Indonesian EFL Learners’ Responses To Extensive Reading: Benefits and Challenges

Abstract

AbstrakKarena manfaatnya terhadap banyak keterampilan spesifik, ER telah dipercaya sebagai salah satu solusi terbaik dalam merangsang penguasaan bahasa siswa. Namun, terlepas dari manfaat yang ditawarkan, beberapa kendala dan masalah juga dilaporkan muncul baik dari guru maupun siswa. Studi saat ini mencoba untuk menggali (1) manfaat ER pada keterampilan spesifik yang diakui oleh mahasiswa dan (2) hambatan yang mereka hadapi dalam menerapkan ER. Penelitian ini melibatkan 4 mahasiswa Program Studi Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris di salah satu universitas di Riau, Indonesia yang telah menerapkan ER sebelum mereka masuk Universitas. Pengumpulan data dilakukan melalui angket terbuka dan wawancara. Temuan dan diskusi tentang tanggapan peserta terhadap ER kemudian disajikan dan saran untuk penelitian lebih lanjut juga diberikan.Kata kunci: Manfaat, Tantangan, Membaca Ekstensif AbstractDue to its many benefits for specific skills, extensive reading (ER) has been trusted as one of the best solutions in stimulating student language acquisition. However, apart from the benefits it offers, some constraints and issues were also reported that arise from both teachers and students. The current study attempted to investigate (1) the benefits of ER on specific skills recognized by university students and (2) the obstacles they face in implementing ER. This study involved four students of an English Education Study Program at a university in Riau, Indonesia, who implemented ER before they entered the university. The data were collected through open-ended questionnaires adapted from Arai (2019) and interviews. Findings and discussions about the participants’ responses to ER are then presented, and suggestions for further research are also given.Keywords: Benefit, Challenges, Extensive Reading.