IMPROVING STUDENTS ABILITY OF STORY RETELLING BY USING MOVIE

IMPROVING STUDENTS ABILITY OF STORY RETELLING BY USING MOVIE

by Asmuni Marjuki

CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the Study

Language is the tools of communication to convey the information, thought, idea, feeling, and to distinguish a country with other countries or other areas.
English is an important means of communication, which is used by many countries in this world. It plays an important role as an international language. This is why the Indonesian government chooses English as the first foreign language to be taught in schools (Ramelan, 1992:3).
The writer wants to discuss one of the many problems connected with English learning. English learning problems can take place both at home and at school. The teacher and the students are different, and therefore, we might find different motivations for learning as well. At school, the problems may appear when the class consists of a big number of students. The noisy class does not only disturb the students who really want to study, but also influence the students’ concentration to the subject given in class. The condition like this can make the students feel bored and do not like to study. At home, the problems may appear when they recall the subjects from school and they still do not understand the lesson and none of the people at home can help them. If this condition continues they will feel very bored and not interested in studying English. In this case the
Teacher’s role is very important, that is to encourage them to study harder and better. In addition, students’ problems are not only from the classroom environment but also from the students themselves. The reality we often see is that, in fact, many students master the theory better than practice. For example, in speaking, they may have the knowledge of how to speak, but in practice they find difficulties. They lack self confidence. To build their confidence, students need more practice so that teachers are suggested to create and use interesting method. One of such the methods is story retelling. Generally, story retelling is liked by the students because they like stories. It is also an appropriate method for the students at their age. In order to make story retelling more interesting, good media are needed. The term ‘media’ is defined by Brown: J. W, Richard B. L, Fred F: H (1969: 2-3) as tools or the physical things used by a teacher to facilitate the instruction. According to Gerlach and Elly (1980: 245), to select the appropriate media, the teacher must consider the characteristics of the students, which directly related to the learning process such as verbal abilities, visual and audio perception skills. Other factors which also ought to be considered in media selection come from our instructional system model, that is, the organization of groups, the time available and the space in which the media will be used (Gerlach and Elly: 255).
Movie is one of media to teach story retelling. Movie is a dramatic performance that is recorded as a moving image, whether on film or videotape. Using English movie as a means for teaching story retelling can be very pleasing and interesting for the students. By using English movie students will be more interested and more active in learning. They will feel something new and different from what they usually get in their class. The writer hopes that with the use of English movie, they will be active as participants and they have more a chance to express their minds, emotions, feelings and attitudes.

1.2 Reasons for Choosing the Topic
As mentioned in the background, selecting a good medium to teach English is very important. The phenomena we have for many years are that teachers use particular textbooks, which are stated in the curriculum, without trying to find some other suitable sources. They, in this case, do not attempt to find other materials that support and motivate students’ interest in their English class.
The writer assumes that movie is a kind of media that very important as it increases their visual and critical awareness. Watching films in the classroom can be realized through recording them. We have tried to make the activity of film-watching an active rather than a passive one. using a film in the classroom to help the students ability in English have paid attention to the accent, voice, body language, choosing of the words, training ear and the eye, lifestyle, plot idea, summary, what’s going on, why and how, and many other things depending on the aim that have put to their selves. The overall aim has always been to maximize comprehension and learn more English. But we all know that watching a full feature film needs more time than teaching hours. So, the teachers need to be able to fit films into a classroom schedule organizing different activities that help this aim. In order to save time we might tell the story of the film ourselves, illustrating it by showing three or four key scenes without telling the end. Another way is the use of video-cassette. The students may watch the film themselves in the video-classroom or at home and come the next day and present what they watched and retell the story in the film. Although the movie is presented in English, the students will enjoy watching it for the following reasons:
1. Using the films to teach English is that of comparing the film with the book if the same story appears in both ways. This kind of activity can be done before or after watching the film, it can be used to adopt or compare characters, to compare differences and similarities, using the Venn.
2. The teachers may also give assignments to students, story retelling about their favorite film, their favorite characters, their favorite actors, and the opinion of them about the film that have watched.
The writer believes that by movie as medium in story retelling; the students will obtain some advantages as stated below:
1. It will stimulate their motivation and interest in story retelling
2. It increases their knowledge and enriches their vocabulary
3. It gives students enjoyment in story retelling

1.3 Statements of the Problems
The problems that will be discussed in this study are:
1. How is the result of using English movie as a medium of teaching story retelling?
2. Is movie effective as a medium of teaching story retelling?

1.4 Significance of the Study
The result of this study can contribute some benefits to students and teachers. Here are the benefits:
1) Students
It may motivate students to improve their interest in learning English since they will find out that speaking, especially story retelling, not always difficult to learn. Their improvement of interest in learning English will help them master English well.
2) Teachers
The research findings are expected to be used as a consideration in teaching story retelling in the classroom.

























CHAPTER 11
THEORETICAL FOUNDATION


2. 1 Media
2.1.1 Overview of Media
Teaching is a process of communication. It has to be created through the way of teaching and exchanging the message or information by every teacher and student. The message can be knowledge, skills, ideas, experiences, and many others. Through the process of communication, the people can receive the message or information. To avoid misunderstanding in the process of communication, media are needed in the process of teaching.
Media play an important role in a teaching and learning process. Media are needed to reach the objectives of teaching-learning process. As a teacher, we should use various media or teaching aids in giving the material to the students as stated by Harmer (2001: 134) that “as a language teacher, we use a variety of teaching aids to explain language meaning and construction, engage students in a topic or as the basis of a whole activity.”
According to Gerlach and Elly (1980: 241), a medium is any person, material, or event that establishes conditions which enable learners or students to acquire knowledge, skills, and attitudes. In addition, Brown (1977: 2-3), defines media as the tools or the physical things used by a teacher to facilitate the instruction.
From the definitions above, the writer makes a conclusion that media are the tools, materials, or events that establish conditions used by a teacher to facilitate the instruction to acquire knowledge, skill and attitudes, and engage the learners in a topic or as the basis of a whole activity.
The teachers’ creativity in using media will increase the probability that students will learn more and the knowledge will retain better in their mind. There are many media that can be used in a teaching-learning process. Gerlach and Elly (1980: 297) classify media in six general categories:
1. Picture
Picture consists of photographs of any object or event, which may be larger or smaller than the object or event it represents.
2. Audio Recording
Recording is made on magnetic tape, discs, motion picture, and soundtrack. These are reproductions of actual event or sound track.
3. Motion Picture
A motion picture is a moving image in color or black and white produced from live action or from graphic representation.
4. Television
This category includes all types of Audio Video electronic distribution systems; which eventually appear on television monitor.
5. Real things, simulation and model
This category includes people, events, objects and imitation of real things. Imitation of real things can be used as a substitution for the actual objects or event. They are, in fact, life itself, often in its natural settings. Simulation is the replication of real situation, which has been designed to be as near the actual event or process as possible. Many media, including the computers, tape recordings, and motion pictures can be used for simulation. A model is replication or representation of reality. It is often in scale and may be miniature, exact size or an enlargement.
6. Program and computer-assisted instruction.
Programs are sequences of information (verbal, visual, or audio) which are designed to elicit predetermined responses. The most common examples are programmed textbooks or instructional programs prepared for computers.

From the categories above, not all of them can be applied in the classroom. According to Gerlach and Elly (1980: 254), to select the appropriate media, the teacher must consider the characteristics of the students which directly relate to the learning process, such as verbal abilities, visual and audio perception skills, experience, intelligence, motivation, personality and social skills.
Furthermore, according to Brown et all (1977), there are six principles of
media selection:
1. Content
Do the media (i.e. English movie) have significant relation with the lesson? The choice of certain media must be conformed to the lesson (message) that will be given to the students.
2. Purposes
The use of the visual aids should contribute to the teaching and learning process significantly. It means that the media can facilitate the teaching-learning process.
3. Price
Before buying certain visual aids, a teacher should consider whether the cost or money spent is accordance with the educational result derived from its use.
4. Circumstance of use
In choosing a visual aid, a teacher should take into account the environment (school) where he/she teaches. He/she should think whether the aid would function effectively in that environment.
5. Learner’s verification
A teacher should think whether the aid has been tested to certain students. He/she should consider if the tested are similar to the students whom he/she teaches.
6. Validation
A teacher must think whether there are data providing that the students learnt accurately through the use of aid.
(Brown et all, 1977:76)
From the explanation above, it should be better if the teacher follows all the principles, so that the teaching and learning process can run normally and the goal of the teaching-learning process can be reached.

2.1.2 Roles of Media in a Teaching-Learning Process
The use of media in a teaching-learning process is very important. Locatis
and Atkinson (1984) give a brief explanation on the roles of media or instructional
media as follows:
1. To entertain
Media can be used as recreation and enjoyment. It includes fictional stories and poem published in books and magazines; records; tapes and radio broadcast of music, music typically shown in motion pictures theaters; and comedies, dramas, and sporting events in
television.
2. To inform
The use of media can increase awareness or present facts. It includes newspapers, documentaries on radio and television, and advertisements in all media.
3. To instruct
Media are used to take the viewer and listener from state of not knowing to one of knowing. From a state of poor performance to a state of competence. It includes motion pictures, slides, film strips records and audiotapes.
(Locatis and Atkinson, 1984:13)

2. 2 Movie
2.2.1 Definition of Movie
Movie is a dramatic performance that is recorded as a moving image, whether on film or videotape.

2. 3 Using movie in teaching
We should encourage the students to see as many films as possible outside the classroom or parts of films in the classroom. Watching films is very important as it increases their visual and critical awareness. Watching films in the classroom can be realized through recording them. We have tried to make the activity of film-watching an active rather than a passive one. This can be done in a variety ways as setting questions about the film, promoting discussions in small groups, asking the students to comment on various things, inviting criticism, etc. We may also stop the film from time to time and ask the students what has happened so far or guess what might happen next. Another way might be turning the sound down and asking the students to imagine or make up dialogues.
Anyway it is difficult to use films in the classroom. Sometimes they are difficult to understand but Western Films for example are easy to understand because there is a lot of action in them. Some other films are easy to understand because there is a clear conventional story line, as love stories, epics and science-fiction drama which have simple plots. Of great importance are the subtitles and dubbing which might be in English. They help a lot the aim of helping learning English through films, depending on the procedure the teachers decide to follow. Sometimes the teachers recommend students to see a film dubbed into or subtitled in Albanian, if possible, before seeing it in English. It would be great to find English films with English subtitles. They make understanding the language easier as listening to authentic language is more difficult than seeing the expressions written, thus matching the words with pictures and voice. Jane Shermon says,
“The eye is more powerful than the ear”. ( Jane Sherman, 2003)
In this case the students are offered both reading and listening. Judging from our experience usually students prefer more reading than listening, with few exceptions.
While using a film in the classroom to help our English we have paid attention to the accent, voice, body language, choosing of the words, training ear and the eye, lifestyle, plot idea, summary, what’s going on, why and how, and many other things depending on the aim we have put to ourselves. The overall aim has always been to maximize comprehension and learn more English. But we all know that watching a full feature film needs more time than teaching hours. So, we need to be able to fit films into a classroom schedule organizing different activities that help this aim. In order to save time, we might tell the story of the film ourselves, illustrating it by showing three or four key scenes without telling the end. Another way is the use of video-cassette. The students may watch the film themselves in the video-classroom or at home and come the next day and present what they watched and what happened in the film.
Another way of using the films to teach English is that of comparing the film with the book if the same story appears in both ways. This kind of activity can be done before or after watching the film, it can be used to adopt or compare characters, to compare differences and similarities, using the Venn diagram, between the book and the film, the examples might be numerous. The book may be used to supplement and clarify the film, but at the same time the film may be used to illuminate the book. All these could be done through several activities.
We may also give assignments to our students, write about your favorite film, your favorite characters, your favorite actors, what makes them your ‘favorites’, the differences you see if a book has been made into a film, etc. When a preliminary work is done before watching the film the above activities may produce interesting writing activities. These kinds of activities also contribute to the promotion of critical thinking especially in evaluating films and improving language skills.
Other ways of using films in the classroom are: Segmenting the film, pre-watching, while-watching and post-watching activities, which are very useful as cloze exercises, quizzes, related readings, web sites, film presentations, discussions, research work, etc. Of course, there are not ready made recipes to be followed. Teachers should be creative and decide themselves for the procedures that they feel that have worked well.

2. 4 Definition of story retelling
Story retelling, as part of speaking activities in class, is an effective teaching tool that enables students to focus on story structure.
“Story retelling is an effective teaching and assessment tool that enables the
reader to focus on specific elements of story structure. Story retelling takes
place when either the student or the facilitator tells the important details of
a story for enjoyment or stressing the focus on comprehension”.
(http://ccvi.wrcervw.org/ccvi/22_pubs/newsletters/winter1997-
waevingauthenticassessment/Story_Retelling-V2-No1.html)

Story retelling encourages students to think about stories as they retell them. It helps them learn to tell stories in detail and in sequence. Children develop favorite stories early in their lives and want to hear the same story over and over again. Story retelling is a common human activity which can be enjoyable, especially if the material is interesting.
Story retelling is a procedure that enables a child to play a large role in reconstructing stories. It underlines both social and academic development. When they retell a story, they use language for an extended period of time. They construct the story. This activity increases their language development.
“When narrating stories, the speaker uses the language for an extended period of time. This active participation with stories results in increased language development, comprehension and an interest in books and in learning to read. Retelling after reading provides another opportunity for the reader to reconstruct the text”.
(http://www.bridgew.edu/library/CAGS_Projects/TPALINGO/web20
%page/srlitrev.htm)

Story retelling can play an important role in performance-based assessment of speaking. It prepares students for real-life tasks such as selecting, organizing, and conveying essential information.
(http:ccvi.wrcervw.org/ccvi/22-pubs/newsletters/winter1997weavingauthenticassessment/story-retelling-v2-No.1.html). Story retelling as a component of authentic assessment can be introduced when the students demonstrate proficiency in identifying key story elements. The students need to be aware that the purpose of the story retelling is to obtain assessment data for self and teacher evaluation. Story retelling has also proven to be an appropriate comprehension measure for the students with varying learning abilities.
“Retelling is an effective instructional strategy for enhancing the comprehension of proficient and less proficient students. General inquiries provide more opportunity for children be more than they are able to do when specific questions are asked”
(http://www.bridgew.edu/library/CAGS_Projects/TPALINGO/web20
%page/srlitrev.htm)

Here, students are required to do most of the talking, consider what they have watched, and formulate their thoughts to express a true understanding of what they have watched.

2. 5 Application of movie as Stimuli to Retell Story Fluently
Story retelling is not as easy as people imagine. The students will meet some difficulties in giving information if they do not have any ability in conveying an idea or a topic. Retelling story in their language is easier than retelling story in English. Retelling story in English is really difficult for them. They have some difficulties, i.e. they might have limited vocabulary items and they might have poor ability in pronunciation. As the person who manages the classroom activity, a teacher using the movie as the media to meet a specific instructional need. Through movie as a medium, the teacher can motivate the students to learn story retelling in more enjoyable and interesting ways. The students can enrich their new vocabulary and will know more about the conversations. They will get new atmosphere in learning story retelling. Consequently, in daily activities the students have to practice their oral speaking in class, in group or individually.
Furthermore, the writer concludes that teaching story retelling using movie can follow the following steps: before the teacher gives a certain movie to students, it is better for him/her to give brief explanation by telling the title. Then the teacher showed the movie to each student to watch and ask them to attend it two or three times. After that, they retell the same story in different ways. When they have finished retelling it to their partners, the teacher will ask them to come forward one by one to retell it. He/she will record the students’ voice, and then the students’ score based on their pronunciation, grammar, fluency and content in story retelling.



















CHAPTER 111
DATA ANALYSIS

Story retelling is not as easy as people imagine. The students will meet some difficulties in giving information if they do not have any ability in conveying an idea or a topic. Retelling story in their language is easier than retelling story in English. Retelling story in English is really difficult for them. They have some difficulties, i.e. they might have limited vocabulary items and they might have poor ability in pronunciation. As the person who manages the classroom activity, a teacher using the movie as the media to meet a specific instructional need. There are important differences between movies and books. With books, the students learn how native speakers write in English. With movies, the students learn how they speak English.
• The students learn what words they use. When speaking, native speakers use words and phrases that the students often won't find in a book. Spoken language is different from "book language". For example:
Book: The price of five dollars was acceptable, and I decided to purchase it.
Spoken: It was, like, five bucks, so I was like "okay".
In many movies, the dialog is like real spoken English. Movies also let the students learn informal and slang words which are not yet in English dictionaries. For example, in a movie you might hear give me the freaking keys! But you won't find the word freaking in a dictionary.
• The students learn how they say these words. Movies let they improve their pronunciation, not only grammar and vocabulary. If they listen to Americans or Britons speaking English, they can learn to speak like them.
• The students learn to understand spoken language. Movies are made for native speakers, not for learners of English. So the actors talk fast, just like native speakers talk in real life.

CHAPTER 1V
CONCLUSION

Language is the tools of communication to convey the information, thought, idea, feeling, and to distinguish a country with other countries or other areas. Teaching English in Indonesia is not an easy activity because it is a foreign language and it is not the second language through it is one of the compulsory subjects at school. Therefore the English teacher should help the student to improve their knowledge and ability of English. So, the reality we often see it that, in fact, many students master the theory better than practice. For example, in speaking, they may have the knowledge of how to speak, but in practice they find difficulties. They lack self confidence. To build their confidence, students need more practice so that teachers are suggested to create and use interesting method. One of such the methods is story retelling. Generally, story retelling is liked by the students because they like stories. It is also an appropriate method for the students at their age. In order to make story retelling more interesting, good media are needed. Movie is one of many media to teach story retelling. Movie is a dramatic performance that is recorded as a moving image, whether on film or videotape. Using English movie as a means for teaching story retelling can be very pleasing and interesting for the students. By using English movie students will be more interested and more active in learning. They will feel something new and different from what they usually get in their class. The writer hopes that with the use of English movie, they will be active as participants and they have more a chance to express their minds, emotions, feelings and attitudes.







REFERENCES


Brown, J. W; Lewis, R. B; Harcleroad, F. F. 1977. AV. Instruction: Technology,
Media and Methods. New York: Mc Grow Hill Company.
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Systematic Approach. New Jersey: Prentice Hall.
Harmer, Jeremy. 1998. The Practice of Language Teaching. Cambridge:
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www2.austincc.edu/sbramme2/Glossary.htm
How to learn English effectively
antimoon.com
Literature Review: Story retelling
http://www.bridgew.edu/library/CAGS_Projects/TPALINGO/web20%pag
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