THE USE OF CIRCLE GAMES AS A STRATEGY TO IMPROVE THE STUDENTS’ MASTERY IN ENGLISH VOCABULARY (penelitian tindakan kelas ptk/ classroom action research)

CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

              The increasing need caused by developing era is demanded in the global society to enhance their human resources quality in order to compete to the other countries. In responding this situation, the role of communication had become a part that could not be separated from this condition. As English had become very powerful language in the world, it became one of international languages; most global community used English as a media of communication with another. Mohammad Reza Talebinezhad & Mohammad Aliakbari (2007) said that English as an International Language referred to the use of English by people of different nations in order to communicate with one another.

              As the important of English in communication, it is not something difficult to see that the language are frequently used either to formal or informal places such as foreign companies, embassy office, tourism sector and many other places. Different from Singapore, Bangkok, Malaysia and India, they put English as their second language as their language communication while Indonesia put English as its foreign language. It is used as an instrument of utilizing modern sciences and technology for national development and it is also used as a mean of communication when Indonesian wanted to communicate to people from overseas. No doubt that only few Indonesians mastered of it, most of them tended to ignore it, they used to think that foreign language not something useful for their daily life and learned of it.

              However, nowadays, the assumption is gradually scraped off by the developing era that demanded the society to be more competitive and to be able to enhance their human resources quality. Therefore, the role of English are needed to face the era of globalization, where it would be many new things happened in our nation. Since English recently are treated as foreign and important language for Indonesian, it had a major portion in Indonesian educational system and became a compulsory subject to study either in junior or senior high schools in today’s Indonesian educational system. Ricardo Schutz (2007) said that English in its role as a global language that it had become one of the most important academic and professional tools. The English language is recognized as undoubtedly the most important language for the increasingly mobile international community to learn. This is a fact that seemed to be irreversible. English had become the official language of the business and scientific worlds.

              The massive trend of learning English are not without a reason. The development of the country’s economy, science and technology that tended to be influenced by many English speaking countries had put people who understood English in more advantageous position, especially in job finding. Many Indonesian people started to believe that English would help them so much in finding a job than those who did not.

             

              As the most important foreign language in Indonesia, English became one of the compulsory subjects taught in junior high school, senior high school and some semesters at university. The government always made effort to improve the quality of English teaching. By improving the teachers’ quality and other components involved in educational process, the English teaching in Indonesia improved time to time. In line with the government’s plan to have nine compulsory studies, it is possible to teach English in the third grade of senior high school. By applying the foreign language to early level (the third grade of senior high school students), the students’ language mastery are expected to be satisfactory although it is only in simple English.

              In teaching a language, a teacher might realize that he could not apply only one or two strategies to all levels. In reverse, he is required to be able to recognize the characters of his students and to select an appropriate strategy to them. It is not something different from teaching English to the third grade of senior high school students, the teacher is supposed to know that children are so closed with something fun and enjoyable. So whenever he taught, he had to be selective in choosing a strategy to introduce a learning material. A good teaching strategy would automatically facilitate him to get students’ interest in learning process.

              To improve the English educational system, the government had been seeking to a system which is really in line with the students’ need. In this case the teaching process could be started from earliest step, by using simple things without trying to introduce language components explicitly before they are really ready.

              After all of the material of the pre-level are clearly taught and understood. The language components could be little by little involved in their study as a continuity of their learning, such as phonology, spelling, structure and vocabulary.

              One of the most important language components are vocabulary. The mastery of it would be very helpful when one is learning foreign language a great mastery on it; it would also facilitate him to comprehend the subject learn in which it is in English. Research concluded that the quality of one’s language skill depended on the quality and the quantity of vocabulary mastered, the more he mastered the vocabulary the better he used the language skill. This study would present a vocabulary teaching strategy to the third grade of senior high school students. In which it is going to be very pleasant and interesting for young learners. The teaching strategy are about “The Use of Game (Circle Games) in Teaching Vocabulary to The third grade of senior high school Students” conducted within a set of rules in the objectives.

              By providing game as a media in teaching vocabulary to the third grade of senior high school students, Research hoped that it would make them felt something pleasant and felt it different from what they used to get in the class. The use of game would stimulate them to be more active and it is really matched with the students’ world where pre-level students liked to study through movement. By the activity, they are given an opportunity to express their????????????