IMPROVING STUDENTS’ WRITING DESCRIPTIVE TEXT USING MIND MAPPING TEACHING STRATEGY OF THE TENTH GRADE STUDENTS OF SMA NEGERI 4 KUPANG IN ACADEMIC YEAR 2017/2018

This project entitled “Improving students' writing descriptive text using mind mapping teaching strategy of the tenth grade students of SMA Negeri 4 Kupang in academic year 2017/2018.” This research is aimed at; 1) to find out the use of mind mapping teaching strategy can improve the writing ability of tenth grade students, 2) to find out the weakness and strength of mind mapping teaching strategy. This research was classified as action research. It was done in two cycles. The first cycle was divided into two meetings and the second cycle was divided into two meetings. The research was done with the participation of 43 students of the tenth grade students of science program. The data obtained during the research were qualitative and quantitative data. The qualitative data were in the form observation checklist while the quantitative data were in the form of the students' scores. The results of the research showed that the use of mind mapping effectively improved the students writing ability. Based on the qualitative data, the students were able to generate their ideas to produce well-organized recount texts. They were also able to use the appropriate vocabulary, correct grammar, punctuation, spelling, and capitalization in their writings. During the teaching and learning process, they also showed positive response toward the lesson. Based on the quantitative data, the students' mean score improved. In the pre-test, the students' mean score was 60.58 The students' mean score in the post-test 1 is 70.81 and the students' mean score in the post-test 2 is 78.60, which the last mean score is higher than KKM which is 75.00. It means that there are a difference between the students' writing descriptive text before and after the action research.