INTRODUCTION

The population of student learning Englishas a foreign language has been steadily increasingfrom year to year. To succeed in college, thesestudents must develop not only linguistics, but alsoacademic skills. These skills involve using Englishto acquire and articulate knowledge by readingacademic texts, writing acceptable academic prose,conducting and reporting research. In Indonesia,English is taught in schools since the students goto Junior high schools. However, many of them donot know how to speak and write English for somereasons. Some people from educational field saidthat the curriculum need to be changed, includingthe purpose of teaching them English, the textbook,and the methods. To meet the students’ academicneeds and help them develop strong Englishlanguage skills, there are a number of ways needto be applied. One of the techniques to improving

Current World Environment Vol. 7(1), 33-36 (2012)

Multimedia: A Technique inTeaching Process in the Classrooms

ASHVINI JOSHI

Sri Satya Sai College of Engineering, Bhopal (India).

(Received: March 20, 2012; Accepted: May 27, 2012)

ABSTRACT

One of the techniques to improving the students’ meets the academic needs and helpsthem developing English language skills is providing multimedia during the process of teachingand learning in the classroom. Multimedia classroom provide the students chances for interactingwith diverse texts that give them a solid background in the tasks and content of mainstreamcollege courses. The writing aims to find out some advantages of the use of multimedia in theclassroom. Also, the involvement of technology in the classroom can not denied giving positivepoint to improving the quality of teaching and giving more various techniques in teaching a foreignlanguage. The research uses a qualitative method giving a deeply description using multimedia inthe classroom. The difference between a traditional classroom and multimedia classroom hasbeen drawn in this writing. The writing shows that there are some advantages in teaching Englishusing multimedia as a technique in teaching process in the classroom. Through the media theteacher could give more opportunity to students to express their opinions and enjoy during thecourse. The highly presence and motivation also bring positive aspects to students so that theycan improve their skills.

Key words: Multimedia, Technology, Classroom.

the students is using multimedia in the process ofteaching and learning in the classrooms. Multimediause in classroom will provide opportunity forinteracting with diverse texts that give students asolid background in the tasks and content ofmainstream college courses. Furthermore, becauseeducational technology is expected to become anintegral part of the curriculum, EFL students mustbecome proficient in accessing and using electronicresources. This article describes the method thatcould help the students to develop their skills inEnglish through multimedia: print text, film, video,radio, computer, and Internet. As students, they mustbe dealt with the subject found in resource material;also they are able to choose the resources thatbest suitable the points they wish to make. However,the courses are not included research skills, makingresearch reports to challenging their Englishlanguage skills.

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Multimedia ClassroomThe time it takes to earn the degree in

education today is based on an increasinglyoutdated model: so many hours in a classroomentitle a student to a receipt in the form of a grade,and so many receipts can be redeemed for acredential in the form of a degree... Education todayis just beginning to think of shifting the basis ofcertification from time served to skills andknowledge obtained.

Traditionally classroom situation isteachers stand in front of the students, givingexplanations, informing, and instructing. Theyusually use chalk to write something on theblackboard. These technique needs slightly to bemodified regarding with the development of thetechnology. The using of multimedia in classroomcannot be denied anymore. That will make possiblefor teachers giving more opportunity to studentsbeing happier and more enjoy during the course.Traditional classrooms have different settings fromthe multimedia classrooms. Students seat in rowsand a chalkboard in the front. The teacher isstanding in front of the class giving a lecture.Compared with traditional classrooms, multimediaclassrooms setting differ greatly from traditionalclassrooms. Traditional classrooms have the seatsin rows and a chalkboard in the front. In themultimedia classrooms, students’ seat can bemodified according to the situation needed. Insidethe classrooms, all the equipment is available andmakes the students feel comfortable to study. Theysit at wide tables in comfortable chairs and haveplenty of room to spread work. Furthermore, theyalso have the opportunity to move the furniturearound for group discussions. A large teachingstation is located at the front and to one side of theroom. Inside the station cabinet there are controlsfor the rooms built – in equipment. The use ofmultimedia described here makes use of print texts,film and Internet to develop and enhance linguisticsand knowledge. Through their interactions withmultimedia texts on topic of interest, studentsbecome increasingly familiar with academicvocabulary and language structures. As they pursuesustained study of one content area through focusdiscipline research, the students become activelyengaged in the process of meaning constructionwithin and across different media. Working though

the complex intermingling of meanings, embeddedwithin different texts encourages students to makeconnections as they build a wider range ofschemata, which are then available to help themgrasp future texts. Using print, film and Internet asresources for studying provides students withopportunities to gather information through stimulithat will stimulate their imaginations, engage theirinterest and introduce them to the raw materials foranalysis and interpretation of both language andcontext. Students develop solid foundation inseveral subject areas and become “content experts”in one. Thus they greatly increase their overallknowledge base, as well as their English languageand critical literacy skills, facilitating theirperformance in future college courses. Althoughvarious studies support the application ofmultimedia in the classroom, Liu, Jones and Hemstreet (1998) point out that the design of multimediais useful when technology is to have any effect onlearning. One of the main purposes of software inwriting is to facilitate the development of academicwriting skills for students through the use of theobjects matter for writing assignments. The programis presented as a simulation game to interest andmotivation. Students using the program foundthemselves in the virtual world of education.

The Computer InternetComputer technology has given us

Internet, which has various uses. Dealing witheducation, Internet presents the students a widerange of collection of English language texts inmany discipline departments. Before the generaluse of computers in colleges and universities toteach writing, students met in a traditional classroomand were taught to write standard essay. Instructionwas personified commonly by the teachers standingbehind a lectern or by the teacher marking errorson student texts (Blair, 1997). With the rapidproliferation of the personal computer, manyinstitutions of higher education created“computerized writing courses” emphasizing wordprocessing skills and collaborative critiquing;believing that using the technology “democratizesthe classroom discussion, allowing students totranscend the limits of the traditional Computertechnology has given us Internet, which is anelectronic medium in which both print and visualresources are invariably bound. At the click of a

35JOSHI, Curr. World Environ., Vol. 7(1), 33-36 (2012)

mouse, text resources present students with adiverse collection of authentic English languagetexts dealing with a wide variety of interdisciplinarytopics, and at each web page link, students havethe advantage of reading print texts with the benefitof immediate visual reinforcement provided bypictures and slide shows, facilitating thecollaborative effects of print and visual informationprocessing. Integrating the Internet yields theadditional benefit of increased student motivation.Students are eager to begin class and often arriveearly at the computer lab, logging on to the Internetand beginning research on their own. They alsooften stay after class to continue working on theInternet. Overall, students develop greaterconfidence in their ability to use English becausethey need to interact with the Internet entirelythrough reading and writing. Using the Internet forfocus discipline research not only teaches higherorder thinking skills, but also promotes critical andsocial literacy as students encounter a variety ofinformation, synthesizing that information throughcooperation and collaboration with their peers.Members of focus discipline groups generally formstrong multicultural friendship fostered by theircollaborative efforts throughout the semester.However, the general uses of computers are rarelyfound in traditional classroom. For instance,students attend the regular classes that were taughtto write the standard essay. With the technologyuse, the students do not only literate the ability toread and write but also to be able to understandmusic, video, hypertext and networkedcommunications. Whitaker (1995) points out clearlythat technology as something to expand humanpotential rather than substitute for it and whichenhances the thought process rather thancripples it.

The Print TextThe Print text used in presenting students

with sophisticated reading that contains cognitivelydemanding language and introduces a wide rangeof vocabulary. However, these texts may be difficultto understand. This is suggested to present inprinted and visual text. By reading print texts willthe benefit of immediate visual provided by picturesor slide show. In writing class of using multimedia,students watch the selected video novel. Afterwatching students are asked questions about the

video and assigned essay topics, then divided intobrainstorming groups. They discuss and developthe topics in their group. They then make roughdraft before presenting in front of other groups. It isobviously that in the multimedia classroom studentsare engaged to learn how to brainstorm, how touse groups for draft and how to critique otherpresentations .However, to benefit from the Internet,the students have to learn to navigate and thenevaluate the information found there. The studentsmust know how to use search engines, webbrowsers, and met sites evaluate information interms of its validity and reliability, as well as itsrelevance to the topic (Carlson, 1995). Therefore toguide the students in determining whether anInternet source is reliable and credible, studentsshould consider the source and time frame, as wellas the evidence supporting the informationprovided. As the students become morecomfortable surfing the Internet, they discover it canbe used to develop not only content area knowledgebut also to improve their language skills. They knowhow to compose an essay, using information fromthe sources they have found in the Internet; alsothey learn how to cite references in a bibliography.

A study conducted by Kasper (1997)illustrate that teaching English using multimediasuch as print, film, video, Internet to studentsencourage them to write a critical analysis onassignments. Overall, the students’ achievementincreased significantly. 92 % of the students passedon departmental reading and writing examinations.In addition, their feedback on discussions is verypositive. They express confidence in their ability touse English. They attribute this improvement to themultimedia model that the texts teach them Englishand provide helpful information in other coursesand the film and Internet help them make materialeasier to understand because they see, hear, andread about the topic.

The FilmFilm can be used to provide a visual

material. The students can read a print text andwatch the film later, according to Kasper and Singer(1997), the film can clarify comprehension,consolidate concepts and reinforce learning. It isexpected to the students to fully understand bothvisual and verbal comprehension. By watching the

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complete film the students expected to understandvarious areas of academic discourse such aspsychology, environmental science and others tobroaden the verbal and written perspective (Kasperand Singer, 1997). A study case from FloridaInternational University (1994), has examined amultimedia classroom, the students watching thevideo novels Tom Jones (the new six part A & Eversion) and The Scarlet Pimpernel (AnthonyAndrews and Jane Seymour). After viewing it, theclass asked questions about the movie andassigned essay topics, to help them the teacherasked the students to brainstorm.

CONCLUSION

Through the interaction with multimedia,the students become increasingly familiar withacademic vocabulary and language structure.Connecting with the Internet will make the benefitof increased student motivation. Students are eagerto begin class and often arrive early at the computerlab, logging on the Internet and beginning researchon their own. They also often stay after class to

continue working on the Internet. Overall, studentsdevelop greater confidence in their ability to useEnglish because they need to interact with theInternet through reading and writing. Usingmultimedia provides the students to gatherinformation through media that encourages theirimaginations, interests. Also it using this technologycombined with the sense of teaching will create asuccessful teaching method.

In our imaginations, we enjoy and valueall the benefits of education on-demand. We wishthe future was here already because deep downinside, we all are lifelong learners. We just wantlearning to be easy, personalized. This vision isinviting, yet we must live and work in present time.And today, the reality stays apart from the dream.The challenge to educators is clear. We must alsoestablish rigorous standards of quality in theproducts, services, and solutions we offer to ouryouth. We must learn how to prepare all of ourstudents for lives that are becoming more and morecomplex. We must prepare our students to masterchange.

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