By: Drs. Misrun
SMK Negeri 3 Mataram
Email: misrun@yahoo.com

In the era of globalization, we do not only face the digital devide, but also language devide, even though we live in the same place. How big the gap if we have to communicate with other people who do not understand the active language? For example for those who can speak English only.
What is a language?
What is English?
How to learn a language or languages? and
What is the problem going on through the process of learning English?
These questions frequently appear among English Teachers and Learners. One solution might be the following:

Language is a skill and is a means of communication. Every baby starts communication by body language with Mom, the closest person he/she meets at the first time of appearance in the world. Then at the next stage he/she starts listening word to word from Mom and Dad, brothers and sisters, other family members and any people surrounding him or her followed by parroting word(s) even part of single word which sometimes produces funny sound spreading happiness among listeners.

In the early childhood period (around 2 to3 years old) children start communication more intensively with relatively equal aged friends from whom they copy more and more vocabularies just through the ears and reproduction trials. There is no absence of this process to any language all over the world since this is the natural process any language acquisition.

English is a language and is of course not exclusive. English people or people from countries using English must follow the above process to experience their language. Further English slides becoming a must skill for most parts of the globe following the jet development of science and technology.

Most English learners, especially Indonesians frankly acknowledge that learning English for 3 years along Junior High School, 3 years during Senior High School and some other couple of years through the University and private courses, but the end result is only a Huge Zero figure. We should think with a belief that there is something wrong with the process. It might lose obliged parts or might be overlapped.

In the recent time, exactly February 2003, SMK Negeri 3 Mataram took the process into account and set a classroom English Teaching and Learning Process approach in which several university students and some students of the higher level skill from the same school are involved as mentors. We adopt this approach to eliminate psycho-gap usually occurs along interaction between teachers and students. Some interview made by our English teachers to our students at the school shows that most of them feel ashamed and afraid to speak to teachers not only English but even Indonesian and the reason is just simple, they are still respectful.

In this case, mentors are the solution. The juniors do not any longer feel their seniors as their tutors, but closer to be play peers. They play various English games through which every participant has an obligation to speak with relax and no depression since they are relatively the same age. In the first few weeks of the program, no matter with mistakes or errors and sometimes they make fresh jokes with mixed-language (English-Indonesian or English-Local Language). This situation makes the participants no longer hesitate to express ideas, story telling, debating, gaming, speech and other speaking activities.

Then, step by step the seniors guide the juniors to approach Standard English.
Fortunately, we have a very diligent, smart and full of concern graduate who is now studying in a local University, English Department, to assist developing a better technique of English teaching and learning process. He was trained to be a tutor by one of the English teachers at the school two years before. He organized the class into small groups containing no more than 20 students and are split into smaller groups of five. The group members may change depending on the result of placement test given in every three months.

With surprise, in only three months running of the process, eighty percent of the five of forty-one classes students set as the pilot project speak English everywhere and to anyone around the school area. They are also encouraged to speak English to every teacher entering their classrooms. This is also expected to motivate teachers to learn speaking English by doing. This technique works well enough. In the last few moths, some teachers start approaching English Teachers and make simple dialogues.

Consequently, this program brings up new problems. Why should the treatment only be given to the five classes? Why doesn’t the school policy treat the whole students equally? These questions appear from the school community, the students and parents. As explained above, this is a pilot project. Otherwise many considerations must be taken into accounty especially the school financial shortage. This program target will be expanded step by step and is expected to cover the whole students.

This issue flew quickly to Jakarta and of course is heard by the Director of Vocational School Department of National Education. May 2004, the Director, Mr. Gathot Hary Priowirjatmo, incidentally made a visit or exactly an inspection to the school. With no specific preparation, the five classes welcomed him and the school principal begged him to speak English. With random selection, Mr. Director catched one by one students and he found all the selection performed the same level of English speaking.

Here are some sample pictures of the interview:

On Saturday, December 15, 2004 the new Minister of National Education, Mr. Bambang Sudibyo, also made a sudden visit and inspection to the school and was warmly welcomed with English Interview by the same students. With surprise, Mr. Minister made a hand writing of impression on a hurry prepared canvas, but the scan result could not be attached here because at the moment this article is written, it is in the other data server at, Mataram very far from Bandung, where I attended to follow workshop ALCoB Internet Volunteer 2004 focusing on Multimedia Content Development on 13 ? 18 December, 2004.

Dear AlCoB netters, this article is only Experience Sharing. There is no tendency to bring forward a self-pride of a tiny success. We decide to release this with expectation that it may be useful for other English Teachers as a Second Language. Please take the good (if any) and please just forget when you feel it’s only nonsense.