JOLLT Journal of Languages and Language Teaching, Vol. 7 No.2, November 2019 96 IMPROVING XI-GRADE STUDENTS’ WRITING ESSAY SKILL USING COMPUTER EDUTAINMENT Evi Safitri Yulandari English Teacher, Senior High School, Dompu, West Nusa Tenggara Email: eviyulandari20@gmail.com Arif Rahman Dr., English Lecturer, Graduate School of English Language Education, IKIP Mataram Email: arifrahman@ikipmataram.ac.id ABSTRACT As viewed by many linguists, writing skill is the most difficult one in English to be tough or learned. For many years, writing has not been a favorable interest like the other skills. This paper is intended to discuss the role and the effectiveness of using computer edutainment or called Education and Entertainment in improving students’ writing. The subjects of this research were the students’ class XI A. Meanwhile, the objects of this research are students’ skill in writing through Computer Edutainment. In this research the researcher used CAR (Classroom Action Research) as the research method, there is 2 technique of collecting the data in this research those are qualitative data and quantitative data. The quantitative data are in the form of numerical data. The data are from students' score of pre-test and post-test while the qualitative used in collecting the data were taken from the result of observation and interview. This study used several data instrument in gathering the data dealing with the question of the study, i.e: writing test in the form of writing essay, observation field note, and interview. The data were then analyzed whether their writing results were reaching the minimum standard or not, and having improvement or not. From the comparisons, the researcher makes a conclusion in the form of descriptions whether the students' ability of XI of SMAN 1 PAJO in writing has improved by the use of computer edutainment or not. Key word: Teaching Writing, Computer Edutainment Abstrak Seperti yang dilihat oleh banyak ahli bahasa, keterampilan menulis dalam bahasa Iggris adalah yang paling sulit untuk di ajari atau dipelajari. Selama bertahun-tahun, menulis belum menjadi minat yang menguntungkan seperti keterampilan lainnya. Makalah ini dimaksudkan untuk membahas peran dan efektivitas menggunakan edutainment komputer atau biasa disebut dengan Pendidikan dan Hiburan dalam meningkatkan tulisan siswa. Subjek penelitian ini adalah siswa kelas XI A. Sementara itu, objek penelitian ini adalah keterampilan siswa dalam menulis melalui Computer Edutainment. Dalam penelitian ini peneliti menggunakan CAR (Penelitian Tindakan Kelas) sebagai metode penelitian, ada 2 teknik pengumpulan data dalam penelitian ini yaitu data kualitatif dan data kuantitatif. Data kuantitatif berupa data numerik. Data berasal dari skor pre-test dan post-test siswa sedangkan kualitatif yang digunakan untuk mengumpulkan data diambil dari hasil observasi dan wawancara. Penelitian ini menggunakan beberapa instrumen data dalam mengumpulkan data yang berhubungan dengan pertanyaan penelitian, yaitu: tes menulis dalam bentuk esai penulisan, catatan lapangan observasi, dan wawancara. Data tersebut kemudian dianalisis apakah hasil tulisan mereka telah mencapai standar minimum atau tidak, dan mengalami peningkatan atau tidak. Dari perbandingan, peneliti membuat kesimpulan dalam bentuk deskripsi apakah kemampuan siswa XI SMAN 1 PAJO dalam menulis telah meningkat dengan menggunakan edutainment komputer atau tidak. Kata kunci: pengajaran menulis, komputer edutainment mailto:eviyulandari20@gmail.com mailto:arifrahman@ikipmataram.ac.id JOLLT Journal of Languages and Language Teaching, Vol. 7 No.2, November 2019 97 INTRODUCTION Writing as one of the four language skills is the most challenging skill to master by foreign language learners. Moreover, writing is one of the productive skills closely bound up with receptive skill work (Harmer, 2001, p. 250). English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students need to comprehend writing skill in order to prepare or to empowering them for the essay writing, academic writing, and final academic assignment. Writing is not only needed to generate and organize ideas of using the choice of vocabulary, sentence, grammar, and paragraph organization but also it needs strong ideas into a readable text (Richards&Renandya, 2002, p. 303). In teaching writing teacher should put attention in deciding teaching strategy; particularly in teaching writing context in order to meet the students' need for comprehending writing skill (Haerazi et al., 2018). Teaching intensive writing in EFL context at the level of secondary school level is important, for instants the second-grade students' of Senior high school. Otherwise, if students' do not have enough knowledge of writing skill, the students' have difficult to express what they fell in written text (Haerazi & Irawan, 2019). Thus asking students to write is not easy due to the lack of vocabulary mastery. In fact, the VII grade of junior high school students' has already been introducing to write text and also related to the grammatical sentence. Most of the students' often time look stressed when they are asked to write such short simple writing (Angelo, 1989, p. 5). Based on preliminary observation of the eleventh-grade students, there were found many problems they faced. Those problems, i.e. firstly the students were difficult to think what they would write, they felt confused how they would start to write and they were bored in learning English especially writing because they felt it was not interesting. Secondly, the students always felt difficult and confuse in dong task regarding writing because of the lack of teacher methods and variations in teaching writing. Thirdly, the teacher usually explained the definition and asked the students to make the paragraph based on the definition, this method made students bored to write, in this case, the teacher just only focused on the definition of the text, furthermore, mostly the students of secondary school level of SMAN 1 PAJO was not good listener, they difficult to pay attention to teacher explanation. As a result, mostly the students of second grade have lack of comprehending writing skill. In this precisely, those problems should be overcome in order to help the students raise their awareness of writing skill, the teacher need to facilitate their method using media that is computer edutainment. To solve these problems, Computer Edutainment: is one of the appropriate media that can be used to improve students' writing skill (Pour 2006). Furthermore, Raheem (2011) says that Computer Edutainment is constructive learning technique and medium to introduce writing skill in the early stage. Ramsey (2006, p.29) states Computer Edutainment applications combine entertainment and education in one package. Students learn best in a pleasant learning environment and the best learning environment in which students are able to have fun learning. Computer Edutainment based learning is, therefore, a preferred vehicle for educating students. Therefore, developing students' writing through Computer Edutainment is not through traditional methods however, it may enhance the writing skills of the students (Pour 2006:29). In spite of that, in teaching English writing the teacher can use Computer Edutainment into everyday writing activities of their classroom if this is integrated into the students' language environment, it is JOLLT Journal of Languages and Language Teaching, Vol. 7 No.2, November 2019 98 enabling him/her to absorb new ideas and experience that might otherwise be difficult to understand. In other words, Computer Edutainment can be used as a tool for teaching English as a foreign language in many different school settings (Soreensen, et al., 2002). Based on the previous statement and the strong desire of finding the solution to these problems, this research was intended to investigate the using of Computer Edutainment in improving the students writing skill. The use of Computer Edutainment as the media in the teaching- learning process is expected to give significant result so that gradually, the students’ skill in developing their competencies shows meaningful progress. REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE Terminology of writing Writing is active communication and it is an act of making marks on a certain surface in a form of graphic presentation, to make meaning. Furthermore writing is the fourth skill in the English language. In this line Harmer (2002, p. 258) who states that the writing is re-writing; that revision-seeing with new eyes has a central role to play in the act of creating text. Angelo states that (1989, p. 5), writing is a form of thinking. It means that writing is an activity to express ideas, issue, events, feeling or thinking to others through written form. Lyons and Heasley (2006) state: “writing as a complex process, and it is frequently accepted as being the last language skill to be acquired (for native speakers of the language as well as for those learning a foreign or a second language)” (p. 13). Harmer (2004) claimed: “Spoken language, for a child, is acquired naturally as a result of being exposed to it, whereas the ability to write has to be learned”. Harmer (as cited in Ghodbane, 2010, p. 19) points out that “there are a number of reasons why students find language production difficult”. Writing and learning to write has always been one of the most complex language skills (2007, p. 251). Nunan (as cited in Graoui, 2007, p. 15) agrees that «it is easier to learn to speak than to write no matter if it is a first or second language » (1989, p. 12). This complexity resides in the stages of the process we go through when writing, the lack of knowledge in the subject matter, etc. Moreover, it can be related to factors: psychological, linguistic, and cognitive; this applies to write in L1, L2, and FL. Besides its complexity, its difficulty, and its importance, writing is a dynamic process which allows writers to work with words and ideas no matter if these are right or wrong. This idea (as cited in Graoui, 2007) is supported by Zamel (1992) who described writing as a "meaning- making, the purposeful, evolving, recursive, dialogic, tentative, fluid, exploratory process". More importantly, writing is a process of discovery, i.e., a way to help learners to learn or to discover how to compose a piece of writing. Grabe and Kaplan (as cited in Ghodbane, 2010, p. 19) think of writing as a “technology”, i.e., a set of skills which must be practiced and learned through practice (1996). According to White and Arndt (1991), "writing is also a problem-solving activity developing in progress". This means that writing doesn't come naturally or automatically, but through cognitive efforts, training, instruction and practice. Even if it is a problem-solving, writing involves processes such as generating ideas, a voice to write, planning, goal-setting, monitoring and evaluating what is to be written and what has been written as well as the right language used by the writer. Writing is a progressive activity; it means that learners for the first time writing something done, learners have already been thinking about what they are going to say and how they are going to say it. Then after JOLLT Journal of Languages and Language Teaching, Vol. 7 No.2, November 2019 99 learners have finished writing, they read over what they have written and made changes and corrections. Therefore, writing is never a one-step action; as it is a process that has several steps. A lot of students said that writing is a difficult skill. But it was an actually easy and enjoyable activity if there are an appropriate method and interesting teaching technique. Based on the overview in the previous statement, this study concludes that writing is expressing ideas, facts, feelings, experience, and thoughts in written form. In writing, the aspect includes the use of vocabulary, structure of the sentence, composition of the sentence, spelling, and punctuation. Those aspects were important to master in order to be able to produce good writing. Writing as one of the productive skills was considered difficult, especially writing in a foreign language. Assessing Writing Skills Assessing should be careful and meticulous currents tests of writing skill. Assessments are used for correct placement in a class, to pre-test and post-test, and to evaluate students. In scoring the students’ writing, the researcher refers to writing scoring system given by In the Jacobs et al, (1981) scale; scripts are rated on five aspects of writing: content, organization, vocabulary, language use, and mechanics. The five aspects are differentially weighted to emphasize first content (30 points) and next language use (25 points), with organization and vocabulary, weighted equally (20 points) and mechanics receiving very little emphasis (5 points). Table: Scheme of Scoring Writing Content 30-27 Excellent to very good Knowledgeable-substantive-etc 26-22 Good to average Some knowledge of subject-adequate range-etc 21-17 Fair to poor Limited knowledge of subject-little substance-etc 16-13 Very poor Does not show knowledge of subject non-substantive- etc Organization 20-18 Excellent to very good Fluent expression-ideas clearly stated-etc 17-14 Good to average Somewhat choppy-loosely organized but the main idea stand out-etc 13-10 Fair to poor Non-fluent-ideas confused or disconnected-etc 9-7 Very poor Does not communicate-no organization-etc Vocabulary 20-18 Excellent to very good Sophisticated range-effective word/idiom choice and usage-etc 17-14 Good to average Adequate range-occasional errors of word/idiom, choice, usage but the meaning not obscured 13-10 Fair to poor Limited range-frequent errors of word/idiom form, choice, usage-etc 9-7 Very poor Essentially translation-little knowledge of English vocabulary Language Use 25-22 Excellent to very good Effective complex constructions-etc 21-19 Good to average Effective but simple constructions-etc JOLLT Journal of Languages and Language Teaching, Vol. 7 No.2, November 2019 100 17-11 Fair to poor Major problems in simples/ complex constructions-etc 10-5 Very poor Virtually no mastery of sentence constructions rules- etc Mechanics 5 Excellent to very good Demonstrated mastery of conventions-etc 4 Good to average Occasionally errors of spelling, punctuations-etc 3 Fair to poor frequent errors of spelling, punctuations, capitalization- etc 2 Very poor No mastery of conventions-dominated by errors of spelling, punctuations, capitalization, paragraphing- etc The Concept of Computer Edutainment Edutainment stems from two words education and entertainment, whether that is a narrative, game or some other kind of fun things. This might take the form of a multimedia application for the computer, but in a broader sense, television programs may also be regarded as edutainment (Soreensen, et al., 2002). Edutainment is a term that describes a computer environment where learning and playing take place simultaneously (Pour, 2006). Green and McNeese (2007) promote the use of edutainment to supplement the school curriculum. Ortiz, et al., (2006, pp. 317-318) suggested some key characteristics of computer edutainment: a. Computer edutainment is fun for small kids and young male teenagers. This suggests that entertaining educational computer edutainment would be appealing for a broad audience and applicable not only for primary/secondary school learners but also in corporate and long-life learning. b. Computer edutainment is immersive. It transfers the identity of the player to the recreated world and immerses him/her in whatever reality the designer of the game wanted. Thus, computer edutainment can provide a constructivist and embodied learning process. c. Computer edutainment stimulates cooperation/competition as the environment in edutainment is often populated by characters that provide interaction. For instance, multiplayer computer edutainment involves several players at the same time and makes them collaborate or compete in the achievement of goals. Therefore, when computer edutainment applied to education, it can serve as a medium for collaborative learning even without requiring the involvement of actual peers. d. Computer edutainment promotes the creation of communities of practice. Playing computer edutainment, even a single-player game, is not an isolated activity. New players soon learn details about the strategies, playstyles, .etc. These communities are essential vaults for learning about edutainment, and it all happens on a peer-to-peer basis. There are no instructors and no learners, yet some vast vaults of knowledge and learning are formed without external influence. e. Computer edutainment is interactive environments where there are competition, rules, rewards and a specific outcome. Characteristics of Computer Edutainment Green and McNeese (2007) promote the use of edutainment to supplement the school curriculum. Ortiz, et al., (2006, pp. 317-318) suggested some key characteristics of computer edutainment: a. Computer edutainment is fun for small kids and young male teenagers. This suggests that entertaining educational computer edutainment would be appealing for a broad audience and JOLLT Journal of Languages and Language Teaching, Vol. 7 No.2, November 2019 101 applicable not only for primary/secondary school learners but also in corporate and long-life learning. b. Computer edutainment is immersive. It transfers the identity of the player to the recreated world and immerses him/her in whatever reality the designer of the game wanted. Thus, computer edutainment can provide a constructivist and embodied learning process. c. Computer edutainment stimulates cooperation or competition as the environment in edutainment is often populated by characters that provide interaction. For instance, multiplayer computer edutainment involves several players at the same time and makes them collaborate or compete in the achievement of goals. Therefore, when computer edutainment applied to education, it can serve as a medium for collaborative learning even without requiring the involvement of actual peers. d. Computer edutainment promotes the creation of communities of practice. Playing computer edutainment, even a single-player game, is not an isolated activity. New players soon learn details about the strategies, playstyles, .etc. These communities are essential vaults for learning about edutainment, and it all happens on a peer-to-peer basis. There are no instructors and no learners, yet some vast vaults of knowledge and learning are formed without external influence. e. Computer edutainment is interactive environments where there are competition, rules, rewards and a specific outcome. The rationale for using Computer Edutainment According to Garris et al., (2002, p.445), there are several reasons for using computer edutainment for education and training purposes. These are: a. The learning approach is shifting from traditional didactic model of instruction to a learner-centered approach, which emphasizes a more active learner role. b. There are some studies in the literature showing that computer edutainment can be effective tools for supplementing teaching and complex subject matter. c. The intensity of engagement that computer edutainment can invoke in learners. d. When certain computer edutainment features are paired with instructional content, the power of computer edutainment can be exploited to engage and motivate learners towards learning. e. The social nature of people, the increasing capabilities of technology and the demands of a nation for better education are putting into play the next big evolution in interactivity. People play computer edutainment as it is engaging and relaxing. It is motivating and education frequently is not. Thus, one possible solution to learner engagement is to integrate computer edutainment into education (Swan, 2008). Therefore, in recent years the question for educators became what computer edutainment features should be paired with instructional content so that the learners are motivated to learn (Prensky, 2002). Many people find computer edutainment so motivating because of the powerful sense of control given to players. According to Tuzan (2004), there are three characteristics of control: contingency, choice, and power. Contingency refers to the fact that learners' outcomes are dependent upon their responses. The choice is visible to the learner when there are alternatives for a specific task. These alternatives can be offered through different edutainment formats, fantasies, or audio-visual effects. Learners' actions in learning environments should create powerful effects. This strategy JOLLT Journal of Languages and Language Teaching, Vol. 7 No.2, November 2019 102 might have strong effects on subsequent motivation. Advantages of Using Computer Edutainment in English Teaching Because of several computer advantages, it has become an important instrument used in different places. It can exist in the office or at school. It has become an indispensable device for a lot of users and particularly for the learners. According to Frei (2007), one of the elements of the computer is the word processor which makes it has many advantages over handwriting and manual typewriters. The word processing is faster and easier than writing by hand and you can store documents on your computer, which you can't usually do on a typewriter. This makes it easier to review and rewrite your documents. You have more formatting choices with a word processor and the spelling, grammar, and language tools are useful, too. You can also print copies of your documents. Many language students use a word processor to improve their writing skills and because they help them feel proud of their work. Referring to Kern (2000) who says that the use of word processing software improves the quality of the students‟ writing. However, this kind of software could have positive influences, such as the students‟ attitude toward writing and the decrease of surface errors. In addition, Harmer (2001) recommends teachers to encourage their students to write emails in English to others around the world as he considers this “extremely motivating” and more exciting than other forms of letter writing. Harmer (2001) claimed that the use of the computer in the writing skill is good for many reasons, from them: a. A word processing package removes the problems of poor handwriting that some students suffer from. b. A word processing package permits the user to edit his piece of writing in a great speed achievement and with great facility. c. Spelling checkers can alleviate the task of achieving correct spelling and dictionaries can provide grammar help. d. A computer screen can be sometimes more visible to the whole in group work than a piece of paper might be. Another important point (as cited in Hassina, 2005, p.77) is what we call « mouse-pals » instead of « pen-pals », which is the action of getting students to write emails in English to others around the world something that can be extremely motivating. In that Harmer held: « E-mail represents a genre all of their own where linguistic accuracy is not so formally important. But despite this, we can still encourage students to „sit back‟ and consider the results of their before checking on the send icon. The computer allows the user to create documents, edit, print, and store them. Creation of documents takes less time because of the various tools like spelling, grammar checker, thesaurus, and dictionary that are installed in the computer. It is so easy to reorganize the sentences or paragraphs; we can cut and paste and make the necessary changes. If there is a mistake, the computer automatically gives the correct answer, so there is no need to open up a dictionary book to look for meanings of words. The most incredible feature of using the computer is one can remain connected to the world through the Internet. For ESL students, the wealth of communication options the computer provides allows for daily opportunities to practice interacting with others in English. Using the computer as a tool provides students with the opportunity to develop and use their higher-level thinking skills to solve problems that are relevant to their daily lives. For ESL students, the JOLLT Journal of Languages and Language Teaching, Vol. 7 No.2, November 2019 103 wealth of communication options the computer provides allows for daily opportunities to practice interacting with others in English. Research Design This research used Classroom Action Research (CAR). It is based on McTherte’s view in Singh (2006, p. 263) who says that action research is organized, investigative activity, aimed toward the study and constructive change of given endeavors by individual or group concerned with change and improvement. Data of the research was gathered from pre-test and post-test. There are two kinds of data in this research called quantitative and qualitative data. Firstly, the quantitative data gathered from this study included the improvement of students’ writing skill using Computer Edutainment. The data was taken from the result of students' works in writing an essay (score). The quantitative research employs the traditional, the positivist, the experimental, or the empiricist method to enquire into an identified problem. Quantitative is based on testing a theory, measured with numbers, and analysis using statistical techniques and it particularly emphasizes objectivity and reproducibility (Smith et al., 1979). Meanwhile, Fraenkel&Wallen (2003) argued that the goal of quantitative methods is to determine whether the predictive generalizations of a theory hold true. Thus, quantitative research is more concerned with issues of how much, how well, or to whom that particular issue applies. Kerlinger& Lee (2000) explained that quantitative research is deductive in nature and that researchers make inferences based on direct observations with the primary goal to describe cause and effect. Secondly, this study used qualitative data gathered from observation sheet, field notes, documentation, and interview. In line with this Denzin and Lincoln (2005) describe that data are about feelings, opinions, expectation, suggestions, and preferences from the research members and the students related to the method that was used in teaching and learning writing. Furthermore, qualitative researchers study things in natural settings, attempting to make sense of or interpret phenomena in terms of the meanings people bring to them. ”When applying qualitative research methods, the emphasis is put on the natural setting and the points of views of the research participants. The data has been collected using observation through field note and interview. Subject and Object of the Research The research in collaboration with the English teacher, the students, and the principal of SMAN 1 PAJO conducted the action research. The subjects of this research were the students’ class XI A. Meanwhile, the objects of this research are students’ skill in writing through Computer Edutainment. The Location of the Research The research conducted at SMAN I PAJO. It is located at Jl. Lintas Lakey, Kec. Pajo, Kab Dompu. It has about 2 hectares in size. The school has seven classes in each grade so it has 21 regular classes for teaching-learning rooms. The school also has some facilities that can support the teaching-learning process. The instrument of the Study This study used several data instrument in gathering the data dealing with the question of the study, i.e: writing test in the form of writing essay, observation field note, and interview. Techniques of Data Collection 1. Quantitative Data The quantitative data are in the form of numerical data. The data are from the students' score of pre-test and post-test. In collecting quantitative data, the researcher https://atlasti.com/qualitative-research-methods/ JOLLT Journal of Languages and Language Teaching, Vol. 7 No.2, November 2019 104 applied the activities those are: (a) the researcher prepared the instruments of the test tested; (b) the researcher gave essay test for both pre-test and posttest to the students’ to measure their writing ability; and (c) the researcher collects the results of the students work after they finish. 2. Qualitative Data The qualitative used in collecting the data were taken from the result of observation and interview. This data conducted as supported data collection techniques. The results of qualitative data were presented in the finding of the study. Technique of Data Analysis In analyzing the qualitative data the researcher was conducted the mean scores of writing achievement scores Sugiono (2013, p.49). The data are students’ score from the action at the beginning and the final of research and the test given after the teaching and learning computer edutainment. In analyzing the qualitative data, the researcher did some steps proposed by Burns (2010, pp. 104-105). The first step is assembling the data. In this step, and start to look for broad patterns, ideas, or trends that seem to answer the questions. The next step is coding the data. In this step, the researcher groups the data into more specific categories and identifies which data are. The third step is comparing the data. In this step, the researcher compares the categories of different sets of data to see whether the data said the same thing or whether there are contradictions. The fourth step is building meanings and interpretations. The researcher analyzes the data several times to post questions, rethink to connections, and develop an explanation of the situation. The fifth or last step was reporting outcomes. In this step, the researcher describes the context of the research, outlining findings, and considers how she was organized the whole research not only the analysis but also the findings. To analyze the quantitative data, the result scores of the pre-test before the research will be done by comparing with data of the post-test after the research. The data were then analyzed whether their writing results were reaching the minimum standard or not, and having improvement or not. From the comparisons, the researcher makes a conclusion in the form of descriptions whether the students' ability of X 1 of SMAN 1 PAJO in writing has improved by the use of computer edutainment or not. Discussion The researcher aimed at describing how Computer Edutainment could improve the writing skills of class XI A students of SMAN 1 PAJO. Referring to the researcher objective, the finding showed that the use of Computer Edutainment by using short English animated videos and the supporting actions improved the students writing ability in the aspect of content, organization, vocabulary, language use, and mechanics. It was true that the students’ improvement in writing had gradually improved through the use of computer edutainment by using short English animated videos. Canning (2002) states that video provides visual stimuli such as the environment and situation that can lead students to generate prediction, speculation and a chance to active background schemata when viewing scene reenacted. In the interview section, the students stated that they become more understood the plot of the story as there were moving pictures and visual effect that helped them comprehend the text better. The result of the post-test proved that the students performed better than the pre-test. According to Harmer (2001), a video is not only a great aid to see language-in-use such as comprehension since students are able to see general meanings and moods that JOLLT Journal of Languages and Language Teaching, Vol. 7 No.2, November 2019 105 are conveyed through expressions, gestures, and other visual clues, but also uniquely bridge the cross-cultural understanding. Based on the interview done to the students, it was proven that they like the speaking teaching and learning process using video as they could create a better atmosphere of the lesson and also could help the students in understanding the story better since the videos were fun and interesting. As stated before, the implementation of videos and its supplementary actions including narrative text reading, providing vocabulary and grammar exercises and giving feedback to them were successful in improving the students writing skills of class XI A students of SMAN 1 PAJO in the academic year 2019/2020. That finding could be inferred from the observation with the English teacher and the students during the research. Before the implementation of the actions, the students speaking skills were assessed through pre-test on 12 th of February 2019. The students had to write a narrative text individually with decided topics by the researcher. Meanwhile, the post-test was carried out after the implementation of the actions on the 5 th of March 2019. The students were asked to answer the questions that the researcher prepare for them. Before they did the post-test, the researcher conducted the actions in order to improve their writing skills. As she conducted the research, some students were at first had quite low skills in writing. That can be seen from the result of the pre-test. So, the researcher implemented some actions such as providing narrative reading texts, providing vocabulary and grammar exercises and also giving feedback to them. The students showed good improvements during Cycle I and II. It was in line with Jupri (2018) who states giving some writing tasks facilitate students to acquire grammar and vocabulary. They showed fewer mistakes compared to the results of their pre-tests. The results show the changes in the students' score which increased significantly. 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