Journal of English Language Proficiency

The interpersonal communication skill of the unlicensed trekking guides

2025-12-28T08:31:17+00:00

This study aims to explore the interpersonal communication skills of unlicensed trekking guides in Mount Rinjani National Park, Indonesia. As tourism expands in Lombok, communication plays a central role in ensuring satisfaction, safety, and positive cultural exchange. Effective communication is crucial in the case of trekking activities, which involve physical challenges and require both trust and cooperation between trekking guides and visitors. This research employed a qualitative method, in which the data were collected through interviews, observations, audio, and video recordings of five unlicensed trekking guides with varied educational backgrounds and experiences. The framework applied in this study is Joseph A. DeVito’s five indicators of interpersonal communication effectiveness: openness, supportiveness, positiveness, empathy, and equality. The findings showed that unlicensed trekking guides possess strong interpersonal communication abilities in practice, despite the absence of formal training or certification. Their skills help foster mutual understanding and enrich visitors’ experiences. However, challenges were also identified, including limited English vocabulary, low confidence, and gaps in intercultural competence. This research highlights the importance of structured communication training for trekking guides and offers insights for tourism educators and policymakers aiming to raise service quality and safety standards in Mount Rinjani National Park.

Pop songs as a creative learning tool to improve students’ listening abilities

2025-12-28T08:31:17+00:00

Pop songs have been widely used to improve listening ability among students as alternative and creative tools in learning English. This study aims to explore students’ voice toward English pop songs usage to increase their listening abilities and to identify the challenges they face during the learning process. This is a descriptive qualitative method which use questionnaire and interviews given to an Indonesian state Islamic University students. The research found that most students use pop songs as a creative listening learning tool as it improves their listening. Moreover, they accept that pop songs enhance their pronunciation, intonation, as well as vocabulary. The students also admit that pop songs help them to become enjoy. In addition, English pop music enhances students’ mood and motivation. However, the students mention that there are some challenges appear during their learning namely understanding the fast tempos lyrics, the existence of unfamiliar words, ungrammatical lyrics, and obstacles in culture and religion for Muslim students. This study strengthen that English pop songs is a useful as well as creative tool for listening exercise, particularly as it is used collectively with proper teaching technique namely lyrics’ reading, listening repeatedly, as well as clear pronunciation songs’ selection.

The effect of project-based learning on students' reading skills viewed from grammatical competence and vocabulary at junior high school

2025-12-28T08:31:16+00:00

This research aimed to determine the effect of Project-Based Learning (PBL) on students’ reading skills when viewed from grammatical competence and vocabulary mastery, as well as to examine the interaction between PBL and these two aspects. A quasi-experimental research design was employed in this study. The subjects were second-grade students of a junior high school English class. The sample consisted of 33 active students from Class B. Data were collected through classroom teaching activities and analyzed using tests of normality and homogeneity, an independent samples t-test, and a two-way ANOVA. The results revealed a significant effect of Project-Based Learning compared to the traditional method on students’ reading skills. The findings also showed an interaction between the learning method and students’ reading skills. However, no significant interaction was found between grammatical competence and vocabulary mastery in relation to Project-Based Learning. These results indicate that Project-Based Learning is effective in improving students’ reading skills, although its effectiveness is not influenced by students’ levels of grammatical competence and vocabulary mastery.

Challenges and supporting factors in implementing the STAD strategy in English language teaching at SMP Pesantren as-Salam Pontianak

2025-12-28T08:31:16+00:00

The purpose of this study is to find out what are the challenges felt by teachers in applying the student team achievement divisions (STAD) strategy in teaching English and the supporting factors in applying the student team achievement divisions (STAD) strategy in teaching English. This qualitative research uses descriptive-qualitative methods. This research involves one teacher and students in grade 8. Data were collected through interviews and documentation methods. The research findings revealed two challenges in implementing the student team achievement divisions (STAD) strategy in teaching English: limited access to facilities and technology at school, and time constraints. As for the supporting factors in implementing the student team achievement divisions (STAD) strategy in teaching English, the researcher's findings were teacher competence and school facilities. This research is intended to be a valuable resource for educators exploring innovative strategies for teaching English

Enhancing EFL learners’ speaking skills through the mingle activity: a qualitative study of perceptions and classroom implementation

2025-12-28T08:31:16+00:00

Speaking is a crucial skill in English learning, yet many EFL learners struggle due to limited confidence, vocabulary, and opportunities for practice. This study examined the implementation of the Mingle Activity and explored students’ perceptions of its contribution to improving their speaking skills. Using a qualitative descriptive design, the research involved 15 participants (10 students and 5 tutors) from an English course in NTB. Data were gathered through questionnaires, interviews, observations, and documentation, and analyzed using SPSS alongside data reduction, data display, and conclusion drawing techniques. The findings indicate that students held positive perceptions of the Mingle Activity, reporting increased confidence, fluency, and motivation to speak English. Interactive tasks such as group discussions and presentations were particularly engaging. Although learners faced challenges such as limited vocabulary and speaking anxiety, their overall enthusiasm remained high. Observations revealed active participation, while tutors facilitated learning by guiding discussions and encouraging less confident students. Supporting documentation—including photos, videos, and vocabulary lists—demonstrated noticeable progress in speaking performance. The Mingle Activity effectively enhanced students’ speaking skills by fostering interactive and supportive communicative practices. These results are consistent with Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory and Communicative Language Teaching, both of which highlight the importance of peer interaction and authentic language use.

The students' preferences on the use of writing strategies at universitas PGRI Wiranegara

2025-12-28T08:31:16+00:00

Writing is a crucial skill in English that significantly influences overall language proficiency. The effective use of writing strategies can greatly impact students' writing abilities. This study aimed to explore students' preferences for writing strategies to help lecturers better understand and align their teaching methods with the strategies students tend to use. The research was conducted at Universitas PGRI Wiranegara from June 4th to 24th, 2024, involving 69 English students. The study employed a descriptive quantitative approach, utilizing surveys to gather data on students' writing strategies. The results revealed that most students are familiar with and often apply various strategies during their writing activities. Out of the 35 strategies presented across three different theoretical frameworks, students reported using 33 of them, although not consistently in every writing task. The most commonly used strategy, according to the Likert scale, was "Choosing a topic" from Gail J. Tompkins, with an average score of 4.40, indicating that students usually employ this strategy. In contrast, "Publishing written results online" from the same theorist received a lower average score of 2.68, suggesting that this strategy is only occasionally used. Overall, the findings indicate that students frequently utilize a wide range of writing strategies, with a preference for those proposed by Gail J. Tompkins.

Students’ perceptions of lecturer feedback in writing thesis proposal

2026-01-01T13:22:37+00:00

This study investigates the role of lecturer feedback in developing writing thesis proposal among foreign-language learners in the English Education Department at Mandalika University of Education. It explores students' perceptions of the types of feedback that best enhance their abilities writing thesis proposal. This study involved fourteen students of that have been conducting their thesis proposal. Two instruments were used to collect the data; questionnaires and interviews. The research reveals that students value feedback for error correction, improving grammar, and boosting writing quality. Feedback also plays a key role in motivating and building students' confidence. The findings show that students prefer direct feedback that targets detailed mistakes. Overall, the study highlights the importance of effective feedback in writing development and provides insights for lecturer to tailor their students.

Assessing students’ morphological awareness on the use of affixation at English education study program

2025-12-27T03:55:39+00:00

This research employed a descriptive qualitative method. The participants were 16 students from the even semester students’ of morphological awareness class 2022 in the academic year 2023/2024 who joined English Morphology subject at English Education Study Program of Universitas PGRI Wiranegara. This research was done by researcher on 15th May, 2024. The data collection methods included a morphological awareness test and interviews. The overall score of the morphological awareness test was 52.75 which consisted of 50 words affirmation of affixation, 21 of them used prefixes and 29 used suffixes which meant class 2022 of academic year 2023/2024 at English Education Study Program were in the average category. The following data portion of the students, specifically 43.75%, demonstrated average proficiency in using prefixes and suffixes. In contrast, 37.5% of the students showed good proficiency. However, 18.75% of the students were categorized as below average. The interviews revealed that the students struggled with identifying and analyzing word formation of affixation by using prefixes and suffixes. The researcher concludes that the students’ morphological awareness on the use of affixation needs improvement. The researcher suggests for the future researchers to conduct similar research with different types of analytical strategies and method for morphological awareness.

A study on the students’ speaking problems faced in the national university debating championship (NUDC) selection at universitas PGRI Wiranegara

2025-07-08T11:04:39+00:00

Speaking involves conveying ideas verbally using language, but many students struggle with it, especially in public settings. This study explores the speaking challenges students face during debates and their strategies for overcoming these issues. Focusing on the 2022 National University Debating Championship (NUDC) selection at Universitas PGRI Wiranegara, the research aims to identify the speaking problems encountered by students and how they addressed them. Employing a qualitative descriptive method, the study involved 16 students from English Study Program department. Data was gathered through questionnaires and interviews conducted from May 20 to 25, 2024. The results showed that students struggled with limited vocabulary, bad grammar, and fear of mispronunciation. Additionally, many experienced anxiety about making mistakes and felt nervous when speaking English or in public. The study also identified several strategies students used to manage these problems: using similar word, practice, staying calm, learning about the topic, staying on topic, focusing, repeating key points, and maintaining confidence. In conclusion, students faced various speaking challenges but developed effective strategies to handle them during the NUDC selection. The researcher recommends that future studies broaden the scope to include a wider range of participants across Indonesia.

Toponymy and word association: a cognitive linguistic approach to enhancing English vocabulary acquisition

2025-12-27T03:57:14+00:00

This article presents a literature-based inquiry exploring the potential of toponymy—the study of place names—as a medium for English vocabulary acquisition. Specifically, it examines how toponymy can be effectively utilized through the word association strategy, rooted in cognitive linguistic theory. This approach shifts vocabulary learning from rote memorization to a cognitively enriched process, emphasizing the formation of meaningful semantic networks within learners’ mental lexicons. Place names such as “London,” “Amazon,” or “Himalaya” carry semantic and cultural associations that naturally stimulate word connections—nouns, adjectives, idioms, and cultural imagery—that enhance vocabulary breadth and depth. Drawing on theoretical frameworks and previous studies, this paper argues that integrating toponymy into language instruction improves not only vocabulary retention but also learners’ cultural and geographical awareness. The strategy aligns with contextual and communicative language teaching approaches, which underscore the importance of authentic and meaningful language use. As such, toponymy emerges as a promising pedagogical tool for fostering richer, more engaging vocabulary learning experiences.