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CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

1.1 The Background of the Research

Learning is one of the primary activities of students in the classroom.

Successful learning is only on the right way to lead the process. Good learning

atmosphere and method can guide the students to learn more and meaningful. To

accomplish such condition, teachers must create varitype and attractive methods for

the class. What should a teacher do if their students get bored? Using varitype games

can be an alternative solution to handle this problem. Games, as a matter of fact, can

help and encourage many students to sustain their interest and work.

Games can help the teachers to create contexts in which the language is

useful and meaningful. In the whole process of teaching and learning by games, the

students can take part widely and open-mindedly. To win the games each student or

group should competitively answer the questions addressed by the teacher or other

students or groups. In order to do so they must understand what the teacher or others

are saying or have written, and they must speak or write in order to express their own

points of view or give information.

The English instruction in elementary school is intended to endorse the

mastery and development of the four basic abilities and skills. Those are reading,

writing, speaking and listening as reflected in abilities and skill concerning language

use so that the students are able to express simple expression with emphasis our

vocabulary mastery in order to avoid to vocabulary infraction and attain better out

comes, the teacher should choose an appropriate teaching method, which is suitable
with subject matter in teaching learning process. The need to use various

instructional media will be able to help students to increase their English vocabulary.

Teaching vocabulary is clearly more than just presenting new words. It also

includes a decision that words should teach the basic of how frequent they are used

by speaker of the language. The words are most commonly used are those a teacher

should teach first. But commonly and usually the way of teaching makes the students

lazy and bored. The teacher needs something different to make students interested,

mostly children, because they are very easy to get bored. Therefore, teacher needs

something interesting which can motivate them. It is based on the characteristics and

attitude of the children that they are curious and often seeks something th4t the

teacher notices them and shows appreciation for what they are doing. So, to motivate

them, teacher needs something new that can stimulate their curiosity.

However, learning English vocabulary using games has an importance role

for elementary teachers and students. The first, as students, they have strong and

good motivation to deepen English language. The second, they are easy to accept the

English language because they learn by playing games that nowadays has been

grown and developed in Indonesia. The third, teaching English vocabulary using

games can help teacher in teaching learning process. Finally, teacher and students

can teach and learn English vocabulary using games.

Vocabulary is the most basic element of language learning. Some linguists

also express the importance of learning vocabulary. For instance, Alkhufaishi,

(1996:42) states that:

“Vocabulary is one of the major problems in confronting EFL learners.

Because of their anemic vocabulary they cannot communicate their
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ideas as clear they would like to and read the columns of a newspaper
or popular magazines or even understand news cast on the radio or
television. Their listening-comprehension, writing and reading abilities
care hampered by their limited vocabulary”.

Kids get benefit from the fun and motivation of a great vocabulary game.

Games are not only used for entertainment but also for educational purposes as well.

In fact, there is nothing that engages children more than teaching English through

play. Games have been shown have advantages and effectiveness in learning

vocabulary in various ways. First, games bring in relaxation and fun for students,

thus help them learn and retain new words more easily. Second, games usually

involve friendly competition and they keep learners interested. These create the

motivation for learners of English to get involved and participate actively in the

learning activities. Third, vocabulary games bring real world context into the

classroom, and enhance students’ use of English in a flexible, communicative way.

Therefore, the role of games in teaching and learning vocabulary cannot be denied.

Considering the advantages of using games in language classroom, the

researcher is interested to select one of suitable games for teaching English

Vocabulary and she will implement a classroom research involves improving

students’ ability in mastering vocabulary to young learner by matching words and

pictures to the fifth year students of SD Negeri 2 Lhoksukon. The writer experienced

that matching words and picture technique have not been widely applied at this

school before.
1.2 The Problem of the Research

Based on the background presented above, the writer feels necessary to

conduct a research in teaching English vocabulary by matching words and pictures to

English young learner. The problems of the research are in the following:

1. Can matching words and pictures increase the students’ ability in mastering

vocabulary to the fifth year students of SD Negeri 2 Lhoksukon?

2. What are the advantages of teaching vocabulary through matching words and

pictures to the fifth year students of SD Negeri 2 Lhoksukon?

1.3 The Purpose of the Research

Based on the problems of the research above, the purposes of the research are

as follows:

1. To know whether matching words and pictures can increase the students’

ability in mastering vocabulary to the fifth year students of SD Negeri 2

Lhoksukon.

2. To know the advantages of teaching vocabulary by using matching words and

pictures to the fifth year students of SD Negeri 2 Lhoksukon.

1.4 The Significance of the Research

The result of this research can be useful for the writer, teachers and students.

The writer hopes by using matching words and pictures can improve the students’

ability in mastering vocabulary. For the English teacher, using matching words and

pictures can motivate the students in mastering vocabulary and for the students by

using this game as the media in learning process can be interesting and easy to
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master vocabulary, by doing this research can create the new innovation in teaching

learning process especially for teaching vocabulary by using matching words and

Learning process especially for teaching vocabulary by using matching words

and pictures to young learners, and it will be a good experience when she will

teach at school one day after graduate of the university.

1.5 The Scope the Research

The writer gives the scope of research for limiting the focus of

the research. This research focused on teaching English vocabulary, especially

noun through matching words and pictures for the fifth year students of SD

Negeri 2 Lhoksukon. The material of vocabulary that will be taught is relevant to

curriculum 2004.

1.6 The Definition of The Key Terms

To avoid ambiguity in understanding some words, the writer tries to clarify

some terms as follows:

1. Improving is derived from “improve” by adding “ing”. It means to advance

to

better state or quality (Oxford Learner’s Pocket Dictionary, 2005:429). In this

case. “Improving” means to make learners able to master English vocabulary

much better by matching words and pictures.

2. Student is person who is studying at a college or university or at secondary

school, and also “student” means any person interested in a particular subject

(Oxford Learner’s Pocket Dictionary, 2005:429). In this case” students”

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the persons who are studying English vocabulary at fifth grade of Elementary

school.

3. Ability is skill or power (Oxford Learner’s Pocket Dictionary, 2005:429).

Here, “ability” means the skill that students have in learning English

vocabulary.

4. Vocabulary is a list of words and sometime phrase usually arranged in

alphabetical order and define, etc (Noah Webster, 1997:2046). According to

Oxford Leaner’s Pocket Dictionary (2005:482), “Vocabulary” is all the words

that a person knows or uses; all the words in a language; and all the words

with their meanings, especial in a book for learning a foreign language. In

this case, “vocabulary” means a list of words taught by teacher through

matching words and pictures.

5. Word is (1) written or spoken unit of language, (2) thing that is said by

someone, remark or statement (Oxford Leaner’s Pocket Dictionary,

2005:499). In this research, word means the unit of language that is taught to

the students through the picture.

6. Picture is (1) painting, drawing, etc, that shows a scene, a person or thing, (2)

photograph, picture made by using a camera that has film sensitive to light

inside it (Oxford Leaner’s Pocket Dictionary, 2005:322). In this case, picture

is a media used by the teacher to teach English vocabulary to the students of

the fifth year students of SD Negeri 2 Lhoksukon.

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7. Matching Words and Pictures is a kind of game that is used as teaching

media to increase the vocabulary and the students will have some fun when

this game implemented in the classroom (Hornby, 1995:486). In this case,

this game makes the students more focus in learning English vocabulary,

because they do not feel that they are forced to learn. The students are highly

motivating and entertaining in learning by applying this kind of game.

8. Classroom Action Research is a form of reflective research that is

conducted by teacher which its result can be used as a tool to improve the

teaching and learning process (Asrori, 2008:4). In this study, the researcher

implements this kind of research to improve the teaching and learning process

of English vocabulary to the second year students of SD Negeri 2 Lhoksukon.