Students’ Perception toward Google Translate as an Online Dictionary in Translating Activity

Abstract

The process of translating involves transforming the meaning of a word or text from its original language to its intended one. There are many factors that can help students with translating. One of them is using technology. One of the most renowned translation tools is Google Translate. Nowadays, every student has a smartphone that can access Google Translate easily. The purpose of this study was to investigate students' perceptions of using Google Translate, a free online dictionary, for translation assignments. This study used a descriptive quantitative method. The population of the study was the eighth-grade SMPIT Al-Qalam South Bengkulu students. The sample consisted of 20 students, representative of 4 classes. In this study, a questionnaire was utilized as the research instrument. Respondents were given questionnaires to complete in order to collect the data. The questionnaire contained 20 items on a Likert scale in order to ensure the results could be presented in an objective way. The researcher organized, calculated, and concluded after going through multiple stages of data analysis. To calculate the mean score and percentage of the students' scores, the researcher employed SPSS Version 25. The researcher discovered that the questionnaire's overall mean score was 73.75 after analyzing the data. Based on the students’ perceptions and interpretations, the mean score of the questionnaire is positive. It could be done to draw the conclusion that the students have a positive perception of using Google Translate as an online dictionary for translating assignments.