Improving Students’ Skill in Writing Recount Text Using Pictures

This article discusses the result of an action research which is aimed at improving students’ skill in writing recount text using pictures. The objectives of the research are (1) to find out whether the use of picture can improve students’ skill in writing recount texts; (2) to describe the students’ itensity while picture is applied in writing class; and (3) to investigate the advantages and disadvantages of the use of pictures to improve students’ skill in writing recount text. This research was carried out at one state junior high school in Sokaraja. The method used in this research was classroom action research. To collect the qualiatative data, the researcher used questionaire, observation, interview,and photograph. In collecting the quantitative data, the researcher used pre-test and post-test. The research was conducted in two cycles, in which the first cycle consists of three cycles and the second cycles consists of three cycles. Both the qualitative and quantitaive data were analyzed to answer the problem statement above. Qualitative data were analyzed by using 5 steps suggested by Burns (1999:157- 160) as follows: assembling the data, coding the data, comparing the data, building interpretation, and reporting the outcomes. Meanwhile, the quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. In counting the students’ test score, the researcher used the writing scoring rubric for evaluating recount writing. The result of the research shows that: (1) the use of pictures can improve students’ skill in writing recount texts, (2) the improvements of the students’ intensity while picture is applied are the students had high motivation to join the teaching and learning process and they had good spirit to learn English while the picture is applied in writing class, and (3) advantages and disadvantages of pictures to improve students’ skill in writing recount text, for example: pictures gives more interest and motivation to the students in teaching and learning process and gives them stimulus about certain topic to brainstorm the students so that they can write with detail information as what is presented in the picture.