Abstract
Choosing the best method
in ESP to help the learners success in their learning is not easy. One of the
method is Contextual Teaching and Learning (CTL). Contextual Teaching and
Learning is the method that helps the learners relate subject matter content to
real world situations and motivate the learners to make connections between
knowledge and its applications to their lives. To make CTL can be applied
effectively, we have to know what CTL is, what CTL’s characteristics and
priciples are. All of them will be discussed in this paper.
Keywords:
Contextual Teaching and Learning (CTL), charactersitics, principles.
Introduction
Conventional learning
systems only emphasize the transfer of knowledge that implicates the teaching
in class and textbooks, thus memorizing oriented system in this approach . So
that, the learners who learn only know the theory and away from the reality
that has been taught .
Choosing
the best method to the teaching and learning process is very important, because
it helps the learners success in their learning. Any learning process in ESP implied by Contextual Teaching and
Learning
(CTL) aims at helping learners’ comprehension of the academic materials. They learn by
connecting academic subjects with the contexts of their daily life. CTL is a conception of a teaching and
learning that helps the learners relate subject matter content to real world situations
and motivates the learners to make conncetions between knowledge and its
applications to their lives as family members, citizens, and workers and engage
in the hard work that learning requires. A teacher should be able to make their
learners learning effectively. CTL can help both teacher and the learners in
connecting the learning subject to the real world. By using CTL in an
integrated, multidisciplinary manner and in appropriate context, they are able
to use the acquired knowledge and skills in applicable context.
Discussion
A. Definition
of Contextual Teaching and Learning (CTL)
The theory of
Cognitivism influenced the philosophy of CTL. The learners will learn so well
if they actively involve in the classroom activities and have a chance to
inquiry it by themselves. The learners will show their learning achievement
through the real things that they can do. Learning is regarded as an effort or
intellectual activity for developing their idea through introspection activity.
Berns and
Errickson stated that, contextual teaching and learning is a conception of
teaching and learning that helps teachers relate subject matter content to real
world situations and motivates the learners to make connections between
knowledge and its applications to their lives as family members, citizens, and
workers and engage in the hard work that learning requires.
CTL is promoted as the alternative for
the new learning strategy. CTL emphasize the learning process through constructing not memorizing and teaching is interpreted as an activity
of inquiring process not only transferring knowledge to the learners. In CTL,
the learners are expected to develop their own understanding from their past
experience or knowledge (assimilation). It is important because our brain or
human mind functioned as the instrument for interpreting knowledge so that it
will have a unique sense.
B.
The Characteristics of CTL
Johnson, as quoted by Nurhadi, characterizes CTL into
eight important elements as follows:
1. Making Meaningful Connections
The learners can organize themselves as learners, learner
who learns actively in improving their interest individually, learner who can
work individually or collectively in a group, and learner who can do learning
by doing.
2. Doing Significant Work
The learners can make relationship among schools and the
various existing contexts in the real world as business maker and as a citizen.
3. Self-Regulated Learning
The learners do the significant work; it has purpose, it
has connection with
others, it has connection with decision making and it has
the concrete results or products.
4. Collaborating
The learners are able to work together. The teacher helps
the learners in order to work effectively in a group and teacher helps them to
understand the way how to persuade and communicate each others.
5. Critical and Creative Thinking
The learners are able to apply higher level thinking
critically and effectively. They are able to analyze, to synthesize, to tackle
the problem, to make a decision and to
think logically.
6. Nurturing the Individual
The learners carry on themselves, understand, give
attention, posses high wishes, motivate and empower themselves. The learners
cannot get the success without the support from people around them. The
learners should respect their companion and adult person.
7. Reaching High Standards
The learners know and reach the high standard. It
identifies their purposes and motivates them to reach it. Teacher shows to the
learners how to reach
what called excellent.
8. Using Authentic Assessments
The learners use academic knowledge in the real world
context to the meaningful purposes. For example, the learners may describe the
academic information that have learnt in subject of science, health, education,
math, and English subject by designing a car, planning the course menu, or
making the serving of human emotion or telling their experience.
C.
The Principles of CTL
1. Constructivism
Constructivism is the foundation of CTL.
The basic premise is that an individual learner must actively build knowledge
and skills. However, all advocates of constructivism agree that it is the
individuals process of stimuli from the environment and the resulting cognitive
structure that produce adaptive behavior rather than the stimuli themselves. In
the classroom teaching learning process, the application of constructivism are
applied in five step of learning that are activating knowledge, acquiring
knowledge, understanding knowledge, applying knowledge and reflecting on
knowledge. The constructivism paradigm has led us to understand how learning
can be facilitated through certain types of engaging, constructive activities.
This model of learning emphasizes meaning-making through active participation
in situated context socially, culturally, historically, and politically.
2.
Inquiry
In inquiry, the learning process is based
on the searching and discovery through systematic thinking process. Inquiry is
defined as a seeking for truth the information or knowledge, seeking information by questioning in the classroom
activity. There are several steps that should be followed, those are
formulating problem, collecting data through observation, analyzing and
presenting data (through written form, picture, report and table) and finally,
communicating and presenting the result of data to the readers, classmates, and
the other audience.
3.
Questioning
Questioning is the mother of contextual
teaching and learning, the beginning of knowledge, the heart of knowledge and
the important aspect of learning. Learning
is to be basically asking and answering questions. Asking a qustion can be reflected
as the reflection of the learners’ curiosity, while answering the questions
reflects a person’s ability in thinking. In the learning process, teacher does
not submit the information for granted, but the lure for the learners to find
themselves. Questioning has very important role, because through questioning
teachers can guide and lead the learners to find any material which is learnt.
4. Learning Community
The application of learning community can
be done by appliying learing through group discussion. Let them learn from each
other within members in their group. Actually, learning community has the meaning
as follows: 1) group of learning which communicate to share the idea and
experience, 2) working together to solve the problem and 3) the responsibility
of each member of learning group.
5.
Modeling
Basically, modeling is verbalization of
ideas. It means that teacher demonstrates something to the learners which is
related to the subject, after that, the learners are expected to imitate it. For
example, the teacher gives an example of how to operate computer, or how to
pronounce an English word correctly. Modeling activity can be summarized into
demonstrates the teachers opinion and demonstrates how does the teacher want
the learners to learn.
6.
Reflection
Reflection is the ways of thinking about
what the learners have learned and thinking about what the learners have done
in the past. Reflection is figuration of activity and knowledge just have
received. Teacher needs to do the reflections in the end of teaching learning
process. In the end of teaching learning process, teacher spends a little time
and ask the learner to do the
reflection. The realization of reflection can be done by giving direct
statement about the information that acquired in the lesson, some notes or
journal on the learner book, some impression and suggestion from the learners about
the learning process and discussion.
7.
Authentic
Assessment
Authentic assessment is a
procedure of achievement in the CTL. Assessments of the learners’ performance
can come from the teacher and the learners. Authentic assessment is the process
of collecting the data which can give the description of the learner learning
development. In the process of learning, not only the teacher which can be
placed to provide accurate assessments of the learners performance, but also the
learners can be effective at monitoring and judging their own language
production. They frequently have a very clear idea of how well they are doing
or have done, and if we help them to develop this awareness, we can greatly
enhance learning. Meanwhile, authentic assessment has some characteristics
those are: a) involves real world experience, b) allows access to information, c)
encourages the use of computer, dictionary and human resources, d) engages the learners
by relevance, e) uses open-ended format, f) includes self-assessment and
reflection, g) warrant effort and practice, h) identifies strength to enable the
learner to show what they can do, and i) make assessment criteria clearer to learners.
Essentially, the question that needs to answer by
authentic assessment is not what have they already known? But, does the learner
learn something? So, the learners are assessed
through many ways, not only assessed their examination test.
D. Advantages
and Disadvatages of CTL
Advantages:
1. Learning becomes more meaningful and real. It means that students are
required to capture the relationship between experiential learning in school to
real life. This is very important, because the material was found to correlate
with real life, not just for the students the material will be functioned
functionally, but material they have learnt will be closely embedded in the
memory of students that is not easily forgotten.
2. Learning more productive and able to foster the strengthening of the
concept to the students. Because the learning method followed the
constructivism CTL where a student is led to discover his own knowledge.
Disadvantages:
1. Teacher will be more intensive in guiding the learners. Because CTL
method is no longer acts as an information center. Teacher's task is to manage
the class as a team work to find new
knowledge and skills for students.
2. Teachers provide opportunities for students to discover or implement
their own ideas and encourage students to be aware of and consciously use their
own strategies for learning.
E.
7 Steps the
Implementation of CTL in the Classroom
1. Developed the idea that the learners will learn how to
work more meaningful by themselves, find themselves, and construct their own
knowledge and new skills.
2. Doing inquiry activities as far as possible for all
topics.
3. Developing learners' curiosity by asking questions.
4. Creating the 'learning society' (group discussion).
5. Presenting a 'model' as an example of learning.
6. Doing reflection at the end of the meeting.
7. Doing assessment in various ways.
F.
Conclusion
CTL is a
conception of teaching and learning that helps teachers relate subject matter
content to real world situations and motivates the learners to make connections
between knowledge and its applications to their lives as family members,
citizens, and workers and engage in the hard work that learning requires.
Using not
only CTL helps the learner to relate the subject matter to the real world, but
also encourages the learner to make a relation between their knowledge and the
application of it in their life. To make CTL success, the learners have to know
the characteristics and the principles of CTL well, and know how to apply them.
References
http://idb4.wikispaces.com/file/view/rc18-THE+EFFECTIVENESS+OF+CONTEXTUAL+TEACHING+AND+LEARNING+IN+TEACHING+SPEAKING.pdf/Accessed on October 20,
2013 at 22.0722.07
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