shita's articles

Name : Prabashita rahayu kadarsih
No : 06004198

THE CHARACTERISTICS OF A GOOD LANGUAGE LEARNER

Learning is a process to know and understand about something new, knowledge and education that we did not ever know before. Learning can be done wherever we want, at school or out of school. Also can be done with whoever, we can learn something or knowledge from a teacher or people around us. We learn something in order that we able to understand and master that thing. And language learning is an effort to be master in language, especially foreign language. In language learning we can learn it from formal education with course or lecture. And the most effective way is learning with live in the society that use the language that we want to learn, it is very effective way and easier, we can master the language fast. Learning is can be done by every people, they can do that with their own ways. But not every people can be a good learner. It needs discipline, perseverance, and seriousness to be a good learner. A good language learner has their own characteristics that is different with an ordinary language learner. A good language learner have their own learning style. And there are some ways to be a good a language learner. In the next paragraph we will discuss about characteristics of a good language learner, how to be a good language leaner and the beneficial from being a good language leaner.
Good language learners have some characteristics that make them different with ordinary learner. And usually the characteristics is not easy to be done by ordinary learner. The first characteristic is good language learners find a style of learning that suits them, when they are in a learning situation which they do not like, they are able to adapt it to their personal needs. They believe they can always learn something, whatever the situation. They also know how they prefer to learn and choose learning situations that are suited to their way of learning. And their style of learning influence their ability in understanding something. The second characteristic is good language learners are involved in the language learning process actively. They take responsibility for their own learning. Not only learning at school or course, but also active in practicing the language in outside or in daily life, because they know practice is very important. They are not afraid to take risks, make mistakes and keep trying, because they know that is a part of learning process. The third is Good language learners try to figure out how the language works. They try to come to grips with the language as a system. They pay attention to form and look for patterns. They develop good techniques for improving their pronunciation, learning grammar and vocabulary. They welcome mistakes as a way of learning more about the language. The next characteristic is good language learner know that a language is used to communicate, so they use the language that they learn regularly. They are not afraid of making mistake and keep trying to make their language become fluent. They look opportunities to practice speaking with native speaker. And then the other characteristics are good language learners are like good detectives, it means that they always monitor themselves, good language learners learn to think in the language, good language learners realize that language learning is not easy, so they will always try to overcome their feeling with keep learning, good language learners are also good culture learners aware of the very close relationship between language and culture, and good language learners have a long term commitment to language learning. They are realistic in realising that it takes time and practice. Good language learner is never stop learning the language, they will never satisfy with what they have gotten and always looking for clues or ways that will help them to understand about the language and how the language works. They are not shame to ask people to correct them if they are wrong. they record what they have learned and do reflection to know their weakness and plus. And according to H. Douglas Brown, 1977, said that “ Field independence, empathy, perceived social distance, and self-esteem are being examined in this on-going investigation of the characteristics of a good language learner “. So a good language learner should be independent, they are not depend theirselves to other in learning. Learner-perceived social distance between theirselves and their countrymen.
Actually characteristics of good language learner that have told below can be the way to help us to be a good language learner, but characteristic refer to the describing about how good language learner is. So, there some ways how to be a good language learner that more specific for ordinary language learner who want to be a good language learner. Think about your native language, have you been able to speak the native language fluently before you start your class?. You have to be independent, you can not only depended on the lesson that have been teached at school, but you have to learn in outside too and practice it. If the only time you use the language is during class time, and only when you are forced to, you will never learn it well. You have to be responsible for your own learning. You have to make the most of the opportunities around you, both in and out of class. When you are in class, don’t be afraid of looking stupid or making mistakes, don’t be afraid to talk, ask lots of questions, speak to your teacher and classmates in the language. Homework and revision, write out new vocabulary, try to say the pronoun and remember it. If you have not homework from school, you need to do the exercises at your books or try to write sentences. If you like write a diary, try to write in the language or English.
There are many things that we can learn from a good language leaner. That they are very independent, they always learn although there is no teacher who teach them. They always feel not enough with a knowledge, they keep learning everything, that make them have many knowledge. They always think about how they are learning, what they can do to make them understand. They are realistic. They have a balanced concern for communication and accuracy. Some students are experts at communicating their thoughts but do not care that they make many mistakes in doing so. The good language learner, on the other hand, is concerned with both communicating and doing so as accurately as possible. And a good language learner always do reflection, they always think what their weakness or plus, have they learned well or not, have they spoken fluently or not. And reflection I very important to improve and develop our skill. Like the quotation that I found at internet at paul_shoebottom@fis.edu, said that the most important piece of the way to learn quickly and affectively is with reflection, you think about your learning; that you come to understand your own strengths and weaknesses, your likes and dislikes. If you find something difficult, you ask yourself why and try to find ways to do better next time. If you always seem to get low scores in vocabulary tests, you analyze your methods of studying words. If you don't like to study grammar in grammar books, you find some other method of learning the rules of the language. An excellent way to reflect on your learning is to keep a language journal in which you write about your daily experiences in learning English.
And the conclusion of the characteristic of a good language learner is they always find ways to learn something, they never stop to learn, they are independent learner and active learner. The beneficial of be a good language learner is we know about everything, we more develop than the other, we always can find opportunities to develop ourselves and our career. Sometimes good language learners can find new ways to learn affectively. Good language learners have a big spirit to develop their self, and it will make them be successful.




THERE ARE MANY WAYS TO IMPROVE ENGLISH COMPETENCE


Every people has their own competence level in study something, especially study English. And English is a language which is necessary to be understood in this globalization era. So, it’s very important to increase or improve our English competence. Nowdays, there are much important news and many technologies which use English language. So, to be able to understand and not leaved behind we must have good ability in English. Improving English is important too, in order to we can associate and communicate in international arena. So, improving English competence is a effort to increase our English competence to be better and perfect because we need it to follow international world developing, with improve grammar and increase vocabulary.
We can not improve our English instantly. It needs a process and there are many ways to do that. We can do that in informal and formal way. The meaning of formal way is improving English competence in school, like study English at school, campus and other English education institutions. And informal way is improving English with study in outside like reading English book. Moreover, the most important is practice. We can not improve our English well without practice regularly and self motivation. In the next paragraphs we will talk about study English in formal and informal way, and how much important the practice and self motivation.
Improving English in informal and formal way, both of them is useful and helpful. In formal way like at school, campus and education institutions. There is English subject at SD, SMP up to SMA, elementary English is learned here. Tenses like present tense, past tense and future tense, conversation too. But English at school is not helpful enough because it is just learned once a week, so that is needed extra class out of school, for example course. Although English at school is quite help in improving English competence but it is very useful as English elementary learning. To be able to learn English more deep and specific can be done when we take English lecture, we can increase our English ability here, get English learning that more specific. English lecture teach about pronunciation, semantic, morphology, grammar, speaking, listening, reading, that all of them is very important to support our English ability in order to be more perfect. And when we lecture, our knowledge will increase more and more, and we are claimed to be creative to develop English well. So, formal way at school, lecture and others is as a role enough in improving English competence because we study about the true grammar and how to pronun exactly.
Whereas, which is meant with informal way here is improving English competence in out of formal ways. That are practice, reading English book or magazine, etc. One of the ways in order to we can get many insights and knowledge in English is with reading. Reading English book is very good to enrich vocabulary, very important to improve our English too. English songs can help us to enrich vocab and sharpen our listening skill. Informal way can be done with make study club in out of school or lecture. There are many medias which can help us in improving English competence, one of them that is most modern is internet, we can access internet to get much information about English. Like a quotation from H. Douglas Brown in http://www.mail-archive.com . one of his five english studying princip says that, “If we study english formally (at class, at course), usually the time is limited : four hours a week, six hours a week or eight hours a week. Of course the study time in this class is very limited. In order to study be more effective, we have to make opportunity to “study” out of class too : discussion with friend, visit the websites that order free English studying, or speak in English with friends or native speakers (by letter, email, or direct speaking). We can try to read newspaper, magazine, text books, listen to radio, songs, or watching movie or English programs. In order to studying process can be more interesting, chose the topics which is match with our hobby, needed, or which have relation with education background and our job.”

But, which is more important from all of that is practice. Studying toery or just reading is not enough. We will not be able to sharpen our ability or skill without practice. People said that practice is the best teacher. Don’t be shame to practice speaking, and don’t be afraid to make a false because with practice regularly we can know our weakness in English. And it is important for student to do the competence test to know where their weakness and how to improve it.
So, there are many beneficials from that ways. And every way has the same beneficial. That are make our English perfect, increase knowledge, moreover increase our English competence. The most important is self motivation to study continuously and keep going on, also we must love what we do, especially English. Like quotation from Xavier Quentin Pranata in You Are What You Think, that “ jika kita mencintai apa yang kita kerjakan, maka hal tersulit apapun akan terasa mudah. Pekerjaan seberat apapun akan terasa ringan. Bukan hanya itu, jika kita menyenangi pekerjaan dan profesi kita, maka tantangan sebesar apapun bisa kita ubah menjadi peluang yang luar biasa”. So, if we want to get great opportunity in english, we have to study wherever and whenever.


THEACHING ENGLISH AS A FOREIGN LANGUAGE
The success in learning and teaching English is influenced by many things. From ourselves is like our emotional feeling when learn or teach English, are we motivated or not, enjoy or not, that decide the fluency of our learning or teaching process. From the outside is like teacher’s teaching style, it influence especially to student, teacher who has a good style in teaching and effective teaching will help the student to understand clearly and fluently. Learning is a effort in self development, we have to develop our self with learning something new in order to be able to teach something new too. Before we do that, we have to know what will we do to do the self development itself and what it is. And as an English teacher, we have to know what teaching is. In the next paragraph I will explain about all of that in my opinion.
What was my emotional feeling when started my English class. It depends on the lecturer and on the lecture subject. There are some subjects that is very difficult for me and I don’t like it. Sometimes it makes me feel bored and unmotivated to follow the class. And there are some subjects that I like and motivate me to follow it. If from the beginning I have felt difficult to approve the material of a lecture subject or felt the subject is too difficult for me because there are too many materials or theories in English book usually I will be unmotivated to follow the class of that subject and not be challenged to learn it deeply. Although I always follow the class but my concentration will not be there and it will be difficult to me to understand the subject and refer to be lazy. But, if from the beginning I have liked the subject of a lecture, I will be more diligent, motivated and challenged to follow the class and to learn the subject, give me spirit to come on time, in other hand if I don’t like the subject, so it will not give me spirit to come on time and sometimes intend to be late to the class.
The lecturer also influence my feeling in following the class. If the lecturer is pleasant, creative, not boring and don’t use English all of time on teaching or explain something, it will make me easier to approve and understand the material, I will like it and more motivated to follow the class.
All of that things give big impact in my study, it decide in mastering a subject well or not. If I like the subject or the lecturer from the beginning and interested, so it will make me be motivated and challenged to follow the class and learn the material. And make me understand easily. But, if I don’t like the material or the lecturer from the beginning, it will be difficult to me to be motivated to follow the class, and will be difficult to understand about it till the end. I know it is a bad habitually, give a bad impact too, but it is still hard to me to change it. But, actually I like English class when I was in SD, SMP and SMA, so I always motivated and challenged to follow the class, and now I will try to motivate myself to follow every class well and learn it well, regularly.
Teacher’s teaching style. My English teacher when I was in senior high school have a teaching style that is almost same with other teacher. He gave us an English book or Packet book. He always asked his students to translate the article on the book, then asked the students to answer the questions. Every meeting he always have the student assignment, like translation, make sentences or grammar test that have been learned before. He sometimes asked his student to read the dialog in front of the class loudly to know the pronunciation. Then he corrected our pronunciation, and asked us to repeat until we said the correct pronoun. And according to me, he have had an effective teaching style because he have helped his students learn vocabulary, increase vocabulary with translation, learn reading comprehension with read article and answer the questions, study grammar not only with theory but also with assignments that will grind the students ability, and improve pronunciation with dialog.
But now, when I am lecture, there are many lecturer with different teaching style. They have many creative ways to teach their material, so make the students approve the material easily, give assignments that help to increase student English competence. Give knowledge by telling experiences about foreign language and abroad that make student motivated. And teach the students to be on time, because that is very important in learning process. But there are some lecturer that their teaching style is less effective. They just sit all of time and teach by LCD media without mobile. Less capable in explain the material, even sometimes they are doubt with what they have explained, so it make the student confused. I think the lecturer who is like that have no approach to language teaching.
About self development. I think self development is personality development to develop our skill and competence continuously. Self development is taking personal responsibility for person’ own learning and development through a process of assessment, reflection, and taking action. Self development is non stop learning. There are many ways to help in self development, such as update our skill continuously with learning something new, write a personal vision and mission to support ourselves, make some planning for our future, find mentor or friends who can provide you with support, advice and can remain you, read books and magazines to keep current on the latest developments in your field or access internet. Before we decide to develop our self or personal we have to know ourselves first, know how far our ability in learning and doing something, don’t press ourselves over our ability because the result will not be good. Self development is not only to develop our skill but also improve our personality and behavior to be better in order that we can be a modern person who have good behavior and personality, not only do the development for her or his self but also can make development and change for the world around them to be better, modern, suitable with the values in the society and religion.
And as an English teacher, self development is to develop skill in English teaching, improve our mistakes in teaching, always doing reflection about what we have done or what we will do. Self development for English teacher is not only for her or his self but also for her or his students. That is to develop their student knowledge with better teaching skill.
How much time that we need to invest in personal development. I think we can not measure how much time we need to do the personal development. There is no limit time to develop our self and our knowledge, because the knowledge is not stop in certain things, but it always up date continuously, so it demand us to keep learning and doing self development. We need so much time if want to learn about all of knowledge and things in this world to develop our self.
Teaching is a process to make the student or person to know about something. Teaching is done with explain and give example. An effort to make the student understand about the material. Giving new knowledge and education with certain methodology, actual references or sources. The teaching process is like explain the material with example, then give some exercises or tests, finally give the score as measurement of the student ability, also can be used to measure the successful of teaching process. Teaching can be done everywhere and every time, not only teacher can teach, but also everybody who more know about something than us can teach that to us. Teaching is supported by learning, we can’t teach something if there is no one who want to learn. There is no teacher without learner.