CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

A. Background

Speaking is an essential skill used to communicate and to

share thought and mind. People speak to express themselves by making

statements, asking questions, or negating. Many people have the potential to

speak but there are lists of problems they are facing when they want to speak,

for example lack of confidence and vocabulary as well.

Nowadays, English is the most world’s spoken language and it is

very important to be able to speak in English. It is difficult if students do

not have confidence, knowledge, and preparation to speak in front of many

people. It could be worst if it has to be in a foreign language especially in

English since English is the global language. Many of colleagues from junior

high school, senior high school until college confront themselves that they have

difficulties in speaking English.

There are many factors of the difficulties in speaking such as, the

lack of confidence, nervous to be standing on stage or in front of many

people, and lack of vocabulary. For these reasons, many people could not

express themselves in front of other people despites of their bright mind.

Sometimes people call other person smart if he or she is fluent in speaking even

though that other person is cleverer than the fluent person might be.
 Experiencing the learning teaching in the class a few years ago is

definitely become a strength to conduct an experiment especially in speaking.

Several years back, the teaching process was 90% just focused on Reading

and Writing only. Speaking and Listening were so rare as if it were never

existed. While the National Examination were not just Reading, there was

Listening as well where I found out that it was a very different from what we

have learned in the class.

At High School, most of the learning was just written expression.

Speaking was absolutely forgotten and from what we have seen in the real

world, we need to speak to be connected with others. That is the whole

point of language and then writing and gesture come along. Even though that

the students have a great mark at structure but if they do not know how to speak

it up then it is useless.

Many people admit that Speaking is very hard. Therefore, the

question for them is why. Their answers are all different but most of them

because they were afraid of getting wrong. They do not have the courage to say

what they think because they are afraid being misunderstood. From my

perspective, they just need a little practice on their speaking so they will

get used to it and feel no longer embarrassment.

Not only the English Education Department students or English Literature

students need to improve their speaking skill but also the non-English majors

such as Biology Science, Physics Science, Mathematics, and other non- English

majors.Due to the fact that English is a global language, speaking in English

is very helpful because people can interact with many people all around the
world. People use English in international meetings, conferences,

symposiums, workshops, and other.

Based on the experiences above, it is interesting to conduct a research

using Project-Based Learning to overcome the problem of speaking specially in

Primary grade . In the journal entitled “A Review of Research on Project-

Based Learning written by Thomas (2000 p: 1), it says that Project Based

Learning is a model that organizes learning and projects. Projects as stated in

the journal are complex tasks, based on challenging questions and problems,

that involves students in design, problem solving, decision making, or

investigative activities: give students the opportunity to work relatively

autonomously extended periods of time: and culminate in realistic products

or presentations” . (Jones, Rasmussen, & Moffitt, 1997: Thomas,

Mergendoller, & Michaelson, 1999).

Project Based Learning (PBL) is one of the models that suits to

improve the students speaking because it prepares the students to speak in front

of many people. Project Based Learning also suits in any parts of the curriculum

whether in the KTSP or in the K-13 or in University Syllabus. Therefore, it can

be taught in any subjects or even out of the class hour,since this is an experiment.

A project is not a one-subject only. Two or three subject can be in one

project, therefore the students or the teachers can ease their work and done

their task in a group. For example, there are projects in Art and English Class,

what the teachers of both subject can do are that they can combine their task

through the project. The Art Class teacher can give a singing task to all the

students and to combine with the English Class, the students will perform
 their singing in English. This is one of the ways of a project can be done

without making the students more stress out because there will be many

subjects but the subject can be combined in one subject.

Based on the aforementioned definitions, Project-Based Learning

was a chosen model to improve the students’ speaking skill. The project would

be from the curriculum, depends on which curriculum the university uses. The

project would be presented in front of the class with its miniature or picture of

the selected material. From the activity of presentation, students would be

able to speak fluently and communicatively in front of the class.

B. Statement of the Problem

The lack of speaking in English especially at Bula Central School is the

main problem. In order to elaborate the main problem, the research question is

“To what extent is Project Based Learning effective in improving speaking

skill of grade 6 students at Bula Central School?”

C . O bjective of the Study

Identifying the effectiveness of Project Based Learning in

English at Bula Central School is the main problem of this research. The

specific objective of this current research is “To find out the extent to which

Project Based Learning is effective in improving speaking skill of the grade 6

students at Bula Central School.

This research contributes significance both theoretically and

practically. It may contributes and become the benefits for all the people

especially those who work in the field of education.

E. Scope and Limitations

To make this research clearer and specific, the limits of this research

is the effectiveness of using PBL in speaking skill. The PBL here means a task

of which the students will be given and present their own work in the front

of the class. The speaking criteria chosen for this research are

accuracy, fluency and comprehensibility. The speaking skill is based on

three aspects of speaking which are fluency, accuracy and comprehensibility.

Fluency in this matter is how the students speak very clear and without any

hesitation about what they are talking. Accuracy here means that the students

present their work like a native, which means they have a good pronunciation

like a native-like and easy to understand of what they explain.

Comprehensibility means that what the students talk about precise of which

they are presenting.

For the place, the research will be conducted at Bula Central

School. For the g r a d e l e v e l , the chosen l e v e l is the g r a d e 6 students of

Bula Central School.