THE CORRELATION BETWEEN VOCABULARY AND GRAMMAR MASTERY TOWARD THE ABILITY TO WRITE A DESCRIPTIVE PARAGRAPH OF SECOND YEAR STUDENTS OF ENGLISH DEPARTMENT OF BUNG HATTA UNIVERSITY

Abstrak

Abstract

This research was aimed to find out the correlation between students’ vocabulary mastery and grammar mastery toward their ability to write a descriptive paragraph of English Teaching Department of Bung Hatta University. The number of population members was 50 students. There were distributed into two classes. The researcher took sample by using random sampling technique. The researcher gathered the data by using vocabulary test, grammar test and writing test. To analyze the data the researcher used the Person Product Moment Formula and Double Correlation Formula.

After analyzing the data, the researcher found that students’ vocabulary mastery was moderate (73.33 %), the students’ grammar mastery was moderate (56.67 %) and the students’ ability to write a descriptive paragraph was moderate (53.34%). The researcher found that the value of coefficient correlation between; 1) vocabulary and writing was 0.90 with rtable 0.214 (α  0.05)  and df n-2(28) and 2) grammar and writing was 0.94 with rtable 0.214 (α  0.05) and df n-2 (28). Between vocabulary and grammar mastery toward their ability to write a paragraph was 0.96 and f- counted was 158.89 (α  0.05) and the degree of freedom (df) n-k-1 (27), value of f- table was 2.16. Therefore, the relationship between three variables, vocabulary mastery, grammar mastery and ability to write a descriptive paragraph was significant.

Based on the result above, the lecturers are suggested to improve the students’ mastery on vocabulary and grammar andgive more exercises to write a paragraph. The students are suggested to improve their vocabulary mastery and enhance their grammar mastery. Further researcher are suggested to do a similar research by studying other aspects of vocabulary and grammar relating to writing a descriptive paragraph.

Keywords: Vocabulary Mastery, Grammar Mastery and Writing Ability.