A STUDY OF POLITENESS STRATEGY EMPLOYED BY ENGLISH STUDENTS IN SPEAKING CLASSROOM INTERACTION AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MUHAMMADIYAH MALANG

Politeness strategy is an effort made by humans to communicate by showing respect or politeness in order to avoid discomfort between others. The implementation of politeness strategies in communication plays an important role in creating good relationships between human beings. Politeness strategy is also crucial for students, especially when they interact with their teacher during the learning process. Through applying the politeness strategy, students are able to show respect and avoid misunderstanding. Furthermore, the use of a politeness strategy during the learning process can help build a positive relationship between teachers and students, ensuring that the learning process goes smoothly and effectively.

The objective of this research is to discover what expressions of politeness strategy show during the learning process in Speaking class and to identify the types of politeness strategy done by students during the learning process in Speaking class. This research was conducted in the Speaking for Academic Purposes class at the University of Muhammadiyah Malang. The population of this research includes all the English language students in the sixth semester of the academic year 2024 who are taking the Speaking for Academic Purposes course, whereas the sample is students in the Speaking for Academic Purposes class C.

This research presents a qualitative approach and descriptive method to analyze the use of politeness strategies by students during the learning process in Speaking class based on the theory of politeness strategy declared by Brown and Levison. In the process of collecting data, two instruments were used, namely observation and interview. The analyzed data process was carried out using the theory of Miles and Huberman including Data Reduction, Data Display, and Conclusion Drawing.

The findings of this research revealed that English students employed 133 expressions that indicated the usage of politeness strategy during the Speaking classroom interaction. The 133 expressions are divided into several types of politeness strategy, including Bald on Record (6 expressions), Positive Politeness (84 expressions), Negative Politeness (40 expressions), and Off Record (3 expressions). Therefore, during interaction in the Speaking class, English students employ all types of politeness strategies presented in Brown and Levinson’s theory.