The Influence of Students’ English Learning Attitudes on Their English Learning Achievement of the Eleventh Grade Students of State Vocational High School 4 Purworejo in The Academic Year 2011/2012

Abstract

Attitude is an important variable in language learning. Attitude is yet another important affective factor in learning a second language. The successful acquisition of a second language seems to some extent, contingent upon learners’ views of the language learning environment, the learning situation, and how they view the target language and its speakers with other variable factors such as the desire to learn, and past experience with learning a new skill, may affect or significantly contribute to language learning achievement. The problems on this research are to know the students’ English learning attitudes, the students’ English learning achievement and whether or not there is any influence of the students’ English learning attitudes on their English learning achievement of the eleventh grade students of SMK N 4 Purworejo. The population is the eleventh grades students of SMK N 4 Purworejo in the academic year 2011/2012. The sample involved 60 students by applying simple random sampling. The data about the students’ English learning attitude is obtained by using questionnaire and the data about the students’ English learning achievement is obtained by using a documentation which is taken from the final examination mark in the second semester. The validity of the instrument is calculated by Pearson’s Product Moment formula and the reliability is calculated by Alpha Cronbach formula. Mean and standard deviation are used in the descriptive analysis, while test of normality, homogeneity and t' test is used in the inferential analysis. The main results of this research are (1) the students’ English learning attitude can be categorized as sufficient level with M=60.4 and SD=6.01 at the range 50 – 65; (2) the students’ English learning achievement can be categorized as fail level with M=46.80 and SD=16.90; (3) t obtained value (5.86) is higher than t table (1.671). It means that there is a positive and significant influence of the students’ English learning attitude on their English learning achievement of the eleventh grade students of SMK N 4 Purworejo in the academic year 2011/2012. But the level of the students’ English learning achievement is in fail level. It means that there is a negative and significant influence of the students’ English learning attitude on their English learning achievement.