Implementing an acting play scripts technique to improve students’ speaking skill (a classroom action research at the eighth class students of SMPN 1 Kalitidu in the Academic Year of 2008/2009)

Oleh :
Eny Yuliati - S890208106 - Sekolah Pascasarjana

ABSTRAK The study applied action research technique to improve students’ speaking ability through Acting Play Scripts (APS). Action research is a way of reflecting on teaching which is done systematically by collecting data on everyday practice and analyzing in order to come to some decisions about what the future practice should be. The research consisted of two cycles, with four meetings in each cycles.The research elaborated planning, action, observation and reflection in each cycle.There are two types of data in the research, namely the quantitative and qualitative data which were collected by observation, interview, questionaire, and test. The quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistic, finding out the mean of the scores in the test and the improvement of the students’ scores during the research. The qualitative data were analyzed using Constant-comparative technique proposed by Strauss and Glasser consisting of the following steps: (1) comparing incidents aplicable to each category; (2) integrating categories and their properties; (3) delimiting the theory; and (4) writing the theory. The results of the study showed that: (1) APS can improve students’ speaking skill; (2) APS can improve students’ speaking ability in terms of: (a) raising achievement in speaking; (b) raising students’ fluency in speaking; (c) improving students’ ability to express ideas using appropriate vocabulary and grammatical form; and (d) improving students’ speaking level; and (3) APS can improve classroom situation, in terms of: (a) creating live teaching atmosphere; (b) increasing students’s participation, reducing teacher domination, providing bigger oppotunities for speaking practice, enhancing spoken activity; and (c) increasing teacher innovation and understanding about students’ potentials. Realizing that APS technique is beneficial to improve the students’ speaking ability and imrpoving classroom situation, some suggestions are made based on the research findings: (1) English teacher should design teaching material and action plan to conduct APS technique which can be held at school regularly; (2) students should realize that they have potentials to be good speakers and open themselves to any chances of self-development in speaking; and (3) Researcher are expected to use the technique as a starting point to conduct further research in the same field.