CHAPTER II

THEORETICAL FOUNDATION

A. Brainstorming Technique

1. Definition of Brainstorming Technique

In expressing ideas, especially in writing, students need to make

sure they transfer the ideas in a good way. To make it happen, they have to

create the framework in order to make the ideas in sequences. Here, the

framework is made by doing brainstorming. At the end, it eases the readers

to understand what the students want to tell.

According to Zayton (2001) as cited in Zarif and Mateen (2013),

brainstorming was developed by Alex Osborn to create ideas without

inhibition. It implies that there are no rules in using this technique, so it

will help the students to think freely. Every idea is accepted without

exception, so it will encourage the students to think out of the box. It is

because one of the goals of the technique is to gather the ideas as many as

possible.

Brainstorming is writing down all the ideas that come to your head

(Folse et al. 2013). It means that the students are free to write the ideas

about the topic that has been given as quickly as possible. Also, it is

because the goal of brainstorming is to put the ideas onto paper without

worrying about whether they make sense or how they fit together. So,

students just have to think and write the ideas down.

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 Another name of this technique is listing; this is a good technique

to generate ideas and to get information that a writer needs (Sabarun,

2015). The students must not write complete sentences; they only write

words or phrases as they can think about a topic as much as possible.

In explaining a topic, the students should explore every little thing

about the topic to make a clear explanation. In this case, brainstorming is a

tool used for creative exploration of options in free of criticism

environment (Sabarun, 2015). In applying the technique, the students are

asked to answer some questions related to the topic using 5W+H

questions. It will facilitate them while starting constructing their writing in

appropriate way.

2. The Importance of Brainstorming Technique

Sayed (2009) as cited in Al-Khatib (2012) states that brainstorming

has a great importance for students as follows:

a) Helping students to solve problem, an innovative solution.

b) Helping students to benefit from ideas of others through the

development and build on them.

c) Helping the cohesion of the students and building a relationship among

them and assessing the views of others.

Therefore, the importance of brainstorming technique for the

teachers is to help them more democratic and respectful of other

perspectives regardless of the different point of views (Humaidan, 2005 as

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 cited in Al-khatib, 2012). It is very useful to build the good attitude

besides building creative thinking.

3. The Types of Brainstorming Technique

According to Mohammad and Hussein (2013), there are some

types of Brainstorming technique. They are:

a) Free Brainstorming

This type of brainstorming is done without guidance from the teacher.

So, the students are allowed to do it freely.

b) Guided Brainstorming

1) Cubing

If the students want to do this type of brainstorming, they have to

provide a piece of paper and respond these six commands:

(i) Describe it

(ii) Compare it

(iii) Associate it

(iv) Analyze it

(v) Apply it

(vi) Argue for and against it

2) Three Perspective

According to the name of this type, the students will have three

different perspectives about the topic they want to discuss. They

have to:

(i) Describe it

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 (ii) Trace it

(iii) Map it

After doing these stages, the students are able to find the

interesting ideas and elaborate it into a good writing.

3) Looping

The students are asked to do free writing for few minutes. After

that, they have to circle or highlight words, phrases or even

sentences which are interesting. Then, they are asked to write again

based on what they have been circled or highlighted. The students

have to continue this process until they find narrowed ideas.

4) Clustering/Mapping/Webbing

Here, the students are instructed to write words, phrases or

sentences down on the paper in a random style and go back to link

them together into a simple map or web.

5) Double/Triple Entry

It is used to compare two or three topics by using columns. Every

column will have different topics. They should look for the

similarities and differences between the two or three topics they

have chosen.

6) Journalistic Questions

5W+H questions are used to answer the important information

about the topic. By using this type of brainstorming, the students

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 are able to choose which information should be placed in their

writing. It also helps the students not to explain the topic randomly.

4. The Strengths of Brainstorming Technique

a) Providing a quick and easy class activity. The sessions can be effective

used in the classroom. However, they do require meaningful planning

time for ultimate success.

b) Creating a student-centered activity. In this case, the students are asked

to choose the topic, generate the ideas, selecting the ideas, etc.

c) Supporting learning in a relaxing environment. When a teacher uses

this technique in the classroom, it lets the students to think freely

without worrying about making mistakes.

d) Strengthening problem-based learning. It is because brainstorming is

problem-solving activity where the students build or develop higher

order thinking skill.

e) Encouraging creative thought. This technique allows the students think

out of the box, so the students can generate the ideas no matter how far

the ideas might seem.

B. Writing

1. Definition of Writing

According to Knapp and Watkins (2005:15), a language runs both

in time and space. Language is divided into spoken and written form.

Spoken language is interaction between people; transferring and getting

the information. However, it is temporary. On the contrary, written

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language is inscription. Now, written language from the past is still able to

be seen. So, it can be concluded that writing stays forever. Bello (1997)

indicated that writing, as a productive language skill, has an essential role

in promoting language acquisition with words, phrases and sentences to

communicate their ideas freely.

Writing is usefully described as a process, something that shows

continuous change in time (McDonald and McDonald, 2002). This is also

supported by Urquhart and McIver (2005:3) which state that writing is a

process of exploration that offers benefits to students and content area

teacher alike. It implies that writing does not only focus on the result, but

also the process.

Writing is also a process of transforming thoughts into language, it

indicates that students have to think about the detail ideas of the topic they

want to tell first and then arrange it into appropriate writing. To make it

appropriate, students must learn about the components of writing. It will

make the writing itself readable, so the readers will not get confused.

Writing will always be part of the syllabus (Harmer, 2007). It is

because every skill should be integrated, it will be hard if the students only

focus on a skill without learning another skill. Once again, writing is used

to foster the students in some kinds of activities such as listening and

speaking.

Writing is the most difficult skill than other skills (Richard and

Renandya, 2002). There are a lot of difficulties faced by the students; one

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 of the difficulties is translating the ideas to the target language which is

English. Not only translating the language, the students should consider

some components when they mean to create a good writing. Despite its

difficulties, it is very important for students because they are able to show

their knowledge using writing (Hinkel,2006).

2. The Stages of Writing

According to Harmer (2007:4), there are four stages of writing as

follows:

a) Planning

In this stage, students decide the purpose, the audience of the writing

and the content structure. Those are the first things the writer has to

consider because it is like making the first concept of its writing.

b) Drafting

Students need to explore more about the ideas of the topic she/he

wants to discuss which can be a word, phrase, or even sentence. In this

stage, the brainstorming technique is usually used in some ways. It

might look like a final writing.

c) Editing

In this stage, students may change the information. It may be because

incorrect information, unclear information, confusing information, and

so on.

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 d) Final

In the last stage, what students have written may be different because

of the previous stage. However, they are ready to share their writing

with the audience.

The writing process will not always look like the example;

planning, drafting, editing and final. The writing process can be recursive;

it means that the process can be repeated. For example, a student plans to

change the idea at the final stage, it is allowed.

3. Components of Writing

As stated above, the components of writing are also the difficulties

that make writing is the most hard skill to be mastered. As stated by

Brown (2007:413), there are some components of writing as follows:

a) Content

b) Organization

c) Discourse

d) Syntax

e) Vocabulary

f) Mechanics

Those components above will affect the final writing. They will

make the writing itself readable without giving any confusion.

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C. Report Text

1. Definition of Report Text

Gerot and Wignell (1994) state that report text is a text which

describes the way thing are, with reference to a range of natural, man-

made and social phenomena in the environment. It is similar to descriptive

text which describes thing in detail, but it is in general. The object that

wants to be discussed should be observed and analyzed.

2. Generic Structure

According to Anderson and Anderson (1997), these are the generic

structure of report text:

a) General Classification

It is general opening which introduces the topic or the object; it can be

short definition or description.

b) Description

It is paragraph describing the detail information about the object.

c) Conclusion

It is a summary of all information that has been described. The

conclusion is optional, if it is needed, it can be added. Generally, the

report text just uses general classification and description as the

generic structure.

3. Language Features

a) Using present tenses

b) Using action verbs and linking verbs

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 c) Using language of defining (is known), classifying (belongs to),

comparing and contrasting (are similar to)

d) Using descriptive language (colour, shape, function, size, etc.)

e) Using technical terms

D. Related Research

There are a lot of researches related to this research. The first research

is “The Effectiveness of Using Brainstorming Technique in Writing Paragraph

across The Different Level of Achievement at the Second Semester English

Department Students of Palangka Raya State Islamic University”. The

research was conducted by Sabarun at 2015. The aim of the research is to

investigate the effectiveness of using brainstorming clustering technique on

the quality of composition written by experimental group of bright and low

students. In this research, the researcher applied an experimental research

using factorial design. He collected the data employing counterbalanced

procedure. He conducted the research by dividing a single group of students

into two half which were known as two treatment groups. They were given

different treatments which were brainstorming technique versus non-

brainstorming technique. Writing test is the instrument. The study revealed

that there is a very statistically significant difference on students’ writing

achievement both for the bright and poor students between the students who

wrote a time order paragraph using brainstorming technique and those who

wrote a time order paragraph without using brainstorming technique.

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 The second research was entitled “Enhancing Students’ Motivation to

Write Essays through Brainstorming”. It was conducted by Mohammad Fawzi

M. Mohammad and Ali Ahmed Hussein involving 12 students from the post

Foundation Program at Qatar University. The purpose of this research is to

investigate the exploitation of brainstorming. They started the research with a

background of different approaches to the writing process and writing product.

They also provide an overview of the main brainstorming types; free and

guided focusing on the journalistic guided brainstorming. The research

involved 12 students from the post Foundation Program at Qatar University to

compare free and guided brainstorming. They were asked to complete the

tasks, and the data analysis was based on teachers’ observations and students’

feedback. The result shows that both types of brainstorming are motivating

students.

The writer intends to investigate whether brainstorming technique

enhances students’ writing ability or not. It is based on the result of those two

researches above which show that brainstorming technique enhances the

students’ motivation and is effective to use in writing paragraph.

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