordinary graduation project in the context of universities, specifically
focused on identifying the problems faced by the Arts Colleges within the
University of Al-Imam Al Mahdi, Sudan. He found that the students faced
numerous challenges relating to academic writing at the university level. It
discovered that many problems with academic writing experienced by the students
while writing were articles, punctuation, prepositions, irregular verbs, weak
expressions, consistency paralleled structure, and use of verb tense.
Azizah and Budiman (2017) conducted a related study aimed at finding
out the difficulties and challenges in writing the English article for international
journals and outlining their perception about the importance of writing to public
goals. The findings of the study indicated the most severe difficulty in writing the
article is expressing knowledge. Besides, students have the opinion that writing
for public goals is fundamental in the academic field, and accordingly, the
university‟s bolster is needed to prepare their paper.
Alfiah, S. N. (2018) has conducted related research aimed to find out the
kinds of problems in writing an argumentative essay for Indonesian EFL learners.
The result of the study showed that the students‟ difficulties in writing an
argumentative essay were lack of exercise in writing, lack of structure and
grammar, confusion in word classes, understanding in English learning.
B. Some Pertinent Ideas
1. The Concept of Writing
a. Definition of Writing
Writing is the way to communicate with other people by using words.
According to Richard Nordquist (2019), writing is a system of graphic symbols
that can be used to convey meaning. Writing is the action of composing a text.
While according to Merriam Webster, there are some definitions of writing. First,
writing is the act or process of one who writes. Second, writing is something
written, such as; letters or characters that serve as visible signs of ideas, words, or
symbols; a letter, note, or notice used to communicate or record; and written
composition. Third, writing is a style or form of essay. And fourth, writing is the
occupation of a writer, especially the profession of authorship.
Nunan in Yuniati (2015) believes that writing is the act of creating ideas,
think the way to express thoughts, and manage the concept into sentences or
paragraphs to make them clear to a reader. Gaith, also in Yuniati (2015), said that
writing is the process that passed by a writer to scour his ideas and thought and
make their ideas are concrete.
Byrne in Junaid (2012) states that writing is more than the prediction of
the sounds. The symbols have arranged according to specifications in the
convention. As a rule, however, the students do not write just one sentence or
several the sentence as arranged in particular order and linked together in specific
ways. Widdowson, also in Junaid (2012), states that writing is a communicative
activity and carried out by one specific general principle in which underlines the
use of language in communication.
From all the descriptions above, it concluded that writing is the use of
words, symbols to represent the speech sounds or language in text form and to
express the thoughts and ideas of someone to be read by the other people.
b. Elements of Writing
According to Wilbers, S (2008), five elements of effective writing
described below.
1) Central Idea: is the element to have good writing with focusing the topic,
organizing the ideas and arguments.
2) The organization is the element to have good writing with making the
paragraphs are coherent and organizing them logically and sequentially.
3) Supporting material: the element to have good writing with supporting
sentences, explanation, and examples.
4) Expression, Word Choice, and Point of View: the element to have good
writing with providing the explicit language, high accuracy, specific and
appropriate to the audience.
5) Spelling, Grammar, and Punctuation: the element to have good writing with
pay attention to grammar, spelling, and punctuation.
While according to Junaid G.J (2012), there are five components of
writing. The five elements are content, organization, vocabulary, language use,
and mechanics.
1) Content is the topic development serviced by the writer. It is how the writer
delivers his thoughts about the topic in paragraphs.
2) The organization is how the writer makes his paragraphs coherent with each
other.
3) Vocabulary is the use of diction in organizing the paragraphs without making
the ideas or topic is hazy.
4) Language use refers to the use of the correct grammatical and syntactic pattern
on separating, combining, and grouping ideas in words, phrases, clauses, and
sentences to bring out the logical relationship in paragraph writing.
5) Mechanics refers to the use of graphic conventional of the language, i.e., the
steps of arranging letters, word sentences, paragraphs by using knowledge of
the structure, and some others related to one another.
Nurgiantoro in Yuniati (2015) mentioned some components in scoring
writing that is organization, content, grammar, vocabulary, and mechanic.
1) Organization means how the writer organizes his idea. Wether each paragraph
is organize well or not. The organization of the text is fluent in expressing,
reveal clearly ideas, good organization, logic sequence and cohesive.
2) Content refers to the development of the topic using supporting sentences. The
excellent content had to fulfill the criteria such as full of information;
substantive makes a clear thesis development and relevant to the problem.
3) Language means the students use practical complex sentence construction and
make only a few faults in the use of grammar.
4) Vocabulary means if the students could choose the correct words as it is
function and master informing words.
5) Mechanic means a paragraph is a combination of some sentences which need
proper spelling and punctuation. If the use of punctuation is not appropriate,
the article will be unreadable. So the students should be mastered in writing a
good paragraph.
Based on the description of the aspects or elements in writing above, it
concludes that there are some aspects or features in writing that are content or
central idea, organization, language use or grammar, vocabulary or choice of
words, and mechanic.
c. The Process of Writing
According to Alice Oshima and Ann Hogue in Putri (2014), four steps
should be done for writers.
1) Prewriting. Prewriting is a way to get ideas. In this step, writers choose a topic
and collect thoughts to explain the issue.
2) Planning (Outlining). In the planning stage, the writer needs to organize the
ideas generated by brainstorming. The most successful way to organize the
ideas generated is that outlining brainstorming.
3) Write and Revising Drafts. After doing brainstorming and outlining as the first
draft and the second process of writing, the writer can start to write and revise
several drafts frequently until the writer has produced a final copy to hand in.
4) Write the Final Draft. The last stage is to write the final copy or product to
hand in.
Richard and Renandya in Cakrawati (2012) also stated some stages in the
writing process that are planning, drafting, revising, and editing.
1) Planning. In the planning stage, the students are encouraged to write.
2) Drafting. The drafting stage is focusing on fluency of writing and not
preoccupied with grammatical accuracy or the neatness of the draft.
3) Revise. On the revising stage, the students re-write their text based on
feedback given in a responding step.
4) Editing. On the editing stage, the students engaged in tidying up their text as
they prepare the final draft for evaluation.
2. The Concept of Academic Writing
a. Definition of Academic Writing
According to Valdes (2019), academic writing is any formal written work
produced in an educational setting. Academic writing is frequently used by
students, professors, and researchers to make paper, arguments, or any writing to
public goals. There are some characteristics of academic writing that are
evidence-based arguments, precise word choice, logical organization, and an
impersonal tone.
According to Hartley in Brodhacker (2016), academic writing pertains to a
specific form of depiction that professionals utilize to establish the intellectual
specifications associated with their disciplines as well as their particular fields of
expertise. Components of academic writing comprise of usage of the third-person
point of view as opposed to the first-person point of view, a formal tone, a precise
concentration on the study issue under examination, plus an exact and elaborate
word choice. Similar to specific dialects acquired within various other fields, most
notably, legislation, the law, or the practice of medicine, academic writing created
to show harmonized meaning regarding problematic methods or designs for a field
of educational professionals.
While Muray and Moore, also in Brodhacker (2016), stated that academic
writing is different from informal writing because of the design of the paper,
otherwise how we utilize words and phrases to convey what we wish to speak.
Specific situations necessitate specific and precise ways of putting words and
phrases in conjunction with one another. Formal and informal communication
serve various objectives; how we write within an academic and scientific setting
will significantly deviate from how we would correspond to a friend or loved one.
Johnson, A. P (2016) also stated about academic writing that writing
creatively in different forms and functions. Like other writing, academic writing
has the purpose of delivering ideas from the writer to the reader. Like technical
writing and most types of paper used in professional settings, its primary goal is to
present information. Academic writing used to write academic reports, inquiries,
and essays in educational settings.
Based on the description above, it concludes that academic writing is the
written paper that commonly produced for educational purposes by researching to
fulfill the college requirement in any specific discipline.
b. Features of Academic Writing
According to Valdes (2019), some characteristics or features of academic
writing described below.
1) Clear and limited focus. The focus of academic writing is clear and usually
mentioned in the problem statement. The paragraphs in the academic essay are
always related to the topic or focuses.
2) Logical structure. All form of academic writing has a consistent structure.
Academic writing always consists of an introduction, body, and conclusion.
The background, statements, and scope ever discussed in the introduction part.
The supporting thoughts of the comments addressed in the body paragraphs.
In the conclusion part, it is often talking about the arguments, review of the
main ideas, and the paper findings.
3) Evidence-based arguments. Academic writing requires well-informed
discussions — statements in academic writing support by evidence from many
sources.
4) Impersonal tone. Delivery of arguments in academic writing should contain
logic and objective, and not use emotional or biased language.
While according to Michael Jonas. M (2018), in the quora.com site, ten
main features of academic writing are often discussed. Some features of academic
writing are: complex, formal, objective, explicit, hedged, and responsible. It uses
language precisely and accurately. It is also well organized and planned.
1) Complexity. Complex elements than spoken language always indicate written
communication. It is using dense lexical, varied diction, and longer words.
2) Formality. Academic writing used for formal or official goals.
3) Precision. The facts, evidence, and figures in academic writing should
precisely provide.
4) Objectivity. Academic writing frequently uses nouns and not verbs because it
is objectively general.
5) Explicitness. Each paragraph in academic writing is related to each other.
6) Accuracy. Proper diction is needed in academic writing.
7) Hedging. The technique that always used in academic writing with a specific
purpose.
8) Responsibility. The responsibility of the writer is giving the facts and evidence
for his statements.
9) Organization. Academic writing is well organized.
10) Planning. Academic writing needs a good struggle in preparation.
Mytekah (2013), in the hubpages.com site, also mentioned eight features
or characteristics of academic writing. They are complexity, formality, precision,
objectivity, explicitness, accuracy, hedging, and responsibility. These features will
influence the style of academic writing.
d. Problems in Academic Writing
Most students of any college have some issues and difficulties while they
faced the tasks in any of the academic purposes. They still make some errors in
writing for educational purposes, whether in the concept of the idea, coherence
and cohesion, cautions, conjunction, preposition, and so on.
David, E (2019) in Academic Writing Pro blog stated that there are some
difficulties faced by the students while writing an academic paper that mentioned
in the following paragraphs.
1) Plagiarism.
In academic writing, the work or idea of someone else can not be copied
and presented in our paper. It just can be paraphrased or summarized with
mention the source of the concept using appropriate citations and references.
2) Grammatical Errors
It can be said an excellent academic paper if it has no errors in terms of
grammar, punctuation, language, or style. The morphological of the academic
writing paper should pay more attention to get the proper academic writing paper.
The fewer grammatical errors can enhance the worth of academic writing and
make it more authentic. Grammatical errors can be avoided by proofreading.
There are some the academic writing service on websites the can help to get rid of
any grammatical mistakes.
3) Lexical Difficulties
The lexical difficulties are the difficulty in choosing words or the diction
election, or any problem related to terms. Sometimes, the students‟ cannot put the
right name in the right place, or the word that chosen is less precise. That
condition also influences the sentence structure. As a result, their academic
writing contains some mistakes. This lexical difficulty can be avoided by reading
more to increase the exposure, experience, knowledge, or even give an authentic
idea in doing academic writing.
4) Lack of Planning
Any academic writing problems mostly occur because of the lack of
planning. The first thing that you should do before writing any academic writing
is planning. With the planning process, the information, ideas, and facts that put in
the academic paper can be organized well so that we are not getting lost. In the
planning stage, some steps can help the students to organize their writing, such as
outlining, prewriting, drafting, and so on.
Al Fadda (2012) has conducted research aimed at finding out the students‟
difficulties in the King Saudi University (KSU) when learning to write academic
English and their need and goal of learning. The result of the research showed that
students face many difficulties in academic writing, such as:
1) Avoid the epidemic words and phrases by knowing them.
2) They are reviewing the grammar in their writing.
3) They are experiencing difficulty in using pronouns and maintaining the
pronoun-antecedents agreement.
4) They are making mistakes with subject-verb agreement.
5) They are also making a sentence fragment in their writing.
6) They are challenging in combining sentences in their writing.
C. Conceptual Framework
Figure 2.1 The Conceptual Framework
The process of getting the objectives of this research is illustrated by the
diagram above. The researcher started by giving the students a test to write an
academic writing task or asking the lecturer about the documents of students‟
academic writing task. After collecting the documents of the test, the researcher
analyzed the documents one by one to get the data about their academic writing
ability. The researcher also gave questionnaire to each student to get the data of
the students‟ problems in academic writing based on their experiences and point
of view based on the aspects of academic writing problems described.
Test of Students‟ Academic
Writing
Analysis of Students‟ Academic
Writing
Students‟ Ability in Academic
Writing
Students‟Problems in Academic
Writing
Questionnaire of Students
Problems in Academic Writing
CHAPTER III
RESEARCH METHOD
A. Research Design
This research was a Descriptive Quantitative Research. According to
Kasiram in the statistikian.com site, quantitative analysis is the process or the
study of finding knowledge that uses data in the form of numbers as a means of
analyzing information about what does it want to know. It went with the objective
of this study that was to find out the ability and problems faced by the students in
academic writing.
B. Research Variable and Indicators
Research variable, according to Sugiyono (2009) in the statistician.com
site, is any form of everything that determined by the researcher to be studied to
obtain information about it, then conclusions are drawn. The variable of this
research was the students‟ ability and problems in academic writing. The
indicators are the content, organization, vocabulary, language use, and mechanics
of students‟ academic writing.
C. Population, Sample, and Sampling
1. Population
The population of this research were the academic writing text of the fifth-
semester students of the English Department of UNISMUH Makassar of the
academic year 2019/2020.
2. Sample and Sampling
The sample of this research was selected by a simple purposive sampling
technique to identify students‟ abilities in academic writing written by the fifth-
semester students at the English Department of UNISMUH Makassar. The
researcher chose this technique because this research has a specific criterion to get
sample objectively. And the researcher took one class or about 32 students as a
sample. Therefore, they have particular characteristics related to the purpose of
the research. The sample of this research was the 32 papers of the students‟
academic writing.
D. The Instrument of the Research
The instrument of the research is the tool or equipment used by the
researcher to get or collect data that needed related to the study. Some instruments
can be used by researchers such as observation, interview, questionnaire,
checklist, documentation, and so on.
To reach the aim of this research in collecting valid data, the researcher
used tests and questionnaires.
1. Test
According to Merriam Webster, in her dictionary, a test is something like a
series of questions or exercises for measuring the skill, knowledge, intelligence,
capacities, or aptitudes of an individual or group. A test method that used in this
research is intended to get the data of the students‟ academic writing task. The
researcher analyzed the students‟ texts based on the features of academic writing
in terms of elements to the research questions. The aspects that analyzed from the
test are mentioned below:
a. Content
b. Organization
c. Vocabulary
d. Language use
e. Mechanics
(Adapted from Jacob et al. in Abbas, 2014)
2. Questionnaire
To get the complete data about the students‟ problems in academic writing,
the researcher used a questionnaire instrument. The types of questionnaire that
used are close-ended questionnaires with Likert scale questions. The list of issues
in the questionnaire is attached. The problem classification in the questionnaire is
mentioned below.
a. Plagiarism
b. Grammatical Errors
c. Lexical Difficulties
d. Lack of Planning
(Adapted from Elena David, 2019)
E. Data Collecting Procedure
To get the valid data of this research, the researcher used tests and
questionnaires.
Some procedures that done by the researcher are:
1. The researcher took 1 class or about 32 students from the population.
2. The researcher gave tests in the form of asking the students to write academic
writing or ask the lecturer for the students‟ task on academic writing they have
done.
3. The researcher analyzed the students‟ academic writing to get information
about their ability in academic writing.
4. The researcher gave questionnaires about students‟ problems in academic
writing.
5. The researcher analyzed the answers of the students from the questionnaire.
6. The researcher calculated and percentaged the students‟ answer from the
questionnaire based on each category problem.
F. The Technique of Data Analysis
The next action after collecting the research data is to analyze the data
using technique. Patton in Yusuf (2013) explained that data analysis is the process
of arranging the order of the data, organize into a pattern, category, and
description of the basic unit. The steps of data analysis are described in the
following paragraphs.
1. Test
After the test or documents of students‟ academic writing tasks collected,
the researcher analyzed the students‟ abilities and in academic writing.
Techniques of data analysis in tests or papers collected that are the texts of
students‟ academic writing tasks were done in some steps below.
a. The students‟ ability in academic writing analyzed and scored using a
rubric (attached) and formula below.
Final Score:
Final Scores Category:
Range of Final Scores Categories
86-100 Very good
71-85 Good
56-70 Fair
10-55 Poor
(Adapted from Leo in Abbas (2014)
Table 3.1 Final Score-Category of Students‟ Ability
b. The students‟ ability that has been scored was calculated to get the mean
score using the formula below.
x = ∑
Where:
x = mean score
∑ = the total number
N = the number of samples
(Gay in Indriani, 2016)
c. The students‟ ability in academic writing was described.
2. Questionnaire
After the answers of students‟ questionnaires collected, the researcher
analyzed the students‟ problems in academic writing. Techniques of data analysis
in the questionnaire received were done in some steps.
a. The students‟ frequency of each problem category calculated and
percentaged.
Where: P = Percentage
F = Frequency
N = Number of sample
100% = Constant Value
b. The students‟ problems in academic writing scored and calculated.
Items Score
Strongly Agree 5
Agree 4
Neutral 3
Disagree 2
Strongly Disagree 1
(Sugiono in Janna, 2019)
Table 3.2 Score of Students‟ Answer in Questionnaire
c. The students‟ problems based on the category scored.
(Sugiono in Janna, 2019)
d. The students‟ problems percentaged and described.
CHAPTER IV
FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION
This chapter consists of the findings of the research and discussion that
contain data analysis in detail. The findings of the study cover the result of the
data about students‟ ability in academic writing and the students‟ problems in
academic writing based on their opinions or experiences.
A. Findings
The data analyzed in this research are the result of the academic writing
test and the questionnaire about the students‟ problems in academic writing. The
research description is based on the score of the test to find out students‟ academic
writing ability and their problems in academic writing in the fifth semester of the
English Department at the Muhammadiyah University of Makassar.
1. Result of Students’ Academic Writing Test
To answer the first research question in the first chapter, that was to find
out the students‟ ability in academic writing, the researcher used academic writing
test and analyzed their academic writing text and gave them score with the
academic writing scoring rubric. After scored and calculated, the students‟
academic writing ability can be categorized as “Good” with the mean score that
reaches 81.02. The category based on result of the data analysis of the students‟
academic writing text at fifth-semester students of the English Department in the
2019 academic year of Unismuh is presented clearly in the following tables.
Table 4.1 Categories of Students’ Ability in Academic Writing
No.
Score
Range
Frequency
Number
of Sample
Percentage
Ability
Categories
1. 86-100 8 32 25% Very Good
2. 71-85 21 32
65.625% =
65.6%
Good
3. 56-70 3 32 9.375% = 9.4% Fair
4. 10-55 - 32 0% Poor
The data in the table above shows that 8 students or 25% of them got
excellent category with 86-100 range score, 21 students or 65.6% of them got
good category with 71-85 range score, and three students or 9.4% of them got fair
category with range 56-70 range score and none of them got poor category score.
The table shows that most of the students, especially in the fifth semester in the
2019 academic year of Unismuh, got good scores in academic writing. Based on
the table that shows the students‟ ability in academic writing above, it can be
pointed out that students have good competence or proficiency in their academic
writing learning.
The students‟ scores in each aspect of academic writing can be presented
clearly in the table below.
Table 4.2 Percentage of Students’ Ability in Each Aspect of Writing
Aspect Maximum Score Mean Score Percentage
Content 10 8.21875 = 8.2 20.6%
Organization 5 3.5625 = 3.6 17.8%
Vocabulary 10 8.21875 = 8.2 20.6%
Grammar 10 8.4375 = 8.4 21.1%
Mechanics 5 3.96875 = 4 19.8%
The data on Table 4.2 above shows the students‟ ability in each aspect of
academic writing. In content aspect, the students‟ mean score is 8.2 with a
percentage of 20.6%. The mean score can describe that the students‟ ability in
content or topic development can reach the number 8 from 10 maximum score and
categorized as fair to good. The students‟ ability in the organization aspect can be
categorized as good with the mean score of 3.6 with a percentage 17.8%. That
score can describe that students‟ proficiency in organizing the paragraph structure
can reach the score 3 from 5 maximum score and categorized as good. In the
vocabulary aspect, the students‟ mean score is 8.2 with a percentage of 20.6%.
The mean score can represent that the students‟ proficiency in vocabulary or their
word choice or diction usage can reach the score 8 from 10 maximum score and
categorized as fair to good. The students‟ ability in grammar use can be
categorized as good with the mean score 8.4 with a percentage of 21.1%. The
mean score can represent the students' ability in grammar or sentence structure,
and construction can reach the score 8 from 10 maximum score and categorized as
good. In the mechanic aspect, the students‟ mean score is 4 with a percentage
19.8%. The score can describe that the students‟ ability in mechanics or spelling,
punctuation, and capitalization can reach the score three from the maximum score
is 5 and categorized as fair to good. The data on the table shows that students‟
highest achievement from each aspect is in the grammar aspect with the mean
score of 8.4 or 21.1%, and their lowest ability from each element is in the
mechanic aspect with mean score 3.6 or 17.8%.
2. Result of Students’ Questionnaire
To answer the second research question in the first chapter, which was to
find out the students‟ problems in academic writing based on their minds or
experiences, the researcher used the Likert scale questionnaire. The questionnaire
was about the difficulties in academic writing based on four categories or
classification of common problems that are plagiarism, grammatical errors,
lexical challenges, and lack of planning, as mentioned in chapter 3. The students
or respondents were asked to choose or to signify one of the numbers from 1 to 5
that explanation for the numbers is:
a. Strongly Agree, get 5 scores,
b. Agree, get 4 scores,
c. Neutral, get 3 scores,
d. Disagree, get 2 scores, and
e. Strongly Disagree, get 1 score.
The students‟ problems in academic writing based on their minds or
experiences at fifth-semester students of the English Department of
Muhammadiyah University of Makassar in the 2019 academic year is presented
clearly in the following tables based on the four category problems. The following
tables are the calculation and percentation of each item in the questionnaire based
on each problem category as mentioned in the chapter 3.
Table 4.3 Questionnaire of Students’ Problems in Plagiarism
No.
Statement/Pernyataan
Strongly
Agree Agree
Neutr
al Disagree
Strongly
Disagree
1. Difficult in finding and
developing ideas. 1 8 16 7 0
2. Difficult to get ideas
down on paper. 1 5 10 11 5
3.
Difficult to incorporate
quotations into
sentences properly.
1 5 9 15 2
4.
Often take ideas from
articles without
mention the author.
3 7 20 0 2
5.
Difficult in
paraphrasing ideas
taken from articles.
3 8 9 12 0
TOTAL 9 33 64 45 9
PERCENTAGE (%) 5.625 =
5.6
20.625 =
20.6 40
28.125 =
28.1
5.625 =
5.6
Based on the table above, it can be seen that students sometimes have
problems in the plagiarism aspect when they do their academic writing. Most of
the students chose neutral in responding to the statements of the plagiarism
category problem with a total of 64 or 40% students responses. Some other
students decided to disagree to answer the comments of the plagiarism category
problem with a total of 45 or 28.1% students' responses. It shows that some of
them do not have many issues in the plagiarism category.
Table 4.4 Questionnaire of Students’ Problems in Grammatical Error
No.
Statement/Pernyataan
Strongly
Agree Agree Neutral Disagree
Strongly
Disagree
6. Frequent problems in
use correct tenses. 6 14 10 2 0
7. Difficult in using
passive voice. 4 5 18 5 0
8. Having poor
grammar. 8 10 5 8 1
9. Take a long time to
put the correct tenses. 3 10 11 8 0
10. Not familiar with
punctuation rules. 0 3 3 20 6
TOTAL 21 42 47 43 7
PERCENTAGE (%) 13.125 =
13.1
26.25
= 26.3
29.375
= 29.4
26.875 =
26.9
4.375 =
4.4
Based on the tables above, it shows that students sometimes have
problems with the category of grammatical errors, and sometimes they can
quickly solve those problems. Most of the students chose neutral in responding to
the statements of the grammatical error category problem with a total of 47 or
29.4% of students' responses. Some students decided to disagree to answer the
comments of the grammatical errors category problem with the total 43 or 26.9%
students' responses. And some other students chose to agree to respond to the
statements of the grammatical error category problem with the entire 42 or 26.3%
students' responses. It means that some of them have issues in grammatical errors,
and some others do not have a problem with grammatical errors when they do
their academic writing task.
Table 4.5 Questionnaire of Students’ Problems in Lexical Difficulties
No.
Statement/Pernyataan
Strongly
Agree Agree Neutral Disagree
Strongly
Disagree
11.
Confuse in writing
cause lack of
vocabulary.
8 7 13 3 1
12. Difficult in choosing
the correct word. 5 11 9 7 0
13.
Difficult in making
paragraphs coherent
and cohesive.
1 6 17 8 0
14. Using new vocabulary
takes a long time. 1 9 13 7 2
15. Difficult in combining
sentences. 1 5 15 10 1
TOTAL 16 38 67 35 4
PERCENTAGE (%) 10 23.75
= 23.8
41.875
= 41.9
21.875 =
21.9 2.5
Based on the table above, it can be seen that sometimes students have
problems in the lexical difficulties when they do their academic writing task. Most
of the students chose neutral in responding to the statements of the lexical
difficulties with a total of 67 or 41.9% of students' responses. Some students
decided to agree to respond to the comments of the lexical difficulties category
problem with a total of 38 or 23.8% of students' responses. Some other students
chose to disagree with a total of 35 or 21.9%.
Table 4.6 Questionnaire of Students’ Problems in Lack of Planning
No.
Statement/Pernyataan
Strongly
Agree Agree Neutral Disagree
Strongly
Disagree
16. Difficulty in writing
techniques. 4 11 11 6 0
17. Poorly writing to
organize. 2 5 11 14 0
18. Do not make an outline 9 8 11 3 1
before writing.
19. Do not make mind
mapping in writing. 5 13 7 6 1
20. Do not make a draft
before start writing. 16 10 2 4 0
TOTAL 36 47 42 33 2
PERCENTAGE (%) 22.5 29.375
= 29.4
26.25
= 26.3
20.625
= 20.6
1.25 =
1.3
Based on the table above, it shows that most of the students also have
some problems with the lack of planning aspects when they do their academic
writing tasks. Most of the students chose to agree to respond to the statements of
the lack of planning category problem with a total of 47 or 29.4% of students'
responses. Some students sometimes have a problem with the lack of planning
aspects. It can be seen from their choice to choose neutral in responding to the
lack of planning statements with a total of 42 or 26.3% students' responses.
The following table is the result of the students‟ questionnaire that have
been scored and percentaged using the formula mentioned in chapter 3. The detail
score of each item in the questionnaire is attached.
Table 4.16 Percentage of Students’ Problems of Each Category
No. Problem Category Students’ Score Percentage (%)
1. Plagiarism 462 23
2. Grammatical Error 507 25
3. Lexical Difficulties 507 25
4. Lack of Planning 562 27
Total 2038 100
The table above shows that students have various problems or difficulties
when they do their academic writing, but most of them have a problem with the
lack of planning aspects. Most students agree with the statements of the lack of
planning category, with the total score of their responses is 562, or 27% of
students responses. Some students also have problems with grammatical error and
lexical difficulties problem category with the total score of their responses is 507
or 25% of students responses of each type. And few students also still have
problems in the plagiarism aspect problem with the total score of their responses
is 462 or 23% students responses.
B. Discussion
After analyzing data on the research findings, it is necessary to describe
and discuss the result of the research to explain with more detail the answer to the
research questions. As mentioned in the first chapter, two research questions are,
“How is the students‟ ability in academic writing?” and “What are the problems
faced by the students in academic writing?”. The data collected through academic
writing test and the questionnaire was used to find out the students‟ ability in
academic writing and their problems in academic writing based on their
experiences.
1. Students’ Ability in Academic Writing
The first research question is, “How is the students‟ ability in academic
writing?”. The answer to this question can be explained by the table of the
students‟ ability in academic writing in the findings subchapter before. The result
of the students‟ academic writing test that reaches 81.02 mean scores can figure
out that the students have good competence or ability in academic writing. The
students' abilities in each aspect of academic writing also have various scores that
indicated their competence or understanding of the content or topic development,
organization or paragraph structure, vocabulary or word choice, grammar or
sentence structure, and mechanics aspects. It was supported by the result of the
test and also by Valdes (2019) said that there are some characteristics of academic
writing that are clear and limited focus, logical structure, evidence-based
arguments, and impersonal tone.
The students‟ ability in content aspect categorized as fair to good. It means
that some students can develop their topic of paragraphs with good development.
It was supported by Junaid, G J (2012) stated that content is how the writer
delivers his thoughts about the topic in paragraphs.
The students‟ competence in the organization aspect or the paragraph
structure categorized as good. It means that most of students have excellent score
in organizing their paragraphs. It was supported by Wilbers, S, (2008) said that
organization in writing is making the paragraphs are coherent and organizing them
logically and sequentially.
Students‟ ability in vocabulary aspect categorized as fair to good. It means
that some students can employ accurate and effective choice of words. It was
supported by the result of the test and also supported by Nurgiantoro in Yuniati
(2015) said that vocabulary means if the students could choose the correct words
as it is function and master informing words.
Students‟ competence in grammar aspect categorized as good. It is figure
out that most of the students have good sentence structure. It was supported by
Junaid, G.J (2012) stated that the use of the correct grammatical and syntactic
pattern on separating, combining, and grouping ideas in words, phrases, clauses,
and sentences is one of good writing aspect.
The students‟ ability in mechanic aspect can be categorized as fair to good.
It means that some students have just few errors of mechanic or have good
spelling, punctuation, and capitalization. It was supported by the result of the test
and also supported by Wilbers, S (2008) said that the element to have good
writing is with pay attention to grammar, spelling, and punctuation.
2. Students’ Problems in Academic Writing
The second research question is, “What are the problems faced by the
students in academic writing?”. While the common problems in academic writing
that almost students faced have been mentioned and categorized that are
plagiarism, grammatical error, lexical difficulties, and lack of planning. The
answer to this question can be explained by the tables of the students‟ problems in
the findings subchapter. However, the result of the questionnaire about the
students‟ issues in academic writing based on what they have experienced, can
figure out that the students, more or less still faced various problems while they
do their academic writing task.
Most of the students chose the neutral response to answer the statements
one until five that are the plagiarism category problem. It was indicated that
sometimes students faced difficulties while they were avoiding to do the
plagiarism in doing their academic writing task. Sometimes, students are
challenging to find thoughts or ideas to be developed. It is supported by the
previous study conducted by Raza (2015) found that the most significant
difficulties in „cause of plagiarism‟, „deciding whether the citation is needed or
not, and „paraphrasing that results in over quoting.
The sixth until tenth items in the questionnaire are the statements about the
grammatical error problems. Most of the students chose the neutral response to
answer the statements in the grammatical error category problem. It was figure out
that some students still have difficulty in the use of grammar. It was supported by
previous research conducted by Al Mubarak (2017) found that the students faced
numerous challenges relating to academic writing at the university level. It
discovered that many problems with academic writing experienced by the students
while writing were articles, punctuation, prepositions, irregular verbs, weak
expressions, consistency paralleled structure, and use of verb tense.
The lexical difficulties are also sometimes experienced by the students
while making their academic writing tasks. Most of the students chose neutral in
responding to the statements in the questionnaire number eleven until fifteen that
are in the lexical difficultes category problem. It can show that they often got
problems or challenging in choosing words or diction. Also, they can take a long
time when they were trying to use new vocabulary. It was supported by David E
(2019) said that sometimes, the students‟ cannot put the right name in the right
place, or the word that chosen is less precise. It was also supported by the
previous study conducted by Abdulkareem (2013) found that students committed
many mistakes in academic writing concerning sentence structure, vocabulary,
and expressing ideas.
Some of the students also have problems with the lack of planning
category problem. It can be seen from the table of Students‟ Problems in Lack of
Planning. Twenty-nine percent of them agreed with the statements number sixteen
until twenty in the questionnaire that includes in the lack of planning category
problem. It was supported by the result of the questionnaire and also by David, E
(2019) said that there are some steps that can help the students to organize their
writing such as outlining, prewriting, drafting, and so on.
CHAPTER V
CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTION
A. Conclusion
Based on all the result that described in the findings and discussion, it
can be concluded that:
1. The students‟ ability in academic writing can be categorized as good. It can
be proved with their mean score that reaches the score 81.02.
2. Some students still faced various problems in doing their academic writing
text in each category of common issues that are plagiarism with percentage
23%, grammatical error with percentage 25%, lexical difficulties with
percentage 25%, and lack of planning with percentage 27%.
B. Suggestion
Based on the conclusion above, the researcher would like to give some
advice to the students, teacher or lecturer, and also the next researcher. For the
students, their ability in academic writing can still be improved with their skill
and more exercise to increase their potency and try to solve their problems when
they face it. For the teacher or lecturer, it is essential to know the students‟ style
of learning and give the method that can be enjoyed in the learning process. And
for the next researcher, the result of this research can be used as a reference if
they want to conduct related research with a different aspect of the discussion.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Abbas, M.F.F. 2014. Analysis of Students’ Ability in Writing a Research
Proposal. Lancang Kuning University.
Abdulkareem, M. N. 2013. An Investigation Study of Academic Writing Problems
Faced by Arab Postgraduate Students at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia.
Theory and Practice in Language Studies, Vol. 3. No. 9(p.1552-1557).
Al Fadda, H. 2012. Difficulties in Academic Writing: From the Perspective of
King Saud University Postgraduate Students. English Language Teaching.
Vol. 5. No. 3
Al Mubarak, A. A. 2017. An Investigation Of Academic Writing Problems Level
Faced By Undergraduate Students At Al Imam Al Mahdi University -
Sudan. English Review: Journal of English Education, Vol. 5. No. 2(p.
175-188).
Alfaki, I. M. 2015. University Students’ English Writing Problems: Diagnosis
And Remedy. International Journal of English Language Teaching. Vol. 3.
No. 3(p. 40-52).
Alfiah, S. N. 2018. Problem Faced by Indonesian EFL Learners in Writing
Argumentative Essay. Not Published. Makassar: Unismuh Makassar.
Azizah, U. A., Budiman, A. 2017. Challenges in Writing Academic Papers for
International Publication Among Indonesian Graduates Students. Journal
of English Education and Linguistics Studies. Vol. 4. No. 2.
Baht, A. Questionnaire: Definition, Examples, Design and Types (Online).
https://www.questionpro.com/blog/what-is-a-questionnaire/. Accessed 19th
June 2019.
Bailey, S. 2011. Academic Writing: A Handbook for International Students (Third
Edition). Canada: Rotledge.
Brodhacker, K. 2016. Academic Writing. Foundation of Graduate Study in Human
Services, Walden University.
Cakrawati, T. D. 2012. The Effect of Using Communicative Cartoon Movies on
the Teaching of Writing Skill at the Second Grade of Smpn I Arjosari,
Pacitan, East Java in the Academic Year Of 2011/2012. English
Language Education Department, Faculty of Languages and Arts, State
University of Yogyakarta.
David, E. 2019. What are the Difficulties Faced by Students While Writing an
Academic Paper? (Online). https://academicwritingpro.com/blog/what-
are-the-difficulties-faced-by-students-while-writing-an-academic-paper.
Accessed 5th
August 2019.
Dwihandini, L.A., Marhaeni, A.A.I.N., Suarnajaya, I.W., 2013. The Analysis of
the Factors Affecting Undergraduate Students’ Difficulties in Writing
Thesis in the English Department of Mahasaraswati University. E-Journal
Program Pascasarjana Universitas Pendidikan Ganesha. Vol. 2.
Hidayat, A. 2017. Pengertian dan Penjelasan Penelitian Kuantitatif Lengkap,
(Online). https://www.statistikian.com/2012/10/penelitian-
kuantitatif.html/amp. Accessed 9th
September 2019.
Indriani, I. 2016. The Students’ Ability to Speak English at the Fisrt Semester of
English Department Makassar Muhammadiyah University. Makassar:
Unismuh Makassar.
Iris Center. Elements of the Writing Process, (Online).
https://iris.peabody.vanderbilt.edu/module/pow/cresource/q2/p03/.
Accessed 8th
July 2019.
Johnson, A.P. 2016. Academic Writing Process and Product. Rowman and
Littkefield Publishers.
Jones, M. 2018. What are the Distinguishing Features of Academic
Writing?(Online). https://www.quora.com/search?q=features+of+academ
ic+writing. Accessed 30th
July 2019.
Junaid. 2012. Venn Diagram Method For Students’ Ability in Writing at Intensive
English Class of Unismuh Makassar. Exposure Journal. Vol. 1. No. 2.
Liputan 6. 2019. 10 Perbedaan Penelitian Kualitatif dan Kuantitatif, Mahasiswa
Wajib Tahu, (Online). https://www.liputan6.com/news/read/3867330/10-
perbedaan-penelitian-kualitatif-dan-kuantitatif-mahasiswa-wajib-tahu.
Accessed 3rd
September 2019.
Mytekah. 2013. 8 Characteristics of Academic Writing, (Online).
https://hubpages.com/literature/8-Characteristics-of-Academic-Writing.
Accessed 26th
August 2019.
Nordquist, R. 2019. Definitions, Examples, and Observations of Writing, (Online).
https://www.thoughtco.com/writing-definition-1692616. Accessed 21st
May 2019.
Nurwahidah. 2018. An Analysis on the Students’ Ability and Difficulties in
Writing Descriptive Text at the First Grade of SMAN 19 Makassar.
Putri, D.T.E. 2014. The Effect of Using Draw Label Caption Technique Toward
Writing Ability on Descriptive Paragraph of the First Year Students at
MTs Al-Huda Pekanbaru.
Quora. What Is the Purpose of Academic Writing?, (Online).
https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-purpose-of-academic-writing.
Accessed 8th
July 2019.
Ramadani, S.A. 2013. Improving Students’ Writing Ability in Writing Descriptive
Texts Through Field Trip at SMAN 1 GODEAN. Yogyakarta: State
University of Yogyakarta.
Raza, S. 2015. Cross-checked Problems in Undergraduate Academic Writing. In
Kenan Dikilitas et.al (Eds.) Teacher-Researchers in Action,(p.147-161)
Swarni, B.R. 2016. Student’s Problem in Writing Thesis: Case Study at English
Department Mataram University.
TNT Megazine. 2016. Academic Writing Problems Faced by Today’s Students,
(Online). http://www.tntmagazine.com/lifestyle-career/jobs/academic-
writing-problems-faced-by-todays-students. Accessed 8th
July 2019.
Valdes, O. 2019. An Introduction to Academic Writing, (Online).
https://www.thoughtco.com/what-is-academic-writing-1689052. Accessed
27th
May 2019.
Walkova, M. 2014. Students’ Academic Writing Skills in English: Where do Their
Err?. In Ivan Lacko and Lucia Otrisalova (Eds.). Cross Cultural
Challenges in British and American Studies, (p.277).
Wilbers, S. Five Elements of Effective Writing, (Online).
http://www.wilbers.com/elements-wilbers.pdf. Accessed 8th
July 2019.
Your Dictionary. 2018. Definition of Academic Writing, (Online).
https://grammar.yourdictionary.com/word-definitions/definition-of-
academic-writing.html. Accessed 27th
May 2019.
Yuniati, D. 2015. The Effectiveness of Picture Word Inductive Model (PWIM) for
Teaching Writing Recount Text.
Yusuf, M. 2013. Students’ problems in writing a research proposal (A case study
of the fifth semester students of English education department, state
institute for Islamic studies Sunan Ampel Surabaya).
Appendix 1
Scoring Rubric of Students’ Ability in Academic Writing
Aspects Criteria Scores Categories
Content:
Topic
Development
Thorough development of the topic. 10 Very good
Relevant to the topic but lacks detail. 9 Good
Inadequate development of the topic. 8 Fair
The student does not show knowledge
of the topic. 7 Poor
Organization:
Paragraph
Structure
Write paragraph structures correctly. 5 Very good
Loosely organized, but ideas stand out. 4 Good
Incoherent ideas and lacks logical
sequencing. 3 Fair
The Student does not write paragraph
structures correctly. 2 Poor
Vocabulary:
Word
choice/diction
Employ an accurate and useful choice of
words/diction. 10 Very good
Employ accurate diction but not
sufficient. 9 Good
Employ lacks the accuracy of diction,
but meaning not obscured. 8 Fair
Errors in applying diction or word form
and meaning obscured. 7 Poor
Grammar:
Sentence
Structure/Con
struction
Use correct grammar (tenses used,
pronouns, subject-verb agreement, etc.). 10 Very good
Several errors of tense, pronouns,
subject-verb agreement, etc. but
meaning not obscured.
9 Good
Significant errors of tense, pronouns,
subject-verb agreement, etc. and
meaning obscured.
8 Fair
No mastery of sentence construction and
dominated by errors. 7 Poor
Mechanics:
Spelling,
Punctuation,
and
Capitalization
Minimal errors of mechanics. 5 Very good
Few errors of mechanics, but meaning
not obscured. 4 Good
Many errors of mechanics and meaning
obscured. 3 Fair
Dominated by errors of mechanics. 2 Poor
(Adapted from Jacob et al.‟ in Abbas (2014)
Appendix 2
Test Instrument of Students’ Academic Writing
Name:
Class:
Choose a title of your paper and make the first chapter consist of background,
problem statement, and objective and send it to my email.
Note: This academic writing task given based on what they have learnt in
academic writing course.
Appendix 3
Questionnaire of Students’ Problems in Academic Writing
Name:
Answer the statements below by giving a checklist mark based on your
experience.
5: Strongly Agree 2: Disagree
4: Agree 1: Strongly Disagree
3: Neutral
No. Statement/Pernyataan 5 4 3 2 1
1.
I have difficulty in finding thoughts and ideas to be
developed. / Saya kesulitan menemukan pemikiran dan
ide-ide untuk dikembangkan.
2.
I have difficulty to get my thoughts and ideas down on
paper. / Saya kesulitan menyampaikan pemikiran dan
ide-ide saya di atas kertas.
3.
I do not know how to incorporate quotations into
sentences properly. / Saya tidak tahu bagaimana cara
memasukkan kutipan dalam kalimat.
4
I often take thoughts and ideas from articles, books, and
websites without mention the author. / Saya sering
mengambil pemikiran dan ide-ide dari artikel, buku dan
website tanpa menyebutkan penulisnya.
5
I have difficulty in paraphrasing thoughts and ideas I take
from articles, books, and websites. / Saya kesulitan dalam
memparafrase pemikiran dan ide-ide yang saya ambil dari
artikel, buku dan website.
6
I have a frequent problem in use correct of tenses. / Saya
memiliki masalah yang sering terjadi dalam menggunakan
tenses yang benar.
7 I often get difficulty in using passive voice. / Saya sering
mendapat kesulitan menggunakan passive voice.
8 Having poor grammar make me writing not so good. /
Memiliki grammar atau tata bahasa yang buruk membuat
saya menulis dengan tidak begitu baik.
9
Grammar makes me take a long time to put the correct
tenses which appropriate to the event. / Tata bahasa
membuat saya butuh waktu lama untuk menempatkan
tenses yang tepat yang sesuai dengan peristiwa.
10 I am not familiar with punctuation rules. / Saya tidak
terbiasa dengan aturan tanda baca.
11
Lack of vocabularies make me get confusing in writing. /
Kurangnya kosa kata membuat saya bingung dalam
menulis.
12
I have difficulty in choosing the correct word with the
right meaning. / Saya kesulitan dalam memilih kata yang
tepat dengan arti yang benar.
13
I have difficulty in making my paragraphs coherent and
cohesive. / Saya kesulitan dalam membuat paragraf saya
saling berhubungan dan berpadu.
14 Using new vocabularies take long time. / Menggunakan
kosa kata baru butuh waktu lama.
15
I have difficulty when combining sentences in my writing.
/ Saya kesulitan saat menggabungkan kalimat dalam
tulisan saya.
16
I often get difficulty in writing techniques
(brainstorming). / Saya sering mendapat kesulitan dalam
teknik menulis (brainstorming).
17
I have poorly writing to organize, sometimes fail to select
a topic. / Saya memiliki penulisan yang buruk untuk
diatur, terkadang gagal memilih topic.
18 I do not outline writing. / Saya membuat outline atau garis
besar sebelum menulis.
19 I do not make mind mapping in writing. / Saya membuat
pemetaan pikiran secara tertulis.
20 I do not make a draft before I start writing. / Saya
membuat konsep sebelum memulai menulis.
Appendix 4
List Name and Code of the Samples
No. Name Code
1. NA Student 1
2. BS Student 2
3. NU Student 3
4. SN Student 4
5. SS Student 5
6. NJ Student 6
7. NA Student 7
8. AAR Student 8
9. SH Student 9
10. MW Student 10
11. DA Student 11
12. AN Student 12
13. NS Student 13
14. PI Student 14
15. NA Student 15
16. HM Student 16
17. SAA Student 17
18. IIH Student 18
19. RMR Student 19
20. I Student 20
21. ND Student 21
22. SST Student 22
23. S Student 23
24. RA Student 24
25. APM Student 25
26. AR Student 26
27. MS Student 27
28. J Student 28
29. JNE Student 29
30. ARF Student 30
31. A Student 31
32. I Student 32
Appendix 5
Result of Students’ Academic Writing Test
No. Code Content
(10)
Organization
(5)
Vocabulary
(10)
Grammar
(10)
Mechanics
(5)
Maximum
Score Gain Score Final Score
1. Student 1 8 3 8 7 4 40 30 75
2. Student 2 9 4 8 8 4 40 33 82.5
3. Student 3 8 3 8 9 4 40 32 80
4. Student 4 7 3 8 8 4 40 30 75
5. Student 5 10 4 8 9 4 40 35 87.5
6. Student 6 9 5 8 9 4 40 35 87.5
7. Student 7 9 5 8 9 4 40 35 87.5
8. Student 8 9 5 9 9 5 40 37 92.5
9. Student 9 7 2 8 8 3 40 28 70
10. Student 10 9 4 8 9 4 40 34 85
11. Student 11 8 3 8 7 3 40 29 72.5
12. Student 12 9 3 9 9 5 40 35 87.5
13. Student 13 9 4 8 8 3 40 32 80
14. Student 14 7 2 8 9 4 40 30 75
15. Student 15 7 2 8 7 4 40 28 70
16. Student 16 8 3 8 9 5 40 33 82.5
17. Student 17 9 4 8 8 4 40 33 82.5
18. Student 18 9 3 8 9 4 40 33 82.5
19. Student 19 9 5 9 9 4 40 36 90
20. Student 20 8 3 9 9 4 40 33 82.5
21. Student 21 7 3 9 8 4 40 31 77.5
22. Student 22 7 3 8 8 4 40 30 75
23. Student 23 7 5 9 9 4 40 34 85
24. Student 24 9 5 8 8 4 40 34 85
25. Student 25 8 3 8 9 2 40 30 75
26. Student 26 9 5 9 9 5 40 37 92.5
27. Student 27 7 3 8 7 4 40 29 72.5
28. Student 28 7 2 7 9 3 40 28 70
29. Student 29 7 3 8 8 4 40 30 75
30. Student 30 10 4 8 8 4 40 34 85
31. Student 31 8 3 8 9 4 40 32 80
32. Student 32 9 5 9 9 5 40 37 92.5
Mean Score 8.21875
= 8.22
3.5625 = 3.56 8.21875 =
8.22
8.4375 =
8.44
3.96875 =
3.97
40 32.40625 =
32.41
81.01563 =
81.02
Final Score:
Appendix 6
Percentage of Each Aspect of Writing
1. Content
2. Organization
3. Vocabulary
4. Grammar
5. Mechanic
Total Percentage of All Aspects = 398
1. Content
2. Organization
3. Vocabulary
4. Grammar
5. Mechanic
Appendix 7
The Score of Students’ Problems in Academic Writing Questionnaire
5: Strongly Agree 2: Disagree
4: Agree 1: Strongly Disagree
3: Neutral
Respondents Questions/Statements
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
Students 1 4 3 3 4 3 4 3 3 3 2 4 3 3 1 2 3 2 3 4 5
Students 2 3 1 3 4 2 4 3 5 3 3 1 3 3 3 4 4 4 5 4 4
Students 3 2 1 2 1 3 4 3 5 5 1 5 3 2 3 3 2 3 4 4 3
Students 4 2 3 3 3 2 3 3 4 2 2 3 3 3 2 2 3 3 3 3 5
Students 5 4 3 3 3 4 3 3 2 4 2 4 4 3 4 3 2 2 3 3 3
Students 6 3 2 1 3 2 3 3 4 4 2 5 5 3 3 4 5 2 3 4 5
Students 7 3 3 2 3 2 4 2 3 3 2 3 2 3 2 3 3 3 3 2 4
Students 8 3 2 2 3 4 4 3 3 3 4 3 3 3 4 3 3 3 2 2 2
Students 9 2 2 2 3 4 4 4 4 4 2 4 4 2 4 2 4 2 4 2 4
Students 10 3 3 3 4 3 2 3 2 3 2 3 3 2 2 2 3 2 3 4 4
Students 11 3 3 2 3 2 3 3 2 2 1 2 2 2 3 2 2 2 4 3 2
Students 12 2 4 4 3 3 2 3 4 3 2 4 4 4 4 3 4 4 4 4 4
Students 13 2 1 1 1 3 4 3 1 2 1 2 3 3 1 3 4 4 4 4 5
Students 14 3 3 2 3 3 5 5 4 4 1 5 4 3 3 3 4 2 5 3 5
Students 15 3 2 3 3 2 3 5 5 4 2 5 5 4 3 3 2 2 4 4 5
Students 16 3 4 2 3 2 3 2 2 2 3 2 2 3 2 3 3 3 3 4 4
Students 17 4 2 2 5 2 4 2 2 4 2 5 5 4 4 2 4 2 5 5 5
Students 18 4 5 3 5 4 4 5 5 3 2 3 4 2 4 4 4 3 5 5 5
Students 19 3 1 4 3 5 3 2 5 3 1 3 3 3 4 3 4 3 5 5 5
Students 20 3 3 2 4 2 3 3 4 4 2 4 4 3 3 3 4 2 1 2 2
Students 21 3 1 4 3 5 5 4 5 3 1 5 4 2 3 1 5 3 2 1 5
Students 22 4 4 4 4 4 5 4 5 5 4 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 4 5
Students 23 3 4 4 3 3 4 3 2 2 2 3 2 3 2 2 3 3 5 5 5
Students 24 2 2 2 3 3 4 3 2 2 2 3 2 3 2 2 3 2 5 5 5
Students 25 4 2 2 4 4 5 5 4 4 2 4 4 4 4 4 5 4 5 4 5
Students 26 2 2 2 3 2 4 3 4 2 2 3 2 2 2 2 3 2 4 4 5
Students 27 3 2 2 4 2 4 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 3 2 2 2 3 2 4
Students 28 4 2 2 3 4 3 4 3 4 2 4 4 4 3 3 3 3 3 3 4
Students 29 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 4 4 2 3 2 2 3 3 2 2 2 2 2
Students 30 5 4 5 5 5 5 3 4 3 4 5 5 4 3 4 4 5 4 4 4
Students 31 4 3 3 3 4 5 4 5 5 3 3 4 3 4 3 3 3 3 3 5
Students 32 3 2 2 3 2 4 3 3 3 2 3 4 3 3 3 4 4 3 3 4
Total 99 82 84 99 98 120 104 112 104 67 114 110 96 96 91 109 91 117 111 134
Total Score
of Category Plagiarism = 462 Grammatical Error = 507 Lexical Difficulties = 507 Lack of Planning = 562
Maximum
Score 800 800 800 800
Appendix 8
Percentage of Each Category Problem
6. Plagiarism
7. Grammatical Errors
8. Lexical Difficulties
9. Lack of Planning
Total Percentage of All Problems Category = 254
6. Plagiarism
7. Grammatical Error
8. Lexical Difficulties
9. Lack of Planning
Appendix 9
Result of Students’ Academic Writing Test
(Student 1)
“IMPROVING STUDENT’S ENGLISH SPEAKING SKILL THROUGH ROLE
PLAY”
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
A. BACKGROUND
Speaking is one of difficult subject at school. Event though some student
is lazy and they hate to learn speaking because lack of variation of the
technique teaching used by the teacher in the class and strategy application is
monotonous that make student feel bored . In this case, student must be study
hard and the teacher should create a good technique in learning speaking in the
class. Game is one of the method of teaching in speaking can be implemented
because game is fun learning to give student freedom expressing their
opinion, thought. And feeling and also potential to encourage student interact
and communicate to each other .
The ending of learning English is the learners are able to use it as a means
of communication either by speech or written, so the use of English for the
students is compulsory, because mastering English is a priority for many
second or foreign language learners. Jack Ricard (1990) says that thema story
of speaking skills in English is a priority for many second or foreign language
learners. Learners consequently often evaluate their success in language
learning as well as the effectiveness of English course on the basis of how
well they feel they have improved in their spoken language proficiency”
As an English teacher, the writer was faced by two choices in teaching
English whether for achieving good national examination grade (in written
test) or for training the students to speak English as a means of communication
well. It seems achieving good national examination grade (in written test) is
the main target, for the success measurement of English learning is determined
by how good the result of national exam grade in written test is. The learning
and teaching process in the classroom today is just how to do the test in
written.
The fact that many students in the State Senior High School got difficulties
in speaking English. Even some of them got a very low speaking competence.
It was unfortunate that many students still got very low speaking competence.
Therefore, it is the teacher‟s duty to teach speaking in a such way, so that
the students can participate the lesson eagerly. In this research, the writer,
classified the difficulties into qualitative and quantitative.
Pertaining to the students‟ problems, there are many factors. First, in
teaching speaking, the teacher tended to teach text. Second, he asked the
students to look at the structured dialogues which had been stated in the text
book to read together after him. Third, he asked some of them to practice the
dialogues in front of the class in pairs. The last, he asked them to answer the
comprehensive questions dealing with the written topics.
The weaknesses of what the teacher did above were as follows: Firstly, the
students didn‟t have enough rehearsal time to practice or to express their
English so that they could not interact with one another in English
simultaneously. Secondly, the teacher oriented his teaching at the written test
held in the mid or end semester, even in the final exam. Thirdly, there was no
specific time allocated to evaluate the students‟ speaking skills at the end of
semester or final exam. Fourthly, the teacher still teaches the students with
routine activities without realizing that it would make the students bored and
lost their attention to the teaching and learning process. This is stated by
Douglas, “Routine activities in learning can make the students bored. As the
result, their motivation and participation in learning will decrease” (1987:p.
48).
In teaching English, the teacher has to be able to make the students
participate in discussing the materials actively, so that they will be able to
understand what they are learning in the class and also express their own ideas
orally. The most important thing to carry out the English teaching is that the
teacher has to able to use the appropriate approach, design, and procedures.
One of the ways in improving students‟ speaking skill is by giving Role
Play as a form of English learning activity in the classroom, Elizabeth F
Barkley(2004: p. 150) says that Role Play is a created situation in which
students deliberately act out or assume characters or identities they would not
normally 3ssume in order to accomplish learning goal.
Role play is very important in communication language teaching because
it gives students an opportunity to practice communicating in different social
context and in different social roles. Therefore, communicative language
teaching (CLT) approach is very appropriate to support the above problem
because this approach is learner centered and emphasize communication in
real life situation (Fauziati,2009:p.143)
B. PROBLEM STATEMENT
In my experience in learning speaking, there are some obstacle that make
student difficult to speaking in English, consist of:
a. Student lack of vocabulary and pronunciation
The lack of students‟ vocabulary has become big problems for students to
master
English a second language. In addition, students are lazy to bring a
dictionary or check Google Translate so that the pronunciation is lacking.
b. Grammar.
When the students are told to speak in public by the teacher, they are
afraid of being wrong in their arrangement. So the student cannot be
trained to speak.
c. Less confident.
One of the things that become the problem the students from speaking out
of fear of being wrong when they speak in public. I addition, teachers must
train students such as public presentations to be confident and provide
acceptable criticism and
Suggestion, so that students can develop with the experience and material
received.
d. Lack of attention to the tasks assigned to the field of speech.
Usually there are people who take it lightly. For example, going to carry
out activities in public speaking, and not giving full attention to practice.
e. Lacking student habits so that they are not good at speaking.
This unfavorable habit is carried out in speaking activities. For example,
when in formal speech but mixed with regional languages.
Based on the explanation above, it can be seen that there are several
obstacles in the teaching and learning process. One way to overcome
obstacles is to use role play in the teaching and learning process. This
game will place students as the center. This means students have a high
chance of practicing their speaking skills.
f. Bullying
When student tried to speak in English in the class, the other student
blurt out word that make feel down. Such as „‟ why you really want to
know that you are smart in speaking English „‟ we are in Indonesia, it is
not in USA, so just use Indonesian language. ‟it so quasi use English but
the grammatical is wrong „‟. In this spiel can make student stop improve
their speaking in English.
C. OBJECTIVE OF THE RESEARCH
The objectives of the research are:
1. To introduce role play as one of the media in the teaching and learning
process.
2. To improve students‟ speaking skills using role play.
Aspects Issues Gain
Score Score Criteria
Final
Score
Content
Not focused on topic
development and need
more details.
8
Inadequate
development of the
topic.
30/40x100
= 75 Organization
1. Lack of sequence of
the structure of the
paragraphs.
2. The different topics
discussed in one
paragraph.
3
Incoherent ideas and
lacks logical
sequencing.
Vocabulary Few of not accurate
words. 8
Employ lacks the
accuracy of diction, but
meaning not obscured.
Grammar
1. Article needed.
2. Need to change the
agreement, noun,
preposition, and verb
form.
3. Unclear subject.
4. Few of wordy phrases.
7
No mastery of sentence
construction and
dominated by errors.
Mechanics 1. Wrong spelling.
2. Punctuation needed. 4
Few errors of
mechanics, but
meaning not obscured.
(Student 3)
AN ANALYSIS OF SLANG TRANSLATION IN THE SUBTITLE OF
SPIDERMAN HOMECOMING
CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
A. Background
Translation is the general term referring to the transfer of thoughts
and ideas from one language (source) to another (target), whether the
languages are in written or oral form; whether the languages are in
written or oral form; whether the languages have established
orthogrphies or do not have such standardization or whether one or
both language is based on signs, as with sign languages of the deaf
(Brislin, 1976).
Translation is a transfer process which aims at the transformation
of a written SL text into an optimally equivalent TL text, and which
requires the syntactic, the systematic and the pragmatic understanding
and analytical processing of the SL (Wilss and Noss, 1982).
Translation is the process of transferring information from a
source language into the target language. Activity involves translating
complex systems to produce results that grammatical translation,
natural in accordance with the original information. Therefore, some
difficulties may be encountered a translator in the translation process.
However, every difficulty there must be a solution. To that end, this
paper present a translation and explanation of some the issues related
to translation as a knowledge base for understanding the translation.
The translation is very important in today‟s global life. We can
relate to the outside world with the translation from the source
language into the target language. Different people with our language,
it will be helped by the translation. In addition, a variety of knowledge
from different corners of the world can we know with the translation.
The translation is very important in all areas of life.
As we know, the language and the translation involves a fairly
complex linguistic systems that must evolve and differ from one
language to another language. Because not all translators know the
system prevailing in the source language, it certainly makesits own
difficulties for a translator to translate.
In addition, the interpreter will face the problem again where
the language is also evolving and Led to the emergence of words,
phrases idioms or new linguistic system in a language that may not be
known to the translator. It is clear thhat the complexity and
devolepment of the lnaguage system poses a problem of translation.
However, there will not case and trouble if there is no alternative
solution. To overcome the difficulties mentioned above, we must first
understand the science of translation. After that when we will translate
translate the information or text from a source language into the target
language, we have to know and learn the language system prevailing in
the source language as appropriate. Then, as a translator, we were
required to keep track of a particular source language.
The translation process is the transformation of text from one
language to another without changing the contents of the original text.
Many movies that have been translated into Indonesian language
spread everywhere, whether in cinema or youtube. There are many
different accent that make it difficult for me distinguish them, because
the most often I hear American accents. It is difficult to translate
whether movies or drama. The accent used in the Spiderman 3 movie
is American accent.
B. Problem Statement
At present, many countries can establish communication freely
through the translation process. the purpose of translation is to
exchange state information with one another. because every country
has a different language. some things that often become a problem in
the translation process are language style, accent, and language
customs that are part of culture.
Nowadays, in the world of translating a film is very popular and
the results of its translation are widely accepted by film connoisseurs.
There are two types of translation processes, namely subtitling and
dubbing. the challenge in subtitling in the translation of this film is the
limited time determined and the number of characters to display
writing on the screen, the challenge in translating this film is the
limited time determined and the number of characters determined to
display the writing on the screen.
not only in terms of subtitles and dubbing, which is a problem
faced by Hollywood film lovers. The obstacle faced by Hollywood
film lovers is the wide variety of terms, idioms, slang and cultural
terms used in every Hollywood film. Spiderman 3 films are a case in
subittle translation. This film comes from the United States of America
which is very popular among all ages and themed spider superheroes
using English as the language of instruction or the source language. in
this film, some words have different meanings with only one word in
the translation that fits the context of the film. not only that, many
special terms exist in this film.
C. Objective
This study discusses the slang and film subtitles. Some required
data is difficult to retrieve with rules which are mostly agreed to in the
language specified on the vulgar and offensive. That happens because
translators find it difficult to know the effects of equality by meeting
deadlines, spaces, and views. This strategy is used to resolve the
regulations carried out by softening the TL strategy by paraphrasing,
modulating, and related to the pragmatic context. This regulation has
the power to protect viewers who have given them the convenience to
enjoy films without worrying about moral or cultural freedom of
Indonesians who are multicultural and ethnic. So, bad words related to
abusive language should not be found in foreign films with Indonesian
subtitles. (Suriadi, 2018)
Aspects Issues Gain
Score Score Criteria
Final
Score
Content The topic development
is not focused on. 8
Inadequate
development of the
topic.
32/40x100
= 80
Organization Lack sequence of
paragraph structures. 3
Incoherent ideas
and lacks logical
sequencing.
Vocabulary Few of not accurate
words. 8
Employ lacks the
accuracy of diction,
but meaning not
obscured.
Grammar
1. Article needed.
2. Need to change the
preposition, verb
form, agreement,
and noun.
9
Several errors of
tense, pronouns,
subject-verb
agreement, etc. but
meaning not
obscured.
Mechanics 1. Wrong spelling.
2. Punctuation needed. 4
Few errors of
mechanics, but
meaning not
obscured.
(Student 13)
Improve Students’ Reading Skill Using Novel
CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
A. Backgtround
Reading is a process carried out and used by the reader to obtain a
message, which the writer wants to convey through the media of words or
written language .( H.G. Tarigan, 1986: 7)
Reading skill is one the 4 skill in English. Reading skill must be
able to be mastered by students because it will be very useful. Basically
reading is useful for students to get a variety of knowledge in the form of
information, messages, and opinions, as well as life stories from other
people from books, articles, journals, and other book that we read from
various sources in the world. Teaching reading strategies will not just help
students to know how to read the text but it will help them to be more
successful in general because they will absord information there.
(Nofitarina, 2016)
Reading can be done without limited place and time. Everyone can
reading from various sources or any media. Because, whatever we read
must have contained information that the author wants to convey.
Therefore reading is an indispensable activity by anyone who wants to
know a lot of information from the world or other countries and is very
suitable for students to improve themselves. Thus the ability to read
becomes important in helping students learn a lot of things. Students can
get knowledge from reading ones they read on. The more they read, the
more knowledge they will gain from students increase and of course can
improve students‟ reading skills, and make students able to excel in
school. In addition to increasing students knowledge then the critical
thingking ability of students can be honed and improved because students
often understand logically information obtained from the reading he read.
In developing students‟ reading skill teachers must find more
effective ways to make students more interested in reading, sometimes
making students fell bored. For this reason the teacher must have an
interesting method or media for students in developing reading skill. The
method is very important in teaching and learning process because it uses
a variety of methods in a learning process make students have an interest
in learning and make it easier students can understand the material that
delivery by the teacher. The method or thehnique used current teacher to
improve reading skills lacking variety or monotony and someyimes not
effective. Therefore a professional teacher is required to have high
creativity in choosing methods which will be used in classroom. So that it
can help clarify the material to be delivered. Choosing the right the right
methid, it is hoped that students can more easily understand the material
lesson delivered by the teacher.
One of them is using novel books as media to develop students‟
reading skill because students nowadays prefer to read novels.The novel is
a form of literature that is very popular in the word, a form of literature
one of the most widely circulated and printed, because the community is
very broad. Drs. Jakob sumardjo). Novels as reding media used to
develop students‟ reading skill is very effective for use today. Because, it
are a light and easy-to-understand reading that contains various kinds of
stories such as the world of teenager, romance, spirituality, and friendship.
Stories contained in a novel usually contain minor conflicts and comedy
in some scenes as interludes to entertain readers and unexpected story lines
and that are exciting and interesting to attract students‟ in reading.
B. Problem statement
The problem that often occurs in reading subjects is students are
sometimes bored to start reading or reading activities because books or
media used by students to do reading activities are history books,
textbooks, and hthick books whose content cannot attract students‟ interest
in reading.
Based on the above, the teacher must be able to know the method
in developing students‟ reading skill by conducting research using novels
in improve reading skill. The problems are formulated as follow :
How the novel to improving the students reading skill ?
C. Objective of the research .
The purpose of this study is to find out whether novel books can be
used by teacher to improve students‟ reading skill.
Aspects Issues Gain
Score Score Criteria
Final
Score
Content Need more details about
the topic. 9
Relevant to the topic but
lacks detail. 32/40x100
Organization Different topic in one
paragraph. 4
Loosely organized, but ideas
stand out.
= 80
Vocabulary Several of not accurate
words. 8
Employ lacks the accuracy of
diction, but meaning not
obscured.
Grammar
Need to change the
preposition, determiner,
agreement, verb form,
pronoun, and noun form.
8
Significant errors of tense,
pronouns, subject-verb
agreement, etc. and meaning
obscured.
Mechanics 1. Punctuation needed.
2. Miss spelling. 3
Many errors of mechanics
and meaning obscured.
(Student 20)
“An Analysis the Effectiveness by Using Anagram Game as Media
to Improve Students’ English Skill”.
CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
Chapter 1 present the introduction of the study. It consist of background,
problem statement, and objective of the study.
A. Background
Language is one of the important things in communicating among
humans. As an international language, English is very important to be learned
almost all over the world. In Indonesia, this is a compulsory subject in formal
schools such as elementary schools, secondary schools, to the tertiary level.
In addition, the teacher‟s role is very important in preparing various
approaches, methods, strategies, and techniques in teaching the lesson so that
students are interested in learning. According to (Nababan, 1991: 4) a
qualified teacher is the teacher who is able to suit best method or technique to
the material that is being taught.
In English there are some aspects of ability that must be mastered namely
listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Many students of Indonesia in
various levels of education find their own difficulties while learning that
subject. Therefore, one technique that can be used in teaching is to use media
that is games. Sari (2006) Among the many ways of making learning more
effective, games are thought as useful tools for such comprehension. Also,
using this technique the class is not boring and makes students active in
learning that is fun.
In order to master English skill, a teacher as an educator must have the
good method he is able to apply in the learning process in the classroom. In
this case, the writer concerns with an analysis the effectiveness by using
anagram game to improve students English skill.
B. Problem Statement
Based on the background above, the problem of the study are follows:
1. How is the effectiveness of Anagram Game to improve students English
skill?
2. Does the effectiveness of Anagram Game can improve students English
skill?
C. Objective
Based on the writer statement, the objective of the study are as follows:
1. To describe the effectiveness by using Anagram Game to improve
students English skill.
2. To know the improvement of students English skill by the effectiveness
of Anagram game.
Aspects Issues Gain
Score Score Criteria
Final
Score
Content
1. Need more details
and relevant ideas of
the topic.
2. Need more specifics
of topic development.
8 Inadequate development
of the topic.
33/40x100
= 82,5
Organization
1. Different topic in one
paragraphs.
2. Lack of sequence in
paragraphs.
3
Incoherent ideas and
lacks logical
sequencing.
Vocabulary Few of not accurate and
wordy words. 9
Employ accurate diction
but not sufficient.
Grammar
1. Article needed.
2. Need to change the
verb form,
preposition and noun.
9
Several errors of tense,
pronouns, subject-verb
agreement, etc. but
meaning not obscured.
Mechanics 1. Punctuation needed.
2. Miss spelling. 4
Few errors of
mechanics, but meaning
not obscured.
(Student 25)
LEARNING ENGLISH FROM AN EARLY AGE
A. BACKGROUND English is the language used as a medium of communication and as the first
international language used to interact with others throughout the word. English
is the mother tongue in the united states,untined kingdom,Great
Britain,Ireland,and British commonwealth countries such as Singapore and
Malaysia.
Though English we can introduce the diversity of cultures and languages of this
nation to those who naturally want to know about this nation. Urgently needed
English in the national and international arena.
Leaning English has many impacts in life including learning English we can get
good job opportunities, besides English is also a global languages so it has an
impact in this globalization era,understanding technology, and making it easier to
interact with people from foreign countries.
Apart from that the advantage of learning English from an early age is that , The
first child is not familiar with English and feels more familiar with the language,
The second child who masters English is considered to have skills that can
facilitate them to live a pleasant future, and The third learning English from an
early age will prepare it to be more mature in facing the future . English is a
global language that is used by most of the word’s population, almost all
professions,almost some situations.
Every country has a communication medium that can facilitate a relationship
between individuals. This communication tool we call language. English is the
most important language in the world where englis in the main language in the
united kingdom (including English). The number of speakers spread throughout
the world, both as a first language ,second language of a foreign language . in
Indonesia itself, English is a foreign language . English is the most important
foreign language learned in Indonesia. English in Indonesia is generally taught as
a foreign language. The term foreign language in the field of language teaching is
different from the second language. A foreign language language is a language
that is not used as a communication tool in the particular country where the
language is taught. While the second language is a language that is not the main
language but is one of the language commonly used in a country. Meanwhile
foreign languages are usually taught as one of the subjects in school with the aim
of communicating basic and mastering 4 languages skills
(listening,reading,writing,speaking.) in the language within certain limits.
B. Problem Statement
a . How is the role of English for early childhood?
b . The application of what is good for early childhood learning English ?
c . What things are behind the difficulties of early childhood learning
English.?
C. Objective
a . So Parents realize how important it is to learn English from an early
age
b . We can find out where the problem lies the child in learning English
c . Can control children through learning English.
Aspects Issues Gain
Score Score Criteria
Final
Score
Content
The paragraphs are not
really connect with the
tittle or main idea.
8
Inadequate
development of
the topic.
30/40x100
= 75
Organization
1. Repeated topic in
different
paragraphs.
2. Different topics
in one paragraph.
3. Discuss more
specific topic
before the
general one.
3
Incoherent ideas
and lacks logical
sequencing.
Vocabulary Several of not accurate
words. 8
Employ lacks the
accuracy of
diction, but
meaning not
obscured.
Grammar 1. Few of error
tenses. 9
Several errors of
tense, pronouns,
2. Need to rewrite
the sentence.
subject verb
agreement, etc.,
but meaning not
obscured.
Mechanics
1. Need to add
space.
2. Need to remove
space.
3. Wrong Spelling.
4. Need to
capitalize.
5. Double type
word.
2
Dominated by
errors of
mechanics.
(Student 28)
“HOW TO IMPROVE WRITING SKILLS OF
STUDENTS”
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
A. Background
We know that English not our native language, as a fact
that mastery it is not easy. The components and skill of English
language is important for language learner. The components
include grammatical structure, phonology, vocabulary and
pronunciation that can give the effect to the English-language
skills; such as listening, reading, speaking and writing. Writing
is the written productive language skill. It refers to the ability to
communicate to the reader with the written language. Reading
is refers to produce the spoken language. Listening is the
receptive spoken. It refers to the ability to understand the
spoken language. It is the skill of a listener or group of listener
to interpret information transferred by the speaker. Speaking is
the spoken productive language. It refers to produce spoken
language. It the skill of speaker to communicate the information
to the listener.
In writing, students have to know about grammar,
vocabulary, sentence structure, sentence sequence, sentence
connection. Sometimes the students could speak English
fluently but they did not definite understand in Writing or
making essay.
Good writing skill are essential for effective
communication. The better you write, the more easily readers
will understand you. Learning to write well takes time and
practice. It has been agreed that writing is a means of
communication made possible through graphics symbols,
arranged according to certain conventions to form words which
in turn are arranged to form sentences. The sentences are
logically and grammatically connected to form a piece of
writing. Writing skills are an important part of communication.
Good writing skills allow you to communicate your message
with clarity and ease to a far large audience than through face to
face or telephone conversation.
B. Problem Statment
According to (NUNAN:2003)2.4.1 . Theacher have to
understand both and to communicate aims to students in ways
that are comprehensibible to them. 2.4.2. Teachers have to
evaluate writing activities in class, writing should integrated
into the syllabus, Provide students the opportunity to try out
different types of writing. The writing skill difficulties are one
of the most significant problems that affect not only native
English speakers, but also hundreds of students that are learning
English as a second or foreign language around the world. The
fact that the latter do not have interest in the Composition field
leads them to be poor writers, have low scores in their courses,
increase the errors in their homework, write run-on sentences
and create incoherent paragraphs. Many students have learned
in high school to camouflage their lack of reading and writing
skills, so it is often difficult for teachers to identify their
weaknesses until students hand in papers or take exams. Then
writing deficiencies are obvious. For this reason, it is important
to say that academic writing involves many requirements that
students must put into practice to avoid difficulties and
complications at the moment of writing essays or report papers.
C. Objective
The purpose of this research is to find how to improve the
writing skill if students. Besides that we can learn about what
understanding writing, the purpose of writing, and also the
processes that need to be studied before starting writing a
scientific work.
Aspects Issues Gain
Score Score Criteria
Final
Score
Content
1. Lack of knowledge
of the topic
discussed.
2. Need more details
and specific
development of the
topic.
7
The student does
not show
knowledge of the
topic.
28/40x100
= 70
Organization
1. Lack of sequence
paragraphs
organization.
2. Need coherent and
cohesive of the
paragraphs.
2
The student does
not write
paragraph
structures
correctly.
Vocabulary
1. Not accurate words.
2. Error usage of
diction.
7
Errors in applying
diction or word
form and meaning
obscured.
Grammar
1. Using personal
pronoun.
2. Need to change the
article and verb form
usage.
9
Several errors of
tense, pronouns,
subject-verb
agreement, etc. but
meaning not
obscured.
Mechanics
1. Miss page
formatting.
2. Wrong spelling.
3. Punctuation needed.
3
Many errors of
mechanics and
meaning obscured.
CURRICULUM VITAE
Khadijah was born on 29th
of July 1997 in Maros. She
is the first child from the marriage between of her
parents, Syamsuddin K, S.Pd. and Nur Amsi M, S.Pd.
She is a wife of Muhammad Taqiyuddin and also a
mother of one son named Abdullah. She began her
elementary school in SDIT Wihdatul Ummah Makassar
and graduated in 2009. Then, she continued her study in
MTsN MODEL Makassar and graduated in 2012. Her
senior high school was SMAIT Wahdah Islamiyah Makassar and graduated in
2015. At the same year, 2015, she continued her school at Muhammadiyah
University of Makassar as the students of English Department, Teacher Training
and Education Faculty. At the end of her study, she finished her thesis in 2020
with the title “An Analysis of Students‟ Problems in Academic Writing at English
Department Students in 2019 Academic Year Of Unismuh”.
top related