PSYCHOLOGICAL ASPECTS OF FOREIGN LANGUAGE LEARNERS
By: Firdaus, S.Pd.I, M.Pd.I *
Learning according to Hamalik (2008: 57) is a combination composed of human, material, facilities, equipment and procedures that influence each other to achieve learning objectives. Thus it can be taken the understanding that foreign language learning is a combination of the various elements that have been mentioned earlier to achieve language proficiency which includes listening, speaking, reading and writing skills.
Some notes that can be considered from the various elements of learning are human elements in which there are psychological aspects of foreign language learners including: language learner types, student cognitive styles, student learning attitudes, student modalities, learner personality, and motivation. students.
A. Types of Language Learners
Tarigan (2006: 159-160) states there are four types of language learners, namely:
1. The concrete learner
These learners prefer learning with games, pictures, films and videos, talking in pairs, learning through the use of tapes and going on excursions.
2. Analytical learners
These learners like to study grammar, study English books, study alone, find their mistakes, have problems to solve, learn through reading newspapers.
3. Communicative learners
This group enjoys learning by observing and listening to native speakers, talking to friends in English, using English in shops and so on, learning English words by listening to them, and learning by conversations.
4. Authority-oriented learners.
These learners like the teacher explaining everything, writing everything in notebooks, having their own textbook, learning to read, studying grammar, and learning English words by seeing them.
Furthermore, Nelson quoted by Ali and Asrori (2004: 131) states that there are two types of children's development in language acquisition, namely:
1. Children who are referential types, who tend to think that some language is used to talk about objects.
2. Children with expressive types tend to think that most of the language is used to talk about themselves and others as well as to express feelings, needs, and other social conditions.
B. Student Cognitive Style
According to Puji Astuti (1990: 203-204) cognitive style is a term to designate a person's nature in understanding, conceptualizing, organizing and disclosing information. The types of cognitive styles are:
1. Field dependent
The characteristics are a personal orientation, holistic, and socially sensitive. This type is successful in the aspect of communication, requires learning a second language in a natural setting, and has an inductive mindset.
2. Independent field
The characteristics of impersonal orientation, analytic, independent, social insensitivity (individualist). This type is closely related to the analytical classroom, and a lot of practice, being able to answer extensive reading questions is suitable for this type in second language learning.
C. Student learning attitudes
Curran and Bruner are quoted as saying by Arsyad (2003: 31-32) that students' learning attitudes are divided into two, namely: defensive and receptive.
1. A defensive learning attitude tends to think of a foreign language as a series of sounds, words, rules or patterns that must be forcibly transferred from the teacher or textbook to the brain. As a result, language is considered a burden.
2. A receptive learning attitude is similar to what happens when a seed or seed, sown on fertile, rock-free soil, is free of weeds.
Cultivating this receptive attitude can be done by implementing learning that is fun and varied and according to student needs (student-oriented). If you compare it to learning like this, it is like a person playing football, tired but fun.
D. Learning modalities
There are three types of student learning modalities according to Bobbi De Porter, quoted by Munir (2006: 30-33), namely: visual, auditory and kinesthetic.
1. The tendencies of visual types include: speaking quickly, being a good speller and being able to see the real words in their mind, remembering what they saw rather than hearing, having problems remembering verbal instructions unless they were written down and often asking people to help them repeating it, prefers reading rather than being read, often answers questions briefly, yes or no, prefers demonstrations to speeches, and prefers art to music, sometimes loses concentration when it comes to paying attention.
2. The tendencies of the auditorial type include: talking to himself when doing activities, easily distracted by noise, moving lips and saying writing in books when reading, likes reading aloud and listening, usually a fluent speaker, finds it difficult to write but is great at telling stories .
3. The kinesthetic types tend to include: speaking slowly, always physically oriented and moving a lot, learning through manipulation and practice, memorizing by walking and seeing, using fingers as pointers when reading, using words containing actions.
Knowing each of the types above will really help language teachers. Because sometimes what attitude do we want from students, it turns out that it is a reflection of our own type which is not necessarily the type of each student. Therefore, treat students according to their respective types, because it is a gift from Allah SWT that must be grateful for developing it, not eliminating it.
E. The learner personality
Student personality according to Rossier, quoted by Pujiastuti (1990: 203), can be classified into two, namely extrovert and introvert.
1. Extrovert, which is an open personality and is quicker to master a second language than an introvert.
2. introvert, namely a closed personality. So to help these learners master a second language faster is to read extensively.
These different student personalities must be managed as best as possible, and strategies or methods must vary according to the personality of each student.
F. Student motivation
According to Nababan as quoted by Mu'in (2004: 43), the motivation to learn a foreign language is grouped into three forms, namely:
1. Integrative motive, namely learning a language because you want to live in a community that owns the language.
2. Instrumental motivation, namely learning the language because it is a means to achieve other goals such as to study religion.
3. Identification of social groups, namely learning languages due to communication in a particular society.
The motives possessed by each student are different, therefore the identification of these various motives can help the teacher in setting goals or learning methods that are in accordance with the desires of students, if they want learning objectives to be achieved.
Finally, it is understandable that knowing these psychological aspects can help foreign language teachers in teaching language. Because, in learning foreign languages, sometimes there are obstacles that come from the psychological aspects above.
* Arabic teacher at MTs N 1 Tebo and Lecturer at IAI Tebo Jambi Indonesia.
REFERENCES
Ali, Mohammad dan Mohammad Asrori. 2004. Psikologi Remaja: Perkembangan Peserta Didik. Jakarta: Bumi Aksara
Arsyad, Azhar. 2003. Bahasa Arab dan Metode Pengajarannya: Beberapa Pokok Pikiran. Yogyakarta: Pustaka Pelajar
Hamalik, Oemar. 2008. Kurikulum dan Pembelajaran. Jakarta: Bumi Aksara
Mu’n, Abdul. 2004. Analisis Kontrastif Bahasa Arab dan Bahasa Indonesia: Telaah Terhadap Fonetik dan Morfologi. Jakarta: PT. Pustaka Alhusna Baru
Munir. 2006. Perencanaan Sistem Pembelajaran Bahasa Arab: Teori dan Praktek. Palembang: IAIN Raden Fatah Press
Pujiastuti, Sri. 1990. Peranan Membaca Ekstensif Dalam Pemerolehan Bahasa Kedua. Dalam Nurhadi dan Roekhan (ed.), Dimensi- Dimensi Dalam Belajar Bahasa Kedua. Bandung: Sinar Baru
Tarigan, Henry Guntur. 2006. Dasar-Dasar Kurikulum Bahasa. Bandung: Angkasa
