LANGUAGE LEARNING STRATEGY: COMPENSATION STRATEGY IN

STUDENTS’ LEARNING PROCESS OF STUDENTS AT SMA N 15 PEKANBARU

A SYNOPSIS

KHOFIFAH HARAHAP

SIN. 11810420906

ENGLISH EDUCATION DEPARTMENT

FACULTY OF EDUCATION TEACHER TRAINING

SULTAN SYARIF KASIM STATE ISLAMIC UNIVERSITY OF RIAU

PEKANBARU

1442 H/2021 M
 CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION

A. Background of the problem.

Language learning strategies which are set of intended actions that an
individual apply in the process of achieving goal in learning language, how an
individual think and act while they do the plan and evaluate the performance as its
outcomes[ CITATION Ger11 \l 1033 ] . It is such an activity that students select for the
partial purpose in language learning process. It also called as the mental steps or
operations that learners use in learning a new language and regulates their efforts
to do so. Based on these definitions we could say that language learning strategies
is essential in learning process.
Although, according to Blasiman et al. (2017), it is not clear that on what
basis learners choose certain strategies, how they use the strategies, and why they
have a preference over others even though a large amount of research has
identified variables affecting learners’ choices of learning strategies. In response
to this, it can be explained that learners choose strategies from their repertoire of
strategies with a belief that the chosen ones will be helpful for performing
learning tasks and achieving goals (Dörnyei, 2005). In order to acgieve the
successful learning, the learners should be aware of the language learning
strategies that they adopt (O’Malley & Chamot, 1990).
Language learning strategies have been classified by many researchers;
see for examples Oxford (1990) differentiates language learning strategies into
two category; direct and indirect. These are furthermore subcategory into three for
each. First is direct; (1) memory strategies: strategies that help learners store and
retrieve new information, (2) cognitive strategies: strategies that enable learners to
understand and produce new language by many different means, (3)
compensation strategies: strategies that aid learners in overcoming knowledge
gaps and continuing to communicate authentically, second is indirect; (4)
affective strategies: strategies that help develop self-confidence, (5) metacognitive
strategies: strategies that help learners to regulate their own cognitive abilities and
to focus, plan, and evaluate their progress as they move toward communicative
competence, and (6) social strategies: strategies that provide increased interaction
and more empathetic understanding [ CITATION Mul20 \l 1033 ]. She adds that all
appropriate language learning strategies contribute to the main goal: becoming
communicatively competent.
Compensation strategy is the direct strategy that refers to the using
conquered knowledge limitations in four skills for learning and producing the
target language (Oxford, 1990). Compensation strategy has an important role to
help the learners who are lack of knowledge concerning the target language both
theoretically and practically regarding Oxford (1990) has stated: ‘For beginning
and intermediate language learners, these strategies may be among the most
important’ (p. 90). She also added that Compensation strategies are ‘also useful
for more expert language users who occasionally do not know an expression’.
As Oxford (1990) clarified the compensation strategies into two categories
they are 1) guessing intelligently and 2) overcoming limitation in speaking and
writing. Further they would have subcategories for the first is guessing
intelligently; using linguistic clues and using other clues. The second is
overcoming limitations in speaking and writing; switching to the mother tongue,
getting help, using anime or gesture, avoiding communication partially or total,
selecting the topic, adjusting or approximating the message, coining words and
using a circumlocution or synonym [ CITATION Sha \l 1033 ].
SMA N 15 Pekanbaru is one of the senior high school in Pekanbaru, Riau.
As one of the formal institutions, this school also provides an English subject for
the students in the learning process. What makes this school interest is they
provide an extracurricular for students who have interest in English, it is called
English club. Not all of students could join this program since there is selection in
the beginning of the semester and they have to past the test first. SMA N 15
Pekanbaru uses 2013 curriculum (K13), which the objective of learning English
is to develop the students’ communicative competence in interpersonal,
transactional, and functional text that is used to connect with other people with the
aim that we can establish good communication with the used of good vocabulary
 with others, transactional is a text used to connect with other people with the aim
that we get what we want from the use of text, and functional text is a text used to
convey something that has a specific purpose and message according to the type
of the text used.
One obstacle that most of students find is a long text of English and being
overwhelmed. Whether this text is a reading or listening exercise, the strategies a
student utilizes to overcome gaps in knowledge and negotiate the meaning can
make the difference between successful practice and discouragement and failure.
The students should set an appropriate strategy in learning a language to have
great comprehension or production despite limitations in knowledge[ CITATION
Mar01 \l 1033 ]. Wong and Nunan (2011) assume that the chosen of applicable
strategies will produce a repertoire of learning strategies which is a set of
strategies that learners have and adopt through experience and time to support
their learning achievement.
However, some of student at SMA N 15 Pekanbaru still do not know there
are a lot of strategies that might be applicable to improve their learning process.
Even they had followed the extracurricular ‘English Club’, there is still no any
winner in English competition based on their school online website. The students
are still not active enough during the learning process because they have different
style in learning. It seems that they have lack of knowledge in strategies to
learning English.
Based on description above the researcher interested to investigate and
conduct a research entitled “Language Learning Strategy: Compensation
strategy in students’ learning process of students at SMA N 15 Pekanbaru”

B. Identification of the Problem

Based on the background of the problem, the problems are identified to
the following identification;
1. Why some of the students still do not have enthusiastic in learning process?
2. Why some of the students find difficultness in completing English task?
 3. Why some of the students still do not use the appropriate learning strategies in
learning process?

C. Limitation of Problem
Based on identification of the problem, the writer needs to limit and focus
on the topic. In this case, the writer is limited to the students’ language learning
strategy which is only focus on the compensation strategy that students employ in
learning English process at SMA N 15 Pekanbaru.

D. Formulation of the problem

Based on the limitation of the problems mentioned, the writer formulates

the research questions as in the following;

1. What compensation strategy that students most utilized in learning

process at SMA N 15 Pekanbaru?
2. What compensation strategy that students less utilized in learning
process at SMA N 15 Pekanbaru?
E. Method of the Research
In this study, the researcher use qualitative where the researcher collected the data
by means of observations, questionnaire, and documentation. Altinay and Paraskevas
(2008: 167) say that “qualitative data analysis is a conceptual interpretation of the data set
as a whole, using specific analytical strategies to transform raw data into logical
descriptions and explanations of the phenomena under study”
The research was compiled using the required SILL questionnaire version 7.0
(Strategies Inventory for Language Learning) by Oxford 1989 specializing in analyzing
the language for foreign language learners.
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