CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

A. The Background of Research

Writing, an important part of language competence, is a tool to develop our

ability in absorbing the information from the reading sources into writing sources. It

can convey the communication process clearer than speaking. When we learn a

second language, we learn to communicate with other people: to understand them,

talk to them, read what they have written and write to them.

Writing as a productive skill has a big relation to the mind activities. Through

writing we can not only communicate our ideas but also improve our writing skill.

Writing is different from speaking, although both writing and speaking are productive

skills, writing is more complex than speaking.

Writing need some competences to determine the end of products such as;

unity of ideas competence, clear and effective sentence usage competence, well

paragraph constructed competence, as well as vocabulary mastery competence.

Learning to write is not just a "natural" extension of learning to speak a

language. It needs standard forms of grammar, syntax and vocabulary. Besides, we

should rely on the words on the page to express the meaning using punctuation and

spells.

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Writing is one of the criteria to show that you are illiterate member. Writing is

not only used to convey the message, but also it can keep our memory when we are

sad, joy, fulfillment etc. Today, writing becomes an important play in the academic

life.

Writing for Senior High School students has to be one of the additional

subjects after the main subjects. To get satisfying result of students' writing ability,

the teacher can use many methods in teaching writing. The method can be peer

editing which reinforces students to assess, advice, comment and compliment their

peer. Their students' peer is their classmate which controlled by teacher.

Teacher can motivate students to write well using peer editing. Peer is also

defined as a student reviews or edits their friends. They will give many comments or

compliments on peers’ writing. It can improve students to think and make a good

writing.

For some years now, peer editing has been put forward as an effective strategy

to be used in developing skill in self-expression and composition in both first

language and second language. It has generally been assumed that students, when

working together, are able to help one another and provide input for each other on the

issue under discussion.

Peer editing or peer review is good method in estimating students' ability in

writing. For the writer, peer editing sessions offer time in the classroom to check in

with individual students to help the writer consider how I can best help them in later

private conferences. It has been suggested elsewhere that peer review becomes most
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successful if it is integrated into the writing course, so that from the beginning of the

term students are aware of writing for peers as well as teacher audiences.

Peer editing or peer review does not work well unless it is orchestrated

carefully. Think about one of the writing projects you developed from

“investigations” section in earlier. Remind yourself for what student level and course

type you were planning your writing assignment.

Generally, students in Senior High School should be able to write well in their

native language. It can help them to gather knowledge and information they get in a

book. Writing is a nice tool to get information from our ideas throughout the letters

on the paper, computer, blackboard etc. It can also show the priority in our society.

Some people assume that writing is hard. It is like swimming, we try to swim

if we have the head of water or someone teaches us how to swim well. We try to

write of course if we have a member of illiterate society or someone teaches us.

Writing problems are very important to be known because it can solve much problem.

The quality of writing can be seen from students writing products. It

sometimes does not have coherent among each sentences and paragraphs. Students

will find difficulties in doing writing. If they know, writing can be done by them

wherever and whenever. It does not need many requirements to write well. They

should read first from many sources (book, magazine, newspaper, bulletin etc), and

after reading they can try to write down what they have. Too many reading sources

can make students easy to write, because they have many ideas.
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Many reasons stated that writing helps students learn, such as:

First, writing reinforces the grammatical structures, idioms, and vocabulary

that we have been teaching our students. Second, when our students write,
they also have a chance to be adventurous with the language, to go beyond
what they have just learned to say, to take risks. Third, when they write, they
necessarily become very involved with the new language; the effort to express
ideas and the constant use of eye, hand, and brain is a unique way to reinforce
learning.1

This research is trying to increase students’ ability in writing, especially in

descriptive text. The writer takes descriptive text as field of research because this

kind of text is very simple to do. Every student can do it well and fast. Descriptive

text can be a diary, biography, telling something truth on their daily life or telling

what they have such as experience, story, knowledge even accident in their life.

This research will help students improve their writing. The writer is sure that

students can be easy to write because the writer uses new method in teaching writing

in the class. The writer gives peer editing method. Peer editing is a fun activity if the

students can understand it. In this method the students are asked to give comment,

suggest, compliment, or changed their peers. This will reflect to students writing in

the end of class.

In academic life, writing must be a daily activity to improve teachers,

lecturers as well as students’ skill. It can be fun to do because writing has an

important play in strengthening information through writing activity.

1
Ann Raimes, Techniques in Teaching Writing, (New York: Oxford University Press,
1983), p. 3
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In this good occasion the writer is interested in taking the title:

“DEVELOPING STUDENTS’ DESCRIPTIVE TEXT WRITING SKILL

THROUGH PEER EDITING (A Classroom Action Research at Class XI-

IPA-3 of SMA Negeri 4 Kota Serang)” as his research for “Sarjana Pendidikan”

degree.

B. The Statement of Research

Based on the background of research above, the writer makes statement of

research as follows:

1. How can peer editing develop students’ descriptive text writing skill?

C. The Objectives of Research

This research is conducted in order to develop students’ descriptive text

writing skill. The students will get their friends as their editors what they have done

in descriptive text writing. After giving the lesson to the students about descriptive

text, they are expected to be able to edit, give suggestion, comment and compliment

to their peers. The research is specifically carried out at second grade of SMA Negeri

4 Kota Serang year 2010/2011.

D. The Hypothesis

Peer editing can develop students’ descriptive text writing skill.

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E. The Organization of Writing

The writer divides this research into five chapters, they are:

Chapter I Introduction; consists of the Background of Research, the

Statement of Research, the Objectives of Research, the Hypothesis, and the

Organization of Writing.

Chapter II Theoretical Framework; consists of Definition of Writing,

Types of Classroom Writing Performance, Definition of Peer Editing, Using Peer

Editing in Classroom and Definition of Descriptive Text.

Chapter III Methodology of Research; consists of Research Method, Place

and Time, Population and Sample, The Techniques of Collecting Data, and

Technique of Analyzing Data.

Chapter IV The Result of Research; consists of Data Description and Data

Interpretation.

Chapter V Closing; consists of Conclusion and Suggestions.