TEACHING AND DEVELOP PRONUNCIATION

USING MEDIA PODCAST IN SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL

Mutia Salma Rosa, Hilma Fitriana, RifdaZulfiana

Universitas Muhammadiyah Jakarta, JL. K. H. Ahmad Dahlan Cirendeu,
Ciputat Tangerang
Email : [email protected]

Abstract
A wide range of English teaching and learning approaches have emerged due to
information and communication technology advancement. According to
Constantine (2007), Podcast was first known in 2004, and it is defined as an internet
audio blogging or internet audio publishing. Research on podcasting pedagogy
suggests that podcasting helps learners boost their English language skills and
support areas such as grammar, pronunciation, and vocabulary. The results of the
research consist of 180 students of grade eleven at SMA 1 MAJA and consisting of
6 classes. To determine the sample of this research, the writer used Cluster Random
Sampling. The result of the highest score of the pre-test was 75 and the post-test
was 90. Learning through podcasts as a learning tool that can attract students'
attention and provide information, knowledge and enrich vocabulary.

Keyword: Media podcast, Listening skill, Listening habit

Introduction
Listening skills in language teaching have been neglected and shifted to a
secondary position after speaking and writing. This is a surprising fact given that it is
the skill that is most often used in communication. In spite of its critical role in
communication and language acquisition listening comprehension remains one of the
least understood processes in language learning. Basic usages of the podcast in
education As claimed by Thomas (2006) podcasts might bring a new paradigm of
teaching and learning. With podcasts, students can ruminate, and listen again to
lectures and tutorials as a way of encouraging critical, analytical approaches.

According to Robinson (2009), the term podcast is a combination of two words:

Pod means iPod- the name of a popular MP3 player and Broadcasting. As he
defines, podcasts are audio or video files on the web which can be freely
downloaded to a computer and listened to on a computer or any portable playback
device that supports MP3 files.

Podcasts are a rich source for authentic materials that could be utilized in teaching
and as well as learning foreign languages. In 2007, Gura& King (cited in Bartoš,
2008) points out that podcasts bring new chances for educators to discover the areas
of teaching which are attractive but seems not to be tried by teachers.

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According to Constantine (2007), Podcast was first known in 2004, and it is defined
as an internet audio blogging or internet audio publishing. The audio recording is
designed to be downloaded and listened to on a portable mp3 player or a computer.
Podcasts are delivered online automatically via a website, so it is different from
other audios. Podcasts offer a 'real-life listening' source that all foreign language
listeners are allowed to benefit from it. The importance of using Podcasts is all
learners can benefit from global listening even if they only listen three or five
minutes in a day.

By listening activity, there was a research conducted by Rizzi, Rothwell, Nie and
Edirisingha (2007) entitled "Podcasting to Provide Teaching and Learning Support
for an Undergraduate Module on English Language and Communication at Kingston
University". The study describes the teaching and learning context and how the
Podcasts enhance their ability in listening.

Learners of English these days can easily make use of their electronic devices to
study English. In learning English listening skills, podcasts are said to provide
learners extra listening practice both inside and outside classrooms. The podcast is a
digital recording that contains a recorded program from television, radio, and
interviews. Many researchers have discussed the podcast as an alternative teaching
media to support students in developing their listening skills. They offer learners
audios and videos listening files with authentic materials, then students' listening
comprehension ability can be increased. They bring students opportunities to
practice listening in a self-directed manner, and podcasts which can be downloaded
automatically from free of charge podcasts websites.

In the school, several students have some difficulties in expressing ideas, choosing
correct structures, lack of producing appropriate vocabulary and producing correct
pronunciation. These problems occurred because the students have less exposure to
the speaking activity.

What possibly could help students to perform appropriately in speaking is by

introducing an alternative media, the podcast. Students must have critical thinking
and analysis. Their ability increases in the aspect of criticism, they do not quickly
agree with an explanation if the explanation feels contrary to what they know.
(Izzah, L, Hadi, M.S (2019). Additionally Cutting (2004) points out that learners are
empowered to decide their goals, choose their materials, evaluate the effectiveness
of their learning. They are then in a better position to initiate learning based on
personal needs, priorities, and preferences.

The podcast gives chances for teachers to support students in developing a speaking
skill. The idea of using podcast media is based on some following statements from
many experts in literature. The podcast is believed not just accelerating listening
skill but also it stimulates the other language area for instances pronunciation,
grammar, vocabulary, and learning activities podcast gives a good contribution in
case of improving students' speaking achievement. The podcast can be one of the
alternatives and innovative tools that may improve the students' understanding and
their accomplishment in speaking.

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Literature Review
Listening skills in language teaching have been neglected and shifted to a
secondary position after speaking and writing. This is a surprising fact given that it
is the skill that is most often used in communication. It is thought that about forty
percent of our daily communication is spent on listening, thirty-five percent on
speaking, sixteen percent on reading, and only nine percent on writing.

Although once labeled a passive skill, listening is an active and demanding process
of selecting and interpreting information from auditory and visual clues. What is
known about the listening process emerges from research on developments in the
native language? In listening, several major steps may occur sequentially or
simultaneously, in rapid succession, or backward and forward. The major points
include determining a reason for listening, predicting information, attempting to
organize information, assigning a meaning to the message, and transferring
information from short-term memory to long-term memory.

The role of vocabulary knowledge and its recognition in listening affects

comprehension of English. The term ‘listenability’ as an oral equivalent
o‘readability’ was coined by J. Read (2000:11). The simple readability idea focuses
on two variables: the frequency of the complex vocabulary and the length of the
sentences. The number of long words (three syllables or longer) and the number of
words in a sentence define the comprehensibility of a text. Lexical density is a
variable showing the percentage of content words. A vocabulary measure may
provide an indication of how easy it will be for learners to understand a spoken text.
In listening, it is not just the relative frequency of the content words that affect
comprehension but also how concentrated they are in the text.

The role of intonation and pronunciation is crucial. Intonation is the ability to vary
the pitch and tone of speech. Stressing words and phrases correctly is vital if the
emphasis is to be given to the important parts of messages. Different turns are
signaled by the rise and fall in pitch. People hear certain accented words as
prominent because of intonation. Knowing the language well, there is no need to
hear every single sound in every single word to know what is said because one’s
mind is able to fill in the gaps and to determine where one word ends and the other
begins. Intonation is interrelated with pronunciation. The aspect of pronunciation is
crucial to listening. Major problems that occur in learning pronunciation are
students’ great difficulty in hearing pronunciation features, in intonation – ‘tunes’ or
identifying the different patterns of rising and falling tones.

One of the most difficult tasks for any teacher is to teach the skills of listening
because successful listening skills are acquired over time and with lots of practice
(Rivers, 1992). Learning listening skills is frustrating for students because there are
no rules as in grammar teaching. Listening skills are difficult to quantify. One of the
largest inhibitors for students is often a mental block. While listening students
suddenly decide they do not understand. At this point, many students just tune out –
some students convince themselves they are not able to understand spoken English
well and create problems for themselves.

Having examined the available sources on developing learners’ listening skills in

language classes, it is easier to understand why podcast has suddenly become

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popular now. Although Internet audio and video files have been around for many
years, recent technical innovations allow subscribers with portable MP3 players to
use technology for downloading podcasts and to listen to files at one’s convenience.
This opens up the new educational potential of using unproductive time for learning
(McCarty, 2005).

Research into the student reaction to podcasting is still in progress but early
indications from student feedback collected so far and analysis of course tracking
suggest that the podcasts were highly appreciated and extensively used by students.
The podcasts were frequently downloaded, and students reported listening to each
several times over both for the listening practice they provided as well as for their
entertainment or informational value. The reason why learners were free to choose
podcasts for themselves was to enable them to self-assess their listening abilities
individually. The idea was to motivate learners in the future to develop listening
comprehension skills without the threat of teacher evaluation. The non-threatening
practice may help learners who dread taking risks and who will enjoy some success
in individual listening.

Collective listening to records in class differs from individual listening to podcasts

in many aspects. The teacher can give students work in pairs or small groups,
listening themes are brainstormed, essential vocabulary is generated, students do
various exercises before the listening procedure, e.g. matching vocabulary items
with their definitions, predicting the contents or the details of the recorded material,
etc.

Listening autonomously in one’s spare time ensures independence of the learner’s

judgment of one’s performance and helps develop a critical approach to the
evaluation of success or failure in the activity. Also, there is an opportunity for
improving listening skills from reading transcripts as a follow-up exercise. A fruitful
idea of learning from transcripts was applied and discussed by T. Lynch (2007).

Research Methodology
According to Helgesen (2003, p.24) stated that listening is a purposeful
process of making sense of what we hear. More often we hear, more we can
understand something. Sloan (2005) Podcasting is one of an innovative way of
broadcasting through the internet and also it can be used for transferring digital
audio content automatically to mobile phones. The benefits of pronunciation were
explained in the study of Trofimovich, Lightbown, Halter, and Song (2009:632), as
cited in Borges 2010) that researched two groups. The experimental group followed
a comprehension- based program and the second was still a typical learning
language program. Also, Yonezawa and Ware (2008, cited in Borges 2010) carry
out an extensive listening study using six university classes. They did pre- and post-
listening tests plus two surveys.

Gromik (2008, p.47) claims that podcasting provides learners with "full access to
authentic resources" in non-English speaking contexts. This finding is verified from
the research finding which was conducted by the previous researches Morris (2010)
that podcasts can be a way to help students in listening comprehension. The listeners
can be more imaginative because they have to use their imagination and build
pictures of who and what they are listening to in their heads.

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In completing the data, the researcher uses field research. In the field research, the
researcher researches to the students of grade eleven of SMA 1 MAJA. The
researcher gives pre-test and posttest. In the post-test, the researcher gives a
questionnaire to know the students' listening habits. This research aims at finding
out an actual description and to prove the hypothesis whether the use of podcast
media in teaching could improve students' listening skills, especially in
pronunciation. Hence, in collecting the data, the researcher gives the pre-test and
post-test, which were given to this experimental group.

Data Collecting Technique

Below is a further explanation of how data collection is done.

1. Pre-Test
A pre-test was conducted to measure the initial performance of the students
the researchers requested all participants to listen to a podcast talk very carefully
with the topic "The Benefits of Technology". When they listened to a podcast talk,
they were allowed to jot down every detail information that was delivered by the
speaker. Then, the researchers asked them one by one to retell the podcast in a book.

2. Questionnaire
The first questionnaire dealt with the aim of how far students understand about
understanding pronunciation with the podcast. The researcher makes a questionnaire
to students and the interferential statistics are used to answer the following
questions:

1. Are there any difficulties understanding the pronunciation of new words that
have never been heard?
2. How is students' achievement in listening skills using podcasts or other tools?
3. Whether there is the interaction of listening in learning media and different
listening habit
4. Whether there is a difference of listening using media podcast and media
audio-visual
5. Whether there is a misunderstanding of spelling words in Podcast?
6. Play twice of the podcast. Stop and predict what you will hear next. Were you
correct to answer questions?
7. Is podcasting videos are most interested in by students?
8. Will students continue to listen to podcasts extensively in the future?

3. Participants
The population of this research consists of 180 students of grade eleven at
SMA 1 MAJA and consisting of 6 classes. To determine the sample of this
research, the writer used Cluster Random Sampling. The number of students that
participated in this research is about 60 students divided into two classes each class
consisting of 30 students in as experimental class and control class.

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Research Finding and Discussion
The podcast was effective in the post-test score of the experimental class
which is given Podcast media was better than the score of control class which does
not give Podcast media. The same result also reported by Ahmed (2016) in which
the participants of the experimental group using English Podcasts performed better
than the participant's control group in learning English, especially in listening
comprehension.

This study was aimed at finding out whether the use of podcast media in teaching
can improve students' listening skills, especially in pronunciation. When researchers
have done analyzing all data, it was revealed that this research supported the
alternative hypothesis. As described in their research background, they could not
express ideas, speak fluently, use the right structures, lack of producing appropriate
vocabulary and produce correct pronunciation.

However, after doing several treatments, it showed the previous problems

encountered by the students was solved, especially their pronunciation became
better. Previously they made mistakes, but after they had rehearsed to reconstruct
podcasts every week during treatment sessions, several students showed satisfactory
progress in certain aspects.

For example, in the pre-test, several students produced incorrect pronunciation. This
situation was similar to the evidence that was found by Mohammad Zadeh (2010, p.
1193) that podcast materials can boost students' motivation and help them become
more responsible, independent and confident.

Thus, since podcast is one of the authentic material and a real language which is
produced by a native speaker, so the students can imitate the way how the native
speaks the real language. It is believed that podcast media could enhance students' in
building critical thinking, comprehension, and expanding vocabulary and it is more
enjoyable while the students can read a text and listen at the same time.

This pre-experimental research found that there is an improvement in the students

'speaking skill by using the podcast. This improvement can be seen from the results
of the pre-test and post-test. Table 1 below illustrates the result of the students' pre-
test and post-test and the differences between them.

I. Table1. Data of Students’ Pre-test and Post-test

No. Name Pre Test Post Test

1 AN 65 80
2 AS 45 70
3 CP 75 90
4 DPS 55 75
5 DN 65 65
6 DM 60 70
7 ER 60 70
8 FM 65 80
9 IR 60 70

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10 GH 55 60
11 HF 55 70
12 KYH 55 70
13 DKS 75 90
14 MS 60 70
15 RZ 40 65
16 TN 45 70
17 DC 60 70
18 DV 70 70
19 DK 65 55
20 PCY 55 85
21 DY 45 65
22 YM 55 65
23 JK 50 70
24 MN 55 60
25 NI 60 55
26 JA 55 70
27 SB 60 75
28 YP 55 60
29 FT 75 70
30 JW 55 70

Ʃx1= Ʃx2=
Total
1750 2115
x̄ 1= 58.3 x̄ 2= 70.5

Table 1 above shows the result score of pre-test and post-test and the differences. It
can be interpreted that the highest score of the pre-test was 75 and the lowest score
was 40, the total score of the pre-test session was 1750, and the mean score was
58.3.
In the same way, the table above shows that the lowest score of the post-test was 55
and the highest score was 90, and the total score of the pre-test session was 2115,
and the average score was 70.5. Hence, it can be concluded that the students’ post-
test scores were higher than the students’ pre-test scores.

II. The Result of Listening Aspects in the Pre-test and the Post-test
In teaching listening, there are several aspects required to be mastered by students
such as grammar, fluency, accuracy, vocabulary, and pronunciation. However, the
researchers limited to focusing on improving students' fluency and pronunciation
aspects. Figure 1 below present further information about listening aspect scores.

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 PRE-TEST & POST TEST

90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
fluency fluency pronunciation pronunciation

Figure 1. Listening Aspects Improvement

Figure 1 above shows that the students had significant improvement in both aspects
(fluency and pronunciation). Regarding-test, the total score of the students’ fluency
58. Then, after doing several treatments for subjects of this research, the score of
this aspect has increased 23 points to 81 in the post-test.
Participants gain score 64 in the pre-test and score 84 in the post-test. They could
increase 20 points from 64 to 84. Indeed, it illustrates the significant improvement of
the pronunciation aspect reached.

II. The Results of the Questionnaire Given to Students Regarding Listening

Using Podcasts

No. Questions Yes No

1. Are there any difficulties
understanding the pronunciation
of new words that have never √
been heard?

2. Is a podcast is a good way to

increase listening habit? √

3. Whether there is the interaction of

listening in learning media and √
different listening habit?

4. Whether there is a difference of

listening using media podcast and

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 media audio-visual √

5. Whether there is a
misunderstanding of spelling √
words in Podcast?

6. Play twice of the podcast. Stop

and predict what you will hear √
next. Were you correct to answer
questions?

7. Is podcasting videos are most

interested in by students? √

8. Will students continue to listen

to podcasts extensively in the √
future?

IV. The result of how many students answered with the choice Yes or
No

Questions Yes No
1. Are there any
difficulties 150 30
understanding the
pronunciation of
new words that
have never been
heard?

2. Is podcast is good
way to increase 145 35
listening habit?

3. Whether there is
the interaction of 100 80
listening in learning
media and different
listening habit?

4. Whether there is a
difference of 80 100
listening using
media podcast and
media audio-visual

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 5. Whether there is a
misunderstanding 100 80
of spelling words
in Podcast?

6. Play twice of the

podcast. Stop and 110 70
predict what you
will hear next.
Were you correct
to answer
questions?
7. Is podcasting
videos are most 120 60
interested in by
students?

8. Will students
continue to listen 90 90
to podcasts
extensively in the
future?

The questionnaire was given to the students in SMA 1 MAJA consists of 180students
of grade eleven at SMA 1 MAJA and consisting of 6 classes. They already answer it.

The results of all questions shows:

1. In number one, many students still feel difficulties in understanding
pronunciation especially for the words that they are didn’t know before. The
results show that 150 students still difficulties. And 30 students answer no
which means that 30 students have potential.
2. In number two, there are 145 students had answered that using podcasts to
listening is a good way. And 35 students answered no.
3. In number three, 100 students answered yes and another side 80 students
answered no for the question ”Whether there is the interaction of listening in
learning media and different listening habits?”
4. In number four, 80 students have done answered yes and 100 students
answered no for the difference between podcast and audiovisuals
5. In number five, the misunderstanding of spelling words that 100 students yes
and 80 students answered no.
6. In number six, of the questionnaire show that 110 students answered yes and
70 students answered no.
7. The answered shows that podcasting videos are more interesting 120 students
answered that and 60 students answered no.
8. The last question the score shows that 90 students will be interested in
listening to podcasts more often in the future and 90 others will not.

33
Conclusion
Based on the results obtained by researchers when conducting tests given to
students, researchers know several weaknesses and strengths that exist in students
when using this podcast method. Almost all students have difficulty using past tense
and interrogatives. The result shows that the highest score of the pre-test was 75 and
the post-test was 90. Given this point, applying podcast media in teaching listening
showed a positive result in assisting students to improve speaking performance
especially pronunciation and fluency. Based on for questions of a questionnaire that
students was answered it shows that there are many students are interested with the
podcast and they will listen to podcast more often in the future and there are many
students not interest with the podcast.

Podcasting offers the opportunity for lecturers to easily broadcast engaging audio
content, which students can then listen to at any time and wherever they are. Many
learning institutions that have incorporated podcasting in their education system,
have reported positive results. This can be attributed to the ease of creating podcasts
as well as the various ways in which education podcasts enhance the students'
learning experience. There are a lot of advantages of podcasting in education and
this one way can increase students listening skills.

Based on the findings of this research, the researchers would like to propose some
suggestions. For teachers, this media is appropriate to be implemented in the
classroom. This helps teachers to improve students' speaking skills and to provide
correct teaching materials. Nowadays, teachers do not need to worry about how to
provide suitable material for teaching. There are many materials available on the
internet. Thus, the podcast is recommended for a teacher in solving problems, for
example finding out appropriate material for students. The teachers only need to
download it for good. There are a ton of podcast materials stored in what is called
the internet which is free to download.

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