THE EFFECT OF PROJECT-BASED LEARNING ON THE SPEAKING ABILITY OF THE EIGHTH GRADE STUDENTS AT SMP KRISTEN PALANGKA RAYA

The objective of this research is to find whether or not Project Based Learninghas a significant effect on the eighth-grade students’ speaking ability at SMP KristenPalangka Raya. This research focused in analyzing the effect of Project Based Learningon the speaking ability of the eighth-grade students at SMP Kristen Palangka Raya.The project-based learning approach was applied to eighth-grade students is the “roleplay” learning technique material.This research used quantitative research and the research method was preexperimental research with Pre-Test Post-Test one group design. All of the eighth gradestudents at SMP Kristen Palangka Raya are the research's population. The samplingprocess is taken by using convenience sampling because SMP Kristen Palangka Rayaonly has one class of eighth grade, therefore all of the population become the samplein this research Class VIII consist 30 students.The research result revealed a significant improvement in pre-test and post-testscores. Based on the data analysis result above it shows that the sig score of theWilcoxon-test is 0.000. The value of the confidence interval in this research is 95%which means the research error rate is 5% or 0.05. If the value of Sig. < 0.05 then Hois rejected or Ha is accepted. So, because 0.000 < 0.05, it means H0 is rejected and Hais accepted. So it can be conclude There is any significant effect on students’ speakingability as an effect of the implementation of Project-Based Learning at the eighth-gradestudents of SMP Kristen Palangka Raya”.The average score across all categories(pronunciation, grammar, vocabulary, fluency and expression) increased from 3 to 4 oreven 5. This suggests that Project-Based Learning effectively addressed students'difficulties in areas like limited vocabulary, grammatical errors, and halting speech.While pronunciation showed progress, it remained an area requiring attention.However, the research acknowledges that achieving native-level pronunciation is notthe primary goal. As long as students can convey their message clearly, somemispronunciations can be tolerated. Interestingly, the aspect of expression remainedunchanged. The research suggests this might be due to nervousness duringpresentations. In conclusion, the implementation of Project-Based Learning with arole-playing approach demonstrably improved the speaking abilities of eighth-gradersat SMP Kristen Palangka Raya. The project addressed weaknesses in grammar, vocabulary, and fluency, while acknowledging that pronunciation can be a separate focus area. While some aspects like expression might require additional strategies to address nervousness, the overall effectiveness of Project-Based Learning is undeniable.