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CHAPTER II

LITERATURE REVIEW

A. Teaching

Teaching is a part of learning process. It is an interaction between the

teacher and the students where the teacher delivers a knowledge or skill to the

students. “Teaching is showing or helping someone to learn how to do something,

giving instruction, guiding in the study of something, providing with knowledge,

causing to know or to understand.” (Brown, 2001:7).

In addition, according to Oxford learner’s Pocket Dictionary, “Teaching

means a process of giving instruction of knowledge, skill, etc.” (1995:425).

Based on the statements above, teaching is a process of transferring or

giving knowledge or skill, from teacher to students. The teacher is also demanded

not only to help the students in doing the tasks but also to guide them in finding

the mistakes then correcting them.

According to Jeremy Harmer, there are some issues to be a good teacher.

1. A teacher should make an interesting lesson.

2. A teacher must love his or her job.

3. A teacher should have his or her own personality.

4. A teacher should have a lot of knowledge.

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5. A good teacher is an entertainer in a positive sense, not in negative

sense.

(Harmer, 1998:1-2)

From this definition, Jeremy concludes that teaching is an activity between

teacher and students. It is better for teacher to have some aspects which can make

students interested in the activity given by their teacher. Good relationship

between them can the students enable to understand easily what the teacher

explains.

It can be concluded that teaching is an activity where teacher delivers

knowledge or skill to the students then they give their feedback. It is all about

involvement of teacher and students.

B. Learning

Learning cannot be separated from teaching, they are related to each other,

because both of them have an interaction process in accepting new knowledge.

According to Douglas Brown, learning is acquiring or getting knowledge of a

subject or skill by study, experience, or instruction. (Brown, 2001:7). Meanwhile,

the Oxford Learner’s Pocket Dictionary defines that learning is a process of

gaining knowledge, or skill in a subject or activity. (1995:237).

Based on the statements above, learning is a process where the learners

accept knowledge which is not only given by the teacher, but also from their

experience, study, and instruction.

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In his book entitled Principle of Language Learning and Teaching, Brown

says that there are some understandings about learning:

1. learning is acquisition or “getting”.

2. learning is a retention of information or skill.

3. retention implies storage system, memory, cognitive organization.

4. learning involves active, conscious focus on and acting upon events

outside or inside the organism.

5. learning is relatively permanent but subject to forgetting.

6. learning involves from practice, perhaps reinforced practice.

7. learning is a change in behavior.

(Brown, 2001:7).

From the statement above, it can be concluded that learning has not only

one meaning, but also several meanings.

C. Young Learners

According to Sarah Phillips, young learners mean the children from the

first year of formal schooling (five or six years old to eleven or twelve years old

of age). (Phillips, 1993:5). It means that young learners are elementary school or

first grade of junior high school students.

Wendy A. Scott and Lisbeth H. Ytreberg state in their book entitled

Teaching English to Children that young learner love to play and learn best when
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they are enjoying themselves. But they also take themselves seriously and like to

think what they are doing in real work. (Scott and Ytreberg, 2000:1-2).

They also define young learner’s ability in each group of age:

1. five to seven years old

a) They can talk about what they are doing,

b) They can talk what they have done,

c) They can plan activities,

d) They can use logical responding,

e) They can understand direct human interaction.

2. eight to ten years old

a) They can understand abstracts,

b) They can understand symbol (beginning with words),

c) They can generalize and systematize.

(Scott and Ytreberg, 2000:1-3).

Based on the statements above, young learners have differences of ability

based on their age. Each group of age has its own ability. It will be useful for the

teacher to know the ability of his students so that he can determine the best way of

teaching.