The Common Mistake in Teaching Grammar and How to Fix It

Language is a tool for human to communicate each other. Just like another tool, if it is used properly it will be very useful for the user, in this case is the speaker. In term of language, one of the rules of its usage is grammar. As we know that Indonesia is an EFL country with hundreds of its variety languages. With that fact, teaching grammar in this country takes a big role in English learning to introduce the rule of English usage to the learners. Unfortunately, some teachers make some mistakes in teaching it unconsciously. In this writing, I would like to state the common mistakes in teaching grammar and the way how to, at least, minimalize those errors.

            The first mistake which is done by the teacher is using the same method over and over for many different classes. They are not aware that actually there is some point where a class needs different grammar consumption with other classes. By using the same method over and over, the teaching and learning process will not be effective for the learners. What could be done by the teachers is consider the objective of the learning for each class first. Whether the class is prepared for facing the examination or maybe the classed is for the students that want to acquire English as their second language. It’s clear that the need of grammar for those classes is different. Therefore, by considering the goals in the first place, teacher could decide which proper method is appropriate for which class.

            The next mistake is many teachers often to use only one resource to teach. Moreover, in teaching tenses many teachers only use one book and write the formula in the board and ask students to understand that. That way might be understandable for only a few students, but it could be very difficult for others. Teachers should use variety of resources to accommodate the different students’ learning style. Teacher should allow students to use any media they want to as long as that help them to understand the given lesson. Obviously, the more varieties of learning opportunities the better your chances are that each student will be able to learn the grammar point well (Beare, 2012)

            Next, speaking about tenses there is a big common mistake that always done by teacher, only give students the pattern/formula of the tenses. This mistake is a crucial thing to avoid actually, but unfortunately almost all teachers do it and think that this is the right way to teach grammar, tenses in this case. Teachers should collaborate the tenses teaching with 4 language skills- reading, writing, listening, and speaking- to make a better teaching process and boost students’ understanding. By doing that way the learners can be paying attention to the one  language input  and trying to incorporate new forms into one’s developing communicative competence (Richards, 2006) so they will be more understand the grammar.

            The fourth mistake is teacher often to use first language in teaching grammar. A good second language teaching classroom is the one that is not intervened by the oral first language because by using the target language along the learning process could develop learners’ communicative skill (Kalivoda, 1990). It means that every language teacher should encourage their learners by using the target language during the learning process. By doing that, learners will not only get the knowledge about grammar, but the will also unconsciously acquire the target language.

            The last is teachers’ paradigm that by mastering grammar, students will automatically master the language. With that paradigm, teachers often to spend their teaching time only to teach grammar and forget the other aspects of the target language. Some teachers think that grammar is the “security blanket” of learning language and force their students to be more concentrate to it (Swan, 2008). Well, grammar is an important thing to be concerned in learning a language but that does not mean by mastering grammar, learner could master the language as well.

            In the conclusion, grammar is an important and crucial thing to be mastered in learning a language. Therefore, the teaching of it should be conducted carefully in order to avoid the mistakes I have stated above. If the grammar teaching conducted properly, it will help learners to master it easier and they could master the target language easily.

So, Model of Instruction is....

            The last meeting was very cool. In that class we shared our experience of School Experience Program. I learnt a lot from that sharing session. I listened to my friends’ experience that went to different schools. From that session I learnt that every school has their own learning and teaching activity style. Every style has their own strength and weakness. It depends on what the focus of the school is.

            After the sharing session, we reviewed our last topic before we did School Experience, the models of instructions. We did it through group discussion and gallery walk. Those activities were great. Well, the group discussion was done like usual, but the gallery walk was different. Usually we did it like the member of the group present their material to the guest group. What we did yesterday was totally different. After presenting our group’s work, we had to move to another’s and presented it to our friend.

            In the last meeting, Mrs. Ine gave us a post-test about the whole material which was discussed in that meeting. I do not know whether I did it well or no. However I have done the best in that test. Hopefully I will get the best result as well.

            With that kind of activity, I could understand more about what the models of instruction is. I also did not feel bored. And I am ready for facing the mid-term of PETA course.

Teaching is Challenging

            In the last meeting of PETA course, we did micro-teaching. It was really cool. We acted as if we were a real teacher at the time. We did micro-teaching about models of instructions. We did it in a team. So, while the performing team performed in the front of class, the other teams assessed them. We were assessed based on our performance in the opening, the content, the elaboration, and the application of the model of instruction that we chose.

            Well, I learnt a lot of things from the micro-teaching. Honestly, at first I thought that teaching is kind of piece of cake. It just deals with entering the class, telling students about the material briefly, and giving them assignments. After doing the micro-teaching I realized that it is not. Teaching is challenging and the most complex job to do. We have to deal with various students with various the ways of thinking and unify them in to one best way of instruction which acceptable for all of them.

            The next challenge is we have to be an extremely creative person. We have to deliver our lesson through the model of instruction that we have chosen creatively, otherwise the students will get bored and the lesson is going to be useless. That one is really a difficult thing to do.

            However, I also learnt one important thing from the micro-teaching. As a teacher, you can not win every student in the class. I mean, however hard you have tried to choose and conduct a best model of instruction for the class, you can not make all of your students comfort with that because they have their own interest which is can be really different among another. Therefore, you have to be fair to them by changing the model of instruction in every meeting, so you can reach every student expectation although not in the same time.

Hey, This is Me

            Setiap orang di dunia ini pastinya memiliki identitas masing-masing pada diri mereka. Identitas itulah yang membuatnya dikenal oleh orang lain. Sebagian identitas tersebut bisa datang dari dalam diri orang itu sendiri, dan bisa juga dari orang lain. Identitas yang muncul dari diri biasanya berupa identitas suku, agama, ras, nama, dan lain sebagainya. Sedangkan identitas yang berasal dari orang lain biasanya berupa identitas yang “dilabelkan” pada orang tersebut berdasarkan bagaimana cara dia berperilaku, misalnya sombong, baik, pelit, sopan, ramah, dan lainnya.

            Dan inilah saya, Muhammad Reza Arfani. Anak ketiga dari empat bersaudara. Saat ini sudah banyak sekali identitas yang menempel pada diri saya. Mulai dari identitas bahwa saya ini anak dari kedua orang tua saya, saya ini orang jawa karena saya tinggal dijawa, saya ini laik-laki, dan saya adalah orang Islam. Semua identitas itu menempel pada saya karena memang itulah diri saya.

            Kemudian tentang identitas yang dilabelkan oleh orang lain pada saya. Banyak sekali identitas yang saya sandang berkat pelabelan dari orang lain tersebut. Ada yang bilang saya ini orang yang penyabar. Mungkin saya memang penyabar, karena saya juga jarang dan malas untuk marah kepada orang lain. Ada yang bilang kalau saya adalah anak yang slengekan. Saya akui, memang benar saya ini slengekan karena saya memang seperti itu. Masih banyak lagi identitas yang dilabelkan orang lain kepada saya.

            Diantara banyaknya identitas yang dilabelkan pada saya oleh orang lain tersebut, beberapa mungkin benar dan beberapa lainnya bisa saja salah. Sesuatu yang sebernya membuat saya bingung adalah, apakah perilaku saya yang membuat orang lain melabelkan identitas tersebut kepada saya, atau justru identitas yang dilabelkan tersebut yang membuat saya berperilaku demikian? Karena dalam beberapa kasus sering kali terjadi sesorang dilabeli identitas oleh orang lain sehingga membangun mindset orang tersebut bahwa dia itu seperti apa yang telah dilabeli dan membuat orang tersebut untuk berperilaku seperti apa yang ada di mindset-nya.

            Jika ditanya tentang identitas apa yang paling menonjol pada diri saya, jujur saya bingung. Semua identitas yang ada pada diri saya, baik yang saya bawa dari lahir ataupun yang saya dapat dari pelabelan orang lain, tidak ada satupun identitas yang menonjol. Semuanya sama rata. Kemudian, bagaimana cara orang lain lain mengenal identitas saya jika bahkan saya sendiri tidak memiliki satu identitas yang kuat? Sejauh ini saya selalu tampil di depan umum dengan apa adanya saya. Saya membawa semua identitas yang saya miliki. Akan butuh waktu sampai orang lain bisa benar-benar mengenal identitas-identitas saya.

            Jadi, jika ada yang bertanya kepada saya “Apa identitasmu?” akan saya jawab, “Inilah saya. Kenali saya, dan anda akan tahu dengan sendirinya.”

Models of Instruction

            In the last meeting of PETA course, we discussed model of instruction that can be used by teacher in a class. They are direct instruction, lecture discussion, guided discovery, and group interaction. We did by doing jigsaw discussion. At the beginning of the class, Mrs.Ine divided the class into groups and gave each group an article about one of instruction models. Then, we read the article and we did the jigsaw discussion.

            Honestly, I still don’t understand about three others of instruction models. I do understand about the article that I read but I didn’t get the others. I think it just because of the way we discussed was a bit boring.

            At least, what I got from the last meeting is, from those four model of instruction, we as a teacher should choose on of those models which can be used properly for our students. There is no any best model from others. It depends on the purpose of our teaching it self. It is teacher duty to relate it between the purpose and the most proper model to be used in order the teaching activity can reach the main purpose.

The Meaning of My Name

            Hello, I am Muhammad Reza Arfani. That is my full name, just call me Reza. Well, such a good name, right? And I am very proud for having that good name. Thanks to my parents who gave me that. At first, I did not know what the meaning of my name is. I just thought that my name is really cool.

            I was born on January 22^nd 1992. It means that I’m 19 years old now. Honestly, when I was 16 years old is the first time I wondered what the meaning of my name is. At least, I did not start it yesterday. At that time, I tried to discover it by myself. Actually, I did not really discover the real meaning of my name at the time. I just tried to relate my name with some cool meanings so it would make me cooler. When at last I asked it to my parents, I found it that my own discovering is a bit different with the meaning that purposed by my parents. But still it made me cool. Well, here is the meaning of my name. I will explain it word by word.

            The first is Muhammad. The name of Muhammad is taken from the name of Moslem’s greatest prophet, Muhammad SAW. He is the leader of leaders in this world. He brought people to a better world. He had great characteristics like loyal, honest, smart, reliable, and many others. Well, my parents gave me the name of Muhammad with hope that I will be able to become a person like Him, and they hope that I will be able to become a great leader as well. I hope so.

            The next is Reza. Actually the name of Reza is a transformation of word “rezeki” which means prize from God. That means my parents really grateful of having me as their child. They said that I am a prize from God. It is kind of touching when I heard that actually. It means that my parents really love me. I also thanks to God because He gave me a really great prize in my life, my parents.

            The last is Arfani. In this my last name the story of my bearing is told. Well, the word of Arfani is also a transformation of word“Arafah” which is a desert in Arab. At the time, the doctor said that I will be born on early of February. My mother told that to my father who was in Arab that time. Hearing that, my father booked a ticket for going home to Indonesia for late of January. Well, that was in the middle of January, so my father was willing to have a little trip around. On the 21^st of January, at 11 pm, my mother felt so hurt. She was definitely sure that she was about to bear me. So she went to the doctor and it was true! At 2 am of 22^nd January I was born. My mother called my father who was being in Arafah Desert at that time. He felt sorry that he could not be there when I was born. So, he gave me a little prize by giving me the name of Arfani which is the transformation from word “Arafah”.

            Well, that is my story about the meaning of my name. Knowing that meaning makes me feel proud of myself. My parents give me a big expectation through that name. I promise to myself to make that expectation comes true. That because of I love them.

a Good Plan Makes a Good Teaching

            Second meeting in PETA class, I learnt how to conduct a good lesson plan for teaching and learning process in the class. I also learnt that as a teacher we must have a good skill for planning our teaching. Therefore, we can attract our student to follow the lesson properly.

            By having a good skill in conducting lesson plan, a teacher will be able to control the class and deliver the lesson well. A good lesson plan also will help the teacher to run the class in a good management. Not only that, a good lesson plan also can help the teacher to manage the time when doing the teaching in the class.

            For making a good lesson plan, first, the teacher should know the character of students in the class that will be taught. After knowing the character of students, the second is teacher should identify the desired results. The last one is, the teacher must determine the acceptable evidence. By mixing those three things, a good lesson plan is able to be conducted.

            By having a good lesson plan, hopefully, the teacher can deliver the lesson to the student easily, and the students can learn easily as well, and the purpose of the teaching can be reached. So that is why “a Good Plan Makes a Good Teaching.