THE EFFECT OF USING DUOLINGO APPLICATION IN IMPROVING

STUDENTS’ VOCABULARY MASTERY

PROPOSAL

Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirement

for the degree of Sarjana Pendidikan

By
Rasmika
Study Program: English Education

UNDERGRADUATE STUDY PROGRAM (S1)

DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH EDUCATION
FACULTY OF TEACHER TRAINING AND EDUCATION
SYIAH KUALA UNIVERSITY
DARUSSALAM-BANDA ACEH
 TABLE OF CONTENTS

CHAPTER 1.................................................................................................................................3

INTRODUCTION.......................................................................................................................3

1.1 Research Background....................................................................................................3

1.2 Research Problem..........................................................................................................6

1.3 Research Objective........................................................................................................6

1.4 Research Significance...................................................................................................6

1.5 Research Scope.............................................................................................................7

1.6 Research Hypothesis.....................................................................................................7

CHAPTER 2................................................................................................................................9

LITERATURE REVIEW...........................................................................................................9

2.1 The Definition of Vocabulary........................................................................................9

2.2 The Kinds of Vocabulary............................................................................................10

2.3 Vocabulary knowledge................................................................................................10

2.4 The Definition of Duolingo.........................................................................................12

2.5 Teaching Vocabulary by Using Duolingo Application................................................13

CHAPTER 3..............................................................................................................................14

RESEARCH DESIGN..............................................................................................................14

3.1 Research Method.........................................................................................................14

3.2 Populations and Sample..............................................................................................15

3.3 Research Instrument....................................................................................................16

3.4 Technique of Data Collection......................................................................................17

3.5 Technique of Data Analysis........................................................................................18

 CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

This chapter discusses the background that presents why the researcher

conducted the study. The researcher formulates the statement of the research problem,

research objective, research significance, research scope and research hypothesis of the

study.

1.1 Research Background

English is one of the most widely spoken languages in the world. In Indonesia,

English is considered as a Second Language (L2) that is very important for internal

communication, politics, society, culture and also for communication and group work

activities in international classroom (Behroozi, 2014). It means that English is a

language that is very important to learn, especially in school. But, according to some

people, they might think that learning English is not easy because in learning English

there are a lot of aspects that should be mastered, one of them are vocabulary.

Vocabulary is one of important component in language teaching. As stated by

(Richard. 2002) that vocabulary is the core component of language proficiency and

provides much of the basis for how well learners speak, listen, read, and write. It means

that without knowing and having sufficient vocabulary, student or language learner will

be difficult to understand others, share information or express their own thoughts and
idea. Therefore, vocabulary is one of the important components that must be mastered

by student or language learner because no one can speak English or a language if they

have limited vocabulary. According to (Wilkins, 1972), states that without grammar

very little can be conveyed, without vocabulary nothing can be conveyed. It means that

by having a good vocabulary, students can describe everything that they think without

using a correct grammar, but they cannot say anything without mastering vocabulary

even they have good grammar.

Based on the result of the interview on 14 th April 2022 with the English teacher

at the SMA Negeri 1 Sigli, researcher got some information about the students’ problem

when learning English at class. Researcher found that there are problems related to

vocabulary mastery that occur at the 10th Grade of SMA Negeri 1 Sigli. When researcher

ask students common words in English, the students even were not familiar with those

daily words, such as: walk – talk – eat – smile and others daily words. The students were

often confused and could not answer the question because they did not know the

meaning of the vocabulary. Following the above mentioned issue, this research has

found that the main problem in learning English faced by the students is the lack of

vocabulary.

As a result, the students find difficulties in learning vocabularies. They tend to be

passive during English class because of limited vocabulary. It seemed that the students

were not interested in the lesson. When teacher explained the material in English, all of

students did not give any responses. But, it is different when the teacher explains in
Indonesian, the students were interested and active during the learning activities in the

classroom.

After having an observation with the English teachers at 10th Grade of SMA

Negeri 1 Sigli, the writer found that the students were not interested in learning English

because the students have difficulty in memorizing new words in English and teaching

learning process was less interesting because teachers use traditional method when

teaching so students often get bored during the classroom. Considering that situation, the

researcher interested to try a good way of teaching English so that it will attract students’

interest in learning vocabulary.

Based on the explanation above, the researcher used an application namely

Duolingo Application. The researcher would like to apply this application that may help

students improve their vocabulary and also would like to see how the influence of

Duolingo Application if teacher implemented it in the classroom at the 10 th grade of

SMA Negeri 1 Sigli. In addition, by using this application, teachers also can help to

transfer their knowledge with an interesting way in the classroom and make the teaching

and learning process become more enjoyable. This research is entitled The Effect of

Using Duolingo Application in Improving Students’ Vocabulary Mastery.

1.2 Research Problem
Based on background described above, the research question is formulated as

follows:

1. Is there any significant improvement on students’ vocabulary mastery after

they are taught by using Duolingo application?

2. How effective is the use of Duolingo application in improving students’

vocabulary mastery for the tenth grade of SMA Negeri 1 Sigli?

1.3 Research Objective

Based on the above research questions, this research is proposed to obtain the

following objectives:

To find out if there is significant improvement for the students’ vocabulary

mastery after they are taught by using Duolingo application and to know

whether Duolingo application is effective in improving students’

vocabulary mastery at the tenth grade of SMA Negeri 1 Sigli.

1.4 Research Significance

Practically, for the teachers, the writer expected Duolingo application can be one

of the media that will be use by the teachers in terms of teaching English vocabulary and

solve the students’ problem in improving vocabulary mastery. For the students, it is
expected that using Duolingo application can made students improve their vocabulary

mastery and enjoy in learning English. Also, by completing this study, the researcher

hope this research can be a basic reference for further researcher to do a better research

of teaching and learning English, especially in improving students’ vocabulary mastery.

1.5 Research Scope

The scope of this research is determined to improve students’ vocabulary

mastery using Duolingo application for tenth grade of SMA Negeri 1 Sigli. In this

research, the researcher divides the vocabulary into several types, including noun,

pronoun, adjective, verb, adverb, preposition, and conjunction to see the effectiveness of

Duolingo application on students’ achievement.

1.6 Research Hypothesis

Based on previous explanation, there are two kinds of hypothesis, they

are:

1. Null Hypothesis (Hº)

According to null hypothesis, it stated that there is no positive effect of

using Duolingo application on students’ vocabulary mastery. It can be seen from the

difference between controlled class and experimental class. If there is no significant

effect of using Duolingo application in improving students’ vocabulary mastery at the

tenth grade of SMA Negeri 1 Sigli, the null hypothesis is accepted.

 2. Alternative Hypothesis (Hɑ)

According to alternative hypothesis, it stated that there are improvements

of using Duolingo in improving students’ vocabulary mastery. It can be seen from the

difference between experimental class and controlled class. If there is a significant effect

of using Duolingo application in improving students’ vocabulary mastery at tenth grade

of SMA Negeri 1 Sigli, the alternative hypothesis is accepted. In this research this kind

of hypothesis was chosen as the hypothesis.

 CHAPTER 2

LITERATURE REVIEW

This chapter presents the review of interrelated literature in the study. This

literature review is expected to serve important background information to support the

study and the discussion of the findings.

2.1 The Definition of Vocabulary

Learning a language cannot be separated from learning vocabulary. It means

when someone wants to learn a new language, they have to know its vocabulary.

According to (Alqahtani, 2015) Vocabulary is an essential part in foreign language

learning as the meaning of new words are very emphasized, whether in books or in

classrooms. In addition, (Cameron, 2001) stated that vocabulary as one of the

knowledge areas in language plays a great role for learners in acquiring a language. It

can be concluded that vocabulary plays a very important part in language learning and it

is also important in a second and foreign language acquisition.

Vocabulary is the total number of words in language. According to

(Kamil&Hiebert, 2005), vocabulary is knowledge of words and word meanings. It

means that the language learners should be able to recognize words, and know their

meaning as well. Thus, when the learners are able to recognize different words and use

them in different context, they have the knowledge and meaning of that word.
 Many experts have defined vocabulary with different meaning, the researcher

comes to summary that vocabulary is an essential part in language learning and it is

considered as dominant factor, either as a second or a foreign language. By having and

knowing enough vocabulary, students can easily communicate with native speaker, and

vocabulary also helps students understand when they read English words from book,

magazine, neswpaper, etc. The more vocabularies students understand, the more

meaning they can interact with others in daily life with various context.

2.2 The Kinds of Vocabulary

Vocabulary in English can be categorized into two types, namely active and

passive. Active vocabulary (productive) refers to items which the learner can use

appropriately in speaking or writing. Productive vocabulary conveys the idea of a learner

wanting to express something through speaking and writing. On the contrary, passive

vocabulary (receptive) refers to language item that can be recognized and understood in

the context of reading or listening. According to, receptive vocabulary is defined to

bring idea that learners receive language input from others through listening or reading

and try to comprehend it.

2.3 Vocabulary knowledge

Vocabulary plays a fundamental role in learning language process.

According to (Susanto, 2018), in language learning, vocabulary knowledge is considered

as a dominant factor, either as a second or a foreign language. It means that vocabulary

is one of the most significant elements in learning a language. Without knowing

vocabulary, the learners will get trouble and face some obstacle in developing the four

language skills in English, they are reading, writing, listening, and speaking. In addition,

vocabulary is one indicator of a learner’s background knowledge (Fisher). By having a

good understanding about the vocabulary, the learner probably has an understanding of

the concept related to the word.

Vocabulary knowledge has the most impact on the capability to understand what

is learnt in the language. According to (Fisher), vocabulary knowledge has a profound

influence on the ability to comprehend what is read. It means that vocabulary knowledge

is needed to be able to understand other people’s saying. Their impact can be indirect,

such as the capability in solving problems when meaning is lost, as well as direct, such

as knowledge of the topic. Vocabulary knowledge can be successful when the students

can feel the benefits of learning words by experiencing.

Furthermore, by having vocabulary knowledge means that the learner completely

understand the knowledge of the words. If the students have more vocabularies that they

know, it can help the students to know the concept of communication and increase their

confidence to express their ideas. In conclusion, vocabulary knowledge plays a

significant factor in students’ learning process

 2.4 The Definition of Duolingo

Duolingo is a multimedia platform application created by Luis von Ahn,

Ph.D and Severin Hacker, Ph.D in 2011. It is a free application and available without

advertisements. According to their website (Duolingo.com), it stated that duolingo is the

most popular language-learning platform and the most downloaded education app in the

world, with more than 500 million users. Duolingo is an application for learning second

or foreign languages which is again popular in many countries including Indonesia

because it is easy to use and is considered effective for foreign language skills,

especially in improving English vocabulary mastery. By using Duolingo application, it

helps students to learn English more easily because this application can be opened from

a smartphone so that students can learn to improve their vocabulary understanding

wherever and whenever the student wants.

Duolingo application is important for students who want to improve their

vocabulary and make learning become more enjoyable. As stated by (Cesar & Angela,

2018), Duolingo gives student opportunity to evaluate their knowledge and identify their

need to continue improving. It means that this application is presented as educational

tool that can be used by students in teaching and learning process. By using duolingo

application in classroom, the teaching and learning process become more enjoyable and

interesting.

In conclusion, Duolingo is a great tool for students in learning foreign

language, especially vocabulary. By using Duolingo can gain positive feedback from
both student and teacher. In addition, students who want to enrich vocabulary may use

Duolingo application to make learning become more enjoyable and interesting.

2.5 Teaching Vocabulary by Using Duolingo Application

Duolingo is one of the innovative learning language application that help

students to achieve their goal in learning. The variation features of Duolingo application

affect the student’s interest and curiosity in learning English using a new style. By using

Duolingo application, students will get some benefit in learning English. First, Duolingo

helps students get more motivated and have more fun with this application. Second,

Duolingo helps students memorize new vocabulary easily because learners can directly

see colorful pictures and more features while learning.

In the classroom, teacher can start the class with giving the materials based on

English book and how to use Duolingo application. Then, the students can be asked to

determine the meaning of the words. So, the students firstly get general understanding

and new vocabularies. After that, the students can begin with using Duolingo

application, and they choose the topic which can be given or they can freely choose the

topic in their own.

 CHAPTER 3

RESEARCH DESIGN

A research design is a plan, structure and strategy of investigation so conceived

as to obtain answer to research questions or problems (Kumar, 2019). This includes

research method, research subject and object, source and kinds of data, research

instrument, the technique of data collection, and technique of data analysis.

3.1 Research Method

In this research, the researcher used quantitative research. According to

(Gunderson, 2002), quantitative research is explaining phenomena by collecting

numerical data that are analysed using mathematically based methods. Related to that

statement, quantitative research uses logical or statistical observations to draw

conclusions.

The researcher applied pre-experimental design with one group pretest-post test

design. One group Pre-test – Post-test design is a research design which the outcome of

interest is measured two times: once before treatment and once after treatment.

Formula of One Group Pre-test – Post-test Design:

Experimental Group: O1 X
O2
 Explanation:

O1 : Pretest

X : Treatment

O2 : Posttest

This research focused on two variables, Duolingo application as the

dependent variable and students’ vocabulary mastery as independent variable.

3.2 Populations and Sample

 Population

Before the sample was collected, the researcher had to determine the population.

The population of this research was tenth grade students of SMA Negeri 1 Sigli in

academic year 2022/2023. There are six classes in the tenth grade which consist of 20-25

students in each class. Therefore, the total number of the students in tenth grade of SMA

Negeri 1 Sigli was approximately 125 students.

 Sample

Sample is the specific group that you will collect data from. According to

(Arikunto, 2011), a sample must be representative to a population. Sample must be

representative as one is to be able to generalize with confidence from the sample to

population. It means that a good sample must be representative of the entire as possible,

so that the generalization of the sample of this research

 The researcher used purposive sampling technique to obtain the sample of the

research. Since the research only needs two class experiments, it was decided class of X-

4 and X-5 as the sample of the research. These classes was taken as the sample because

it meets the purpose of the research to know the effectiveness of using Duolingo

application in improving students’ vocabulary mastery since most students at X-4 and

X-5 have problem in learning English especially in vocabulary. The total number of

sample of this research was 50 students.

3.3 Research Instrument

To carry out the research, there are some ways of collecting data. To collect data,

the researcher needs an instrument. In this research, the researcher choose test as the

instrument which helps the researcher to collect the data. According to (Arikunto, 2013),

test is the group of questions or exercises and other tools that were used to measure the

skill, intelligence, ability or talent of the individual or group. Therefore, the researcher

used test to measure the students’ ability in mastering vocabulary. The first thing that

researcher did was giving pre-test to the students. The pre-test was given to measure the

students’ ability about their vocabulary before using Duolingo. Then, after applying

some treatments, the post test will be given to measure the students’ vocabulary

achievement
3.4 Technique of Data Collection

In collecting data, this research divided into three stages, those are pretest,

treatment, and posttest. Pertaining of the procedure of data collection, the explanation

for these steps as follows:

3.4.1 Pretest

The pretest was done before treatment. The purpose of giving pretest to students

was to know and to evaluate students’ vocabulary before implementing Duolingo

application. This step consists of three parts. The first part is multiple choices, and it

consists of twenty numbers. The second is complete the text, and it consists of five

numbers. The last part is matching word with the correct meaning given, and it consists

of five numbers. The material of the test was taken from English book which related to

their subject.

3.4.2 Treatment

After the researcher gave the students pretest, the researcher began to provide

some treatments to the students. Treatment is a process where a certain method is

implemented to the population of study. In this case, the researcher will teach a

particular topic chosen related to the method used for several meetings with 60 minutes

duration each meeting.

3.4.3 Post-test
 The post-test is a measurement given after the treatments. A post-test is a test

given to training students after the treatment is completed. The purpose of giving post-

test to students was to know the students’ vocabulary after implementing Duolingo

Application. This test will be used to know how far the students’ vocabulary before and

after the treatment. The instrument consists of three parts. The first part is multiple

choices, and it consists of twenty numbers. The second is complete the text, and it

consists of five numbers. The last part is matching word with the correct meaning given,

and it consists of five numbers.

3.5 Technique of Data Analysis

After collecting the data, the researcher analyzed the data from Pre-test and Post-

test with statistic formula. In analyzing the data, the researcher used MS. Excel 2016

with statistic formula of table distribution frequency.

To find out the mean score by using the following formula:

M = ∑X
N
Where:
M : The mean score
∑X : The total score
N : The total number of the sample
 Finding out the significant differences between the score pre-test and post-test by

using the following formula:

In which:

t : Test of Significance

D : The difference between pre-test and post-test score

∑D : The sum of the total score

∑D2 : The square of the sum score of difference

N : The total sample

The result of the calculation of the t-test obtained assisted with Microsoft Excel

2016, which then reviewed with the value of t-table at the level of significance ɑ = 0,05.

If the t-test is higher than t-table, it can be concluded that there are differences in

students’ vocabulary mastery after they are taught using Duolingo application. If the t-

test is lower than t-table, it can be concluded that there are no differences students’

vocabulary mastery after they are taught using Duolingo application.

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