SKRIPSI THE EFFECTIVENESS OF ROLE PLAY METHOD IN IMPROVING STUDENTS SPEAKING SKILL

(KODE : PENDBING-0010) : SKRIPSI THE EFFECTIVENESS OF ROLE PLAY METHOD IN IMPROVING STUDENTS SPEAKING SKILL

CHAPTER I 

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background
Speaking is one of four basic skills (listening, speaking, reading, and writing) that have to be mastered in learning English. In KTSP (Kurikulum Tingkat Satuan Pendidikan), speaking is one of four skills which have to be mastered by senior high school students in Indonesia because speaking skill is tested in national exam. It means that every senior high school student has to master speaking skill. Besides that, speaking skill is very important to be mastered because it can help us to communicate with others well. Therefore, the speaking skill is totally required.

Speaking skill is very important to be mastered but the lack of teachers' ability to improve their students' speaking ability makes speaking skill hard to be mastered. Besides that, many teachers use bahasa Indonesia when they teach English in the classroom. Some teachers also teach speaking only by reading some dialogues and asking their students to read and make some dialogues. Those methods can make the students not accustomed to use English actively and assume that learning English is not interesting.

To solve the problem, we have to find an effective method in teaching speaking and improving the students' speaking ability. Brown (2001) stated that group work gives students more opportunities to speak. Group work is a generic term covering a multiplicity of techniques in which two or more students are assigned a task that involves collaboration and self-initiated language (Brown, 2001). It means that group work is one technique which can be used to stimulate students to speak more.
There are some activities which belong to group work. One of the activities is role play. According to Brown (2001), role play minimally involves (a) a giving role to one or more members of a group and (b) assigning an objective or purpose that participants must accomplish. Holden (1981) stated that the aim of the role play is for students to make up short dialogues using appropriate language and gestures. Stern (1980) in Alwahibee (2004) indicated that role-play activity is a classroom technique that has been recognized as a useful means of acquiring (teaching) a foreign language. Those statements about role play indicate that role play is one technique which can be used to improve students' speaking ability in foreign language, especially English.
Livingstone stated that role play is a classroom activity which gives the student the opportunity to practice the language, the aspects of role behavior, and the actual roles he may need outside the classroom (1983). Furness (1976) in Huang (2008) also stated that role play can improve communication skills and creativity, increase social awareness, independent thinking, verbalization of opinions, development of values, and appreciation of the art of drama. Role play can make the students act and place themselves as another person such as, a policeman, a receptionist, a doctor, and many more. Role play also can make the students more active and creative to speak in different conditions and situations.
The previous study on the role-play method, which was conducted by Alwahibee (2004), found that the experimental group of his study showed great gains in their oral skills after used role play method in teaching learning activities. This indicates that the use of role-play activity is very effective. Based on his study result, Alwahibee stated that role play is one of the activities that enhance the oral proficiency of the students.
In my opinion, teaching speaking using role play method will give different perception to the students about learning speaking. It will make the students more active, and make the teaching learning process more fun. Considering the use of role play method in improving students' speaking ability, the researcher attempts to prove the effectiveness of using role play method in improving students' speaking skill.

1.2 Reason for choosing the topic
Since speaking is one of four skills that have to be mastered by students in senior high school, senior high school students are demanded to improve their speaking ability. However, there are some problems in improving student's speaking skill, especially in English. The problems are the lack of teachers' ability in teaching speaking and the shyness of students to speak in English. To make successful teaching learning activities, especially in improving students' speaking ability, we have to find a good and effective method in teaching speaking.
Role-play method is one method which can be used in teaching speaking to improve students' speaking skill. With using this method, we can make students more active and braver to speak in English. It can also make the students able to act in different situations. Finally, it can improve students' speaking skill.

1.3 The statement of the problems
The following research questions are the focuses of this study :
a. Is using role play method effective in improving students' speaking ability in the first grade of senior high school?
b. What are the students' perceptions toward the role play method in improving their speaking skill?

1.4 The Scope of the study
The research of the study will be focused on the use of role play method in EFL classroom, especially in first grade students of senior high school, in improving students' speaking skill and the students' perception toward the method.

1.5 The aims of the study
The study is expected to find out :
a. The effectiveness of role play method in improving the students' speaking skill in the first grade of senior high school.
b. The students' perceptions of role play method in improving speaking skill in the first grade of senior high school.

1.6 Significance of the study
The result of this study highlights the use of role play method in improving students' speaking skill at a senior high school in X. This study is hopefully able to present a fact of the use of role play method in improving speaking skill of the students in that senior high school.

1.7 Organization of the paper
This paper will be presented in five chapters. The chapter will consist of several sub topics that will elaborate the different issues.
Chapter I is Introduction. It consists of background, reason for choosing the topic, the statement of the problems, the scope of the study, hypothesis, the aims of the study, significance of the study, research method, data collection, data analysis, population and sample, clarification of terms, and organization of the paper.
Chapter II is Theoretical Foundation. It presents theoretical framework on the issue. It consists of the definition of Role Play, the description of Role Play method in EFL classroom activity, the procedures in using Role Play, a brief history of role play, and the advantages and disadvantages of using role play method.
Chapter III is Research Methodology. It provides the method of the research which consists of formulation of the problems, research design, research procedures, and data analysis procedures.
Chapter IV is Research Findings and Discussions. It provides the data presentations that describe the result of the research as well and the analysis of the data.
Chapter V is Conclusions and Suggestions. It presents the conclusion of the paper and suggestions for further research.