THE PERCEPTION OF STUDENTS ON THE UTILIZATION OF GOOGLE

TRANSLATE TO ACQUIRE VOCABULARY

Rama Nur Faidzin

English Education Department, Universitas Sultan Ageng Tirtayasa, Serang
e-mail: ramanrf2014@gmail.com

This research is aimed at describing the perception of students on the utilization of

Google Translate to acquire vocabulary. One of the most important aspects of a
language is its vocabulary. It is now impossible to deny that technological progress
has an impact on the field of education. Using technology sophistication in the
present day, such as the Google Translate application, makes it easier to learn. The
researcher used qualitative descriptive method in order to conduct this research. The
sources of the data in this research were taken from the questionnaires given to
students of English Department of Sultan Ageng Tirtayasa University. They perceive
that Google Translate is a useful application because of how quickly it can translate
words and has so many features for learning words. The conclusion was the majority
of the students gave positive perception toward using Google Translate to acquire
vocabulary
Keywords: vocabulary; Google Translate; application; acquire;

1. INTRODUCTION
English is the language that is most used around the world. Most countries
learn English as their subject in schools or academic institutions. Indonesia is one of
the countries that have English language as a subject in schools or academic
institutions. English is crucial to learn because it is also the language of technology
or the internet. Students are needed to acquire the four language skills, namely
speaking, listening, reading, and writing. This means that students are expected to
improve their language skills through their activities in class or outside class. In order
to support the development of the four language skills, language components must
be learned. Pronunciation, grammar, and vocabulary are the language components.
So, it is crucial for students to learn English in order to be able to speak English
fluently
Vocabulary is one of the most important language components, and it plays a
critical role in the development of language skills because the important thing of
learning a language is the words that are being conveyed. Anyone who does not
have a proportional amount of vocabulary will have difficulty listening, speaking,
reading, and writing. Therefore, the first language component that a language
learner must acquire in learning a language, particularly English, is vocabulary. It
implies that learning vocabulary is critical for students to learn a foreign language,
particularly English. Concurring to Wikins in (Thornbury, 2002), he stated that without
grammar very little can be conveyed, without vocabulary nothing can be conveyed.
According to (Brown, 2001), one of the most significant components of learning a
foreign language is having a good vocabulary mastery because the ability of
language learners to read and grasp the subject is largely determined by their
vocabulary mastery.
Nowadays, it is impossible to deny that technological advancement has an
impact on the field of education. Using technology sophistication in the present time
is to make it easier to learn, such as the Google Translate application. It's safe to say
that practically every student now uses Google Translate to assist them in studying a
foreign language especially English. Google Translate is an application made by
Google LLC that allows the users to translate text from one language into another.
(Pujiati, 2017) stated that Google Translate can translate from words, phrases,
clauses, sentences, and even discourse. It is very helpful for people to know what
words are being said in the source language, so people can enrich their vocabulary.
Google Translate is not only used to translate texts or sentences, it also has a
relationship with the learning of vocabulary. (Nurhayati, 2015) stated that translation
is words or expressions in the learner’s first language that is more or less have the
same meaning to the item being taught. It implies that the translation is one of the
various such relationships that can be used know the meaning of the vocabulary.
There have been so many research regarding the use of Google Translate.
(Rahayu, 2021) in her research, she conducted the research with the title “Students’
Perceptions of Google Translate as a Media for Translating English Material”. The
purpose of this research is to find out if Google Translate is useful for students in
translating English materials at University Muhammadiyah Makassar. The
researcher applied qualitative method for this method, where the data was shown
descriptively from interviews. From the results of the research, the researcher found
that the students consider using Google Translate to translate, and to learn
pronunciation, and to add vocabulary.
 The second research is (Bayu, 2020) with the title “Penggunaan Google
Translate sebagai Media Pembelajaran Bahasa Inggris Paket B di PKBM Suryani”.
The purpose of this research is to determine whether or not Google Translate assists
residents in improving their translation skills. Descriptive qualitative approach is used
in this research. The researcher found that the residents of Paket B PKBM Suryani
used Google Translate to help to translate materials in English and the residents
thought that Google Translate can be utilized for learning vocabulary understanding.
The third research comes from (Malik, 2021). The research is titled “An
Analysis of the Strategy in Acquiring Vocabulary Using Video Games in English
Literature Students of Universitas Brawijaya”. His research is intended to see the
advantages of using video games as vocabulary learning strategy and to determine
the mostly use strategies. Due to the purpose of the research is describing, a
qualitative research method was used. The researcher found that the participants
share different strategies to acquire vocabulary through video games. Consolidation
Strategies are proven that the most used strategies by the participants rather than
Discovery Strategies.
From the explanation above, Google Translate is a tool that can translate
words from one language to another which means it can assist students to acquire
vocabulary. The researcher is interested in conducting this research as to know the
students’ perception. This research is focusing on the utilization of Google Translate
to acquire vocabulary. The method that was chosen to conduct this research was
qualitative research method.

2. RESEARCH METHOD
In this research, the researcher used qualitative method. The researcher used
the method to analyse and describe students’ thoughts about the utilization Google
Translate to acquire vocabulary and then the conclusion was drawn from
interpretation. The data was shown descriptively. The data is in form of explanations,
not in numbers. (Sugiyono, 2008) stated that Descriptive method is a method used to
examine the status of human group, an object, a condition, the thought, and the
events that will occur. So, this research applied qualitative descriptive method,
descriptive refers to the process of determining facts and interpreting them correctly.
Questionnaire was used as the instrument in this research. In the
questionnaire, there are several open-ended questions which means the participants
 provided responses in their own words. The data was taken from the questionnaire
results of 10 students of English Education Department of Sultan Ageng Tirtayasa
University. The questions were about knowing the participants’ experience about
using Google Translate to acquire vocabulary intentionally or unintentionally. The
researcher did these several steps in order for this research to be conducted. First,
the researcher figures out the questions that will be delivered to the students, and
create an online form by using Google Form to input the questions. Then, the
researcher delivers the form to the targeted students. Finally, gather all the data that
is acquired from the respondent and also checking if all the students have already
responded.

3. FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION

In this part, the researcher discusses about the findings. The researcher
focused on the discussion related to the questions of the study provided in
questionnaire. The data that will be shown will be from the participants. Based on the
findings, there are several different responses regarding on what the participants
think, in what situations do the participants use it, and how the participants use
Google Translate to acquire vocabulary.

Students’ Perception on Using Google Translate to learn English Vocabulary

Participant Response
YS “Google translate is like an
electronic dictionary. it means that
when you already know
technology is one of daily needs it
becomes apparent to have google
translate as a helper when we
have struggle to understand
something whether it is oral or
written. the correlation between
the two is that whenever you have
difficulties when comprehending,
we may use translate to give
 explanation towards it so the plus
point is that you get what you want
to ask, as well as absorbing those
translation into your head.”
AN “For me personally, it is good for
us especially students to use
google translate to learn English
vocabulary, because we don't
need to bring our dictionary.”
HP “Google translate word
suggestions (?) could help to
expand our vocabulary knowledge
while translating, but it won't be
helpfully since those words are
not, let's say, sometimes
inaccurate; we have to double-
check the dictionary to see if the
words that are suggested right and
synonymously lexically related or
similar in meaning.”

From the questions in findings. The majority of the students' perceptions on

using Google Translate to learn English vocabulary are generally positive; they
believe that Google Translate functions similarly to an electronic dictionary, allowing
users to find and learn vocabulary anywhere and at any time due to its features and
how quick it is to translate, as opposed to a dictionary, which we must bring with us.
This finding supports the theory of (Maulida, 2017). Some respondents believe that
using Google Translate to learn vocabulary is inefficient since the software makes
mistakes when translating or interpreting words. Users must consult a dictionary or
look for information elsewhere to see whether the words being translated are correct.
Also, inside the textbox in Google Translate, there are word suggestions or
synonyms, which could assist them expand their vocabulary when translating.
The Situations in Which The Students Use Google Translate to Acquire and
Learn English Vocabulary

Participant Response
YS “i use google translate when i
watch some videos or read a
book. whenever i felt bemused by
the meaning of something, i can
use google translate as my
helper.”
AN “I use google translate when i
read an article or so, then i found
out an unfamiliar words and then i
directly go to Google translate to
found out the meaning of the
words.”
NA “When I need fast results.
Because the google translate
engine doesn't take long to
translate.”

Regarding on in which what situations the participants use Google Translate

to acquire vocabulary. When students come across unfamiliar words on the internet,
in articles, or in other sources, they use Google Translate to learn and acquire other
English vocabulary. When they are in a rush, they can use Google Translate to
quickly translate the meanings of words so they can learn the meanings. Concurring
to (Pujiati, 2017), she stated that Google Translate is able to translate vocabulary
quickly.
Students’ Ways to Learn English Vocabulary Using Google Translate to
Achieve Maximum Result

Participant Response
YS “google translate has a useful
feature inside it that allows you to
save by "star" the translation so
that when you dire need of those
meanings you wont need to type
it.”
AN “After i knew the meaning of the
word from google translate, I
usually write the vocabulary in my
personal notes.”
IT “I usually translate 1 initial
language word and see more than
1 destination language word. This
helped me to remember and
understand the new vocabulary
better.”

Last, the ways on how does the students acquire vocabulary in using Google
Translate. The features of Google Translate are mostly used by students to achieve
the best results in learning a new vocabulary. For example, the Add to Favorites (the
star symbol) button on the text box's toolbar adds the word to the favorites list. Also,
look at the synonyms listed below to gain knowledge more about the word. After
learning the meaning of a word from Google Translate, some students write it down
on their personal notes.

4. CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTIONS

Based on the research results that was explained before, the researcher
concluded that students gave positive perception toward using Google Translate to
acquire vocabulary. It can be viewed from the students’ responses from the
questions given. Google Translate is a good tool to acquire and learn vocabulary
because of how simple it is to use and there are lots of useful features which can
make students encounter words that are showing after translating the word. Students
perceive Google Translate to be a useful application because of how quickly it can
translate words and how many features it provides for acquiring and learning new
vocabulary. Words suggestions or synonyms in Google Translate helps them acquire
vocabulary and learn them. From the result of the findings in chapter four above, the
researcher proposes several suggestion, such as: Students should still be careful
and thorough in learning the new vocabulary they acquired; because Google
Translate gives only one meaning of the word; Google Translate facilitates students
to acquire new vocabulary as it shows words when it is being used. The synonyms
or word suggestions that is available in Google Translate helps students to acquire
vocabulary. The students can simply look at the words that is being shown and learn
it; Google Translate is good to use outside formal learning, because students using it
when they looking at books, articles, videos, or anything from the internet, and they
use it to learn new words from it.

REFERENCES
(2022). Retrieved March 25, 2022, from Google Translate:
https://translate.google.com/intl/en/about/languages/
7 Google Translate Mobile Features You Must Know. (n.d.). Retrieved March 25,
2022, from Make Use Of: https://www.makeuseof.com/tag/google-translate-
mobile-features/
Ary, D. (2010). Introduction to Research in Education (Eight Edition). Wadsworth.
Bayu, K. (2020). Penggunaan Google Translate sebagai Media Pembelajaran
Bahasa Inggris Paket B di PKBM Suryani. Comm-Edu.
Brown, H. D. (2001). Teaching by Principles: An Introduction Approach to Language
Pedagogy. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice Hall.
Chomsky, N. (1957). Syntactic Structures. The Hague: Mouton & Co.
Malik, F. (2021). AN ANALYSIS OF THE STRATEGY IN ACQUIRING
VOCABULARY USING VIDEO GAMES IN ENGLISH LITERATURE
STUDENTS OF UNIVERSITAS BRAWIJAYA. Malang: Universitas Brawijaya.
Maulida, H. (2017). Persepsi Mahasiswa Terhadap Penggunaan Google Translate
Sebagai Media Menerjemahkan Materi Berbahasa Inggris. Jurnal Saintekom.
Nurhayati. (2015). Improving Students English Pronunciation Ability Through Go
Fish Game and Maze Game. Dinamika Ilmu.
Pan, Q. (2011). Vocabulary Teaching in English Language Teaching.
Pujiati, T. (2017). Pemanfaatan Google Translate dalam Penerjemahan Teks
Bahasa Inggris ke dalam Bahasa Indonesia (Aplikasi Linguistik Terapan
Bidang Penerjemahan).
Rahayu, A. R. (2021). Students' Perceptions of Google Translate as a Media for
Translating English Material. Makassar: Universitas Muhammadiyah
University.
Sugiyono. (2008). Metode Penelitian Kuantitatif, Kualitatif, dan R&D. Bandung:
Alfabeta.
The Pros and Cons of Google Translate vs. Professional Translation. (n.d.).
Retrieved March 25, 2022, from Language Connections:
https://www.languageconnections.com/blog/the-pros-cons-of-google-translate/
Thornbury, S. (2002). How to Teach Vocabulary. England: Longman.