Review of Theoretical Review (Ahmad Syafi'i and Ahmat Rondi Toyib's International Journal "Role Play as A Method to Overcome Students' Anxiety in Speaking Skill")

Hello everyone ...
This blog post, I will review the Theoretical Review section of the international journal "ROLE-PLAY A METHOD TO OVERCOME STUDENTS’ ANXIETY IN SPEAKING SKILL ". Theoretical Review of this journal consists of several parts, including:

1. Speaking Obstacles

     Speaking skills are the most difficult skills to master among students in school. Many students feel anxious when they try to speak English. This is due to a lack of student motivation in learning English and inappropriate techniques used by teachers in teaching speaking skills (Nopiani, 2014: 1). In addition, the problem also comes from the use of media (Hadi, 2015: 13). However, in speaking skills, students must also consider the use of grammar or sentence structure. Students are expected to speak English in a classroom atmosphere without fear. In addition, students are expected to speak fluently by considering aspects of grammar.

2. Role Play Method

     A teacher must be able to choose the right technique or method in teaching speech that can involve students to talk. Han (2015: 14) said that teachers did not give students enough activities to speak to improve their speaking skills, whereas speaking needed to practice frequently. . One of the various methods that involve students to practice before they speak is role playing. Role playing is a speaking activity in which students participate either as themselves or as someone else in certain situations. (Sumpana, 2010: 10). He also believes that role play can develop the fluency of students who encourage interaction in the classroom and increase their motivation. Here, the teacher also has a role to apply the method of role playing in the classroom. Kusnierek (2015: 9) says that role play can be a very successful tool in the hands of teachers because its main goal is to improve student interaction in the classroom. This will give students the opportunity to practice communicating in different contexts and social roles, then allow students to be more creative and put themselves in other people's place for a while (Nopiani, 2014: 16). This, students are expected to be more creative and be able to put themselves in other people's places while the process of learning to speak takes place.

3. The Advantages of Using the Role-Play Method

     Rogers and Evan in Afdillah (2015: 23) state that the role playing method has several advantages, as follows:
1. The role play encourages representational thinking.
2. Role playing helps children to develop perspective taking skills.
3. Role playing displays children's language competence.
4. Role playing involves problem solving.
5. Role play encourages turnovers and negotiations.
6. In role playing, children have a strong desire to be affiliated with one and the other to maintain peer interaction.
7. In role playing, children have strong enthusiasm to produce their own themes.
8. Role playing helps build and maintain a children's peer culture.

4. Role-Play Method to Overcome Students’ Anxiety in Speaking

     The purpose of learning to speak is to give students the opportunity to practice and use language. (Hadi, 2015: 23). In fact, students often feel anxious, even they do not want to express their ideas when their teacher triggers them to ask questions. They feel afraid to make mistakes in speaking. The role playing method requires students to speak on their own turn. Nopiani (2014: 19) states that role playing is a technique that divides students in class into several groups consisting of 3-4 students. In this situation, the teacher gives students direction about what they have to learn and after that students must appear in front of the class. Students will act as inconversation of their roles. In general, students have prepared before they present the conversion. They must understand the text they have to say. With this method, this will help students to achieve fluency (Hadi, 2015: 33).

5. Procedure in Teaching Using Role Playing Methods

     There are several topics that can become applications for the Role-Play method, such as Transactional Text (asking and giving opinions). Here, the teacher can immediately give some pictures of 'something' to explain. Through this exercise, students will think about their imagination to respond to a problem. Hadi (2015: 42) believes that if two people communicate face to face, they will feel more comfortable. In other activities, the teacher can provide written dialogue, so students can have inspiration about what they will talk about. Then, students will make a dialogue based on the situation given. Another topic that can also use the Role-Play Method is Narrative Text. In this topic, students are fully involved in becoming roles or characters. The teacher can give them a story to show in front of the class. The method of role playing can be used in several topics involving fantasy or imagination by improvising and creating real world scenarios.

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