P-ISSN 2355-004X E-ISSN 2502-6801 Journal GEEJ Volume 7, Number 2, November 2020 Getsempena English Education Journal (GEEJ) Vol.7 No.2 Nov. 2020 |283 EXPLORING ENGLISH TEACHERS’ PERCEPTIONS ON USING SITUATIONAL LANGUAGE TEACHING METHOD IN TEACHING VOCABULARY Yuliar Masna *1 , Syarifah Dahliana 2 , Nurul Aulia Martaputri 3 1,2,3 UIN Ar-Raniry, Banda Aceh Abstract The research was accomplished to investigate the perceptions of elemantary- school teachers on using Situational Language Teaching method in teaching vocabulary. The aims of this study were to examine the advantages of using situational language teaching method in teaching vocabularies and to investigate English teachers’challenges of using Situational Language Teaching method in teaching vocabulary. This research was completed by using a qualitative approach and the reseachers employed a semi-structured inteview to collect the data. The research participants were five English teachers who teach English subject at elementary schools in Aceh Barat. The results of this research indicate that the advantages of using this method were enhancing students’ motivation ,and creating an effective teaching- learning process. Then, the challenges of using Situational Language Teaching methods in teaching vocabulary were preparing course material and dealing with students’ boredom. Keywords: Teachers’ Perception; Situational Language Teaching; Teaching Vocabulary INTRODUCTION In learning English, vocabulary is a central point to understand and express ideas. Richard and Renandya (2002, as cited in Fidyati, 2018:115) interpret vocabulary as “a core component of language acquisition and is a benchmark of how well a language learner speaks, hears, reads, and writes”. In a more complicated way, vocabulary is characterized as the knowledge of words and their meanings. According to Fidyati (2018), vocabulary is divided into four language competencies: listening, writing, reading, and speaking. Vocabulary is the basis of a language because it is a more substantial base in learning English. Moreover, simple vocabulary is the best choice for students ; it is stated that an English teacher for the junior high school level plays a significant role in the teaching- learning process (Yopi, 2003). On the other hand, some teachers find many difficulties in teaching vocabulary in junior high school. Usually, the student is challenged to memorize the new words; the time to teach vocabulary is limited because several skills need to be * correspondence address E-mail: yuliar.masna@ar-raniry.ac.id