This document summarizes a study on teaching writing to 8th grade students using picture-based methods. It found that: 1) Students taught writing using pictures as a medium showed greater improvement in their writing abilities compared to students taught without pictures, with their average scores increasing over 10 points versus 6 points for the control group. 2) A t-test analysis found a statistically significant difference between the experimental and control groups, indicating that using pictures was an effective way to teach writing. 3) By looking at pictures, students were better able to arrange words and sentences for writing assignments compared to relying solely on textbooks.

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The Teaching of Picture-Based Writing to The Eighth Grade Junior High
School Students of SMP N 1 Purwodadi in Academic Year 2011/2012
By
Nunung Dwi Oktavia
Resumed by : Umie Listiyorini
ABSTRACT
Writing is one of four importants language skills. Most of students get difficulties
in learning writing. The teacher can not make their writing classes more interesting to
stimulate the students to improve their ability. Teaching writing will be much more
easier if use media. One of them is picture. Picture is a drawing of some simple action,
object, or something that is shown. The writer uses pictures as the media of teaching
learning writing. The students will arrange word by word and sentence by sentence
easily by looking at the picture.
Key words : Based Writing, Picture. Student’s Ability
INTRODUCTION
Writing is one of four importants language skills. Learning writing can used the
audio visual and the visual aid. One of the visual aids that can be used in learning
writing is pictures. Pictures are used to remind us of a real life experience or to suggest
such an experience to us. They can help the students associate what they hear real life
experience.
There are still many English teachers who just focus on task book that they use to
teach. They jus ask the students to answer the question that is on the task book. If the
teacher does it every day, the students will be bored. The effect is classess will be noisy
and the teaching learning will not become maximal. The teacher should select the

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creative ways to make the classes more enjoy and the students will stay pay attention.
One of them is using pictures as media in teaching writing.
This study investigated the writing ability of the studens who are taught by using
pictures, the writing ability of the students who are taught without using pictures and
the significant difference in writing ability between students who are taught by using
pictures and without using pictures.
REVIEW OF THE RELATED LITERATURE
A. Writing
Writing is one of four basic language skills and writing is difficult. So, it
should be introduced to students from elementary school age. It is an important as
other skills. Skills of language are related to another. Definition of writing can be
same in any language. Generally, it is a written form to express something in which
there are many rules to build it. Vorak (1986), Kraples (1990), and Silva (1993)
suggest both first and second language writing involve essentially similar process,
but that second language writing is complexitified by the addition of new resources
and norm (Kern, 2000:177).
Writing is same with other language skills that gives benefits. Writing has its
own important values for both writers and readers. Reinking (1991:4) categorizes
four general writing purposes. That are to inform, to persuade, to express ourselves
and to entertain.
The result of wriing activity can be an enduring work in many forms. It can be
read by next generation. F course, it depends on the quality, quantity, and kind of
writing. There are kind of writing based on the design model. The various of it s
form are letter writing, journal writing, free writing, creative writing, overt
instruction, and mapping.
Hedge (2003:21-23) states at least there are three elements of writing that has
to master in writing. The three elements are :
1. Pre-writing

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2. Writing and rewriting
3. Editing
B. Media
According to Azhar Asyar (2005:3), definition of media came from Latin
language “medius” which middle, mediator or agent. In definition, teacher,
textbook, and schol environments are media. Especially, definition of media in the
teaching learning process is more to be meant as tools, grapics, photograph, or
electronics, to catch, to process and rearange visual and vrbal information.
Hamalik (1989) in Azhar asyad 91995) atates that the using teaching media in
the teaching learning process can rise new ddesire and draw interest, rise
motivation, and stimulus in learning activity, and event it can give psychologist
effects towards the students. The using of teaching learning in the orientation level
will help the effectiveness of teaching process and conveying information and
lesson content very much in the same time. Except rising motivation and students’
interest, teaching media can also help the students to increase understanding, to
present the data attractively and accurately, to facilitate the data explanation and
stuff the information.
C. Picture
The use of picture can give a great help to the teacher in the class. A picture
that suggests a story or a situation can be very valuable in the language class.
Picture is not new thing in the instructional word. It is a thing to convey idea.
Picture are usually in color of black and white. A teacher should be able to select
picture that will be more appropiate.
Finocchiaro (1974 : 101-102) state that the using of pictures in teaching is first,
to give more varied practice, pictures of boy, girls, men, and woman can be placed
one behind the other and pictures of means of transportation can also be stacked.
Second, situational picture should be used to stimulate ideas for the “freer”
composition we discussed.

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Picture can play an important role in teaching learning process. Not only in that
matter of writing, but also structure pronounciation and vocabulary. It will help the
students master the material that is presented by the teacher.
Picture used in formal instrument, however, it should be simple, clean, easily
seen the class and have one main point. Picture used for instrumental must be big
enough to be a great help to the teacher in the class. It can use by teachers during
teaching-learning process to support the presentation of the material by emphasizing
the student’s visual sense. Pictures are very simple visual aids. We can get the
pictures everywhere. We can get them from books, magazine, newspapers,
calenders, etc.
Picture can be used as media for making writing especially writing describtive
text. For example, the students are asked to write about camel. Without any picture
of the material, they will get difficulty in writing sentences or paragraph about
camel. Because the students many need a long time to remember the things in detail
for them. With using pictures, it can help students to identify the characteristic of
the camel and then make some sentences easily.
There are board function of visual material for writing activity. Those are :
• To motivate the students
• To create a meaningful conext
• To provide the students with information to refer to including objects, actions,
and event relationship.
• To provide non-verbal for relationship
• To provide non-verbal prompt to written composition.
From some functions above, picture has advantages to students. It does not
only help the students in creating in text, but also stimulate their idea and helps
them to write the object specifically.
METHOD OF THE RESEARCH
A. Design of The Research

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The writer applies experiment-quantitative method. Hyland (2002 : 170) sates
that “experimental methods are often used to investigate the language behaviour of
sample groups under controlled condition” an experiment is conducted in order to
know the effect of treatment.
According to Nunan (1993 :10), some characteristic of good experimental
research are :
1. Systematic
Does the study follow clear procedural rules?
2. Logical
Does the study proceed in a clear step-by-step fashion, from question formation
to data collection and analysis?
3. Tangiable
Are data collected from the real world?
4. Replicable
Could an independent researcher reproduce the study?
5. Reductive
Does the research establish patterns and relationship among individual variables,
facts, and observable phenomenon?
B. Subjects of The Study
In this research, the researcher determines the subject of the study to be three
categories namely :
1. Population
Population is the entire people who are of interest in a particular survey
(Brown 2001 : 71). In this research, the population is the second grade student
of SMP N 1 Purwodadi in academic year 2011/2012. The number of population
sometimes too big and the writer took the eighth years students based on
curriculum that direction has been taught to the eighth grades in the Junior High
School. It contains 7 classes and the total students are 280 students. The
average number of students of every class is 38-42 students.

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2. Sample
A sample is a part of the total and characteristic that had population.
Sample enables a esearcher to collect and organize data efficiently and
practically. In this study, there are 7 classes and the total number of students is
280 students. The writer have took 2 of 7 classes as sample. They are 8B and
8D. It is because if the writer took all of the classess, it will be too big research
and not efficient.
3. Sampling
Sampling is the way to take data from sample. In this researcher, the
researcher took purposive sampling by the recommendaton of the teacher based
on the teacher’s schedule. The researcher took the entire students class of two
classes. They are class B and class D .
Arikunto (2006:134) states that :
If the subjects are less than 100, the researcher should take the entire
subjects. The research is a popu;ation research. If the population is more
than 100, the researcher should take 10%-15% or 20%-25% or more. It
depends on the situation.
in this case, the researcher will take 15% of the total population. So the
researcher will take 42 students from 2 classes. It will be experimental class and
control class.
C. Instrument of The Research
Instrument is a mean to collect data. This reseach is to measure student’s
ability to construct writing by using pictures as media. The main instrument is a
writing test. The test consists of :
1. Pre-test
Before the writer teaches by using pictures, the writer gave a test to the students.
Pre test will be given to the experimental and control group with the same test,
the score that is obtained will be analyzed from all the students test.
2. Post-test

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To get the data, a post-test will be given to the experimental group and control
group. It will be given in order to know the ability of the students who are taught
by using pictures and without using pictures. The writing test includes the
elements of writing which are content, organization, grammar, vocabulary, and
mechanic.
D. Technique of Data Collection
The main purposes of this reseach is to know the student’s ability to construct
writing by using pictures as media. In order to get data, the researcher made some
meetings with the students and did some actions or steps as follows :
1. The researcher came to SMP N 1 Purwodadi to find the information about
students from a senior English teacher of eighth grade students and headmaster.
2. The researcher begin the research by explaining what should the students with a
pictures.
3. The researcher gave sheets of paper of pictures to students and gave example
how to write by using picture as media.
4. The researcher gave sheets of paper of an unfinished picture-based writing to
students then ordered them to complete the writing.
5. He final step is to order the students to construct writing by using picture
individually. It’s scored for its content, organization, grammar, vocabulary, and
mechanic.
E. Technique of Data Analysis
The researcher uses ‘t-test’ to analyze the significant of the differences
between that booth group to get result that teaching using can improve student’s
writing ability.
1. The researcher made an experimental group and control group
The experimental group used to insert the scores of experimental group,
these are about the score of post-test and the square of residual.
The control group consist of :
• Subject -

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• Pre-test
• Post-test
• Difference
• Square difference
The control group used to insert the scores of control group. These are about
the score of pre-test, the residual between pre-test and post-test and the square of
difference.
The experimental group consist of :
• Subject -
• Pre-test
• Post-test
• Difference
• Square difference
2. The writer calculated the mean of each group, according to Anas Sudijono
(2010:76) :
Mean is every number that can be used as a representative of the series
of the average value was his form is just one number only, but with a
single number that can be reflected in a general overview about the
collection or material information in the form of a row of number.
The following is the formula :
a. Cont. Group
b. Exp. Group
=
Where :
: The mean scores of the control group
: Sum of deriviation of control group
: The number of sample of the control group
: The mean scores of the experimental group
: Sum of deriviation of experimental group

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: The number of sample of experimental group
3. The sum of deviation each group
a. Cont. Group
b. Exp. Group
Where :
: Sum of the square of deviation of control group
: Sum of the square of deviation of experimental group
: The square of deviation of control group
: The square of deviation of experimental group
: The number of sample of control group
: The number of deviation of sample of the control group
4. The writer applies all of formula into t-test
t-test =
where :
: Mean of deviation of control group
: Mean of deviation of experimental group
: The total of the square deviation of the control group
: The total of the square deviation of the experimental group
: The number of sample of control group
: The number of sample of experimental group
(Arikunto, 2006 :311)
RESEARCH FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION
A. Research Findings
After having observation and doing pre-test and post-test in the classroom, the
writer got data from the result of the test. The observation began on , the writer took

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permission from the headmaster of the SMP N 1 Purwodadi and English teacher of
eighth grades. The English teacher recommended the writer to teach two class that
is 8B and 8D. 8B is control group and 8D is experimental group. The English
teacher given the schedule of each classes that is on Tuesday , 2011 for pre-test of
8B and on Wednesday , 2011 for pre-test of 8D. On Tuesdy , 2011 for post-test of
8B and on Wednesday , 2011 for post-test of 8D.
In giving score the writer considered the score can be calculated with the
following formula :
Score =
a. The result of the test
Students’ score of control group
Students : 42
Pre-test : 2759
Post-test : 3017
Difference ( : 258
Square difference ( : 4750
Students’ score of experimental group
Students : 42
Pre-test ( : 2963
Post-test : 3418
Difference ( : 455
Square difference ( : 10633
b. The mean of each group
Control group
Experimental group
=

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=
= 10.83
c. The sum of deviation each group
Control group
Experimental group
d. Applies of formula into t-test
t-test =
t-test =
t-test =
t-test =
t-test = 2.067
To examine whether the difference between the means of the control group
and experimental group is satistically significant, t-obtaine be consulted with the
critical value in the t-table. The writer used the 5% (0.05) level of significant.
The number of subjects from both groups is 84, so the degree of freedom is 82
from ( . For 5% alpha level and 82 degree freedom, there is no definite critical
value in t-table. It is necessary to find the definite value using interpolation.
t-table for : 60 = 167
120 = 1.66
82 = . . . ?

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1.67 – t = 0.0037
t = 1.6663
The t-table is 1.6663, the obtained t-value is 2.067 so the t-value is higher
than the critical value on the table (2.067>1.6663).
e. The different achievement between the experimental and control group
• Control group (the average on pre-test )
Control group ( the average on post-test)
The rise of the average score on control group
71.83 – 65.69 = 6.14
• Experimental group (the average on pre-test)
Experimental group (the average on post-test)
The rise of the average score on experimental group

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81.38 – 70.54 = 10. 84 ( after giving pictures as media of writing)
The experimental group gets better development, the average increase 10.84
point, whereas the control group only increase 6.14 point.
B. Discussion of Research Findings
In the pre-test, the average score is 70.54, while in the post-test the average
score is 81.83. So, the result shows that the post-test as better than the pre-test. To
check the significant effect of using pictures, the writer analyze by using t-test
formula. The result of the t-test is 2.067. the writer consult the critical value on the
t-table using the 5% (0.05) alpha level of significance and the degree of freedom
which is 1.6663. since the obtained t-value is higher than the critical value on the
table(2.067>1.663), the difference between teaching writing by using pictures as a
media and without pictures.
We also could look at the differences of pre-test and post-test of experimental
group. There was so significant difference between pre-test which is taught without
using pictures and post-test which taught using pictures as a media. And the control
group there was not so significant residual between pre-test and post-test which is
both taught without using pictures.
CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTIONS
A. Conclusions
1. There is a significant difference of students’ achieement in teaching writing by
using pictures as a media and without using pictures for eighth grades students
of SMP N 1 Purwodadi in academic years 2011/2012.
2. The use of pictures in teaching writing is more effective than teaching writing
without pictures. From the two classess, the experimental and the control group,
the measurement shows that the increasing line of writing achievement of the
experimental group is higher then the control groups.
3. The eighth grade students’ ability to improve writing skill using pictures as a
media. From the result of test done by the eighth grade students of SMP N 1

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Purwodadi, the writer had found the average score of post-test in experimental
group is 81.38. So, using pictures as a media in teaching writing of eighth grade
of SMP N 1 Purwodadi is good.
4. The eighth grade students’ ability to mprove writing skill without using pictures
as a media, the writer found the average score of post-test in control group is
71.83. So, the teaching writing without pictures as a media is still not good.
B. Suggestions
1. To the Teacher
English teacher should realize that writing is important. From this statement,
the teachers are hoped to know well how to teach and to choose the suitable
technique for their students in teaching and learning process. The teacher should
be aware of the teaching and give more exercise and using other interesting
media to the students in order to improve the students writing skill.
2. To the Students
The atudents should pay attention to the teachers’ explanation during the
lesson therefore the objectives of the study can be reached. The students can use
pictures as a media in learning writing, it can help them to study how to arrange
between content, organization, grammatical, vocabulary and mechanic to be a
good sentence. This students also can study with happy, enjoy, and not bored.
3. To the Readers
The writer hopes that readers get information about how to use ictures as
media and use the media as a strategy in writing section.
4. To the Writer
The writer hopes that the result of the research can give input to the teaching
and learning English, especially to teach how to improve students’ writing skill
by using pictures as a media.
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