The Problems of English Teaching Process at High School Levels and Its Solutions

In general, they state that it can not be assumed to succeed. The English comprehension of the graduation is lower than expected. It makes universities in Indonesia give English courses for their new students. This effort is also not succeed because the students have not mastered the bases of English well. We have to confess that there is something wrong in English teaching process at high school levels.

It is possible if there are some problems in foreign language teaching process, especially English. The writer tries to show some problems and give some solutions or concrete plans in English teaching process at high school levels. There are at least four problems such as number of students in the class, professionalism of the teachers, the frequency of meeting, and the environment.

First of all, the problem in English teaching process is the quantity of students. We should be aware that every teaching process has their own characteristic. The English teaching process can not be equalized to the process of teaching Geography, Mathematics, Biology, etc. In learning English, the students are hoped to master the bases of English. In this case, the teachers have double jobs. They have to make their students understand some vocabulary and sentence structures of English well. On the other hand, they have to make their students practice their English. The first job can be done among large number of students, but it can not be done in the second job. We should consider how to teach and evaluate conversation, listening, and reading effectively among large number of students. The teachers should form the quantity of students in small numbers to get better result. For instance, the private English institutions have done it. They usually arrange their students in the small classes and it is succeed.

The second problem is the professionalism of the teachers. The students usually think that the teachers are their rolemodel and they know every thing about English. As a rolemodel, the teachers should have good qualifications. First, they have to speak English well. It is a must. What will happen if they have to learn from bad role model? Second, the teachers should master English well. It relates to the utterances, grammars, vocabularies, cultures, and every thing about English. The native speakers of English who do not comprehend English well are not allowed to teach. If it is done, it will be a risk. They will make a lot of mistakes in giving explanations and make students confused. It is necessary to have an intuitive knowledge of the subject to be taught (Robinett, 1980:xi). If they are hoped to master English well, consequently it also must be done by non-native speakers of English. Non-native speakers of English should join TEFL (Teaching English as Foreign Language) training. It will make them to be professional teacher. Mastering English knowledge is a must and can not be bargained.