DEMOTIVATING FACTORS IN ENGLISH LEARNING AT ELEMENTARY

SCHOOL LEVEL

CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

A. Research Background

Learning English as an international language is very important for many teenagers in

this world to communicate with the other people that come from different national language

background. English is an international languages that used by many people in a lot of countries.

It is also recognized as the main language for communication with other people from different

countries and cultures. Due to the importance of English as an international language, many

people try to learn and master it as soon as possible so that they will not find any difficulties in

communicating with others especially coming from abroad.

Remembering the importance of learning English, Indonesian government has made

some efforts to obtain human resources who are able to understand and master English well. As a

foreign language in Indonesia, English is seriously learned by many people to have a good

prospect to be the community of international world. Depdikbud (1994: 1) states “English is the

international language that needs to be taught for the purpose of absorption and development of

science, technology, and arts and culture as well as the development of relations between

nations”.1[1]

1[1]Depdikbud Provinsi Jawa Tengah. GBPP Muatan Lokal Sekolah Dasar

Mata Pelajaran Bahasa Inggris. (Surabaya: Departemen Pendidikan dan

Kebudayaaan Provinsi Jawa Timur, 1994), 4.

 Starting from 1994 primary schools in Indonesia are formally allowed to introduce

English as a local content subject to the fourth, fifth and sixth grade students. The increasing

awareness of the importance of mastering English in thisglobal world seems to have encouraged

more and more primary schools to teach it.With Law No. 22 of 1999 on Regional Government,

each region of the district levelhas full autonomy to organize education for its people. The

decision to have Englishas an optional subject or as a compulsory subject in primary schools

starting from thefirst grade and even kindergartens in some regions seems to have been part of

theimplementation of regional autonomy.

Nowadays, Englishis not only taught for junior and senior high school students but also

to the elementary school students. Moreover, there are many kindergarteen school offer to taught

English for their children, even they only introduced English by songs. It is done in order to get

the young learners ofelementary level to be familiar with English as soon as possible. English

masteryis a goal that wants to be achieved as the target besides two other languagesnamely

Indonesian and vernacular language. In English, there are fourcomponents of language skills

covering listening; speaking, reading and writingthat should be learned by the learners deeply

and appropriately. Those four skillscannot be separated since they are integrated.

English in Elementary school is not compulsory subject but it is a local content asstated

in GBPP 1994: "English is not obliged to be implemented in elementary schools, but organized

as local content". (Depdikbud, 1994: 1) Englishis taught from the first grade until the sixth grade

as it is stated in GBPP 1994, "In the implementation of the subjects in English as curriculum

muatanlokal used communicative approach, which gives the experience langsungbagi students to

use English as a communication tool."2[2]

2[2]Depdikbud Provinsi Jawa Tengah. GBPP Muatan Lokal Sekolah Dasar

 From day to day observation has shown that the teaching of English in primary schools

has been conducted unprofessionally. We can easily find cases which indicate that elementary

school English teachers lack professional support and opportunities for in-service training. In

addition, the current practice seems to have been guided by a very serious misconception—that

is that teaching English to elementary school children does not require the same English

proficiency as teaching English at a more advanced level. That is, the teaching of English in

primary schools has been carried out without considering the specific characteristics of the

students. Teachers only taught grammar too much, used translation without any context, and

gave students too much tiring work.

The English provision to the Indonesian children is not based on a good understanding of

children education. Most concerned parties still hold the view that teaching English to children is

similar to that to teenagers, adolescents or adults. The provision needs no specific methodology,

no specific techniques nor appropriate materials and media. Among English textbooks for

children which constitute the existing materials, most of them are still found inappropriate and

need a lot of revisions and improvement in all aspects.

The consequence is many students demotivated and lazy to learning English. In their

opinion, English is difficult, uninterested and bored. They have no opportunities to learnEnglish

as suitable as that they want and they need. Mostly, teacher only taught English as a knowledge

not for skill that can student’s use to support and develop their ability in the future, for example

to support their job. The teacher taught English to their students only to fullfill the requirement

Mata Pelajaran Bahasa Inggris. (Surabaya: Departemen Pendidikan dan

Kebudayaaan Provinsi Jawa Timur, 1994), 4.

of the curriculum in order to their students can pass the school examination. It can make students

more and more feel bored and less motivation to learn English because they also do not know

the importance of English skill for their life.

Another phenomenon is comes from the student’s area. In the major cities, which are

geographically then educationally more privileged, the children might enjoy their English lessons

because they have the qualified teachers who know English and how to teach it to young

learners, they have appropriate andinteresting materials as well as appropriate techniques to learn

by. The case is quite different for the children of the less privileged areas where access to

qualified teachers, appropriate materials and fun learning is almost impossible. These children

have to be content with teachers with no English or child teaching background who are hired

because it is only them who are available.

SDN Tamiajeng is one of the elementary school in Trawas region who faced this case.

Many students of this school feel lazy and less motivation to study and learn material, especially

English in the class. Moreover, there are several students who regard as “trouble maker” inthe

class, especially at the sixth grade. They always make a noise or create uncomfortable

atmosphere in the class during the learning process. This problem can lead to impaired learning

process and can affect other students for getting lazy learning because unsupported and

uncomfortable atmosphere in the class. This troubled student also become the reason why

parents feel reluctant to send their children to this school. They are afraid their children will be

affected and less motivation to learn if school and make friends with the students.

It is also becoming one of the causes of the declining number of students many parents

who distrust of the quality of these school are less able to educate their students. Thus, many

parents or children are less interested in school at this place. Consequently, many parents who
prefer other schools fo rtheir children.Besides, the existence of a new school in the same region

is also one of the causes of the declining number of students in SDN Tamiajeng.One new rival

school in the village Tamiajeng is MI Setia Bhakti. Many parents more interest to move their

children to study in this new school because the school program is more interesting and creative.

There are many school program that can join by their students so, it can make their students more

interested and motivated to study in this school, especially for the end of the school program.

Besides, the teacher of this school is younger and more attractive and creative than SDN

Tamiajeng who almost women and elder. No wonder many parents or children more choose to

study in this school and SDN Tamiajeng lost many students from year to year.From the

phenomenon above, the writer try to find out what the factors that can make students

demotivated to learn in the class, especailly learn English.

From the previous study by Selami Aydin (2012) with his article entitled Factors Causing

Demotivation In EFL Teaching Process: A Case Study which investigate the demotivating

factors in EFL teaching at elementary school and What Factors Contribute to a Lack of

Motivation Among Low-Level Learners in Saudi Arabia? by Alistair Melvin (2012) which

discusses about factors that make students in Saudi Arabia lack of motivation, the researcher

tries to find out the cause that make English teaching process in the class cannot run effectively

from the student’s side. The researcher tried to looking for what students feel when learn English

and what their opinion about the teaching English process in the class that make them

demotivated, lazy or bored to learn it.

For that reason, the researcher try to find out the factors that make students demotivated

in learning English, especially in the sixth grade of SDN 1 Tamiajeng.The researcher not try to

give the solution for the problem, but the researcher only give the teacher information about why
 their students feel lazy and less motivation when learning English in the class. So, the researcher

hope it can help the teacher of SDN Tamiajeng to overcome their school problems, especially to

increase students’s motivation in learning English.

B. Research Question

In this part, the researcher is going to explain about statement of the problem. The writer

has one research question from this study, there is:

1. What is the factors that make students demotivated to learn English at the sixth grade of SDN

Tamiajeng?

C. Objectives of the Research

The objective of this study is to find out the factors that make students demotivated in

learning English, especially at the sixth grade of SDN Tamiajeng.

D. Significance of the Research

There are two major benefits in this research, they are for teacher and for the literature.

1. For teacher

The benefit for the teacher is to give them information and feedback about what the

factors that make their students feel bored or demotivated to learn English in the class. This

information might be can help them to overcome the problems in teaching English and also for

other teacher who faced this problems in other subjects.

2. For Literature
 The benefit for literature is to enrich their knowledge about what is demotivating factors

that make students of elementary school get bored and lazy to learn English. It also can give

them more information about how elementary school learn English and how to teach English for

primary school.

E. Scope and Limit of the Research

To avoid misunderstanding what the researcher has explained, the researcher gives scope

and limitation of this study. There are many factors that can make students demotivated in

learning English that faced by students from many schools, the researcher only research the

factors that comes from students at the sixth grade of SDN Tamiajeng at academic year 2014 –

2015. The researcher not give solution for the problems but only give the information what the

factor that can make students demotivated in learning English based on the demotivating

students’ confessions.

F. Definition of Key Terms

The researcher write down the definition of the key terms to support the readers

understanding this study easily and have same interpretation. There are two key terms in this

study, they are:

1. Factors
 Oxford Dictionary define factor is “one of several things that cause or influence

something”3[3]. From the definition we can say whether factors is something that can be cause

or influence of something, it can be condition, person, or something else.

In this study, the researcher tries to find out what the things that cause students having

lack motivation or might be no motivation in learning English. What is the problems that can

influence them demotivated in learning English.

2. Demotivating

Before we discuss about demotivating, first we define about motivation. In the simple

words, we can define that motivation is some kind of internal drive which pushes someone to do

things in order to achieve something. Based on Thornbury in Alistair Melvin stated that

“Motivation is what drives learners to achieve a goal, and is a key factor in determining success

or failure in language learning” Marion Williams and Richard Burden in Harmer suggest that

motivation is a ‘state of cognitive arousal’ which provokes a ‘decision to act’ as a result of which

there is ‘sustained intellectual and/ or physical effort’ so that the person can achieve some

‘previously set goal’4[4]. Thus, it is accepted for most fields of learning that motivation is

essential to success.

In this study, the researcher discuss about students who demotivated in learning English.

Thus, first we discuss about motivated. From Oxford Learner’s Dictionary, motivated is “having

interest in or enthusiasm for something, especially work or study”.5[5] In addition, the

3[3] Hornby, A S, Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary of Current English.(New York: Oxford University
Press, 2006), 524.

4[4] Harmer, Jeremy, The Practice of English Language (London:Longman, 2001), 51.

5[5] Hornby, A S, Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary of Current English.(New York: Oxford University
Press, 2006), 1616.
methodologist Tony Wright in Harmer describes that the ‘enthusiast’ looks to the teacher as a

point of reference and is concerned with the goals of the learning group6[6]. From the definition

motivating is condition of someone who having interest in or enthusiasm for learning or

studying.

Demotivating is an opposite of motivating. It is mean whether demotivated contain

negative or opposite meaning from motivated. Thus, we can define that demotivating is

condition of someone who having no interest in or enthusiasm for learning or studying or

decrease or drop in level of motivation. However, Dὃrnyei in Dr. Niluver BEKLEYEN define

that demotivation is external forces that reduce or diminish the motivational basis of a

behavioral intention or an ongoing action7[7]. In this study, the researcher discusses about

what the factors that can cause students have no interest or enthusiasm, lack or diminish of effort,

need and desire in learning English.

6[6] Harmer, Jeremy, The Practice of English Language (London:Longman, 2001), 42.

7[7] Dr. Niluver BEKLEYEN, Demotivating factors in the EFL Environment, (http;//academia. edu/,
accessed on April 24, 2015).