DEVELOPING MATHEMATICS TEACHING LEARNING PROCESS IN JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL

By : Kholida Agustin

(09301241011)

Yogyakarta State University

A.    PREFACE

Improving the quality of mathematics teaching learning in the junior high school is an issue of many agendas of universities (LPTK), government and the teacher of mathematics itself. It can be found from the Preamble of 1945 Constitution that said raising the intellectual level of the people and furthering general welfare have been major concerns of the Government of Indonesia.

In terms of Mathematics teacher in school, it found that: (a)their qualification need to be improved,(b) many of them are not major in Mathematics,(c) there is no evaluation system(academically) for teachers, so once to be a teacher, they will be a teacher until the age of retired (Marsigit, 2004).

Although LPTK still have low potential academically and low quality in the graduate, it also have tried to get Mathematics teacher that have good quality. With the teacher that has good quality, all of us hope that the quality of the student also increases.

Student in Junior High School has special case because they are in the transition mode. They mental development has changed from the operational concrete become operational formal. So the teacher should be have a good skill to handle it.

B.     DEVELOP TEACHING LEARNING PROCESS IN JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL

Develop mathematics teaching learning process in Junior High School can be done by develop the part(element) of teaching learning itself. The element of teaching learning process can be divided into:

1)      Lesson Plan

A lesson plan is a teacher’s detailed description of the course of instruction for one class (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lesson_plan). A daily lesson plan is developed by the teacher to guide class instruction. Lesson plan is like the scenario that made and must be acted by the teacher itself. It makes the teaching learning process in the right condition or under control. It also makes the teaching learning process have clearly aim.

There are many formats for a lesson plan, but most of them contain of some or all of these items:

·         Identity of the course (the title of the lesson, the class, which semester, etc)

·         Time required to complete the lesson

·         List of required material

·         An instructional component

·         Independent practice that allows students to extend skill or knowledge on their own

·         A summary, where the teacher wraps up the discussion and answers question

·         An evaluation component

·         A continuity component reviews and reflects on content from the previous lesson

A well lesson plan reflects the student’s need. The first thing a teacher does is create an objective purpose that should answer what the student will be able to do by the end of the end of the lesson. The teacher also ensures that the student’s achievement expectations are reasonable.

 The biggest obstacle in developing a well lesson plan is the ability of the teacher to make the guide instruction in the class that can make all of student enroll and make meaningful teaching learning process.

The other obstacle is the condition of the student that used to be a passive learner. They just listened and accept what the teacher gives. This obstacle can diatasi with teacher’s creativity, how teacher can make student be an active learner. 

The lesson plan has relation with teacher’s philosophy of education. 

2)      Student’s Worksheet

Student worksheet can describe as the paper that used by the student as a guide in the teaching learning process. Student worksheet contain of the task that have been done by the student. The principal of student’s worksheet is not as the addition value that will enter in the student report, but it just has a role as the booster for the student. Student worksheet contain of some problems so that the student can develop their thinking with solve those problems.

Student’s worksheet has a lot of benefits.

a)            For student:

·      Raising the student activity during teaching learning process

·      Training and developing student’s skill process as the basic of science appliances

·      Help the student have a note about the materials

·      Help the student to add information

b)            For teacher:

·      Help teacher arrange lesson plan

·      Activate the student in the teaching learning process

·      As the guidance for the people to adding the information of the concept

But student worksheet has some lacks such as:

a)      The problem that made by the teacher sometime are monotone

b)      Some worried that the teacher will be irresponsible (leave the class when the student are doing the worksheet)

c)      Student worksheet just rehearse or instruct the student to answer the question, not understand the concept correctly

d)     Just emphasize in cognitive skill 

3)      Small Group Discussion

After the teacher explain about the material the class can be divided become small group discussion. This group can consist of 3-5 students.

Small group discussion makes the student easily participate. The student can share their own opinion with the other student. The students speak and are heard in this group. In the small group the student will be braver to deliver their mind. The teacher still involve during small discussion. The teacher has to guide the student construction. The teacher has to understand what the student need.

A lot of benefits are gotten from this small group discussion. Besides make the student more active and creative make an idea to solve the problem or to react the other student opinion, it will make the teaching learning process become more efficient and productive.

But how to divide student become small group is the obstacle. The teacher must divide the class until it can be heterogeneous group. Either a high or a low academically must combine in each group. 

4)      Various Interaction

Interaction is a relation between someone to the other. Obviously, interaction will happen during teaching learning process. There are three kinds of interaction in the class such as:

a)      the interaction in the whole class,

This interaction happens between the teachers with all of the student. It can happen in the introduction or when the teacher opens the lesson. The teacher has a dialogue with all of student.   

b)      the interaction between the teacher with the student in each of small group

Appropriate with the name, this interaction happens during small group discussion. The teacher makes a dialogue to understand what the student difficulties or the student needs.

c)   the interaction among students

Student makes a dialogue with each other along the teaching learning process happen. They share their opinion, they reflect, and also argue the opinion that makes by the other student. It will develop student’s sociality. They can increase their affective and psikomotoric aspect in this interaction.

The teacher must do all of those interaction, so that the student can achieve highly knowledge from their environment.

5)      Student’s Reflection

We can call student reflection as presentation of the student. Teacher can make a procedure that allow student to present their worksheet or their task in front of the class, so the other student can reflect or compare their worksheet with the other student. When they compare their worksheet, they also construct their knowledge on their own, what is the best way to solve particular problem that given in worksheet.

There are some benefits that can reach by student’s reflection:

·         Reflection challenge student to develop level thinking and problem solving

·         Reflection raising student awareness about the situation around them

·         Reflection develop student knowledge by learning more from the other

The teacher must develop the ability of the student to make right conclusion, because what student construct on their own, will be stay deeply in their mind.

6)      Cognitive Scheme

A schema can describe as structures that organize our knowledge and assumption about something and are used for processing information, while cognitive scheme is structure of knowledge information.

Different people has different cognitive scheme because different people has different experience that build their understanding. Therefore, the teacher must understand, why the students have different level of knowledge.

In the class, during teaching learning process, the teacher must encourage the student to develop their cognitive scheme. The teacher also ensure that the student get right scheme on their mind, because it is difficult to fix inappropriate scheme.

 In the process of build the new scheme, the student connects, organize and also transform a new knowledge with the pas one. So, it’s important to make the lesson is continuity.

7)      Student’s Conclusion

Conclusion is belongs to student. Student can make conclusion on their group or on their group discussion. The teacher just helps them to make a right step to get appropriate conclusion that suitable with the standard competence.

In order to develop student conclusion:

a)      The teacher have to:

·         Make a well developed plan about what will teacher does in order to achieve the aim/appropriate conclusion. The teacher have to always remember that in order to  get right conclusion by the student itself, the teacher must back to the instruction in the class that he made before. What should he do when the student make either appropriate or inappropriate conclusion.

·         The teacher still involve in the small group discussion, so the teacher can give a hint when the student confused or the teacher can give a right way to solve some problem if the student make inappropriate ways

·         Before the class end, the teacher review what the student present and also give a chance to the student to make a conclusion

b)      The students have to:

·         not merely believe that what the teacher said is true

·         must have high curiosity about a new thing or topic

·         be an active and creative learner

8)      Apperception

Apperception is what the process which new experience is assimilated and transform with the past experiences. Apperception also can describe as how far the student know about the new material, is that a right understand or not yet.

Teacher must understand what the student know and can start the material from the point that the student doesn’t know yet. The teacher has to prepare the measurement that can measure preparation from the student to learn particular material. 

The teacher must know what student already have known.

9)      Assessment

Assessment is often considered same with the evaluation. Assessment is used to determine what a student know or what student can do, while evaluation is giving a value for something.

Several times ago, teacher judge that evaluation and assessment are same. They just give the value of the lessons from the test, both mid test or final test. The teacher not realizes what student progress during teaching learning process.  

Educational assessment is the process of documenting, usually in measurable terms, knowledge, attitude, skill, etc.

To develop student assessment so this tool have high accuracy to measure the student ability is develop teacher ability to record a note of student ability. This activity make some difficulties for the teacher indeed, because teacher must record student progress during the teaching learning process, not only for cognitive ability, but also affective and the other skill.

10)  Various Teaching Methods

All students do not learn in the same way. We can say that different people will learn with different way. It caused the teacher has an obligation to know which way or method that give the best achievement on student understanding in particular class.

A variety of teaching strategies, knowledge of student level, and implementation of which methods are best for particular student will help teacher to determine the best method for the class.

Assessment can be the alternative way to help teacher determine which teaching method that will use in particular class. In one class, the teacher not only applies one teaching method, but variety teaching methods that will make the student enjoy the lesson. Various teaching method also avoid student bored.

11)  Various Media

Media is any tool that teacher use in teaching learning process. The teacher can use technology to make a various media in the class. The teacher should use various media, because the student does not learn in the same way. They can learn by visually, audio, audio-visually or by multimedia.

The teacher must have skill to operate any media that will be used in the class. When the teacher knows which one is the best media in particular class, those media can use by the teacher commonly.

12)  Various Teaching Aids

Teaching aid help the student construct the abstract thing. Teaching aid make student learn easily. Some example of the teaching aid such as: rubber hand, nail, real line, etc.

The student can get the teaching aid from the environment. It makes what they have been learning more obviously.

The teacher can write what he want to use when explain some material in the lesson plan. So the teacher will not forget to prepare the teaching aid and the teaching learning process will be more effective and under control.

There are some benefits that can get from the appliance of teaching aid: a) The teacher more creative to make or determine the best teaching aid for particular lesson, b) Help the student construct the knowledge, c) Help the student understanding the concept, etc.

 And the biggest constraints that can be found in using various teaching aid is the teacher customary use the traditional method that doesn’t use teaching aid. So the teacher has difficulties when they must create or determine a new teaching aid that appropriate with the concept.

To develop mathematics teaching learning process, the first thing that the teacher must understand is about the mental development of the student.

According to Piaget (Rita Eka Izzaty, 2008: 35) the student in Junior High School are conclude in the operational formal stage. The student thing conceptually and also think from hypotheses. So that, the teacher must make a lesson plan that make student thing that suitable with the student mental development.

Teaching learning process in Junior High Scholl claims the student to thing abstractly.  But the teacher must also understand that student in the Junior High Scholl is in the transition stage from the concrete operational stage where the student learn with the concrete thing.

The key from develop teaching learning process is on the good lesson plan. Lesson plan contain of many element such as media, teaching aid, teaching method and so on. The other element follow the lesson that have been done.  

C.  CONCLUSION

·      Develop teaching learning process in the Junior High School can be done by develop the element of the teaching learning process itself.

·      Lesson plan can be the key of developing teaching learning process, because lesson plan is the guide master how the teacher manage the class.

·      The teacher must ensure that what act that he done in the class must appropriate with the student mental development in the Junior High School.

D.    LITERATUR CITED

Anonim. Lesson Plan. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lesson_plan [online]. Diakses pada tanggal 5 Oktober 2011 pukul 10:27 WIB.

Izzaty, Rita Eka. (2008). Perkembangan Peserta Didik. Yogyakarta: UNY Press.

Marsigit. 2004. Developing Mathematics Education in Indonesia. http://staff.uny.ac.id/dosen/marsigit-dr-ma [online]. Diakses pada tanggal 6 September 2011 pukul 16:45 WIB.