EXPLORING STUDENT’S PROBLEMS IN WRITING THESIS BACKGROUND: A NARRATIVE INQUIRY

Abstract

This research explores the experiences of graduates and ongoing students of the year 2020 in writing thesis backgrounds. The main purpose of this research was to identify the specific problems experienced by the students and the strategies to overcome these problems. This research used a qualitative approach with a narrative inquiry design. The participants are the students of the year 2020 in the English Education Department (EED). The students are (1) those who had completed their thesis until the graduation ceremony and (2) those who are still completing their thesis until semester 9. The data collection technique and instrument were done in two ways, namely interviews and document analysis. The findings indicate that students have problems writing a thesis background. The problems they encountered were identifying specific research gaps; identifying research problems; the rationale for selecting the research topic, organizing ideas, paraphrasing, summarizing, and citing to avoid plagiarism, grammar errors, difficulty in connecting each paragraph, using appropriate academic vocabulary, punctuation errors, and writing apprehension. The students also used various strategies to overcome these problems. The strategies they used were reading relevant references with their thesis; using digital tools such as Grammarly, Quillbolt, Google Translate, and DeepL; regular discussions and consultations with supervisors; discussions with peers; listening to music; and engaging in social interactions such as exercise, hanging out, and going to the park.