THE IMPLEMENTATION OF FOCUS GROUP DISCUSSION (FGD) IN

TEACHING SPEAKING SKILL AT THE EIGHTH GRADE OF MTs

MIFTAHUL HUDA JAMBON, GROBOGAN IN ACADEMIC YEAR

2022/2023

PROPOSAL OF THESIS

Submitted as a Partial Requirement For Writing the Thesis

By:

ALIYA WACHIDATUN NISA’

SRN. 206121130

ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDUCATION STUDY PROGRAM

FACULTY OF CULTURES AND LANGUAGES

RADEN MAS SAID STATE ISLAMIC UNIVERSITY OF SURAKARTA

2023

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 CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

A. Backgraound of the Study

Language is a communication tool that humans use to

communicate and convey thoughts, ideas, feelings, and information to

other people. Languages have many variations throughout the world and

serve as important tools in learning, culture, and human development.

Language in the book entitled “An Introduction to the Study of Speech" is

a purely human and non-instinctive method of communicating ideas,

emotions, and desires by means of a system of voluntarily produced

symbols. Language is mainly used for social communications, and

societies as well as cultures could not be envisaged without language,

which is the heart of human progress. Language is the core of an

individual’s identity and their marker of belonging to a special social

group (Häusser et al., 2023). In addition, language is considered a versatile

code used to convey the desires, thoughts, and experiences of others.

There are some detectable relationships between them. The social structure

may influence or control the linguistic structure or behavior of a particular

ethnic group, the younger generation may have a special repertoire

different from the older generation dictated by certain social and political

requirements (Figueroa, 2023).

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 In this era, language is very important to help sustain social life. To

reach communication outside Indonesia, it is necessary to understand a

language that has become an international language, namely English

(Madatovna, 2022). So, adaptability, extensive vocabulary, and cultural

significance make English an important tool for communication,

education, and cultural exchange on an international scale (Crystal, 2018).

English is not the primary language for students in Indonesia, but it is a

foreign language that must be learned because it is a global language and

is commonly used in the world to keep up with the times (Haslina &

Hamamah, 2023). For example, students in Indonesia learn English in

their own country (G’aniyeva & Rayimjonova, 2023).

In learning English, students’ must acquire four skills including

speaking, listening, reading, and writing (Praheto et al., 2020). However,

speaking is the main focus in this study. Speaking is one of the challenging

skills in learning a second language (Santhanasamy & Yunus, 2022).

Speaking is one of the things that has added value in front of other people,

the better someone speaks, the better their self-evaluation. Speaking is

more than just forming grammatically correct sentences, but has a broad

field of mechanics, function, pragmatics and social interaction. It is

through speaking that language learners will be assessed most in real life

situations. It is an important part of everyday interactions and often a

person's first impression is based on their ability to speak fluently and

comprehensively. Speaking means the ability to express our ideas,

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opinions, communications about ourselves, interesting things, the world,

and everything around us through our voice system fluently with proper

pronunciation, grammar, vocabulary, and understanding both about the

speaker and the listener (Abdul & Muhsin, 2019).

According to Chand (2021), one of the challenges in English

language learners is difficulty in speaking. Some students don't speak

because they are too embarrassed or afraid to speak, they make a mistake,

or because their friends will laugh at them. Another factor that makes

students feel less confident in speaking English is that English is not their

mother tongue. Students will learn English more easily if they are

confident to interact in speaking classes. Interaction between students will

support the success of the learning process. Teachers must be able to make

students feel comfortable in acquiring new knowledge in the learning

process.

Therefore, to make students have strong motivation in learning

English, especially in speaking skills, teachers must take the best

techniques to apply in the learning process. The researcher found one way

to improve students' speaking at MTs Miftahul Huda Jambon, Grobogan,

by using focus group discussion (FGD). Focus group discussion (FGD)

defines its key characteristics in that it involves a focus on specific issues

with a predetermined group of people participating in an interactive

discussion, thereby a focus group discussion (Hennink, 2013). This

method is described as interactive an trained moderator and focuses on a

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specific set of issues. With differs from other qualitative methods in its

purpose, composition, and the group nature of data collection.

According to Morgan, focus group discussion (FGD) is a form of

systematic discussion used to obtain data through interaction in a focus

discussion group (Morgan, 2018). This type of focus group discussion

(FGD) is considered capable of conveying students' critical thinking in

expressing what they have learned in the English learning process,

especially in practice. The inevitable balancing act in this method is

between the researcher's goals and the interest factors of the participants.

There is quite a lot of literature that discusses focus group

discussions (FGD) and their application in various fields, especially in the

field of education. This technique has also been widely used abroad, one

of which is applied in China for multilingual universities (Tang et al.,

2023). In another implementation, this technique was used to investigate

educational coverage in the country of Mexico (Domeischel & Waggle,

2020). In this case, FGD is used to see analytical thinking about objects.

Focus group discussion (FGD) are a great way to get feedback

from a group of people with similar backgrounds or experiences on a

particular topic. Typically, all students have the opportunity to speak

English, which makes them more confident in using the language.

Students should not come to class to talk, as this will help them overcome

their fear of speaking in front of others. Focus group discussions is a good

technique for teaching speaking skills (Richard et al., 2021). This method

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has the advantage of being used to achieve communicative skills including

speaking ability. The classroom should be a place where students can

explore and create their knowledge. This is perfect for implementing, and

apart from that, students are also not allowed to come to the front of the

class to speak, as a result they no longer feel nervous and afraid.

Several previous studies have been conducted by several

researchers who discuss focus group discussions (FGD). In implementing,

the students’ have many opportunities to speak and share their opinions on

a particular topic. The first research was conducted by Munir with entitled

“The Implementation of Focus Group Discussion Technique to Improve

Students' Speaking Skills at Eleventh Grade of SMK Al-Qodiri Jember in

the academic year 2020/2021”. In this study, he obtained 21 eleventh-

grade students from SMK Al-Qodiri Jember following the discussion

process, and the result of this study was that it was more efficient to

advance students' speaking skills (Abdul Munir, 2022).

The second research was conducted by Abdul & Muhsin, entitled

“The Use of Focus Group Discussion Techniques to Improve Students'

Speaking Skills at SMK Ahlu Suffah Muhammadiyah Bantaeng”. This

research was conducted in class X A of SMK Ahlu Suffah

Muhammadiyah Bantaeng which consisted of 19 students. The results

showed that the use of focus group discussion (FGD) as a strategy for

teaching speaking in terms of fluency can improve students' speaking

skills. Focus group discussion (FGD) can help students be more confident

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in speaking activities. During the teaching and learning process using

focus group discussion (FGD), students showed that they were more active

and enthusiastic in learning English (Abdul & Muhsin, 2019).

Previous research only focused on proving the effectiveness of

learning strategies using focus group discussion (FGD) techniques on

students' speaking abilities. In this research, researchers not only

investigated how focus group discussions (FGD) work to help students'

speaking skills but also how students' perceptions were after participating

in focus group discussion (FGD) learning.

Based on pre-research in September 2023, the researcher obtained

information from an interview with Mrs. Nina, an English teacher of

eighth grade at MTs Miftahul Huda Jambon, Grobogan, she explained that

she had been using the FGD method in learning English in the classroom

for quite a long time. in practice, he explained that students became more

active in their respective groups. However, in habituation outside of class,

students have not been able to apply it. He added that the students'

vocabulary was still limited. At least, with this method, students become

more enthusiastic and enjoy learning English in class.

Based on the pre-research, the difficulties faced by students at MTs

Miftahul Huda Jambon, Grobogan, in implementing Focus Group

Discussions (FGD) and from the explanation above, researchers are

interested in conducting research that will produce these problems, with an

analytical focus on the implementation of focus group discussions (FGD)

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 at MTs Miftahul Huda Jambon, Grobogan. Therefore, that is the reason

why the researcher chose the title "The Implementation of Focus Group

Discussion (FGD) in Teaching Speaking Skill at The Eighth Grade of MTs

Miftahul Huda Jambon, Grobogan, in Academic Year 2022/2023".

B. Identification of the Problem

Based on the background of the study above, the researcher

identifies some problems, as follows:

1. There are several difficulties faced by students in the learning process

in speaking English.

2. Limitations of the methods used by teachers that can be provided

material in English class.

3. The school facilities are still less to support learning activities,

especially in speaking classes.

4. Most students only rely on learning methods at school.

5. The Independent Curriculum implemented by the school provides

broad and flexible space for students to maximize their potential.

C. Limitation of the Problem

Based on the background and the identification of the problems

above, the researcher makes a limitation on both the object and subject of

the research. The problem of the research was limited to the

implementation of the focus group discussion (FGD) in teaching speaking

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 skill. The researcher also focuses on limiting only one class of eighth-

grade students namely VIII A consisting of 27 students of MTs Miftahul

Huda Jambon, in the academic year 2023/2024 because they already have

experience in the application of this learning method and they can adapt to

life school.

D. Problem Statement

Based on the background above, the research problem of the

research as follows:

1. How is the implementation of the Focus Group Discussion (FGD) be

implemented in teaching speaking skill at the eighth grade of MTs

Miftahul Huda Jambon, Grobogan in the academic year 2023/2024?

2. What is the problem in implementation of focus group discussion

(FGD) in teaching speaking skill at the eighth grade of MTs Miftahul

Huda Jambon, Grobogan in the academic year 2023/2024?

E. Objectives of the Study

Based on the problem above, the objectives of the research are:

1. To find out how the process of implementing focus group discussion

(FGD) in teaching speaking skill at the eighth grade of MTs Miftahul

Huda Jambon, Grobogan in the academic year 2023/2024.

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 2. To know the problem of focus group discussion (FGD) in teaching

speaking skill at the eighth grade of MTs Miftahul Huda Jambon,

Grobogan in the academic year 2023/2024.

F. Benefits of the Study

The resultS of this research were expected to give some theoretical

and practical significance, as follows:

1. Theoretically

The results of this research can be used as a guide for someone

involved in conducting teaching research to monitor students' speaking

skills and produce practical classes by teachers, as well as become

material for reviewing the learning process by use focus group

discussion (FGD).

2. Practically

a. For the Teacher

For teachers, the results of this research can be used as

evaluation and review material regarding the teaching speaking

skill by using the focus group discussion (FGD).

b. For the Students

For students, this research can be used as education and

help them improve their understanding and application of speaking

english in daily life.

c. For Other Researchers

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 The other researchers can use this study as a reference for

their research with the same concern.

G. Definition of Key Terms

In order to explain and avoid misunderstanding and

misinterpretation about the title and the content of the study, it is better to

define the terms that are used in this study as follows:

1. Focus Group Discussion (FGD)

According to Sumner et al. (2023), Focus group discussion

(FGD) is a systematic process of collecting specific data and

information through group discussion. Through FGD, students are

invited to develop the ability to think critically, creatively, and

innovatively in preparing presentations and group discussions.

Furthermore, the implementation of systematic discussions focused on

a specific problem can build good communication skills and the skills

needed for cooperation, and high self-confidence.

2. Speaking Skill

Speaking skills are a medium for expressing opinions, ideas,

providing information or receiving information (Darmuki et al., 2019).

To have good speaking skills, students need to be trained in

pronunciation, pronunciation, intonation, word choice, and good use of

language (Hughes & Reed, 2016). There are four components that

must be considered in speaking skills, namely phonology (sounds),

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sentence structure, vocabulary, and fluency (Brown & Abeywickrama,

2019). Problems in learning students' speaking skills are students' lack

of self-confidence, lack of students' motivation and interest in

speaking, lack of application of interesting learning models and

methods and the learning process is still teacher-centered (Robillos,

2023).

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