Application of the Assignment Method to Improve Student Learning Outcomes in Learning English

This study aims to improve activities and learning outcomes of English by giving assignments to class X SMA Negeri 1 Gunungsitoli. This type of research is Classroom Action Researcher. The strategy of this research is to carry out action planning, observation, analysis and reflection steps. Data collection techniques to obtain data in this study include tests and direct observation. The results showed that the activity and improvement of student learning outcomes obtained an average learning outcome in the first cycle of 69,54. Cycle II obtained the average value of learning outcomes that is 89,97. The results of the study concluded that learning by using the assignment method can increase students' learning outcomes in Class X students of SMA Negeri 1 Gunungsitoli by providing reinforcement, more students to participate in learning.


Introduction
The quality of education is not only determined by the education system but is determined by the quality of the teaching staff. The teaching staff is meant to provide lessons to students so that they better understand and understand the lessons they are learning (Laoli, 2012;Azman et al., 2020). Therefore, the factor that plays a role is the learning method in presenting material to students; besides, strategies and approaches play an important role in improving students' learning outcomes and enthusiasm Zagoto, 2018).
Teachers or teaching staff in presenting material do not only focus on theory but also help students to interact with various learning resources in gaining knowledge, expertise, and skills and attitudes that lead to changes in behaviour both cognitively, affectively, and psychomotor Febtriko et al., 2020). Teachers help students' learning process by stimulating them to study hard, and teachers or educators have an essential role in developing interests, talents, creativity, and student achievement. Various forms of effective and efficient learning methods or techniques create advanced characters or personalities in expressing creative ideas through various methods applied to students (Ferdiansyah et al., 2020;Novalinda et al., 2020Novalinda et al., ). al., 2020 Students are assigned tasks such as creating an overview of the reading, attempting to solve a problem, and analyzing newspaper clippings (Sarumaha et al., 2018;Timor et al., 2020;Zagoto & Dakhi, 2018). This ensures that students understand the format and have a firm grasp of the subject. Teachers do many things to develop a method for assessing both the level of creativity and students' learning outcomes during the classroom learning process.
For instance, assigning assignments carried out by teachers enables teachers to determine the extent to which students retain knowledge after learning is imparted to them, and these assignments can also serve as a reference for evaluating students' abilities to apply the material taught in class (Zagoto et al., 2019). As a result, the task is overlooked as a source of effective, innovative, creative, and efficient learning. This could be due to the assignment's unknown function. Given the critical nature of student participation in learning, teachers are expected to design learning situations that encourage greater student involvement.
The authors discovered that almost all students rarely asked questions or responded to the teacher's explanations during the learning process in class X SMAN 1 Gunungsitoli. Consequently, the author enlists the supervisor's aid as an observer to address many challenges that develop throughout the learning process.
This method was given because it was felt that the lesson material was too much, while there was little time. That is the number of materials available with less balanced time. For the learning materials to be completed according to the specified time limit, this method is what teachers usually use to overcome them. Assignments and recitations are not the same as homework but are much broader. Assignments can usually be carried out at home, at school, in the library, and elsewhere. Tasks and recitations stimulate children to learn actively, both individually and in groups. Therefore, assignments are given individually or in groups.
Observing the state of poor accomplishment or student learning outcomes, the authors set tasks to enable students to enhance their learning activities, providing repetition and reinforcement of the content taught in school with the expectation that students' learning outcomes improve. Efforts to realize the preceding are to resolve issues that arise throughout the learning process. Additionally, the author was motivated to conduct this study by his or her poor assessment score on English topics at SMAN 1 Gunungsitoli.
The assignment technique significantly aids students in comprehending the instructional content since students learn indirectly via the task (Widhiantari, 2012). Additionally, this strategy allows students to do chores or activities connected to the lesson, such as working on questions or collecting clippings. This strategy may be used for individual chores or activities and group activity, and it can be a critical component of a problem-solving approach (Sarumaha et al., 2018). Thus, it can be said that students are assigned a range of assignments, including problem-solving, clipping collection, etc. This implies that the assignment approach aims to improve student's learning outcomes by requiring students to read and complete exercises and assignments, therefore integrating the student's experience of in learning something.
The assignment method is a way of teaching with planning activities between students and teachers regarding a subject that students must complete within a specific agreed time. Therefore, the authors conducted Classroom Action Research (CAR) on applying the assignment method to improve student learning outcomes in learning English.

Method
The approach used in this study is qualitative. This research departs from the problems obtained in the field then is reflected and analyzed based on the theory that supports implemented actions in the field. This type of research is a phenomenological perspective; namely, the researcher tries to understand the meaning of events from the interactions during the research. This research is classroom action research (Sugiyono, 2013). The data collected in this study are notes, teaching preparation plans, transcripts of teacher data, observations and student work. The subjects in this study were English teachers and class XI students at SMA Negeri 1 Gunungsitoli.

Results and Discussion Results
Procedure and Research Design, the work procedure in this action research is carried out in three cycles of activities, namely the first cycle, second cycle, and third cycle. Each cycle consists of 4 stages of activities: 1) developing an action plan; 2) action; 3) making observations, and 4) making analysis followed by reflection. Each cycle is carried out according to the desired changes, such as what has been designed in the investigated factors. The value of English with Procedure Text Main Material in the previous semester is an early learning achievement, while initial observations are made to find out the right action given to improve the Procedure Text Main Material in English subjects. From the initial evaluation and observation, the Procedure Material Text in English subjects is to use the Assignment method.
In more detail, the action research procedure for the first cycle can be described as follows: Cycle I Planning: 1). Develop Learning Units and Learning Plans, which refers to the Assignment Method; 2). Forming class groups consisting of 5 or 6 people; 3). Make an observation sheet to see how the teaching and learning conditions in the classroom are when the method is applied. 4). Making/preparing teaching aids needed to facilitate the learning process; 5). Designing an achievement test evaluation tool; 6). Prepare monitoring procedures, formats, questionnaire test kits, and field notes Actions: 1). Give assignments prepared to each group and given before learning begins; 2). Carry out learning according to the lesson plan; 3). After the lesson, an assessment is conducted; 4). Carry out evaluation analysis; 5). Give assignments for the following material.
Observation: This stage is carried out by observing the implementation of the action using the observation sheet made, namely: 1). Student activity in group learning; 2). The number of students in group work; 3). Difficulties experienced by students; 4). Student responses to learning; 5). Attention, interest, and motivation of students.

Reflection:
The results obtained in the observation stage are collected and analyzed in this stage. From the results of observations, teachers can reflect on themselves by looking at the observation data, whether the activities carried out have improved learning achievement. In addition to data from observations, journals made by the teacher are also used when the teacher finishes carrying out learning activities. Data from journal results can also be used as a reference for teachers to evaluate themselves. The results of data analysis carried out at this stage will be used as a reference for planning the next cycle, to increase the effectiveness of the process and learning outcomes of English, for example, rearranging student group members who do not match or reducing the number of group members.
In the first cycle, the implementation of learning with the Assignment Method has not been conducive, this is because students are not familiar with this learning method, so some students feel reluctant to participate in all learning activities. For more details, it can be seen from the average student score based on the analysis of student assessment data that the average learning outcome is 69.54.

Cycle II
Action plan II is compiled based on the results of analysis and reflection during Cycle I. At this stage, the action is carried out according to what has been planned. It is hoped that at the end of action II, the teacher can use the Assignment method better than in Cycle I.
The observation stage is carried out simultaneously with taking action. In this activity, the research team made detailed diaries about all student responses and events in the classroom during the teaching and learning process. The focus of observation and recording is on all student activities, the active role of students, the frequency with which students answer and respond to each question posed, and student interest in learning.
At the end of the action, analysis and reflection on the activities carried out are carried out. From the results of this analysis and reflection, conclusions and suggestions are drawn from all activities in Cycle I In general, the learning process and classroom situation during the Cycle II of learning with the Assignment Method are as follows: 1). almost all students seem more active and dare to ask questions, express opinions, discuss, and actively explore knowledge from reading sources, 2). in quantity and quality, students who can understand and solve problems correctly more than in Cycle I. The average learning outcome achieved up to Cycle II is 89.97.

Discussion
In Cycle I, the class atmosphere was not conducive because the interaction only occurred between students at the same seat or with students in the front or back seats. The number of students who gave correct answers was not yet many, and there were not even students who asked or asked for further explanations from the teacher. The answers given by students are spontaneous or random, without first thinking whether the answers given are wrong or right. At the end of Cycle I, the problem is that there is no social interaction between students in class. Some students never answer questions at all, there is only one-time expressing opinions, but there are also students who tend to master the conversation. According to Vygotsky, social interaction with other friends spurs the formation of new ideas and enriches the intellectual development of students.
Problems that arose in Cycle I were fixed in Cycle II. To provide motivation, students are asked to read and try to understand the material that has been determined in advance at home. In Cycle II, most students had prepared themselves with this learning model, namely by reading materials at home. This is reflected in the quality of the answers given by students. There was an increase in student activity in Cycle II because students had prepared their initial knowledge by reading the reading material that had been determined.
According to Piaget (1981), students of all ages are actively involved in acquiring information and constructing their knowledge. Knowledge is not static but continuously grows and changes when students face new experiences that force them to build and modify the initial knowledge. Individuals associate new knowledge with prior knowledge and build new knowledge to gain understanding.
Based on this, the researcher concluded that students still need guidance from the teacher to connect prior knowledge and build new knowledge, which is assisted by several guiding questions. In addition, the teacher also continues to act as a facilitator for students. After completing cycles I and II, the tests carried out showed a significant increase. This can be seen in the average learning outcomes after applying the Assignment method in the first cycle of 69.58 and the second cycle of 89.97.

Simpulan
Based on the results of research that has been carried out for three cycles, it can be concluded that learning by using the Assignment Method can improve student learning outcomes. This means that learning by applying the Assignment Method meets the indicators of research success.