CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
A. Background of Study
Language is a very essential instrument in communication. According to Oxford Advanced Learner.s Dictionary of Current English, language is .(1)The system of sounds and words used by humans to express their thoughts and feelings, (2) the particular language system used by a people or nation. It means people can express their ideas, thoughts, feelings, and desires by language.
Meanwhile, 1994 GBPP of MTs points out that .Bahasa merupakan alat untuk mengungkapkan makna yang diwujudkan melalui struktur (tata bahasa dan kosakata). Dengan demikian, struktur berperan sebagai alat pengungkapkan makna (gagasan, pikiran, pendapat, dan perasaan).. [Language is a device to express meanings which is realized through structure (grammar and vocabulary). So, structure has a role as a device of expressing meanings (ideas, thoughts, opinions, and feelings)].
Today, English becomes the most widely studied foreign language on the world. Richards and Rodgers say: .Whereas today English is the world.s most widely studied foreign language, five hundred years ago it was Latin So, English is one of an international languages and it is widely used and studied all over the world. As people know that language is not only used in writing but also in speaking as a means of communication.
In teaching language especially English as a foreign language, it is not only enough for the students simply to learn grammar but also to practice all the common pattern, forms, or words until they can use them in proper position automatically.
In Indonesia, English becomes the first foreign language that is considered very important and must be learnt in schools. 1994 GBPP of MTs: .Bahasa Inggris adalah bahasa asing pertama di Indonesia yang dianggap penting untuk tujuan penyerapan dan pengembangan ilmu pengetahuan, teknologi, dan seni budaya, serta pembinaan hubungan dengan bangsa-bangsa lain. (English is the first foreign language in Indonesia which is considered very crucial for the purpose of science development and absorption of technology and culture, and also construction of relation with other nations).Here, English has become one of the elementary school subjects as the local content curriculum; even, English has been taught since kindergarten in some big cities.
The aim of English learning is to enable students to communicate without hesitations and the purpose of communication will be achieved easily. As curriculum 2004 states that the aim of learning English on second grade of SMP is .Berkomunikasi secara lisan dan tertulis dengan menggunakan ragam bahasa yang sesuai dengan lancar dan akurat dalam wacana interaksional dan/atau monolog terutama dalam wacana yang berbentuk naratif, recount, deskriptif, dan anekdot. (To communicate in oral and written by using appropriate language variety fluently and accurately in interactional and/or monolog discourse especially discourse with the form of narrative, recount, descriptive, and anecdote).
Based on the statements above, teachers must be able to organize learningteaching activities. They have to master the materials and methods. A good method can help the students in comprehending and mastering the lesson. One of the teaching failures is caused by an unsuitable method. As it is said by William F. Mackey . The method used has often been said to be the cause of success or
