Crossword Puzzle as a Medium of English Vocabulary Teaching at SMP Kesatrian 1 Semarang

Abstract

English is a compulsory subject in Indonesia. English learners are required to proficient in three language components: grammar, pronunciation, and vocabulary. One of the language components that must be learned and mastered before the other two components is vocabulary. Considering the importance of vocabulary, teacher should be wise to identify and prepare appropriate methods or approaches to implement with their students; creativity is required. It is challenging for teachers to find the appropriate medium. Some researchers conducted research using a variety of vocabulary teaching medium and techniques to investigate it. Teaching using games is one of those. I use Crossword Puzzles as the medium for this study. The participant is seventh grade students in a class of SMP Kesatrian 1 Semarang which consists of 31 students. I conducted a classroom observation and had an interview section to collecting the data. This is a descriptive qualitative study that has purpose to describe the implementation of crossword puzzles in teaching and to explain the perceptions of English teachers and students regarding the use of the game. Collaboration, contextual learning, and meaningful engagement were all part of the learning process. The implementation of the teaching is in line with the principle of Communicative Language Teaching Richards (2006), constructivist theory of Vygotski (1978), and Thornbury (2002) vocabulary teaching. The teacher and students showed the positive perceptions regarding the teaching using this medium. In conclusion, crossword puzzles are effective to improve students’ motivation, engagement, and vocabulary. It is enjoyable and pedagogically valuable in an EFL (English as a Foreign Language) classroom.