A READING ALOUD DIGITAL APPLICATION BASED ON AN ANDROID SYSTEM IS BEING CREATED BY SMPN 2 Sidrap

Reading aloud is frequently taught to junior high school students as a way of improving their English, particularly in the 7th grade. These factors make it imperative to perform research on creating an android-based reader digital application since technology could lead to engaging and effective teaching and learning methods. The study's objectives are to learn more about the process of creating an android-based reader digital application as a tool for teaching reading aloud to 7th grade students at SMPN 2 Sidrap and to determine whether such an application is practical. Research and Development (R&D) process by Borg and Gall, which included 10 steps, was utilized to develop the product. And because there is a limited amount of time and the product can only be developed in seven processes, it has been condensed to seven. the questionnaire-based observation. a method for gathering information from numerous validator expertise. Student survey data are used to determine effectiveness. The survey's findings reveal that the materials expert's overall score was 93.8% and that media experts' display layout and design received a score of 90%. 85% of the information from a poll of 30 students was collected. The outcome demonstrates that both teachers and students are in favor of using applications to aid in the acquisition of English. The pupils exhibit an interest in using the software as a virtual teacher assistant and feel more driven to study English using it.


INTRODUCTION
English is widely used in many aspects of daily life, including business, trade, communication, and even education.As a result, the Indonesian Minister of Education mandates that students take English as a mandatory subject.In fact, even after studying English for a long time, some students still struggle with reading sentences and terminology and comprehending concepts.According to Pemecutan (2023), learners should be proficient in the four English language abilities of hearing, speaking, reading, and writing.One of the grade levels where pupils need to learn English more challengingly is junior high.English is taught as the primary subject in junior high school with the goal of raising the pupils' level of English proficiency.Because reading is an active process of developing word meaning, it serves as the foundational ability for learning English in Indonesia.Reading is a thinking activity that, in addition to helping pupils comprehend the material, also enables them to utilise any prior information they may have.Reading is a technique that readers employ to comprehend the messages that authors intend for them to express through the use of words or written language.a method that calls for the ability to quickly identify the meaning of each word and set of words that form a unit.If this condition is not met, neither the explicit nor the implicit messages will be recognized or comprehended, and reading will not proceed as intended (Sri, 2022).This is also in keeping with what was said that reading is one of the language skills that must be cultivated, because through reading children are able to get new information through the books they read.Students who are proficient readers will be able to take in all the necessary information.As a result, reading comprehension is crucial, and pupils' Reading abilities cannot be attained on their own; rather, a teacher who can direct and guide students is required (Marnita, 2023).Reading aloud is frequently taught to junior high school students as a way of improving their English, particularly in the 7th grade.The learning approach at this level is more concerned on word pronunciation.The change from a young learner to a higher level occurs in seventh grade, thus students still exhibit the traits of a young learner.Since they are still learning how to use their native language appropriately, students at this age frequently rely on its grammatical structures.Because reading is a subject that many kids struggle with, teachers need creative learning materials to help make the learning process more appealing and enjoyable for the students.Some traits of a young learner include the need for visualization, difficulty maintaining longterm concentration, and intense curiosity.According to a preliminary study conducted at SMPN 2 Sidrap, students who studied at home during the Covid-19 pandemic encountered more challenges and showed less interest in learning the language because they were unable to interact with their peers or the teacher as much as they would have been able to in person at school.Because the instructor used media to communicate the lesson only sometimes, the reading aloud approach for online learning sounded boring.According to surveys given to the pupils, 93.5% of them had trouble learning English.82.9% of students felt that a teacher's help would be helpful when reading aloud an English text, and 77.4% of students reported having trouble pronouncing English words.According to 83.8% of students, media is necessary for independent study.87.1% of students indicated they felt that media support was needed if reading aloud to make it simpler to explore, particularly in learning to read aloud.Based on these and other factors, research is urgently required to create an androidbased reader digital application.According to Patel (2013), the use of technology could result in effective and engaging teaching and learning processes.The teacher could increase pupils' enthusiasm and interest in the subject matter by combining media and technology.Additionally, junior high school students are part of generation Z, whose lives cannot be separated from smartphones and the internet, and who were born and raised in the midst of technological advancements, so technology-based learning media are also appropriate for their characteristics.They are also recognized as the generation that excels at using the internet for job, school, or enjoyment.One of the digital tools created by the researcher that can assist reading aloud instruction throughout the online course is an android-based reader application.The researcher finds a number of studies on the same subject.The title of Sari's initial study from 2020 is "Development of Android-Based Vorily Education for Improving English Vocabulary for Lightweight Tunagrahita Student on 2020."The vorily educational game is very suitable to be used as a learning tool to improve the English vocabulary of mildly mentally retarded students in class X SMA, according to the results of the validation test of material experts and media experts, with 100% material validation results and 90% media validation results that fall into the very good category."SmartChem: An Android Application for Learning Multiple Representations of Acid-Base Chemistry" was the title of the second study conducted by Eliyawati, Agustin, Rika Rafikah, Sya'bandari, and Yustika (Putri, 2020).The goal of the study was to help students comprehend symbolic, macroscopic, and submicroscopic representations of acidbase material through media explanations.Using Aiken's validity index (Aiken's V), five experts evaluated the product's validity.The findings indicated that some SmartChem media needed to be altered, particularly the way symbolism was connected to information at the submicroscopic level.However, different chemical representations of acids and bases can be explained to pupils through the media.The most recent comparable study was "Development of Android Based Educational Games as A Supplementary Media for Vocabulary of Seventh Grade Students in SMP Hasanuddin Kesamben" by Sari et al. in 2022.The purpose of this study was to investigate the production and viability of additional media for educational games based on Android for vocabulary.The Borg and Gall approach, which included six of the ten stages of development, was used by the researcher.The Likert scale was used to analyze the data.Based on the percentage of expert validation, which showed that 92% of media experts had valid or good categories and 81.25% of material experts had valid or good categories, the conclusion demonstrated the viability of the media.In a nutshell, it can be said that the vocabulary-focused instructional game media for Android is a great addition to other media.
Based on the introduction the researcher forms the problem as how is the process of developing an android-based reader digital application as media to teach reading aloud in 7th grade at SMPN 2 Sidrap and how is the result of developing an android-based reader digital application as media to teach reading aloud in 7th grade at SMPN 2 Sidrap.The study's objectives are to learn more about the process of creating an android-based reader digital application as a tool for teaching reading aloud to seventh-graders at SMPN 2 Sidrap and to assess whether doing so will be feasible in the long run.According to Syafitri et al. (2018), media is a language teaching instrument that can aid in the teaching and learning process.According to Puspitarini et al. (2019), learning media is a tool utilized in the learning process to contribute to arousing students' thoughts, feelings, willingness, and attention while fostering the learning process itself.According to Asni Syafitri et al. (2018), learning media can be categorized into three categories: graphical media, auditory media, and projective media.The first type of media is graphical, which includes images such as photographs, posters, maps, and diagrams.Second, audio-media, such as radio and tape, employ verbal or nonverbal aural communication symbols.The final type of media is projective media, which works similarly to graphical media and can display visual simulation.The media serves a variety of purposes, but among them is the creation of motivation and enthusiasm for learning.As a result, students become more interested in their studies, which were previously dominated by dry, uninteresting instruction.The prior material should be reviewed in order to prevent the child from forgetting it.Thirdly, pupils are given stimulation as a means of encouraging them to think critically and with a high level of interest (Fadilah & Kanya, 2023).Digital application is software which is also known as an application program that integrates specific characteristics in a way that is accessible to users (Gunari, Alfian & Setiawan, 2016).Shortly, it is a program of software that is running within the computer or other digital instruments in the form of a web browser, email program, game, or other application.Additionally, one of the digital applications created by the researcher that could assist reading aloud instruction during the online class is an android-based digital reader program.Students can download the application from the researcher's URL, which has a variety of images, descriptions, and audio files relating to many animals.Moreover, a mobile or digital application is a program that runs on a mobile device and has a function to execute specified tasks for the consumers.An android-based reader application will be created as part of this study as one of the digitally based or mobile learning media.Android is a group of mobile software that consists of an operating system, middleware, and significant mobile applications (Arianto, 2018).According to (Safaat, 2012), Android is an operating system used on Android Linux-based smartphones and tablet computers consisting of an operating system, middleware, and major apps.Similar to Linux, Android offers an open source, or so-called open source, that programmers can use to build software for their own applications.The Android operating system is currently present on more than only mobile devices like watches and tablets and phones.The Java programming language is used to create Android apps natively, however additional programming languages can be used to boost the number of Android applications.
Reading aloud is an activity or activity that is a means for teachers, students, or readers together with other people or listeners to capture and interpret facts, thoughts, and feelings of an author.
Reading aloud can be done by oneself or in a group.When read aloud, a reading is completed by expressing the symbols that are written inside (Ningtyas, 2020).
Teaching reading is a difficult task since teachers must possess the necessary knowledge, skills, and aptitudes to raise their pupils' reading proficiency.According to Fatimah (2023), the instructor has a significant impact on the nature and standard of learning.This indicates that everything a teacher does influences a student's grades, thus the teacher needs to teach the student's reading comprehension and regulate their attitude toward the student.For students to learn most effectively, teachers must support and teach textbooks during reading lessons.When reading aloud, the instructor welcomes the students, verifies their attendance, does a word definition search, and then incorporates the word into the sentence.When teaching reading, the teacher reads the text, responds to student questions based on it, determines the words, meanings, and verbs it uses, and then reads the same text again.When reviewing, the teacher asks the student what challenges they experience in the teaching and learning process, draws conclusions about the topic, gives the student assignment, and greets them.

STUDY METHODS
In this study, the development approach was used.In this case, the researchers were using media that was powered by Android.Researcher would describe the effects of applying this android-based media in educating toddlers to listen to and copy words that depict animals.Tools for researchers were required here.Researchers' instruments included observation logs and questionnaires.Both of these tools were employed in order to obtain an overview.Use A survey was utilized to find out what the students thought about utilizing Android-based media applications both inside and outside of the classroom after the use of an Android-based digital reader application was installed.Research Approach An android-based digital reader application will be created as part of this study to help SMPN 2 Sidrap students in the seventh grade become better readers.The researcher will employ the 10-step Research and Development (R&D) approach developed by Borg and Gall.It is research and information collection, planning, generating a preliminary form of product, preliminary field testing, main product revision, main field testing, operational product revision, operational field testing, final product revision, and dissemination and implementation.Due to time constraints and some procedures' similarities, the researcher only completes six of the 10 steps for this investigation.The steps employed by the researcher there are study and information collecting, planning, developing preliminary, major field testing, final product revision, and dissemination and implementation.Gall and Borg (2002).

Research and Information collecting Planning
Individuals and Sample 31 students from SMPN 2 Sidrap in grade 7 made up the study's sample.SMPN 2 Sidrap is the only public school in the Kepanjenlor section of Blitar City.Class VII through class IX have a three-year academic term, which is the same as junior high schools in Indonesia as a whole.Since they are compatible with the researcher's findings, the sample from one grade level at SMPN 2 Sidrap consists of students in grade 7.

Instruments
Questionnaires are used in this investigation.By posing questions or making claims for respondents to react to, a questionnaire collects data (Sugiyono, 2015).Data is gathered using the questionnaire technique in order to assess the product's viability.The media expert, the material expert, and the research subjects-the seventh-grade studentswill all receive questionnaire forms.In addition, two different kinds of questionnaires are employed in reading aloud classes: the needs analysis questionnaire from the preparatory study and the student response questionnaire from the field experiment.

Analysis of Data
The researcher creates the product in relation to the issues identified in the preliminary investigation using the data that was acquired.The name of this phase was develop preparatory step.A digital reader application for Android was the final product that would be created at this point.The researcher performed product trials once the product was designed to ascertain its efficacy.Trials could be conducted in one class from SMPN 2 Sidrap's seventh grade.Main field testing came after this stage.The product was modified as a suitable medium for SMPN 2 Sidrap students in the 7th grade during the last stage of R&D study.
The researcher's data included details about how students learn in a classroom and the challenges they face, information about the challenges of learning English and their successes, and details about the product's validity in terms of its materials and media, the latter of which was related to how students reacted to it.The sources of the data can be used to interpret the data.Researchers conducted interviews with English subject instructors and homeroom teachers for grade 7, and researchers also conducted multiple surveys to collect the data used in this study.
Students in seventh grade completed a google form with questions about the design and content of the validators.
Interviews and a questionnaire were used to gather the data.
Two different data kinds were included in the data used for this study.Both qualitative and quantitative data were present.According to the research's main objective, the data analysis was carried out using the qualitative technique, which involved classifying and categorizing the data based on several topics.When conducting a qualitative analysis, words that are often arranged into long texts were still used.Statistics or mathematical computations were not used.All instrument surveys that employed the Likert scale were tested using quantitative data.

Research Results
An application's instructions and the subject of its contents are both included for use.The application's contents are described in Table 1, along with an explanation of the themes used.
Experts first verify the products after the initial design.Her two validators, a media expert and a material expert, were given a questionnaire to complete in order to evaluate its validity.This evaluation utilizes a Likert scale to assess questionnaire analysis from professional ratings.The Arikunto formula ( 2009) was used to calculate the results of the questionnaire.

Discussion
Access to this educational content is available on any Android phone with 1 GB of RAM.It's not too difficult to access this material.However, because this is an application, students must use the Internet to listen to and mimic the application's language.The application can also be accessible online, but you can only view animal photographs and read animal descriptions.This statement is consistent with the statement from Safitri & Kabiba (2020) that using picture media, teachers feel that they are facilitated in delivering material in the teaching and learning process, besides that students also feel interested in participating in the learning process, learning is not boring because students directly see the themes or topics being discussed by the teacher through pictures, so students can understand the material conveyed by the teacher.
According to the circumstances and skills of the students, media images are provided.In addition, the usage of media images will improve the excitement of students in engaging in the learning process in the classroom.
For kids to want to learn using the reader digital application, it needed to be an appealing application.On the other hand, the application's contents must be simple to access and comprehend.Most importantly, if there is a correlation between the content, the appearance, and the level of accessibility, the application will be deemed successful.In order to increase students' interest in studying English, these learning media effectively mix materials with a creative setting and an appealing appearance.Especially when it comes to reading English vocabulary.
This learning tool is focused to talking about various animal descriptions.
Access to this educational content is available on any Android phone with 1 GB of RAM.It's not too difficult to access this material.However, because this is an application, students must use the Internet to listen to and mimic the application's language.
The application can also be accessible online, but you can only view animal photographs and read animal descriptions.
contributions and ideas from instructors and students.The student recommended converting this program into Indonesian because it only has animal descriptions in English and not in that language.Along with the inclusion of the animals in the application.In order for pupils to listen, imitate, and ask questions, teachers should also offer suggestions regarding various learning resources and administer tests or questions.This is in line with what was said by Andari (2020) who indicated that game-based learning is a tool that may help students solve problems, increase critical thinking and make an assessment in the learning process.
The primary body of the article is addressed by the author(s) in this subsection.The answer to the query(s) posed in the introduction section is provided in this paragraph.The author(s) provide an explanation by demonstrating the applicability of the findings mentioned previously in this section to support their claim.The author(s) are also urged to demonstrate how the solution(s) accords with already known facts on the subject.Moreover, the author(s) might use this space to present his/her views and ideas, which include the author(s)'s reasoning towards the main findings, suggestions for future investigation, and the clinical significance of the findings.The discussion should be developed succinctly while nevertheless asserting, defending, and fully justifying the answers to the questions as well as other crucial and pertinent concerns.The fundamental rule is to convey a specific message while being on time and concentrated.Keep in mind that this subsection contains discussion rather than a summary of the results.

CONCLUSION
The study's findings generally indicated how crucial it is in the modern world to use applications to aid in learning.This is relevant to the current state of pupils who are unable to put technology down.The changing times unquestionably call for changes in a number of areas, including education and learning systems.It was the proper choice to respond to the needs of teachers and students by using an androidbased reading application for pupils at SMPN 2 Sidrap.The application has so far received approval from the instructor, the experts, and naturally the pupils.The application's visual appeal and the content it offers can draw in both teachers and pupils.Although the students claimed that some adjustment of the application was necessary, the teacher and the professional assumed that there was no need for revision.Overall, the SMPN 2 Sidrap stakeholders approved the application to support the English learning process.