Problems faced and strategies used by the students of BEC (Basic English Course) in improving speaking skill

ABSTRACT

Speaking is one of productive skills of language that needs process. People will be able to communicate with other people well by process. Automatically, English leamers need environment where they can express or practice their language. Besides, the process of speaking will be easy if they are involved in the efforts to communicate.

Furthermore, speaking is often the one skill which is neglected because the learners considered learning speaking needed special skill, bravery, and confidence. Based on the case, there are many learners who face difficulties in improving their speaking skill. Therefore, the objectives of this study are to find out some problems faced by the students of BEC in improving speaking skill and what kinds of strategies used to solve the problems.

The research design used is survey. It obtains clear information about phenomenon based on the case. The research also uses descriptive quantitative method to describe the data presentation from the questionnaire in the form of tally system. Besides, the population used is all of the students of BEC, and the sample is taken using stratified random sampling because there are different characteristics of students. To analyze the data, the researcher uses the formula of a simple percentage.

The formula is: R = ٢100.ك%
N
R: Percentage
F: The frequency (number of students fulfilling the questionnaire)
٠ل The total number of the students

After analyzing the data and discussing the findings, the researcher obtained the following results. Firstly, the problems faced by the students of BEC in improving speaking skill are: they did not know the meaning of the word to be said, they felt fearfill if the hearer did not understand what they said, they lost idea or forgot what should be said, they worried about making mistakes when they said in front of class, they were simply shy of the attention that the speech attracts, they had nothing to say or cannot think of anything to say, they found someone who dominated the speaking, and they often used the mother tongue. Secondly, the strategies used by the students to solve the problems, among others, are: when they felt inhibited in their speaking skill, they attempted to practice continually, when they had nothing to say or cannot think anything in front of class, they had some treatment, such as: looking for the alternative word that could be understood by the hearer, trying to be calm and concentrate then continue the speech, preparing before speaking in front of people, or asking to the teacher if they found difficult word.

Based on the findings, several suggestions are proposed for further researchers who intend to investigate speaking skill. Further researchers are expected to conduct the study about other skills which can develop English skill, like reading, listening, and writing. In addition, the results of the study can be used by the teachers and learners to develop the quality of teaching and learning process.