Increasing Students’ Motivation in Speaking English of Vocational High School Students Through Tiktok: A Best Practice

Abstract

This study describes best practices in one of the vocational high schools in Yogyakarta. The focus of the best practices is the strategy to utilize TikTok as an additional media to enhance students' motivation to speak English. Based on classroom observation, the students need additional media to improve their motivation in learning to speak. Therefore, TikTok was decided to be used to support learning activities. TikTok content based on 4 technology strategies was used. (Bin-Hadi & Al-Tamimi, 2021): 1) accessing media, using a projector, Video narration from TikTok was included in the content about “Handling Guest Complaints” to increase students' understanding and engagement with real-life situations. 2) accessing websites, Student’s access Quizizz to answer questions related to the videos they watch. These activities test their understanding and reinforce learning through hands-on practice. 3) social networking, Students and teachers discussed the video projects via Google Classroom and WhatsApp, focusing on appropriateness of the script and improving the quality of the video. These discussions provide immediate feedback and share ideas and 4) being inspired by someone, Students work in groups to create role-play scenarios and discuss ideas, enhancing teamwork and improving communication skills. These activities increase understanding and critical thinking, culminating in a project video posted on TikTok to increase engagement and interest. These strategies were implemented for two months at Vocational High School grade XI. Initially, the assignment to teach class 11 accounting and hotel management was given to me, but for some reason, class 11 accounting was taught for 2 months, with 2 meetings held each week. The results of the study show that TikTok, especially at vocational high schools, can greatly boost students' motivation and interest in improving their English-speaking abilities.