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Home Archives for April 2011

April 29, 2011

The Most Common Questions in Psycholinguistics

Language acquisition and how to answer the most common questions in psycholinguistics
1. What is the difference between language acquisition and language learning?

Language acquisition is the process of acquiring a language in a natural situation instead of a formal-classroom. The situation is similar to that in which the native language is learned. The language is experienced in conjunction with the objects, situations, and events of everyday life. Children’s ability in language acquisition is considered to be better than adults’. Example: Children’s acquisition of a first language, native language, or mother tongue.

Language learning is the process of learning a formal and standard language through formal-classroom teaching. Unlike in language acquisition, adults’ ability in language learning is better than children’s. Example: Learning a second language or a foreign language at schools.


2. What factors can influence people in second-language acquisition and learning?

a. Psychological factors;
i. The intellectual process (our mind affects the speed of learning), which is involved in the determination of grammatical structures and rules. Learning second-language rules and structures can be done in two ways, i.e.; explication, and induction.

ii. Memory, which is essential for learning to occur. The learning of even the simplest words requires memory.

iii. Motor skills, which involve the use of the articulators of speech (tongue, lips, vocal, etc.). Good pronunciation, which is related to the ability to control the organs of speech, is clearly an essential part of learning a foreign language.

b. Social factors, which include situations, settings, and interactions.
i. Learning in a natural setting / natural situation. The language is experienced in conjunctions with the objects, situations and events of everyday life. Children have been known to learn better and faster than adults in this situation, because they are not afraid of making mistakes, and they receive more exposure compared to adults. Their speech organs are still flexible. Examples: A child of four years who lives with his parents in an English-speaking country, or a TKW who learns the Arabic during her employment in Saudi Arabia.

ii. Learning in the classroom. The classroom for second-language learning is planned, and the situation is artificial. In general, adults learn better than children in this situation. Adults can concentrate and pay attention better than children. Examples; Students who learn a second or foreign language at schools.


3. Which is better, learning a second language in actual settings or in a classroom?

The answer depends much on the learners’ psychological factors. Actual settings, in which there is more induction, will be more effective than classroom situations when teaching a second language to young children due to children’s psychological characteristics in learning a language. Children learn faster and better than adults in this situation. They are not afraid of making mistakes, and their speech organs are still flexible.

Classroom teaching is more effective when applied to adults due to their ability in reasoning, concentrating, and paying attention to verbal explanation (explication), especially when teaching a standard language which involves lots of grammatical structures and rules such as in schools or universities.

As for the English-language teaching in our country, since it is quite difficult to find an actual situation, which is really as actual as that in an English-speaking country, teachers are advised to create a natural situation in a classroom by emphasizing on the role of story, role play, puppet activity, model-making and so on. Having a very important role, teachers’ basic competence in the language and in teaching methodology is undoubtedly essential.


4. What factors bring failure in learning English as a foreign language in Indonesia?

a. The education system in Indonesia which still emphasizes on the accomplishment of curriculum rather than students' competence.

b. Classes, which usually consist of more than 40 students, are too big to teach.

c. Unavailability of proper, adequate and sufficient materials, such as books, or language laboratory and other visual aids.

d. Teachers’ incompetence and lack of commitment in teaching.

e. The applied teaching methods are inadequate and out-of-date.

f. Students’ motivation is usually low. This has to do with parents’ role in motivating their children, which is sometimes low.


5. What is the difference between a second language and a foreign language?

A second language is a language that is acquired after the first.
Example; Indonesian children’s second language is mostly the Indonesian language, which is learned and acquired after the first language, - their mother tongue.

A foreign language is a language that comes from another country and is not spoken as a native language by the native people.
Example: English, Japanese, French, and German are foreign languages in Indonesia.

April 28, 2011

Similar Words & Phrases

Category
In learning English, we often have difficulty using or determining the correct words or phrases. It is easy to confuse words that have similar meanings, similar spellings, or similar sounds. However, these words CANNOT be interchanged.

Here, you will learn similar words or phrases in the English language that you should anticipate, especially when you want to take the TOEFL or TOEIC tests.
AcceptAccedeExceptExpect
AdviseAdviceAdvisoryAdvisable
AffectEffectAffectionEffective
BesideBesidesBetweenAmong
BorrowLendLoanLease
BringTakeCarryFetch
ClothClothesClothingClothe
ComeGoLeaveLeave for
ContinuousContinualContinouslyContinually
DevelopExpandElaborateEnhance
EqualSameSimilarMatch
FairlyEnoughVeryToo
GroundSoilEarthFloor
GrowGrow upImproveIncrease
LayLieSleepAsleep
LoseLooseLostLoss
MoneyCashCurrencyFund
ObtainEarnWin Achieve
PassPastPath Passage
PersonnelPersonalPersonally Personality
PrettyBeautifulHandsomeGood-looking
RaiseRiseElevateAscend
RememberRemindRecollectMemory
SayTellSpeakTalk
TravelCommuteGoJourney
WearUseBe Used toUsed to

April 17, 2011

"Indonesia Raya" Versi Tiga Stanza Lebih Menggugah?

Lagu kebangsaan Indonesia Raya Versi Tiga Stanza
S
uatu pagi, saat iseng mendengarkan MP3 Indonesia Raya 3 Stanza, saya merasa tertarik saat mengetahui lagu kebangsaan kita ini ternyata memiliki versi lain yaitu 3 stanza yang lebih lengkap. Selain Stanza 1 seperti yang kita kenal sekarang, masih ada dua (2) Stanza lagi. Berikut ini Lirik modern Indonesia Raya hasil Google Search dari http://id.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indonesia_Raya

INDONESIA RAYA

I. Indonesia tanah airku,
Tanah tumpah darahku,
Di sanalah aku berdiri,
Jadi pandu ibuku.

Indonesia kebangsaanku,
Bangsa dan tanah airku,
Marilah kita berseru,
Indonesia bersatu.

Hiduplah tanahku,
Hiduplah neg'riku,
Bangsaku, Rakyatku, semuanya,
Bangunlah jiwanya,
Bangunlah badannya,
Untuk Indonesia Raya.

II. Indonesia, tanah yang mulia,
Tanah kita yang kaya,
Di sanalah aku berdiri,
Untuk s'lama-lamanya.

Indonesia, tanah pusaka,
P'saka kita semuanya,
Marilah kita mendoa,
Indonesia bahagia.

Suburlah tanahnya,
Suburlah jiwanya,
Bangsanya, Rakyatnya, semuanya,
Sadarlah hatinya,
Sadarlah budinya,
Untuk Indonesia Raya.

III. Indonesia, tanah yang suci,
Tanah kita yang sakti,
Di sanalah aku berdiri,
N'jaga ibu sejati.

Indonesia, tanah berseri,
Tanah yang aku sayangi,
Marilah kita berjanji,
Indonesia abadi.

S'lamatlah rakyatnya,
S'lamatlah putranya,
Pulaunya, lautnya, semuanya,
Majulah Neg'rinya,
Majulah pandunya,
Untuk Indonesia Raya.

(Refrain:)
Indonesia Raya,
Merdeka, merdeka,
Tanahku, neg'riku yang kucinta!
Indonesia Raya,
Merdeka, merdeka,
Hiduplah Indonesia Raya.


Kita bisa melihat bahwa Stanza pertama bernafaskan persatuan, stanza kedua bernafaskan rasa syukur kepada Tuhan YME dan ketiga janji untuk menjaga Indonesia tetap abadi. Menurut saya pribadi, Stanza 2 dan 3 memiliki makna yang lebih menekankan pada pembangunan akhlak dan budi pekerti, serta jauh lebih menyentuh daripada Stanza 1 yang selalu kita nyanyikan selama ini. Ada beberapa potong kalimat atau bait yang menurut saya teramat sayang untuk dilupakan begitu saja. Misal, pada Stanza 2.
"Indonesia, tanah yang mulia,
Tanah kita yang kaya,
Di sanalah aku berdiri,
Untuk s'lama-lamanya."
Bait ini mengingatkan kita bahwa negara kita adalah negara yang kaya. Adalah suatu ironi jika sampai sekarang sebagian besar rakyat kita masih hidup di bawah garis kemiskinan, dan sebagian lagi harus mengais rejeki hingga ke negri orang. Saya bertanya-tanya, jika selalu kita nyanyikan sampai sekarang, mampukah bait tersebut menggugah semangat kita untuk berjuang dengan lebih keras demi menghapus kemiskinan di negeri kita yang tercinta ini, tanpa harus lari ke negeri orang hanya untuk mencari sesuap nasi?

Masih di Stanza 2:
"Indonesia, tanah pusaka,
P'saka kita semuanya,
Marilah kita mendoa,
Indonesia bahagia."
Bait ini mengingatkan kita bahwa tanah-air kita adalah pusaka bagi seluruh rakyat Indonesia, bukan milik sebagian kalangan tertentu saja. Kekayaan alam harus diolah sebagai "pusaka" bagi seluruh rakyat, bukan untuk dimanipulasi para pejabat demi kantong dan perut sendiri. Bait ini juga mengingatkan kita sebagai umat beragama untuk selalu berdoa kepada Allah SWT. Lagi-lagi saya bertanya-tanya dan berandai-andai. Andai selalu kita nyanyikan, mungkinkah bait di atas menyadarkan para pejabat kita agar bersikap amanah dalam mengelola kekayaan negara demi kesejahteraan rakyat? Di satu sisi, rakyat sebagai umat beragama juga menjadi lebih santun dan arif ketika menghadapi suatu masalah dan menghindari cara-cara anarki seperti yang selama ini sering kita lihat dalam berbagai unjuk rasa.

Resapi juga lirik bait ketiga:
"... Sadarlah hatinya,
Sadarlah budinya,
Untuk Indonesia Raya."
Lirik di atas sangat pas dengan kondisi bangsa kita selama ini. Meski akhir-akhir ini pengintegrasian budi pekerti dalam kurikulum pembelajaran di sekolah semakin berkembang, betapa seringnya kita meninggalkan budi-pekerti dari perilaku kehidupan sehari-hari? Saya jadi teringat betapa banyak kasus, mulai dari kejahatan perbankan tingkat tinggi, perpajakan, hingga pungli di terminal dan jalanan yang sebenarnya berawal dari hilangnya kesadaran diri sebagai mahluk Allah SWT, serta semakin punahnya budi pekerti dalam perilaku keseharian kita. Kenyamanan dan kemewahan hingga tuntutan kehidupan modern rupanya telah benar-benar membutakan kita, sehingga kita lupa ke mana kita akan berpulang nanti. Dan ... lagi-lagi saya berandai-andai, andai kita selalu menyanyikan bait di atas, mampukah sepotong bait itu menggugah kesadaran kita sebagai manusia beragama yang selalu mengedepankan etika dan budi pekerti dalam berperilaku?

Bait ketiga dalam Stanza 3:
"S'lamatlah rakyatnya,
S'lamatlah putranya,
Pulaunya, lautnya, semuanya, ...."
Kalimat tersebut adalah doa tulus yang terpanjat demi keselamatan rakyat Indonesia, pulau-pulau serta laut dan kekayaan alam Indonesia dari segala ancaman dan marabahaya. Betapa banyak bencana, mulai dari lumpur Lapindo hingga banjir bandang yang berawal dari kelalaian dan keserakahan kita dalam mengelola sumber daya alam? Ratusan hektar hutan telah habis digunduli oleh para mafia kayu, yang tingkat kerakusannya jauh melebihi binatang bernama rayap yang paling rakus sekalipun. Ratusan rumah juga telah tenggelam di dasar danau lumpur yang berawal dari kelalaian pengelola bisnis yang ingin menekan biaya instalasi tanpa memikirkan dampak bagi lingkungan sekitar. Juga karena kelalaian kita, pulau Sipadan dan Ligitan terlepas dari pangkuan ibu pertiwi. Dan sekali lagi dan lagi ... saya berandai-andai, andai saja kita selalu menyanyikan Stanza 3, akan "lebih" selamatkah rakyat dan negara kita?

Dalam teori motivasi, kita mengenal adanya The Power of Repetition, yaitu sesuatu hal yang diucapkan berulang-ulang sebagai affirmatif atau penguatan bagi dirinya dan diharapkan menjadi drive untuk mencapai suatu sasaran, seperti yang dilakukan perusahaan-perusahaan di Jepang pada umumnya untuk meningkatkan kinerja. Bukankah lagu kebangsaan Indonesia Raya yang kita nyanyikan berulang-ulang hampir di setiap upacara seharusnya bisa menjadi pendorong untuk memperbaiki akhlak dan budi pekerti bangsa kita?