Listening to and Singing English Songs
for Improving Listening and Speaking in Senior High
School
Marselus
Suarta Kasmiran
121214112
Abstract
English is a must in Indonesia curriculum. On the
other hand, learning a foreign language in a boring and dull class will be a
challenge. Listening to and singing songs have many benefits that it will be a
solution. It also can be done in
Indonesia, because it is very practical. Finally, in order to improve students`
listening and speaking skills, teachers can do listening and singing English
songs. This paper aims to describe about listening to and singing English songs
for improving listening and speaking in senior high school. Finally, it also
suggests a practical application of listening and singing songs.
Keywords :
Listening to, Singing, English Songs
A.
INTRODUCTION
English
has become a required language for senior high schools in Indonesia since 1967.
However, learning English outside of English-speaking-countries can be a
challenge. Many learners feel they have opportunities to use English in
everyday lives. It is easy to believe that if one lived in an
English-speaking-country, and often speak it in their daily lives, it will be
easy to improve their English (Chusanachoti, Ruedeerath, 2009).
Ruedeerath
(2009) said that learning English, especially in a country that places English
as the second language, is not easy. Many students have a lack of motivation to
learn English and do not know how and where to advance their English skills
except by waiting for teachers to feed them explicitly in the classroom. Some
teachers base their teachings on grammar rules, rote learning, and textbook
based lectures. Many textbooks are dry that they kill student interests to
study English (Chusanachoti, Ruedeerath, 2009). A study said that an
uncomfortable class, bad relationship between students and teachers, and one
way communication can make students have bad mental (Wemberg, 1974). As a
result, learners found English classrooms very unpractical and boring.
On
the other hand, because of the technology improvement, students like listening
to music through their gadgets and singing English songs. However, the
activities were usually overlooked and received little support among teachers
and parents. A study said that learning through language activities as
listening to English songs and singing will improve student’s studies. (Chusanachoti,
Ruedeerath, 2009).
This paper attempts at describing
listening to and singing English songs for improving listening and speaking in
senior high school. Finally, it also suggests a practical application of
listening and singing songs.
B. THEORETICAL GROUND AND DISCUSSION
This
part discusses listening and speaking learning, where they are important skills
to have fluency in English language. In addition, this part also discusses
about senior high school students and student's study styles. This also
elaborates the reasons for doing listening music and singing to help learning
English and how it should be done.
1.
Listening and Speaking Skills
Jojappa Chowda
said in his article that to become a fluent English speaker, you must study and
master listening, and speaking (academica.edu, October, 19, 2014).
Listening
skill through media, such as gadgets, is different with reading skill. In
reading skill, the medium is printed; we can see the information visually. In
listening skill the medium is sound. Considering that we have to deal with
sound we have to think about a transient and ephemeral phenomenon that cannot
be captured once time. Second, when we listen, we have to consider extraneous
noise which interferes with message reception. Also, listening is usually
related to gesture of the speaker (McDonough, Jo, 2012).
In their analysis of
the theoretical base of communicative language teaching, Richards and Rodgers
(2001:161) offer the following four characteristics of a communicative view of
language:
•
language is a system for the expression
of meaning
•
the primary function of language is for
interaction and communication
•
the structure of language reflects its
functional and communicative uses
•
The primary units of language are not
merely its grammatical and structural features, but categories of functional
and communicative meaning as exemplified in discourse.
When
teachers ask the students to use the spoken in the classroom, we require them
to take part in a process that not only involves knowledge of target forms and
functions, but also a general knowledge o interaction between the speaker and
listener in order that meanings and negotiation of meanings are made clear
(McDonough, Jo, 2012).
2.
Students' Emotional and Intelligences in Senior High School
In
Indonesia students that are above 18 years old cannot join senior high schools.
The government said that the age is the maximum age that can be accepted in Senior
High School (Permendiknas 04/VI/PB/2011 and MA/111/2011). Hence we can conclude
that students in senior high schools are between 15 to 19 years old.
In
his theory, Erickson's stages of development, he classified humans around 12 to
18 as adolescent. Adolescent is the fifth stage of development. Up until this
fifth stage, development depends on what is done to a person. At this point, development now depends
primarily upon what a person does. An
adolescent must struggle to discover and find his or her own identity, while
negotiating and struggling with social interactions and “fitting in”, and
developing a sense of morality and right from wrong. Some attempt to delay
entrance to adulthood and withdraw from responsibilities (moratorium). Those unsuccessful with this stage tend to
experience role confusion and upheaval.
Adolescents begin to develop a strong affiliation and devotion to
ideals, causes, and friends.
Emotionally, teenagers do not
typically like physical affection from their parents. Many do, however, like a
lot of physical affection from their friends. Expect a lot of tension and
conflict with your teenager, because your teenager is separating from the
parents. The path to independence is rocky for both parents and older
teenagers. Some older teenagers will go anywhere—except where their parents
are. Teachers and parents need to be patient with this. Typically kids will
draw closer to parents once they leave home. Once they have experienced “true
independence,” they discover that their parents are not as idiotic as they
thought when they were older teenagers. Monitor your teenager’s emotional
states. Most have an emotional state that they are most comfortable with. Some
are easygoing. Some get angry easily. Others get depressed. Intervene if
emotions are overwhelming your older teenager. Some teenagers will give you the
silent treatment when they become angry—or if they do not get their way. Give
them time to simmer down. They will talk to you again (usually when they need
something from you). Some kids begin dabbling in more serious risk behaviors
(such as self-harm, drinking alcohol, trying drugs, and having sex)
Abstract thinking becomes
more common with older teenagers. They will gravitate more to the “gray” areas
between the “black-and-white” issues of their early years. They’ll also change
their mind about the “grays” to suit their goals and wishes. Older teenagers,
such as those in this age range, expand their logic and reasoning abilities,
although many still struggle to match their thinking abilities with their
actions. Thus, a lot of kids will talk intelligently but then have trouble with
planning. Their thinking now considers the future. They can think and have
thoughtful discussions about war, college, the economy, and their visions of
what would make the world better. Because older teenagers are more intellectually
advanced than a child or younger teens, adults can have more back-and-forth
conversations with them. They are better able to understand other people’s
points of views, and they are more open to other perspectives and ideas. Many
older teenagers will use their new intellectual capacities as “logical weapons”
against their parents (uwex.edu, October, 19, 2014).
3.
Student's Study Styles
Based
on Uno, H.B (2006) there are three kinds of student learning styles. They are
visual learners, auditory learners, and tactual learners. The three kinds of
student learning styles will be explained here.
Visual
learners are they who have to see the object, so that they can believe and
accept information. Some characteristics of this style are that they have needs
to see information visually in order to know and accept information, get very
sensitive about colors, have a good sense of art, seem bad at communication, be
very reactive about sound, get difficult to follow instruction, and usually do
misinterpreting about oral information.
Auditory
learners are they who use auditory to understand and remember. The
characteristic of this style is that the learners put the auditory as the main
tool that help them understand and remember. They are very good at auditory,
but bad at understanding written information, and difficult to write and read.
Tactual
learners are they who have to touch the things giving information to make the
students remember the information. There are some characteristics that show the
kind learners. They are that they put their hands as the main tools to receive
information, handing make them understand information, sitting down make their
get bored easily, they perform well if they learn something along doing an
activity, and they lead a team-work very well.
4.
Listening to and Singing English Songs to help Speaking English
In this part it
will be discussed some reasons why listening to and singing English song can
help speaking English. It is also discussed some techniques that can help
teachers doing the activities in the class or outside the class.
a.
Reasons to Do Listening to and Singing English songs
Listening
to and singing songs have many benefits for learning English. In this part, it
will be discussed how listening music and singing give benefits to learning
English. One of benefits to listen and singing English is that it will increase
your English. Students transfer what they have learned before to what they are
studying (Broudy, 1977). It can be believed that when students listened to
English songs and said it through singing with good pronunciation, students
will improve in learning English, especially their listening and speaking
skills. This requires good English songs, because bad experiences in learning
could hurt performance on related tasks (Luchins and Luchins, 1970).
Listening
to and singing English songs can be solutions for boring and dull classes. As
we have discussed before, boring and dull classes only make students get lost
interest in learning English (Wemberg, 19745). Adolescent students need
something that related to their world-technology and life style. A study said
that there are many students that like to listening songs and watching movie
(Ruedeerath Chusanachoti, 2009). Teachers should notice it as a solution for
effective learning English technique that helps students perform well.
b.
How to Do Listening and Singing Songs
Listening
to and singing English songs also are very practical. The activity is not
expensive that the students can bring their own gadget (Brow, H.D, 2003).
Teachers can bring a tape and invite the students to sing together after they
know the lyrics and the rhythm. Teachers also can recommend some songs that can
be practiced by the students outside the class. The teachers can make an
assessment from what the students do. After they listen to and singing the
songs outside the class, they are asked to do some
C.
CONCLUDING REMARKS
Learning
in a boring and dull class will kill students` interest in learning English.
One of the best ways to make students interest and perform well in learning
English is that teachers do listening and singing songs. The activities make the
class interesting and fun. On the other hand, the students can study whenever
they want through the activities. They also can sing songs that they like. There
are some ways to do the activities, including they do the activities in the
class or outside the class.
References
Brow, D.H.
2003. Language Assessment Principles and Classroom Practices. San
Francisco: Longman
McDonough, Jo. 2012. Materials and
Methods in ELT. Southport: Wiley-Blackwell
Chusanachoti, Ruedeerath. 2009. EFL Learning through
Language Activities outside the Classroom. Ann Arbor: UMI
