The Effectiveness of Sentence Structure and Spelling in the Writing of Seventh Grade Students at State Junior High School 1 Kramatmulya in the 2012/2013 Academic Year

Abstract

The background to the problem in this study is the use of written Indonesian, which must comply with the standard language rules stated in EYD, especially when we are required to be able to speak properly and correctly in formal forums or when presenting a scientific paper. In reality, not all Indonesian speakers are able to speak Indonesian in accordance with the spelling rules. People often have difficulty writing capital or small letters in their writing. Another difficulty is in the use of punctuation. These two problems are just a few examples of the problems often faced by writers, especially novice writers. These problems can be solved arbitrarily, as long as the words or sentences can be understood. This condition results in chaos in language use. The research questions in this study are: 1) How effective are the sentences in the compositions of seventh-grade students at SMPN 1 Kramatmulya in the 2012/2013 academic year? 2) How is spelling used in the compositions of seventh-grade students at SMPN 1 Kramatmulya in the 2012/2013 academic year? The method used in this study is quantitative descriptive. The techniques used in this study are 1) Literature study. 2) Observation. 3) Tests. 4) Documentation. The population in this study are seventh-grade students at SMPN 1 Kramatmulya in the 2012/2013 academic year. The sample in this study consisted of 72 students from classes VII A and VII E of SMP Negeri 1 Kramatmulya in the 2012/2013 academic year. The data analysis technique was to ask students to write essays, which were then collected and analyzed for effectiveness and spelling. Based on the study of the effectiveness of sentences in the essays of seventh-grade students at SMPN 1 Kramatmulya, it was found that there were many errors in the writing of effective sentences, such as a lack of unity of ideas, resulting in unclear communication. In addition, the coherence in sentences and paragraphs was unclear due to the inappropriate placement of prepositions and conjunctions. Furthermore, spelling still poses challenges in the use of capital letters for names, place names, months, days, cities, districts, provinces, and the use of capital letters in the middle of paragraphs.