OBAMA SPEECH

WASHINGTON - My fellow citizens,

I stand here today humbled by the task before us, grateful for the trust you have bestowed, mindful of the sacrifices borne by our ancestors. I thank President Bush for his service to our nation, as well as the generosity and cooperation he has shown throughout this transition.

Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidential oath. The words have been spoken during rising tides of prosperity and the still waters of peace. Yet, every so often the oath is taken amidst gathering clouds and raging storms. At these moments, America has carried on not simply because of the skill or vision of those in high office, but because We the People have remained faithful to the ideals of our forbearers, and true to our founding documents.

So it has been. So it must be with this generation of Americans.

That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war, against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age. Homes have been lost; jobs shed; businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly; our schools fail too many; and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.

These are the indicators of crisis, subject to data and statistics. Less measurable but no less profound is a sapping of confidence across our land — a nagging fear that America's decline is inevitable, and that the next generation must lower its sights.

Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. They are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this, America — they will be met.

On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.

On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics.

We remain a young nation, but in the words of Scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free, and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.

In reaffirming the greatness of our nation, we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned. Our journey has never been one of short-cuts or settling for less. It has not been the path for the faint-hearted — for those who prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame. Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things — some celebrated but more often men and women obscure in their labor, who have carried us up the long, rugged path towards prosperity and freedom.

For us, they packed up their few worldly possessions and traveled across oceans in search of a new life.

For us, they toiled in sweatshops and settled the West; endured the lash of the whip and plowed the hard earth.

For us, they fought and died, in places like Concord and Gettysburg; Normandy and Khe Sahn.

Time and again these men and women struggled and sacrificed and worked till their hands were raw so that we might live a better life. They saw America as bigger than the sum of our individual ambitions; greater than all the differences of birth or wealth or faction.

This is the journey we continue today. We remain the most prosperous, powerful nation on Earth. Our workers are no less productive than when this crisis began. Our minds are no less inventive, our goods and services no less needed than they were last week or last month or last year. Our capacity remains undiminished. But our time of standing pat, of protecting narrow interests and putting off unpleasant decisions — that time has surely passed. Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America.

For everywhere we look, there is work to be done. The state of the economy calls for action, bold and swift, and we will act — not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth. We will build the roads and bridges, the electric grids and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together. We will restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology's wonders to raise health care's quality and lower its cost. We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories. And we will transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age. All this we can do. All this we will do.

Now, there are some who question the scale of our ambitions — who suggest that our system cannot tolerate too many big plans. Their memories are short. For they have forgotten what this country has already done; what free men and women can achieve when imagination is joined to common purpose, and necessity to courage.
What the cynics fail to understand is that the ground has shifted beneath them— that the stale political arguments that have consumed us for so long no longer apply. The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works — whether it helps families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified. Where the answer is yes, we intend to move forward. Where the answer is no, programs will end. And those of us who manage the public's dollars will be held to account — to spend wisely, reform bad habits, and do our business in the light of day — because only then can we restore the vital trust between a people and their government.

Nor is the question before us whether the market is a force for good or ill. Its power to generate wealth and expand freedom is unmatched, but this crisis has reminded us that without a watchful eye, the market can spin out of control — and that a nation cannot prosper long when it favors only the prosperous. The success of our economy has always depended not just on the size of our Gross Domestic Product, but on the reach of our prosperity; on the ability to extend opportunity to every willing heart — not out of charity, but because it is the surest route to our common good.

As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. Our Founding Fathers, faced with perils we can scarcely imagine, drafted a charter to assure the rule of law and the rights of man, a charter expanded by the blood of generations. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience's sake. And so to all other peoples and governments who are watching today, from the grandest capitals to the small village where my father was born: know that America is a friend of each nation and every man, woman, and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity, and we are ready to lead once more.

Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with sturdy alliances and enduring convictions. They understood that our power alone cannot protect us, nor does it entitle us to do as we please. Instead, they knew that our power grows through its prudent use; our security emanates from the justness of our cause, the force of our example, the tempering qualities of humility and restraint.

We are the keepers of this legacy. Guided by these principles once more, we can meet those new threats that demand even greater effort — even greater cooperation and understanding between nations. We will begin to responsibly leave Iraq to its people, and forge a hard-earned peace in Afghanistan. With old friends and former foes, we will work tirelessly to lessen the nuclear threat, and roll back the specter of a warming planet. We will not apologize for our way of life, nor will we waver in its defense, and for those who seek to advance their aims by inducing terror and slaughtering innocents, we say to you now that our spirit is stronger and cannot be broken; you cannot outlast us, and we will defeat you.

For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus — and non-believers. We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this Earth; and because we have tasted the bitter swill of civil war and segregation, and emerged from that dark chapter stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace.

To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect. To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict, or blame their society's ills on the West — know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy. To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist.

To the people of poor nations, we pledge to work alongside you to make your farms flourish and let clean waters flow; to nourish starved bodies and feed hungry minds. And to those nations like ours that enjoy relative plenty, we say we can no longer afford indifference to suffering outside our borders; nor can we consume the world's resources without regard to effect. For the world has changed, and we must change with it.

As we consider the road that unfolds before us, we remember with humble gratitude those brave Americans who, at this very hour, patrol far-off deserts and distant mountains. They have something to tell us, just as the fallen heroes who lie in Arlington whisper through the ages. We honor them not only because they are guardians of our liberty, but because they embody the spirit of service; a willingness to find meaning in something greater than themselves. And yet, at this moment — a moment that will define a generation — it is precisely this spirit that must inhabit us all.

For as much as government can do and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this nation relies. It is the kindness to take in a stranger when the levees break, the selflessness of workers who would rather cut their hours than see a friend lose their job which sees us through our darkest hours. It is the firefighter's courage to storm a stairway filled with smoke, but also a parent's willingness to nurture a child, that finally decides our fate.

Our challenges may be new. The instruments with which we meet them may be new. But those values upon which our success depends — honesty and hard work, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism — these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history. What is demanded then is a return to these truths. What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility — a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation, and the world, duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character, than giving our all to a difficult task.

This is the price and the promise of citizenship.

This is the source of our confidence— the knowledge that God calls on us to shape an uncertain destiny.

This is the meaning of our liberty and our creed — why men and women and children of every race and every faith can join in celebration across this magnificent mall, and why a man whose father less than sixty years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath.

So let us mark this day with remembrance, of who we are and how far we have traveled. In the year of America's birth, in the coldest of months, a small band of patriots huddled by dying campfires on the shores of an icy river. The capital was abandoned. The enemy was advancing. The snow was stained with blood. At a moment when the outcome of our revolution was most in doubt, the father of our nation ordered these words be read to the people:

"Let it be told to the future world...that in the depth of winter, when nothing but hope and virtue could survive ... that the city and the country, alarmed at one common danger, came forth to meet [it]."
America. In the face of our common dangers, in this winter of our hardship, let us remember these timeless words. With hope and virtue, let us brave once more the icy currents, and endure what storms may come. Let it be said by our children's children that when we were tested we refused to let this journey end, that we did not turn back nor did we falter; and with eyes fixed on the horizon and God's grace upon us, we carried forth that great gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations.

Thank you. God bless you. And God bless the United States of America.

PIDATO OBAMA PADA PELATIKAN

Berikut teks pidato pelantikan Presiden Amerika Serikat Barack Hussein Obama, Selasa 20 Januari waktu AS, di Capitol Hill, Washington DC dari siaran pers Kedutaan Besar AS di Jakarta, Rabu, seprti yang dikutip dari situs Antara.

Rekan-rekan sebangsa dan setanah air: Saya berdiri di sini hari ini terenyak oleh tugas di depan kita, berterima kasih atas kepercayaan yang Anda berikan, dan teringat akan pengorbanan oleh leluhur kita.

Saya berterima kasih kepada Presiden Bush atas jasanya pada bangsa kita, dan juga atas kemurahan hati dan kerjasama yang ditunjukkannya pada masa transisi ini. Sudah 44 warga Amerika yang diambil sumpahnya sebagai presiden. Kata-kata dalam sumpah jabatan itu telah diucapkan dimasa kemakmuran dan dimasa damai. Namun, ada kalanya sumpah jabatan kepresidenan itu diambil di tengah-tengah situasi gawat dan badai yang berkecamuk.

Pada saat-saat demikian, Amerika terus melaksanakan tugasnya bukan hanya karena ketrampilan atau visi mereka yang memegang jabatan tinggi, tetapi karena kita rakyat Amerika tetap setia pada cita-cita leluhur kita dan setia pada dokumen-dokumen yang dirumuskan oleh para pendiri negara kita.

Demikianlah adanya, dan memang selalu demikianlah yang harus dilakukan oleh generasi orang Amerika yang sekarang ini. Memang sudah dipahami bahwa kita sedang berada di tengah krisis. Bangsa kita kini sedang terlibat perang, melawan jaringan kekerasan dan kebencian yang jauh jangkauannya. Ekonomi kita sangat lemah, akibat ketamakan dan tindakan tidak bertanggung jawab oleh sebagian pihak, tetapi juga karena kegagalan kita secara kolektif untuk membuat pilihan-pilihan sulit, dan kegagalan kita mempersiapkan bangsa bagi abad baru. Banyak rumah yang disita, lapangan kerja menurun drastis, bisnis gulung tikar.

Asuransi kesehatan kita terlalu mahal, murid-murid sekolah kita banyak yang gagal, dan setiap hari terlihat bukti bahwa cara-cara kita menggunakan energi justru memperkuat musuh-musuh kita dan mengancam planet kita. Semua itu merupakan indikator krisis, yang didasarkan pada data dan statistik. Yang kurang bisa diukur tetapi tidak kurang pentingnya adalah melemahnya keyakinan di seluruh pelosok Amerika - kekhawatiran terus-menerus bahwa kemerosotan Amerika tak terelakkan lagi, dan bahwa generasi berikutnya harus mengurangi harapannya.

Hari ini saya katakan kepada kalian bahwa tantangan-tantangan yang kita hadapi adalah nyata. Tantangan ini serius dan banyak. Tidak akan mudah diatasi dan tidak bisa diatasi dalam jangka pendek. Tetapi ketahuilah ini, Amerika, semua tantangan ini akan kita hadapi. Pada hari ini, kita berkumpul karena kita lebih memilih harapan daripada ketakutan, kesatuan tujuan daripada konflik dan pertentangan.

Pada hari ini, kita berkumpul untuk menyatakan berakhirnya keluhan-keluhan kecil dan janji-janji palsu, saling-tuduh dan berbagai dogma lusuh yang sudah terlalu lama mencekik politik kita. Negara kita masih muda, dengan meminjam kata-kata dalam Kitab Suci, saatnya sudah tiba kita menepiskan sifat ke kanak-kanakan. Saatnya sudah tiba untuk menandaskan lagi semangat kita yang tegar, memilih jalan sejarah yang lebih baik, melanjutkan pemberian berharga, gagasan mulia yang diteruskan dari generasi ke generasi: yaitu janji yang diberikan Tuhan bahwa semua kita setara, kita semua bebas, dan semua layak memperoleh kesempatan untuk mengejar kebahagiaan sepenuhnya. Dalam menandaskan kebesaran bangsa kita, kita memahami bahwa kebesaran tak pernah diberikan begitu saja. Mencapai kebesaran harus dengan kerja-keras. Perjalanan yang kita tempuh tak pernah mengambil jalan pintas. Perjalanan kita bukan bagi mereka yang tidak-tabah, bukan bagi mereka yang suka bermalas-malas daripada bekerja, atau bagi yang hanya mengejar kekayaan dan menjadi terkenal. Perjalanan kita adalah bagi mereka yang berani mengambil risiko, mereka yang melakukan hal-hal baru dan membuat barang-barang baru.

Sebagian mereka menjadi terkenal, tetapi acap kali laki-laki dan perempuan tak dikenal dalam pekerjaan mereka, yang telah mengusung kita di atas jalan berbatu-batu menuju kemakmuran dan kebebasan. Demi kita, mereka mengemas harta milik mereka yang tak seberapa dan menyeberangi samudera untuk mencari kehidupan baru. Demi kita, mereka banting-tulang dengan upah minim dan menetap di Pantai Barat, menahankan pukulan cambuk dan mencangkul tanah yang keras. Demi kita, mereka bertempur dan mati, di tempat-tempat seperti Concord dan Gettysburg, Normandy dan Khe San. Lelaki dan perempuan ini terus menerus berjuang dan berkorban dan bekerja hingga kulit tangan mereka mengelupas, agar kita bisa mengecap kehidupan yang lebih baik. Mereka melihat Amerika lebih besar dari jumlah ambisi kita secara perorangan, lebih besar daripada perbedaan status keluarga, atau kekayaan ataupun partai atau kelompok.

Perjalanan inilah yang kita teruskan hari ini. Kita masih merupakan negara paling makmur dan paling berpengaruh di Bumi. Para pekerja kita tidak kurang produktifnya dibandingkan dengan waktu ketika krisis ini dimulai. Otak kita masih seinventif seperti pada awal krisis ini, barang dan jasa kita masih diperlukan seperti pada minggu lalu atau bulan lalu, atau tahun lalu. Kapasitas kita tetap tak berkurang. Tetapi masa kita untuk berdiam diri, melindungi kepentingan sempit dan menunda keputusan-keputusan yang tak menyenangkan, sudah harus berlalu. Mulai hari ini, kita harus bangkit sendiri, membersihkan debu yang menempel, dan mulai lagi bekerja memperbaharui Amerika. Karena kemana saja kita melihat, ada yang harus kita lakukan.

Keadaan ekonomi mengharuskan tindakan yang berani dan segera, dan kita akan bertindak bukan hanya untuk menciptakan lapangan kerja baru, tetapi untuk meletakkan dasar bagi pertumbuhan. Kita akan membangun jalan dan jembatan, jaringan listrik dan jaringan digital yang menyuburkan perdagangan dan mengikat kita bersama. Kita akan memulihkan sains ke tempat yang selayaknya, dan menggunakan kehebatan teknologi untuk meningkatkan mutu perawatan kesehatan dan menurunkan biayanya. Kita akan memanfaatkan tenaga matahari, tenaga angin dan lainnya untuk menjalankan mobil-mobil dan pabrik-pabrik kita. Dan kita akan mengubah sekolah dan perguruan tinggi dan universitas untuk memenuhi tuntutan era baru. Semua ini bisa kita lakukan. Dan semua ini akan kita lakukan. Tentu, ada orang yang meragukan skala ambisi kita - dengan mengatakan sistem ekonomi kita tidak bisa mentolerir terlalu banyak rencana besar. Daya ingat mereka tidak cukup lama. Mereka telah melupakan apa yang dilakukan negara ini, apa yang bisa dicapai oleh laki-laki dan perempuan yang hidup bebas, apabila imajinasi digabung demi tujuan bersama, dan kebutuhan digabung dengan ketabahan.

Yang tidak dipahami oleh mereka yang sinis adalah tanah tempat mereka berpijak telah bergeser, bahwa argumen basi dalam politik yang telah begitu lama menyita waktu kita - tidak lagi berlaku. Pertanyaan yang kita ajukan sekarang bukan apakah pemerintah kita terlalu besar atau terlalu kecil, tetapi apakah pemerintah kita bisa berfungsi, apakah pemerintah bisa menolong para keluarga mencari pekerjaan dengan upah yang layak, asuransi kesehatan yang terjangkau, dan pensiun yang berarti. Apabila jawabannya - ya, kita berniat untuk terus bergerak maju. Apabila jawabannya tidak, programnya akan dihentikan. Dan mereka yang mengatur uang rakyat akan dimintai pertanggung-jawabannya - supaya mengeluarkan uang secara bijaksana, mengubah kebiasaan buruk, dan melakukan bisnis kita dengan jujur - karena hanya dengan demikian kita bisa memulihkan kepercayaan penting antara rakyat dan pemerintah.

Kita juga tidak mempertanyakan apakah kekuatan pasar bebas itu baik atau buruk. Kekuatan pasar bisa membina kekayaan dan memperluas kebebasan kita. Tetapi krisis ini telah mengingatkan kita bahwa tanpa pengawasan yang ketat, kekuatan pasar bebas itu bisa terlepas dari kontrol, dan suatu bangsa tidak bisa makmur untuk waktu lama apabila hanya mementingkan orang kaya. Keberhasilan ekonomi kita tidak hanya tergantung pada besarnya Produk Domestik Bruto, tapi seberapa jauh meluasnya kemakmuran itu, pada kemampuan kita memberikan kesempatan kepada tiap orang yang mau bekerja, dan bukan karena belas kasihan karena itulah jalan yang paling pasti guna mencapai kemakmuran bersama. Mengenai pertahanan kita bersama, kita menolak dan menganggap palsu pilihan antara keselamatan dan idaman atau cita-cita kita. Para Pendiri Negara ini dihadapkan pada bahaya yang tak terbayangkan, menyusun sebuah piagam untuk menjamin supremasi hukum dan hak setiap orang, sebuah piagam yang diperkuat oleh perjuangan generasi demi generasi.

Semua cita-cita ini masih menerangi dunia, dan kita tidak akan meninggalkannya demi mencapai penyelesaian yang cepat. Karena itu, bagi semua orang dan pemerintahan yang menyaksikan pelantikan hari ini, mulai dari kota-kota yang termegah sampai ke desa kecil di mana ayah saya dilahirkan, ketahuilah bahwa Amerika adalah sahabat setia negara dan sahabat setiap lelaki, setiap perempuan, dan setiap anak yang menghendaki masa depan yang damai dan bermartabat, dan bahwa kita siap untuk memimpin lagi. Ingatlah bahwa generasi-generasi sebelumnya menundukkan fasisme dan komunisme bukan hanya dengan misil dan tank, tetapi dengan aliansi yang kokoh dan keyakinan besar. Mereka memahami bahwa kekuatan saja tidak bisa melindungi kita, dan bahwa kekuatan itu tidak memberi kita hak berbuat sekehendak hati kita.

Sebaliknya mereka tahu bahwa kekuatan kita tumbuh melalui penggunaan yang bijaksana, keamanan kita berasal dari adilnya tujuan kita, kekuatan contoh yang kita berikan, dan kerendahan hati serta kesanggupan menahan diri. Kita adalah penjaga warisan ini. Dibimbing oleh prinsip-prinsip ini, sekali lagi kita bisa menghadapi ancaman-ancaman baru itu yang menuntut upaya lebih besar, bahkan kerja-sama dan pemahaman lebih besar antar-negara. Kita akan mulai secara bertanggung jawab meninggalkan Irak kepada bangsa Irak, dan menempa perdamaian di Afghanistan. Bersama teman-teman lama dan bekas saingan kita, Amerika akan bekerja tanpa lelah untuk mengurangi ancaman nuklir, dan mengurangi bahaya pemanasan bumi. Kita tidak akan minta maaf atas cara kehidupan Amerika, tidak akan goyah dalam mempertahankannya, dan bagi mereka yang hendak mendorong tujuan mereka dengan terror dan membantai orang-orang tak bersalah, kami katakan kepada mereka, semangat kita lebih kuat dan tidak terpatahkan, kalian tidak akan unggul dari kami, dan kalian akan kami kalahkan.

Kami sadar bahwa warisan bangsa yang beraneka warna adalah suatu kekuatan, dan bukannya sebuah kelemahan. Bangsa kita terdiri dari orang Kristen dan Islam, Yahudi dan Hindu, dan bahkan orang-orang yang tidak percaya pada Tuhan. Kita telah dibentuk oleh campuran berbagai bahasa dan kebudayaan, yang berasal dari segala pelosok dunia. Dan karena kita telah merasakan pahitnya perang saudara dan segregasi rasial, dan keluar dari masa kegelapan menjadi sebuah bangsa yang lebih kuat dan lebih bersatu, kita yakin bahwa pada suatu hari nanti semua rasa kebencian akan hilang, bahwa semua garis-garis pembatas antar suku bangsa akan luluh, dan bahwa dunia ini akan menjadi semakin kecil.

Kerendahan hati kita akan tampak dengan sendirinya, dan Amerika harus memainkan perannya dalam menyongsong era perdamaian yang baru. Bagi dunia Muslim, kami akan mencari cara baru ke depan berdasarkan pada kepentingan bersama dan saling menghormati. Bagi para pemimpin dunia yang berusaha menanam bibit konflik, atau menyalahkan dunia Barat atas kesulitan-kesulitan yang dialami masyarakatnya, ketahuilah bahwa rakyat Anda akan menilai Anda pada apa yang Anda bangun, bukan pada apa yang Anda musnahkan.

Bagi mereka yang hendak menggenggam kekuasaan melalui korupsi dan kekejian dan membungkam orang yang tidak setuju pada kebijakan mereka, yakinlah bahwa kalian berada pada sisi yang keliru, tapi kami akan mengulurkan tangan jika kalian tidak lagi mengepalkan tinju. Bagi rakyat negara-negara miskin, kami berjanji akan bekerja bersama kalian untuk membuat ladang kalian subur dan membuat air bersih mengalir, untuk memberi makan tubuh yang kelaparan, dan memenuhi kebutuhan mental. Dan kepada negara-negara seperti negara kita yang relatif menikmati kemakmuran, kita tidak bisa lagi bersikap tidak peduli pada kesengsaraan di luar perbatasan kita, dan kita tidak bisa menghabiskan sumber-sumber dunia tanpa mempedulikan dampaknya. Karena dunia sudah berubah dan kita harus berubah dengannya. Sambil kita mempertimbangkan jalan yang terbentang di depan kita, kita mengingat dengan rasa terima kasih orang-orang Amerika yang gagah berani, yang pada saat ini, berpatroli di gurun dan gunung yang sangat jauh.

Ada sesuatu yang hendak mereka katakan pada kita hari ini, seperti yang dibisikkan sepanjang masa oleh para pahlawan kita yang kini dimakamkan di Arlington. Kita menghormati mereka bukan hanya karena mereka menjaga kebebasan kita tetapi karena mereka menunjukkan arti pengorbanan, kesediaan untuk mencari arti yang lebih besar dari diri mereka sendiri. Dan pada saat ini, saat yang akan tercatat dalam sejarah generasi - semangat inilah yang harus ada pada kita semua. Sebanyak apapun yang bisa dan harus dilakukan pemerintah, pada akhirnya kepercayaan dan tekad rakyat Amerika-lah yang diandalkan negara ini. Misalnya kebaikan hati untuk menampung orang yang kena musibah walaupun tidak kita kenal, atau pekerja yang tanpa pamrih rela mengurangi jam kerja mereka daripada melihat seorang teman di-PHK, yang membuat kita keluar dari kegelapan. Adalah keberanian para pemadam kebakaran untuk menerobos masuk ke rumah yang penuh asap, dan juga kesediaan orang tua untuk membesarkan anak, yang kelak akan menentukan nasib kita.

Tantangan kita mungkin baru. Alat-alat yang kita gunakan untuk mengatasinya mungkin baru. Tetapi pada nilai-nilai itulah keberhasilan kita bergantung - yaitu kerja keras dan kejujuran, ketabahan dan berlaku secara adil, toleransi dan rasa ingin tahu, kesetiaan dan patriotisme - semua itu sudah lama ada. Semua itu memang benar. Semua itu telah menjadi kekuatan kemajuan sepanjang sejarah. Jadi yang dituntut sekarang adalah kembalinya kepada nilai-nilai ini.

Apa yang diperlukan dari kita sekarang ini adalah era pertanggungjawaban yang baru - suatu pengakuan, dari tiap orang Amerika, bahwa kita mempunyai kewajiban bagi diri kita sendiri, bagi negara kita dan bagi dunia, kewajiban yang kita lakukan dengan senang hati, bukan dengan bersungut-sungut, karena kita tahu tidak ada yang lebih memuaskan bagi jiwa kita, yang merupakan definisi karakter kita, daripada memberikan segalanya untuk menyelesaikan tugas yang sulit. Inilah pengorbanan dan janji kewarganegaraan. Inilah yang menjadi sumber keyakinan kita - pengetahuan bahwa Tuhan meminta kita untuk memperbaiki keadaan yang tidak pasti. Inilah arti kebebasan dan kepercayaan kita- mengapa laki-laki dan perempuan dan anak-anak dari tiap ras dan tiap keyakinan bisa ikut dalam perayaan di lapangan yang indah ini, dan mengapa seorang lelaki yang ayahnya lebih 60 tahun lalu mungkin tidak dilayani di restoran, sekarang bisa berdiri di depan anda untuk diambil sumpahnya sebagai presiden. Jadi marilah kita hari ini mengenang siapa kita dan sejauh mana jalan yang kita tempuh.

Pada tahun kelahiran Amerika, pada bulan yang terdingin, sekelompok patriot berkumpul di depan api unggun yang mulai padam di bantaran sungai yang beku. Ibukota telah ditinggalkan, musuh terus maju, salju tampak berlumuran darah. Pada saat itu, ketika nasib revolusi kita sangat diragukan, bapak bangsa kita memerintahkan supaya kalimat berikut dibacakan kepada semua rakyat Amerika: "Beritahukanlah pada dunia masa depan, bahwa di tengah musim dingin, saat apapun tiada kecuali harapan dan kebajikan - bahwa kota dan negara, waspada akan bahaya bersama, akhirnya bersatu untuk menghadapinya." Amerika; Dalam menghadapi musuh bersama, dalam masa sulit kita ini, mari kita ingat kata-kata emas itu.

Dengan harapan dan kebajikan, mari kita hadapi bersama sekali lagi sungai beku ini, dan bertahan dari badai apapun yang akan tiba. Biarkan cucu-cucu kita berkata bahwa kita telah diuji dan kita menolak untuk mengakhiri perjalanan ini, bahwa kita tidak mundur dan mata kita terpaku ke ufuk fajar dan dengan berkat Tuhan, kita meneruskan anugerah kebebasan dan mengantarkannya dengan selamat bagi generasi masa depan. (sumber:antara)

CHAPTER V CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS

CHAPTER V

CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS

A. Conclussions

Reading is one of the languange skills that need to be mastered by the students. We can assess the students’ reading comprehension by different varieties.So, the teacher needs to create some creatives ways to make a good assessment in teaching reading. However, based on the discussion stated in Chapter IV above, the result of the research can be concluded that crossword puzzle can be used as an assessment on students’ ability to scan a text.

B. Suggestions

The writer suggests to the teacher to notice

CHAPTER IV DATA ANALYSIS AND RESEARCH FINDINGS

CHAPTER IV

DATA ANALYSIS AND RESEARCH FINDINGS

A. Data analysis

After doing the research, the writer used t-test formula to analyze the result of pre-test and post-test . The writer used t-test taken from Arikunto (1997:300) to analyze the data. The formula is:

t = Md

X²d

N (N-1)

Where,

Md = Mean of the pre-test and post-test

Xd = Deviation of each subject (d-Md)

X²d = The total deviation value

N = Total number of students

d.b = N-1

t = 0.05

Moreover, there are some stages in analyzing the data. They are:

1. Checking the students’ worksheet.
2. Giving score in Interval scale with the point of rating scale 1-10.
3. Describing the scores in the table.
4. Counting the mean using formula X = X

N

5. Finding the median, mode, and range
6. Counting the standard deviation value using the formula: SD = (X-X)²

N (N-1)

7. Counting the deviation value
8. Counting the t-test using the formula:

t = Md

X²d

N (N-1)

After calculated the test, the writer continued computing the data and analyzing the result of their test. Here are the following tables:

1. The result of pre-test in table 4.1
2. The result of post-test in table 4.2
3. Standard Deviation of pre-test in table 4.3
4. Standard Deviation of post-test in table 4.4
5. The total Deviation Value in table 4.5

Here are the calculations of the results using the tables:

CHAPTER III RESEARCH METODOLOGY

CHAPTER III

RESEARCH METODOLOGY

A. Research Design and Procedure

In conducting the research, the writer used pre-experimental design using one group pre-test and post-test control group design. The reason that the writer used this design because the writer only intends to investigate the influence of games on students’ ability to construct the Simple Past Tense, so the writer used the pre exprimental design using one group pre-test post-test of pre-exprimental design. This research design is described as follows:

T1 X T2

T1: The pre-test, in this test the students are tested by using crossword puzzle

only in five questions.

X: The treatments, in which the students are taught a crossword puzzle to

scan a text.

T2: The post test, in this test the students are tested by using crossword puzzle

to scan a text.

This research was conducted in four meetings. The first meeting was for the pre-test, in which the students had to answer the questions. The second meeting to the third meeting, it was time for the students to follow the treatments. The four meeting was conducted the post-test. Both the pre-test and the post-test were recorded. Then the writer scored and analyze the data.

B. Time and Place

The writer has done the researvh in the Junior High School on until to the grade students of. The place of this school is in

C. Population and Sample

The population of this research was the second of Junior High School of SMPN. There were two classes of class II. Each class consists of 25 students. The writer chooses the total sampling.

D. The Variables and The Measurement

There are two variables that are identified by the writer in this study. They are independent and dependent variables. The independent variable is “The effect of crossword puzzle as an assessment” and the dependent variable is “the Students’ ability to scan a text”.

To measure the variables in this study, the writer used “interval scale”. The score ranges from 1 until 10.

E. Research Instrument

The instrument in this research is in the form of tests. Arikunto (1998:139) states

“Test adalah sederetan pertanyaan atau latihan atau alat-alat lain yang digunakan untuk mengukur keterampilan, pengetahuan, intelegensi, kemampuan atau bakat yang dimiliki individu atau kelompok”.

Therefore, the writer gave the students’ ability befor they have given treatment (pre-test) and after they had received some treatments (post-test).

The test is in the form of essay and filling in the blanks (short-answer questions). The test is designed by the writer himself by taking up the materials of the students books for the second grade of Junior High School.

F. Data Collection

As mentioned above, the writer used two kinds of tests to measure the students’ ability to scan a text they were pre-test and post test. Pre test was given before the treatments, while the post test was given later after treatments. He gave the test to analyze the students’ knowledge and their problem that they faced in scanning a text.

Farhady and Hatch (1982:4) state, “ The data could came from case studies, questionnaires, students’ compositions, tests, or experiments”. In this research, the writer used some tests to get the data. He collected several documents which are related to the research to support his analysis.

CHAPTER II THEORETICAL FOUNDATION

CHAPTER II

THEORETICAL FOUNDATION

A. Text

Textbooks, novels, magazines, newspapers, and mail are just a few of the things that people read every day. There was a text contains of information that people need.

The American Heritage Dictionary (2000) states that text can be defined in some terms:

First, the original words of something written or printed, as opposed to a paraphrase, translation, revision, or condensation. Second, the words of a speech appearing in print. Third, words, as of a libretto, that are set to music in a composition. Fourth, words treated as data by a computer.

In other words text is the words of something written, there were more than a thousand words of text, they handed out the printed text of the mayor's speech to reconstruct the original text. It is human-readable sequence of characters.

Holme (1991:3) states that a text may be introduced into the class for one or more of the following reasons:

It is thought that it will form a useful basis for a lesson and provide good language input. It is to be used in conjunction with other texts to improve reading skills. It is held to be valuable or worthy of study in itself. It is seen as motivating because it is an example of the kind of material to which students may be given access by the language they are learning. It is requested by the class. It is prescribed by or found relevant to another course over whose content the teacher has no control.

It means that the text is one of the supplements in teaching learning which has rules and goal.

B. Assessment

Assessment plays an important part in the teaching-learning process at all levels of education. Since assessment plays such an important and significant part in the future of a student there is no doubt that any assessment system will determine what students learn and the way in which they do this. Hence assessment will also determine the way in which the teacher teaches and what the teacher teaches.

Brown (2004:4) states,

Assessment is on-going process that encompassess a much wider domain. Whenever a student responds to a question, offers a comment, or tries out a new word or structure , the teacher subconciously makes an assessment of the student’s performance.

Assessment is not just about grading and examinations. It is also about getting to know the students and the quality of their learning and to use this knowledge and understanding to their benefit. Assessment is, without doubt, one of the major ''drivers'' of the teaching-learning process. It is thus important for teaching staff to be familiar not only with the technical aspects of the many different forms of assessment currently in use, but also with their advantages and limitations and about assessment issues and concerns

Herman & Knuth (1991) reveals,

Assessment is used to determine what a student knows or can do, while evaluation is used to determine the worth or value of a course or program. Assessment data effects student advancement, placement, and grades, as well as decisions about instructional strategies and curriculum.

Angelo and Cross (1993) states that assessment is an approach designed to help teachers find out what students are learning in the classroom and how well they are learning it. The following approaches have the following characteristics:

1. Learner-Centered

Assessment focuses on the primary attention of teachers and students on observing and improving learning, rather than on observing and improving teaching. Assessment can provide information to guide teachers and students in making adjustments to improve learning.

2. Teacher-Directed

Assessment respects the autonomy, academic freedom, and professional judgement of college faculty. The individual teacher decides what to assess, how to assess, and how to respond to the information gained through the assessment. Also, the teacher is not obliged to share the result of Assessment with anyone outside the classroom.

3. Mutually Beneficial

Because it is focused on learning, assessment requires the active participation of students. By cooperating in assessment, students reinforce their grasp of the course content and strengthen their own skills at self-assessment. Their motivation is increased when they realize that faculty are interested and invested in their success as learners. Faculty also sharpen their teaching focus by continually asking themselves three questions: "What are the essential skills and knowledge I am trying to teach?" "How can I find out whether students are learning them?" "How can I help students learn better?" As teachers work closely with students to answer these questions, they improve their teaching skills and gain new insights.

4. Formative

Assessment purpose is to improve the quality of student learning, not to provide evidence for evaluating or grading students. The assessment is almost never graded and is almost always anonymous.

5. Context-Specific

Assessments have to respond to the particular needs and characteristics of the teachers, students, and disciplines to which they are applied. What works well in one class will not necessary work in another.

6. Ongoing

Assessment is an ongoing process, best thought of as the creating and maintenance of a classroom "feedback loop." By using a number of simple Classroom Assessment Techniques that are quick and easy to use, teachers get feedback from students on their learning. Faculty then complete the loop by providing students with feedback on the results of the assessment and suggestions for improving learning. To check on the usefulness of their suggestions, faculty use Classroom Assessment again, continuing the "feedback loop." As the approach becomes integrated into everyday classroom activities, the communications loop connecting faculty and students and teaching and learning becomes more efficient and more effective.

7. Rooted in Good Teaching Practice

Assessment is an attempt to build on existing good practice by making feedback on students' learning more systematic, more flexible, and more effective. Teachers already ask questions, react to students' questions, monitor body language and facial expressions, read homework and tests, and so on. Assessment provides a way to integrate assessment systematically and seamlessly into the traditional classroom teaching and learning process

As they are teaching, faculty monitors and reacts to students’ questions, comments, body language, and facial expressions in an almost automatic fashion. This "automatic" information gathering and impression formation is a subconscious and implicit process. Teachers depend heavily on their impressions of student learning and make important judgments based on them, but they rarely make those informal assessments explicit or check them against the students' own impressions or ability to perform. In the course of teaching, college faculty assume a great deal about their students learning, but most of their assumptions remain untested.

Even when college teachers routinely gather potentially useful information on student learning through questions, quizzes, homework, and exams, it is often collected too late at least from the students' perspective to affect their learning. In practice, it is very difficult to "de-program" students who are used to thinking of anything they have been tested and graded on as being "over and done with." Consequently, the most effective times to assess and provide feedback are before the chapter tests or the midterm and final examinations. Assessment aims at providing the early feedback.

Angelo and Cross (1993) reveals that assessment is based on seven assumptions:

1. The quality of student learning is directly, although not exclusively, related to the quality of teaching. Therefore, one of the most promising ways to improve learning is to improve teaching.
2. To improve their effectiveness, teachers need first to make their goals and objectives explicit and then to get specific, comprehensible feedback on the extent to which they are achieving those goals and objectives.
3. To improve their learning, students need to receive appropriate and focused feedback early and often; they also need to learn how to assess their own learning.
4. The type of assessment most likely to improve teaching and learning is that conducted by faculty to answer questions they themselves have formulated in response to issues or problems in their own teaching.
5. Systematic inquiry and intellectual challenge are powerful sources of motivation, growth, and renewal for college teachers, and Classroom Assessment can provide such challenge.
6. Classroom Assessment does not require specialized training; it can be carried out by dedicated teachers from all disciplines.
7. By collaborating with colleagues and actively involving students in Classroom Assessment efforts, faculty (and students) enhance learning and personal satisfaction.

So that, assessments help teachers to keep track of the zone of proximal development for each child and instruction can be designed. This is neither too easy nor too challenging.

Brown (2004:5-6) reveals,

There are two kinds of assessment: formal and informal assessment. Formal asseessment are exercises or procedures specifically designed to tap into a storehouse of skills and knowledge. They are systematic planned sampling technique constructed to give teacher and students an appraisal of student’s achievement. Informal assessment can take a number of forms, starting with incidential, unplanned comments and responses, along with coaching and other impromptu feedback to the student. A good deal of teacher’s informal assessment is embedded in classroom tasks designed to elicit performance without recording results and making fixed judgements about a student’s competence.

Angelo and Cross (1993) states

“…to begin assessment it is recommended that only one or two of the simplest Classroom Assessment Techniques are tried in only one class. In this way very little planning or preparation time and energy of the teacher and students is risked”.

In most cases, trying out a simple Classroom Assessment Technique will require only five to ten minutes of class time and less than an hour of time out of class. After trying one or two quick assessments, the decision as to whether this approach is worth further investments of time and energy can be made. This process involves three steps:

Step 1: Planning

Select one, and only one, of the classes in which to try out the Classroom Assessment. Decide on the class meeting and select a Classroom Assessment Technique. Choose a simple and quick one.

Step 2: Implementing

Make sure the students know what the teacher is doing and that they clearly understand the procedure. Collect the responses and analyze them as soon as possible.

Step 3: Responding

To capitalize on time spent assessing, and to motivate students to become actively involved, "close the feedback loop" by letting them know what the teacher learned from the assessments and what difference that information will make.

C. Reading Assessment

Wren in his article states the ultimate goal in reading is, of course, to make meaning from text. That is, to comprehend the information that is conveyed in the text. What that means is that, at the least, the reader should gain some understanding of the message that is being conveyed by the author. However, comprehension should go beyond simply understanding the explicit message being conveyed by the author. To truly comprehend text is to make connections between the information in the text and the information in the reader's head, to draw inferences about the author's meaning, to evaluate the quality of the message, and possibly even to connect aspects of the text with other works of literature.

The most common reading comprehension assessment involves asking a child to read a passage of text that is levelled appropriately for the child, and then asking some explicit, detailed questions about the content of the text (often these are called IRIs).

According to Pressley (1995:135),

Constructing an IRI consists of two stages. The first is developing the material: selecting reading passages, creating comprehension questions, retelling outlines, and prior knowledge items for each passage, and making up both reader’s copy and examiner’s form. The second stage, often omitted in directions for IRI construction, is critically important: Try out and evaluate the instrument before use it to make decisions about student’s reading.

However, accurate assessment of reading comprehension is necessary to know if this goal is being met, to identify students who need remediation, and to help plan future instruction. However, many scientific investigators of reading agree that further work on measures of reading comprehension is essential, including development of comprehensive systems of assessment that pinpoint key strengths and weaknesses in individual student.

The type of assessment that informs instruction does not necessarily need to be a formal reading test that was purchased from a publisher, although it certainly can be. Assessment can be a simple observation of a student’s behaviour when writing; it can be an observation of how well a child plays a word game; it can be an observation of a student's oral reading fluency. Every observation has the potential to be an assessment.

It is a good idea, however, to combine teacher observations with more formal and objective assessment information the two complement each other, and give the teacher a much better informed picture of each child's reading related skills.

Brown (2004:189) reveals:

In the case of reading, variety of performance is derived more from multiplicity of types of texts than from the variety of overt types of performance. Nevertheless, for considering assessment procedures, several types of reading performance are typically identified, and these will serve as organize of various assessment tasks.

1. Perspective

Perspective reading tasks involve attending to the components of larger stretches of discourse: letter, words, punctuation, and other graphemic symbols. Bottom-up processing is implied.

2. Selective

This category is largely an artifact of assessment formats. In order to ascertain one’s reading recognition of lexical, grammatical, of discourse features of language within a very short stretch of language, certain typical tasks are used: picture cued tasks, matching, true/false, multiple choice, etc.

3. Interactive

Included among interactive reading types are stretches of language of several paragraphs to one page or more in which reader must, in phsycolinguistic sense, interact with the text.

4. Extensive

Applies to text of more than a page, up to and including professional articles, essays, technical reports, short stories, and books.

Finally, Reading Comprehension assessments typically describe the student's reading level. Reading Comprehension assessments should be more diagnostic than they currently are, and student should be challenged to attack different genres of text and critically examine the text in a variety of ways, gathering explicit information, drawing inferences, and making evaluations.

D. Crossword Puzzle

Hornby (1974: 2006) states a crossword puzzle puzzle is words have to be written and stated in spaces on a chequered square or oblong (from numbered clues) vertically (clues down) and horizontally (clues accross).

Webster Dictionary (1989: 347) mentions that a crossword puzzle is a puzzle in which words corresponding numbered clues or defines are supplied and fitted into correspondingly numbered sets of squares, one letter per square, the most being arranged horizontally or vertically.

Neufeldt (1996: 332) states crossword puzzle as an arrangement of numbered squares to fill in with words, a letter each square, so that a letter appearing in a word placed vertically: numbered synonyms and definitions are given clues for the words. The word, which is formed in the blank squares, mostly containing the synonym and definitions, etc.

Besides, Soeparno (1980:73) states that a crossword puzzle is a kind of games by filling in the blank form presented with letters forming words as the answer of questions given. The materials carried out are about the definition of terms, antonym, synonym, preposition, etc.

The crossword puzzle can be done individually or in group. Crossword puzzle provides the following variations on the Crossword theme.

1. Type of Crossword Puzzle

http://www.crauswords.com/crossword/crossword.html states that there are two types of crossword puzzle as follows:

a. American style crossword puzzles

.

The most obvious feature of American style crosswords is the fact that every letter in the puzzle is an interlinking letter. In other words, every letter in the puzzle is a letter in an across word, and also in a down word. In some ways, this makes the puzzle easier to solve. If the writer is having difficulty with a word, the writer can expect some assistance as the writer solves those words which intersect with it. On the other hand, it also makes the puzzle considerably harder to construct. Even so, Crossword Express will generally have no trouble completing the construction if the writer uses a dictionary of sufficient size. The English dictionary provided with the program contains over 30,000 words, each having one or more clues.

b. British style crossword puzzles.

In some ways, a British style crossword puzzle is the complete opposite of an American puzzle. Typically, there will be many more pattern cells in the puzzle, and only around one third of the letters will interlink. This makes the puzzle much easier to construct, and as the writer might expect it is correspondingly more difficult to solve. This graphic demonstrates a feature of Crossword Express which allows the pattern cells to be printed in various shades of gray (or any other colour for that matter). You might want to do this for aesthetic reasons, or perhaps to conserve ink. The colour used for the letters and for the grid lines is similarly selectable.

According to the data above, the writer decides a British style grid crossword puzzle as an assessment.

E. Scanning

Brown (2004:209) states that scanning is a strategy used by all readers to find relevant information in a text. It is a technique the readers often use when looking up a word in the telephone book or dictionary. The readers search for key words or ideas. In most cases, the readers know what they are looking for, so they are concentrating on finding a particular answer. Scanning involves moving their eyes quickly down the page seeking specific words and phrases. Scanning is also used when the readers first find a resource to determine whether it will answer their questions. Once they have scanned the document, the readers might go back and skim it.

Brown (2004:209) reveals

“…among the variety of scanning objectives (for each of genres named above), the test taker must locate: a date, name, or place in an article, the setting of a narrative or story, the principal divisions of chapter, the principal research finding in technical report, a result reported in a specified cell in a table, the cost of an item on a menu, specified data needed to fill out an application”.

F. Crossword Puzle As An Assessment To Scan A Text

Teaching students to read with increased comprehension and acquisition of new vocabulary is a challenge teacher’s face on a daily basis. Teachers have long realized that choosing a good skill textbook and various class readers is just the beginning to achieving this goal. The next step is to plan creative, interactive lessons, one of the key words being interactive according to Mikulecky (1990). However, this interaction is not merely between the student reader and a text (Johnston, 1983). Peer interaction is equally important and can add interest, fun, and an increase in learning in the reading class. Also, listening, speaking, and writing activities can be utilized to enhance and expand the reading program.

Scanning is an important skill that requires students to read a text to find answers to specific questions such as who, what, when, where, why, how much, how many, or what kind. Speed and accuracy are the focus of this skill.

Winnie (2005) in his article addresses and offers suggestions to achieve the instructional goals of scanning.

Teacher prepares a handout with student-teacher assignments. There are two kinds of activities: vocabulary and comprehension. For vocabulary, students are asked to make a crossword puzzle or matching words with definitions handout, and for comprehension, students can prepare a true/false or wh-question handout.

Wade (2005) from Georgia Department of education designs a lesson plan which contains crossword puzzle as an assessment. (table 2.1). Ridgewood Public School also uses crossword puzzle as an assessment of reading activities. (table 2.2).

Crossword puzzle has been used as an assessment. It became a few of kind reading activities. It means crossword enjoyable to give an information and easy to do.

Gardner tells the most important thing about assessment is knowing what it is that you should be able to do. So that the writer wants to do the experiment with crossword puzzle.