STUDENTS’ AND TEACHERS’ USE OF TECHNOLOGYFOR TEACHING AND LEARNING ENGLISH

TO ACHIEVE STUDENT’S LEARNER’S AUTONOMY: A PRELIMINARY STUDY IN MALANG SENIOR HIGH-SCHOOL

Yudi SetyaningsihUniversitas Ma Chung Malang

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study is to explore students and teachers use of technology for learning English that later on lead them to their learning autonomy. As computer-assisted language learning (CALL) and the Internet are becoming more important in learning languages, this study is intended to present the factual condition of what is going on in the field on the basis of teaching English using technology. The focus of this study is to provide information on how senior high-school students and teachers use technology in their language classroom as well as their daily routine basis. This study aims at obtaining and analyzing actual CALL user’s opinions by asking the following questions: (1) Do students make use of technology (computers and the Internet) for their learning activity? (2) Do students learn English without the influences from their teachers/parents? (3) How do teachers make use of computers for their teaching activity? And (4) Are teachers aware of their students’ learning autonomy? The study took place in SMAN 3 Malang with students of social science (IPS) and natural science (IPA) majors study English twice a week taught by two teachers. The findings show that all research questions are answered.The results of the study are hoped to be one of some references used by other researchers in the field of CALL and learning autonomy.

Keywords: CALL, the Internet, learning autonomy

INTRODUCTION

In recent years, the rapid development of information and communication technology (ICT) has made great changes in societies and education. The Internet, particularly, has become a useful tool for communication, a venue for experiencing different cultures and a mediator in diverse political, social and economic situations. Along with the impact of the Internet worldwide, the extensive use of computers at schools has had a critical influence on educational environments. With the increasing variety of software and online programs in the EFL field, there has recently emerged an interest in the ways in which the computer can be used to support language learners to improve their skills that later on will lead students to have their learning autonomy.

Autonomy is not a new concept in foreign language teaching-learning. Thanasoulas (2000) states that notions such as teaching learners how to learn, learner autonomy and learner independence have significantly influenced EFL language education. According to Thanasoulas (2000), there are numerous definitions of autonomy and other synonyms for it in relevant literature, such as “independence” (Sheerin, 1991), “language awareness” (van Lier 1996), and “self-direction” (Candy, 1991). A common distinction is made between the terms learner independence and learner autonomy (Pinkman, 2005). Nonetheless, learner autonomy

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and learner independence in language teaching are more or less synonym or used interchangeably (Pinkman, 2005).

Many English teachers as well as language instructors are taking advantage of technology to provide students with opportunities to continue learning outside the classroom because, for instance, technology allows learners to work at their own pace and to have the freedom to choose their own materials (Pinkman, 2005). Moreover, technology and multimedia resources and Web-based learning environments provide students with authentic and global environments and interesting tools to achieve learner autonomy or learner independence and offer them an opportunity to learn, practice and communicate with others in the target language outside the classroom (Hanson-Smith, 2000).

Technology has affected our learning styles and has allowed us to obtain a great amount of information (Chapelle, 2001). This phenomenon has also had a profound and sig-nificant effect on education. According to Liou’s investigation of students’ perception of using the Internet in Taiwan as one of EFL countries, most students have regularly communicated or chatted online at home or outside the classroom (Liou, 2002). Meanwhile, Lin (2004) argues that teachers need to consider integrating students’ preferences into teaching to promote stu-dents’ learning and motivation and to help students appreciate social interaction through the use of technology in language learning.

This study is intended to be the preliminary research in computer-assisted language learning (CALL) and the development in learner’s autonomy. This will provide a report on the factual condition on how students make use of technology (computers and the Internet) for their study and how they study English without the influences from their teachers/parents as well as other people. Teachers, in this case, were also interviewed to have their use of technol-ogy and their awareness of student’s learning autonomy. The result of the study will help re-veal aspects of technology that help students and teachers in their learning activity. The data collected relies on questionnaires to students and teachers, observations, and interviews con-ducted in SMAN 3 Malang.

RESEARCH QUESTIONS

There are 4 (four) major questions focusing on obtaining information on students and teachers’ use of technology and the learning autonomy of students in studying English. The questions are:

(1) Do students make use of technology (computers and the Internet) for their learning ac-tivity?

(2) Do students learn English without the influences from their teachers/parents?(3) How do teachers make use of computers for their teaching activity?(4) Are teachers aware of their students’ learning autonomy?

METHOD

This study focuses on the use of technology in the language classes as well as the autonomy of learning.A number of reports have been made showing us that using technology in the language classrooms has had positive effects on students’ attitude aimed at schools and learning because they can work at their own pace that later on lead them to their learning autonomy.The study uses questionnaires, interview, and observation in order to collect data from the field. The questionnaires consist of four parts, two for students and two for teachers.

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The students are asked to answer some questions concerning access to computers and the Internet and how they have their learning autonomy in studying English. The teachers, on the other hands, are asked about their use of technology in the classroom, how they integrate the technology in their teaching as well as their awareness in their student’s learning autonomy. In this study, the triangulation design of mixed approach, in which quantitative and qualitative data collection techniques are used together, is employed. A semi-structured interview form was also developed to enhance the data collection. All methods used are aimed to improve the validity and reliability of the study.

PARTICIPANTS

The subjects of the study are 36 senior high-school students of social and natural science majors and two English teachers teaching the two classes. The students are in their third year (class 12) and 1st semester following a syllabus set by the government (the Department of Education and Culture). The basic competencies for students in this level are to communicate using appropriate expressions fluently and accurately. Students are also expected to understand narrative, explanatory, commentary, and review texts (Kelas XII Silabus, 2011).

DATA COLLECTION

While observing the classes for 4 weeks (two sessions/two classes per week), the questionnaires were distributed. In social science class, from 28 students, only 7 students returned the questionnaires, while in natural science class, 29 students returned the questionnaires. Using SPSS (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences), the questionnaires were analyzed using descriptive analysis.

The interview and observation were conducted from 1st August – 26th September 2011. The English class is conducted twice a week: Tuesday and Wednesday (the first and second period: 07.00 – 8.30 a.m.) for social science class and Wednesday and Saturday (The fifth and sixth period: 12.00 – 13.30 p.m.) for natural science class. As an observer, the writer attended most classes and conducted some interviews to the teachers. Documents such as syllabus and teaching materials were also obtained and copied from the teachers to complete the data collection. The social science class uses both written and interactive versions from the computer program created by the teacher but the natural science class uses only teacher’s hand-outs.

FINDINGS

Student’s Use of Computers and the Internet

The first question is about student’s use of technology (computers and the Internet) for their learning activity. In the questionnaires, there are five statements for students concerning the access to computer and the Internet (see table 1). In statement no. 1, 34 students (94.4%) stated that most of them have a reliable access to computer at home as well as at school. The reason why they have that statement is that nowadays, computer is very reliable for students to do their school assignments as well as joining social networking.

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NO STATEMENT YES N NO N

1 I have a reliable access tocomputerat homeandat school 94.4% 34 5.6% 2

2 I have accessto the Internetat homeorat school 100% 36 - 36

3 I ameasy togeta reliableInternet café around me 83.3% 30 16.7% 6

4 I am able to use Microsoft Office Word program to writeandtype 100% 36 - 0

5 Ihave apersonal emailaddress 100% 36 - 0

Table 1. Access to computer and the Internet

For an easy access of the Internet (statement no. 2), students can use an Internet modem at home and the school provides the connection. Schools are also equipped with Internet connection as the government, in this case the Department of National Education, also supports schools with Schoolnet (http://118.98.173.43/?p=1574 – DiknasMalangWebsite). Some schools have supports for Internet connection from April – December 2011. The existence of Internet café in Malang for statement no. 3, makes all students (100%) stated that they can easily find the café and connect themselves to the Internet and one of the activities in having their personal e-mail address (as shown in statement no.4).

The second question is about the ability to use the computer and the Internet. Statements no. 6 – 20 show how students do their school assignments and communicate with their friends using certain computer programs as well as utilizing the Internet to interact virtually. Table 2 shows the results of the use of the technology.

NO STATEMENT YES N NO N

6 I can send and read e-mail 100% 36 - 07 I am able

tosendandreceiveattachmentsvia email 97.2% 35 2.8% 18 I am able to browse the Internet 100% 36 - 09 I am able to find information on the In-

ternet100% 36 - 0

10 I am able tonavigatea websitetoget the desired information 100% 36 - 0

11 I am able todownload thedocumentfrom the internet

100% 36 - 0

12 I am abletobookmarkwebsitesthat I finduseful

100% 36 - 0

13 I amfamiliarwithmailing listsandonline discussion groups 91.7% 33 8.3% 3

14 I have participated inonlinechats 47.2% 17 52.8 1915 Myteachersmake sureI usethe Excel

programtocomplete the task 94.4% 34 5.6% 216 Ihave touse thePowerPoint slides

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programtopresent something in the classroom

13.9% 5 86.1% 31

17 Imustenrichmytaskwithrelevant materialsfromthe Internet 97.2% 35 2.8% 1

18 Myteachersmake surethat IuseMicrosoft Office Wordin doing my assignment 88.9% 32 11.1% 4

19 Myteachersmake sure that I can use audio/video equipmenttoperformthe tasks 52.8% 19 47.2% 17

20 I amable to makea presentationusingmulti-media 77.8% 28 22.2% 8

Table 2. The ability to use computers and the Internet

From statement no. 6, it can be seen that all students (100%) can use e-mails. While sending or receiving attachments from e-mails (statement no. 7) only 1 student (2.8%) cannot do such thing. All students (100%) in statement no. 8,9,10,11, and 12 are able to browse the Internet to find the desired information, to navigate the websites and download documents as well as bookmark the websites that they want to visit in the future. Most students (91.7%) are familiar with mailing lists and online discussion groups but not all of them (47.2%) participate in online chats (statement no. 13 and 14). In using certain program such as Microsoft Office (statement no. 15,16, and 18), most students (94.4%) can use Excel but only some (13.9%) use Powerpoint to present their assignment in the classroom while 88.9% (32 students) use Word to do their assignment. Teachers asked students to find relevant materials from the Internet (statement no. 17) and most students (97.2%) do what their teachers say so. Statement no. 19 and 20 show that not all students (52.8%) are able to use audio/video equipment to perform their tasks but surprisingly, they use multi-media (77.8%) to make presentations.

Student’s Learning Autonomy

The third question to students is about their English learning without influences from other people (teachers, parents, or friends). There are 11 statements on how students confident that they have abilities in learning a new language and how their efforts in making themselves fluent in English. The Likert scale from 1 – 5 is used in the questionnaire: 1 (NEVER), 2 (SELDOM), 3 (SOMETIMES), 4 (OFTEN), and 5 (ALWAYS). Table 3 shows the result of student’s autonomy in learning English.

No. STATEMENT N Min Max MeanStd

Deviation1 Ithink Ihave theabilitytolearnEnglishwell 36 2 5 3.67 .6762 I use my spare time to study English 36 2 4 2.74 .6573 I study before English class 36 1 4 2.58 .8744 I am able tocompletean English assignmenton

time36 2 5 3.86 .683

5 I record everything related to Englishin thedi-aryornotebook

36 1 5 3.00 .926

6 I create some test topracticemy English 36 1 3 1.64 .7237 I reward myselfif get good scores

inEnglishexams36 1 4 2.25 1.079

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8 I joinanEnglish coursetotrainand upgrade myself

36 1 5 3.17 1.342

9 Itry toaskas well asactivelyparticipatein the classroomsuch as in discussions, drama, andpresentations

36 2 5 3.53 .696

10 I amaware ofmystrengthsandweaknessesin English

36 3 5 4.19 .624

11 I chooseEnglish books and exercises that are appropriate tothe level ofmy proficiency

36 1 5 3.36 1.099

Table 3. Student’s Learning Autonomy

Concerning student’s learning autonomy as shown in table 4, the Mean for statement no. 4 (the student is able to complete an English assignment) is 3.86. This means that students have some certainty (as they choose OFTEN) that they can complete the assignment. Whereas statement no. 10 (student’s awareness of his/her strengths and weaknesses in English) shows 4.19 for the Mean. This can be interpreted that actually, students know exactly (OFTEN) that they are able or not able to learn English. The highest figure in standard deviation (1.342) is statement no.8 which shows that in order to train and upgrade themselves in English, they join English course outside the school. The other two high points (1.099 and 1.079) are for choosing English books appropriate to the level of their proficiency and rewarding themselves if they obtain good scores in English. The high points in standard deviation can mean that not all students do the same thing. This applies to only certain student as the Mean is low but the standard deviation is high.

The second part of Student’s learning autonomy questions are about their perceptions and opinions on how, why, and what forthey study English. There are 10 questions in this part and in each item is given 5 choices (A,B,C,D, and E). Table 4 shows how students give their opinions and perceptions on studying English.

No. STATEMENT N CHOICES %12 Reasons for studying English 35 Interest and future jobs (option E) 44.413 Teacher-student relationship 36 Partners (D) and Director (E) 41.714 Cause of failure and success in

studying English36 The student him/herself 58.3

15 Participation in planning lesson with the teacher

36 Agree (B) and neutral (C) 41.7

16 Answering teacher’s questions 36 Thinking and ready to answer (B) 72.217 Finding meaning(s) of word(s) 36 Asking his/her friend(s) and

consulting the dictionary (D)61.1

18 Student’s mistakes in answering teacher’s questions

36 Asking his/her friends (B) 52.8

19 Trying new technology 36 Exploring and learning the new technology (A)

86.1

20 The best way to learn English 36 Doing grammar, vocabulary, translation, and other exercises (C)

55.6

21 Using materials in studying English 36 Only from the teacher (A) 100

Table 4 Student’s opinions on studying English

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In statement no. 12 (reasons for studying English), almost half of the students (44.4%) choose E (interest and future jobs). This statement matches with the current condition where English is needed to find better jobs. Students consider (statement no.13) that teacher-student relationship is like partners (option D – 41.7%) and director (option E – 41.7%). More than half of students in statement no.14 feel that the cause of failure and success in studying English is the students themselves (58.3%). Students will agree (41.7% - option B) and be neutral (41.7% - option C) when asked to participate in planning English lesson with their teacher. While students, in statement no. 16, will think and ready to answer 72.2% - option B) when their teacher asks question. Finding meanings of words (statement no. 17) is something that students do in their language class, therefore, more than half of students (61.1%) will ask their friends and consult the dictionary (option D) to find the answer but when making some mistakes when answering their teacher’s question (statement no. 18), half of students (52,8%) prefer to ask their friends rather than check in the dictionary or ask the others. Students also feel encouraged when they try new technology (the Internet), this optimism is figured by 86.1% that students will explore and learn the new technology instead of refusing or reluctant to use it. Half of the students (55.6%) said that the best way to learn English (statement no. 19) is doing the grammar, vocabulary, translation, and other exercises (option C) but all of them (100%) use English materials (statement 21) only from their teacher (option A).

Teacher’s Use of Computers (and technology) and Awareness of Student’s learning Autonomy

The two main questions given to two English teachers are first, about their access and abilities to make use of computer and the Internet for their teaching and the second main questions are about their awareness of students’ learning autonomy. Since there were only two teachers involved in the study, the questionnaires were transferred into structured interviews. The questions asked were from two sets of questionnaires. The first questionnaires are about how teachers have access to computers and the Internet as well as how they use the technology for themselves and teaching their students. The second questionnaires are about the awareness of teachers on their student’s learning autonomy. How autonomous students participate actively in class, factors influencing autonomy, and also students who are autonomous are those who are high achievers. Those questions were answered by the two teachers teaching two classes.

The two teachers answer almost the same to the questions addressed. Both teachers have abilities to use computers for typing and utilize other programs such as Microsoft Office: Word, Excel, and Powerpoint, and one teacher is able to use Microsoft Frontpage and Publisher to create teaching materials. The teacher for social studies class is even using his own created interactive program in every meeting. The program is the learning media created with Microsoft Office Frontpage and Publisher, as well as Adobe Photosop and video recording. While the teacher for natural science class is only using English textbooks in teaching although sometimes she asks her students to present something using Powerpoint slides.

In regards with Internet usage, both teachers have e-mail addresses but only one (the social studies class teacher) is actively sending and receiving e-mails, he even often uses the Internet to find certain information used for creating teaching materials. This teacher has created a set of teaching materials for the four skills: speaking, listening, reading, and writing as well as grammar and vocabulary according to the syllabus for class XII. The ability to

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create teaching materials using certain program/software was obtained autonomously without specific training. In every meeting, this teacher uses laptop, LCD projector and screen, as well as speakers to open the program and ask students to come forward to answer the questions found in the materials.

The second questionnaires are about teachers’ awareness of their students’ learning autonomy. Both teachers agree that students who are autonomous are also high achievers. Factors affecting autonomous learning mostly are motivation of students, learning environment, and facilities. High achiever students and autonomous learners do something or finish their assignments without being ordered or asked by their teachers. This matter differentiates from those who are not autonomous and have low achievements. Students who are high achievers are also active in the classroom. They answer almost every question and actively ask questions to their teachers most of the time.

DISCUSSION

The discussion section presents two parts: student’s perception in using technology for learning English and teacher’s use of technology for their teaching and their awareness of their student’s learning autonomy.

Student’s Perception in Using Technology for learning English Leading to Learner’s Automomy

This study tries to reveal student’s perception in using technology for learning English to achieve learner’s autonomy. The results of the questionnaires show that students are famil-iar with technology: computer and the Internet. They also make use of the technology for learning English as well as teachers who give their opinions in using technology in their teach-ing and their awareness of student’s learning autonomy. The findings answer research ques-tion no. 1 that is “Do students make use of technology (computers and the Internet) for their learning activity?

When it comes to student’s learning autonomy, the results of the questionnaires (statement no. 1 – 11) show that students have confidence in having the ability to learn English autonomously.The findings answer research no. 2 (Do students learn English without the influences from their teachers/parents?). Most students feel certain that they can finish their assignment. This certainty leads them into awareness for their strengths and weaknesses in studying English. When students realize that they have weaknesses in studying English, they try to upgrade themselves by joining private English courses. Students also have freedom to choose English materials suit to their level and they reward themselves if they obtain good scores in English. Although the results show that students have learning autonomy but according to the high point of standard deviation,it is interpreted that not all students do the same thing in gaining their learning autonomy.

Teacher’s Use of Computers and Technology and How They are Aware of Student’s Autonomy

Both teachers have easy access to computers and the Internet as well as utilizing them into their daily routine. The results of the interview with teachers in using technology answer

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research question no. 3 (How do teachers make use of computers for their teaching activ-ity?)But there is only one who is actively using computers and some programs to create teaching materials whereas another one is only using computer for typing something (letters and certain papers) and the Internet for sending and receiving e-mails. The ability to use computer with its programs and the Internet for browsing to find information comes from self-motivation and interests. Teachers who are not interested in using technology for their daily routine and teaching usually consider that they cannot catch up with the latest trends. They even use old-fashioned gadgets such as cell-phones and laptops having no sophisticated features.

Students who are autonomous, according to the teachers, are high-achievers. This find-ing shows that teachers are aware of their student’s learning autonomy (research question no. 4:Are teachers aware of their students’ learning autonomy?). High-achievers are mostly independent and do whatever they are asked (especially for accomplishing tasks) without be-ing pushed or guided. There are factors affecting students to reach autonomy, and according to the teachers, there are three big factors such as student’s motivation, learning environment, and facilities students have. Most autonomous students have high motivation in learning as this is proved by the findings from student’s questionnaires. Students who are motivated real-ize that they can succeed and fail because of themselves. Students also explore and try a new technology offered instead of rejecting it. The findings show that motivation holds an impor-tant part in becoming autonomous.

Learning environment is the second factor in influencing autonomy. If the environment supports students to be autonomous it can have meanings that people from the surroundings (such as their parents, siblings, or friends) really motivate them to learn. A very conducive situation for studying also influences in autonomy as students can study well without some disturbances from the outside. The third factor is facilities. The existence of books, computers, as well as the Internet support students to be autonomous. Students find it easy to do everything in learning as they can have media to finish their assignments. They can type their papers very easily and find information they need by browsing the Internet.

CONCLUSION

Computer assisted language learning is an area of much discussion in the second lan-guage learning world. The concept of providing students additional outlets to learn languages not only as supplementary tools to traditional classroom environments, but also independently is motivating. CALL has provided students and teachers unlimited learning boundaries, which were not available in the past. The primary goal of this study is to find out whether students and teachers are usingtechnology to learn and teachEnglish, as well as to find out student’s au-tonomy in learning English. Teacher’s awareness of their student’s learning autonomy is also investigated. The results of the study have answered all research questions but still, further study is needed in order that it will reveal the real condition in the field.

While this is only a preliminary study and requires further investigation to make larger claims, the results from this study indicate that students do use technology to learn English as well as utilize them to finish their school assignments. Furthermore, they are also utilizing websites like Google, Youtube, Yahoo and other websites to help them engage in learning English and finding some information asked by their teachers. This study also helps to reveal the autonomy of students in learning English. It is proved that some students are autonomous, although it still needs further study to reveal their autonomy by having larger scale of partici-

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pants and schools. Teachers, on one hand, are also making use of technology in their teaching and on the other hands, they are aware of their student’s learning autonomy. Overall, this study will contribute to the understanding and implementation of CALL within the English teaching field.

REFERENCES

Candy, P. C.1991. Self-direction for Lifelong Learning.California: Jossey-Bass.

Chapelle, C.A. 2001. Computer Applications in Second Language Acquisition.Fundations for Teaching, Testing, and Research. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Hanson-Smith, E. 2000.The Role of Technological Environments in Language Education.In E. Hanson-Smith (Ed.).Technology-enhanced Learning Environments. Alexandria,VI: Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages, Inc.

http://118.98.173.43/?p=1574 – DiknasMalang Website

Lin, H.C. 2004. Online Chatting for EFL Writing.Selectedpapers from The Thirteenth International Symposium on English Teaching (pp. 519 – 528) ETA – ROC.Taipei: Crane.

Liou, H.C. 2002. How We Can Tell Others Multimedia Language Education is Useful or Effective? In Multimedia Assisted Language Learning 5 (1), (pp. 122 – 150).

Pinkman, K. 2005. Using Blogs in the Foreign Language Classroom: Encouraging learner Independence.The JALT CALL Journal, 1(1), (pp. 2-24).

Sheerin, S. 1991. State of the art: Self-access. Language Teaching, 24(3), (pp.153-157).

Thanasoulas, D. 2000. Learner Autonomy . (Online) (http://www.eltnewsletter.com/back/September2000/art322000.htm), accessed 29 November, 2010.

vanLier, L. 1996. Interaction in the Language Curriculum.Awareness, autonomy and authenticity.New York: Longman.

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