IMPROVING THE SPEAKING ABILITY OF GRADE XI STUDENTS OF SMAN 2 KLATEN THROUGH THINK-PAIR-SHARE (TPS) TECHNIQUE IN THE ACADEMIC YEAR OF 2012/ 2013

This research is aimed at improving the speaking ability of grade XI students’ of SMAN 2 Klaten in the academic year of 2012/ 2013 with the use of Think-Pair-Share (TPS) technique. The research was carried out through action research that consisted of two cycles. Each cycle consisted of three meetings. The researcher worked collaboratively with the English teacher, the students, and the collaborator. The data were obtained from the observation during the implementation of the actions; interview to the English teacher and the XI grade students’ of OSN class; and the discussion with the English teacher. The data were in the forms of field notes, observation checklist, interview transcript, and photographs. The validity of the data was gained by applying democratic, outcome, process, catalytic, and dialogic validity. To get the trustworthiness, the researcher used a triangulation technique. It was done by gathering data from different points of view, including the students’, the teacher’s, and the collaborator’s. The results of the research show that there is improvement of the students’ speaking ability through the use of Think-Pair-Share. The students made a good improvement in some aspects of speaking skills, such as pronunciation, vocabulary, and interactive communication. They were more confident to speak English. They had more chances to speak up. They actively participated during the teaching and learning process. They were able to speak with proper expression, gesture, and intonation. Moreover, they were not reluctant anymore to ask the teacher when they found difficulties. The research findings were also supported by the result of means of the students’ speaking scores that improved from 6.76 in Cycle I to 7.99 in Cycl