The Relationship between Students' Collocation Knowledge and Their Reading Comprehension (A Correlational Study at the Fourth Semester of the Department of English Education of Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University of Jakarta)

(A Correlational Study at the Fourth Semester of the Department of English

Education of Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University of Jakarta)

By:

Nia Pebriyanti

1112014000034

DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH EDUCATION

FACULTY OF TARBIYAH AND TEACHERS’ TRAINING

SYARIF HIDAYATULLAH STATE ISLAMIC UNIVERSITY

JAKARTA

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r;f the Requirerrents lbr the Degree o{'S.Pd. (S-1) in English Language Education

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DEPARTN{ENT OF ENGLISH EDTI CATIOI{

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Studenls' Collocation Knowledge and

Their

Reading Comprehension" (A Correlational Study at the 4th Semester of the Department of English Education

of

Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University of Jakarta), r+ritten by Nia Pebriyanti.

student's registration number I 112014000034, was examined by the Committee on

29 July 2A16. The "skripsi" has been accepted and declared to have fulfilled one

of

the requirements lbr the degree of "S.Pd." (Strata-1) in the Department of English

Education.

Jakarta,29 July 2016

EXAMINATION COMMITTEE

CHAIRMAN

SECRETARY

E)LAMINER

I

EXAMINER II

Dr. Alek, M.Pd.

NIP. 19690912 200901 1 008

Zaharil Anasv. M.Hum. NIP. 19761007 2007t0

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Drs. Nasifuddin Dialil. M.As. NrP. 19s60506 199003

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Dr. Ratna Sari Dewi. M.Pd. NIP. 19720501 199903

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Saya yang bertanda tangan di bawah ini,

Nama

Tempat/Tgl.Lahir NIM

Jurusan / Prodi

Judul Slripsi

Nia Pebriyanti

Tangerang, 24 F ebruafi 2A16

1 1 12014000034

Pendidikan Bahasa Inggns

The Relationship between Students" Collocation Knowledge

and Their Reading Cornprehension (A Correlatioreal Study at

the Fourth Semester Students

of

Departnneat

of

English Educatioa Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University)

Dcrsen Pemhimbing : 1. Dr. AIek, M.Pd.

2. Zabafil Anasy,

M.Hurn-dengan ini men,vatakan bahwa skripsi yang sa,r,-a buat benar-benar hasil kar1,a sendiri

dan saya bertanggung jaw'ab secara akademis atas apa yang say'a tulis.

Pernyataan ini dibuat sebagai salah satu syarat menempuh Ujian Munaqas.vah.

Jakarta" 26 Jul"v 2016 Mahasisw'a Ybs.

Nia Petriyanti

v

Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University of Jakarta). Skripsi of English Education at the Faculty of Tarbiyah and Teachers’ Training of Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University of Jakarta, 2016.

Advisor I : Dr. Alek, M.Pd.

Advisor II : Zaharil Anasy, M.Hum.

This study aimed to find and describe the relationship between students’ collocation knowledge and their reading comprehension. The population of this study was the fourth semester students of Department of English Education of Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University of Jakarta in academic year 2015/2016. There were 46 students from B and C classes selected as the sample of this study. This study used a quantitative method with the correlational study as the research design of study. The instruments used for collecting data were collocation knowledge and reading comprehension tests. Both tests were conducted to measure students’ collocation knowledge and reading comprehension. The data which was collected was calculated by using Pearson Product Moment Correlation to see whether there was any significant relationship between the two variables. Based on the research analysis, the relationship between the two variables was found at the 99% level of confidence (p < 0.01) with the value of rxywas 0.474 which was in the medium or moderate level. The

value was higher than the value of rtin the significant of 1%, in which 0.474 >

0.376. Moreover, the significance of t contribution revealed that the result was significant with the value of tcountwas 3.571. The value was higher than the value

of ttable at the level of significance 0.01, in which 3.571 > 2.692. Hence, the

alternative hypothesis (Ha) is accepted and null hypothesis (Ho) is rejected. In

conclusion, there was a significant correlation between students’ collocation knowledge and their reading comprehension at the fourth semester of the Department of English Education of Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University of Jakarta in academic year 2015/2016.

Keywords : Correlational Study, Collocation Knowledge, Reading

vi

Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University of Jakarta). Skripsi Jurusan Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris, Fakultas Ilmu Tarbiyah dan Keguruan, Universitas Islam Negeri Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta, 2016.

Dosen Pembimbing I : Dr. Alek, M.Pd.

Dosen Pembimbing II : Zaharil Anasy, M.Hum.

Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk menemukan dan mendeskripsikan hubungan antara pengetahuan kolokasi dan pemahaman membaca siswa. Populasi pada penelitian ini adalah mahasiswa semester 4 Jurusan Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris, Universitas Islam Negeri Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta tahun ajaran 2015/2016. Sebanyak 46 siswa dari kelas B dan C yang terpilih menjadi sampel penelitian. Penelitian ini menggunakan metode kuantitatif dengan korelasi sebagai desain penelitian. Instrumen penelitian yang digunakan untuk memperoleh data adalah tes pengetahuan kolokasi dan tes pemahaman membaca. Kedua tes tersebut dilakukan untuk mengukur pengetahuan kolokasi dan pemahaman membaca siswa. Data yang diperoleh dihitung menggunakan korelasi Pearson Product Moment untuk mengetahui apakah ada hubungan yang signifikan antara kedua variabel tersebut. Berdasarkan analisa penelitian, hubungan antara kedua variabel ditemukan level signifikansi 99% (p < 0.01) dengan nilai dari rxy adalah 0.474

yang berada pada level sedang. Nilai tersebut lebih tinggi dari nilai rtpada tingkat

kesalahan 1%, yaitu 0.474 > 0.376. Selain itu, signifikan nilai t mengungkapkan bahwa hasil tersebut signifikan dengan nilai dari thitungadalah 3.571. Nilai tersebut

lebih tinggi dari nilai ttabel pada level signifikan 0.01, yaitu 3.571 > 2.692. Oleh

karena itu, hipotesis alternatif (Ha) diterima sedangkan hipotesis nol (Ho) ditolak.

Dapat disimpulkan bahwa adanya hubungan yang signifikan antara pengetahuan kolokasi dan membaca mahasiswa semester 4 Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris, Univesitas Islam Negeri Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta.

vii

All praises be to Allah, the Lord of the worlds, who has given the mercy and

blessing upon the writer during completing this skripsi as the final assignment in

her study. Peace and salutation may always be upon the Prophet Muhammad, the

savior of the humankind, who has brought the light onto this world and turned it

into a better place.

ThisSkripsiis a scientific paper that is presented as one of the requirements

for the degree “S.Pd.” in English Education. Completing this skripsi is long

processes and the writer would not have been able to complete it without help and

support of lecturers, institution, family and friends. Hence, in this occasion, the

writer is pleasure to acknowledge the help and contributions by conveying her

utmost gratitude to them who have helped her in completing thisskripsi.

First, the writer would like to express the deepest gratitude to her great

parents; her father Sanen and her dearest mother Nining Yuningsih for their love,

support, and moral encouragement in motivating the writer to finish her study.

Next, the writer would like to express the greatest honor and deepest gratitude to

her advisors, Dr. Alek, M.Pd., and Zaharil Anasy, M.Hum., for patiently guiding

her and giving her the most valuable help, advice, and support during completing

thisskripsi.

Moreover, the writer would like to express her gratitude and appreciation to:

1. Prof. Dr. Ahmad Thib Raya, M.A., as the Dean of Faculty of Tarbiyah and

Teachers’ Training.

2. Dr. Alek, M.Pd., as the Head of Department of English Education.

3. Zaharil Anansy, M.Hum., as the secretary of Department of English

Education.

4. All lecturers in the Department of English Education who always give

viii

7. Her family, especially her brother; Maulana Yusuf, for his time provided to

help her in inputting the data during writing thisskripsi.

8. Her best friends; Amalia, Mutiara Rahmah, Rizka Amalia, and Poetri Tanjung

Prameswara, Dyah Ayu W.L. for the friendship, love, knowledge, support,

and time they have provided unconditionally.

9. All of her friends in the Department of English Education, especially for

members of B class of 2012 for the encouragement, support, and love.

10. All the people who cannot be mentioned one by one for their contribution to

the writer during completing herskripsi. The words are not enough to say any

appreciations for their help.

Lastly, the writer realizes that this skripsi is still far from being perfect.

Despite the help from the aforementioned people, there are weaknesses and

shortages in this skripsi that remain as the writers’ responsibility. She, therefore,

welcomes all kinds of corrections and suggestions for a better writing.

Jakarta, July 26, 2016

ix

ABSTRACT... v

ABSTRAK... vi

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT... vii

TABLE OF CONTENTS... ix

LIST OF TABLES... xi

LIST OF FIGURES... xii

LIST OF APPENDICES... xiii

CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION... 1

A. Background of Study ... 1

B. Identification of the Problems... 3

C. Limitation of the Problems ... 3

D. Formulation of the Study ... 4

E. Objective of the Study ... 4

F. Significance of the Study ... 4

CHAPTER II. THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK... 5

A. Reading ... 5

1. Definition of Reading ... 5

2. Types of Reading ... 6

3. Purposes of Reading ... 7

4. Definition of Reading Comprehension ... 8

5. Strategies for Reading Comprehension ... 10

B. Collocation ... 12

1. Definition of Collocation ... 12

2. Types of Collocation... 14

3. Definition of Collocation Knowledge... 18

x

A. Time and Place of Research... 24

B. Method and Design of Research ... 24

C. Population and Sample ... 25

D. Instrument of Research ... 25

E. Technique of Data Collection ... 28

F. Technique of Data Analysis... 28

G. Statistical Hypothesis ... 30

CHAPTER IV. RESEARCH FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION... 31

A. Research Findings ... 31

1. Description of the Data ... 31

a. Collocation Knowledge Score ... 31

b. Reading Comprehension Score... 35

2. Analysis of the Data... 39

a. Analysis of Linearity of Test ... 39

b. Analysis of Normality of Test... 40

c. Analysis of Correlation Coefficient ... 40

d. Analysis of Determination Coefficient ... 44

3. Hypotheses Testing ... 45

B. Discussion ... 47

C. Limitations ... 49

CHAPTER V. CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTION... 51

A. Conclusion ... 51

B. Suggestions ... 51

REFERENCES... 53

xi

Table 3.3 The Interpretation of Correlation ... 30

Table 4.1 The Collocation Knowledge Score of 4thSemester Students of Department of English Education ... 31

Table 4.2 The Statistical Score of Collocation Knowledge ... 34

Table 4.3 The Reading Comprehension Score of 4thSemester Students of Department of English Education ... 35

Table 4.4 The Statistical Score of Reading Comprehension ... 38

Table 4.5 The Linearity Test Results of the Data ... 39

Table 4.6 The Normality of the Tests ... 40

Table 4.7 The Data Analysis Table of Collocation Knowledge and Reading Comprehension... 41

Table 4.8 Pearson Product Moment Table... 44

xii

xiii

APPENDIX 3 The Collocation Knowledge Score of 4thSemester Students of

Department of English Education ... 63

APPENDIX 4 The Reading Comprehension Score of 4thSemester Students of Department of English Education ... 65

APPENDIX 5 Original Collocation Knowledge Test (Before Pilot-test) ... 67

APPENDIX 6 Output Anates of the Pilot Test ... 71

APPENDIX 7 Statistical Calculation of Collocation Knowledge Score ... 80

APPENDIX 8 Statistical Calculation of Reading Comprehension Score... 81

APPENDIX 9 SPSS Correlations “r” Product Moment ... 82

APPENDIX 10 Pearson Product Moment Table ... 83

APPENDIX 11 T-table ... 85

APPENDIX 12Surat Permohonan Izin Penelitian... 87

APPENDIX 13Pengesahan Proposal Skripsi... 88

APPENDIX 14Surat Bimbingan Skripsi... 89

APPENDIX 15Surat Permohonan... 90

APPENDIX 16Lembar Uji Referensi... 91

1

In learning a language, reading is a dominant activity in understanding the

contexts of any texts which need to be read by the students. They can get

information and improve their knowledge through reading. While reading,

learners’ skill in reading is needed in order to understand the massage of the text

easily. Therefore, reading is one of skills which is important to be learned and

improved like other language skills.

According to Richards, listening and reading are passive/receptive skill.1 As

receptive skill, reading requires the readers to decode the message of written

language. Reading can be defined as the process of understanding a text.2The text

that learners read will help them to develop their reading comprehension. Reading

is often known as a passive activity. However, reading is not totally passive

because while reading, students need to make use their background knowledge, vocabulary, grammatical knowledge, experience with text and other strategies for helping them understand a text.3 Reading can be a useless activity when the readers do not get the message of what they read. Therefore, reading is not as easy

as thought because learners need some strategies to comprehend written language

properly.

One of required strategies in comprehending a text is vocabulary mastery.

Vocabulary is crucial and important in reading because mastering vocabulary can

help them to comprehend a text easily. However, mastering vocabulary is not only

knowing word by word but also knowing combination of words. One of word

combinations is collocation. Collocation refers to word combination which are

usually stick together. As Lewis stated that collocation is the way words naturally

1

Jack C. Richards and Richard Schmidt, Longman Dictionary of Language Teaching and Applied Linguistics, (4thEd.), (London: Pearson Education Limited, 2010), p. 322.

2

Ibid., p. 483.

3

co-occur in language frequently.4 In learning English as Foreign Language, the

awareness of collocation is precise especially in understanding the message of the

text accurately. In fact, reading English text is not as easy as reading native

language text. EFL learners may have some problems in reading English

literatures, books, novels, or any printed materials because of many factors.

One of problems in reading is that the students cannot read effectively and

understand fully English texts. Regarding to Kiaee that collocation and context are

important and have a strong connection to the reading comprehension,5 lack of

collocation knowledge can be one of factors of difficulty in comprehending

English texts for language learners, especially non-native language learners who

usually have less knowledge of collocation. Unlike native English learners, EFL

learners faced some difficulties in learning collocation because English is not used

in daily conversation. As a result, at school, when EFL learners read some English

books, magazines, newspapers, novels, etc., they are difficult to comprehend the

meaning of the texts. Related to preliminary study, many students faced difficulty

in comprehending novels and English texts because of unfamiliar vocabularies.

The unfamiliar vocabularies are collocation, such as, restore confidence, have

second thoughts, give someone a hand, etc. Because of lack of collocation

knowledge, they interpreted the meaning of the texts by translation word by word

that caused different meaning from the real one. As a result, the students were

difficult and slow in comprehending the text.

The statement above is in line with Brown and Kelly who stated that

students are helped a lot in reading comprehension by having collocation

knowledge.6 Moreover, Lien revealed in his study that EFL learners have better

abilities to comprehend a text if they have a better knowledge of collocation.7

4

Michael Lewis, Teaching Collocations: Further Developments in the Lexical Approach, (Boston: Language Teaching Publications, 2000), p. 132.

5

Seyyede S. S. Kiaee,et al., The Effect of Teaching Collocations on Enhancing Iranian

EFL Learners’ Reading Comprehension,Journal of Advances in English Language Teaching, vol.

1 (1), 2013, p. 6. Retrieved fromhttp://european-science.com/jaelt/article/view/76.

6

Mansoor Ganji, The effect on Reading Comprehension of Lexical Collocation Instruction, Subject Matter Knowledge, and Cultural Schema, Journal of Theory and Practice in Language

Studies, vol. 2 (1), 2012, p. 109. Retrieved from

http://ojs.academypublisher.com/index.php/tpls/article/view/tpls0201105112.

7

Therefore, learners who do not have knowledge of collocation may translate

word-by-word when they read unfamiliar combination of words in the English

texts. Consequently, their interpretation of the text will be different with the

original massage of the text even they do not get the massage of the text at all. In

fact, reading requires more than knowing individual words combined together to

produce a meaningful sentences. In this case, the more practice in learning

collocation is needed to increase students’ collocation knowledge. Thus, it will

influence their reading comprehension which can understand the text accurately.

Based on the explanation above, it can be assumed that having collocation

knowledge has a relationship with reading comprehension, therefore, it can be

proved by conducting a research with the tittle: The Relationship between

Students’ CollocationKnowledge and Their Reading Comprehension.

B. Identification of the Problems

Based on the background of study above, the problems which are related to

this research can be identified as follows:

1. Students have less motivation in reading because they assume that reading is

difficult activity.

2. It is supposed that many students have difficulty in reading because of lack of

collocation knowledge.

3. Students still cannot be aware of collocation in English text because the

exposure of collocation in school is still very limited.

C. Limitation of the Problems

In order to conduct an effective study, the problem of this research is limited

by focusing on the relationshipbetween students’collocation knowledge which is

limited in lexical collocation and their reading comprehension. The study is

conducted at the fourth semester of Department of English Education of Syarif

D. Formulation of the Study

Based on the limitation above, the research question can be formulated as:

“Is there any relationship between collocation knowledge and students’ reading

comprehension at the fourth semester of Department of English Education of

Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University ofJakarta?”

E. Objective of the Study

The objective of the study is to know and describe relationship between

students’ collocation knowledge and their reading comprehension at the fourth

semester of Department of English Education of Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic

University of Jakarta.

F. Significance of the Study

The results of the study are expected to give benefits not only theoretically

but also practically. The significances of the study are conveyed to:

1. Students

By the result of the study, it will provide a reflection for the students in

enhancing collocation knowledge as well as their reading comprehension

improved;

2. English teachers

Theoretically, it will provide the English teachers an information about the

importance of enhancing students’ collocation knowledge related to their

reading comprehension. Therefore, in practice, the result will prompt teachers

to give an alternative instruction that will be able to increase and improve

students’ collocationknowledge and their reading comprehension;

3. Further researchers

The result of the study will be useful as an inspiration and additional

5

1. Definition of Reading

In learning English as foreign language, reading is one of essential skills

should be mastered. Reading is a dominant activity in understanding the contexts

of any texts which need to be read by the students. Reading is a process to get

information to improve knowledge. According to Grabe and Stoller, reading is the

ability to get the massage of the written text and understand the information

properly.1 When people are reading, they are also communicating. In reading,

there is an interaction between reader and writer. The text provides massage from

the writer which should be constructed by the reader. The statement is in line with

Alderson who stated that reading is a process of understanding a text message

through some processes of interaction with the text.2

Based on the definition above, therefore, reading cannot be determined as a

passive activity. Reading is a complex cognitive activity that involves the reader

and text to interact in interpreting the meaningful information.3 Reading is one of

receptive skills. According to Harmer, receptive skills are the process of

extracting meaning from the discourse from seeing or hearing.4 Therefore, to

understand the meaning of the text appropriately, the readers have to use their

eyes and mind simultaneously to grasp the massage related to what the writer

wants to give in order to avoid misunderstanding between the reader and the

writer.

People may have different purposes in reading. Some of them read for

recognizing written words, while for the others, they read to practice

1

William Grabe and Fredricka L. Stoller, Teaching and Researching Reading, (2ndEd.), (New York: Routledge, 2002), p. 11.

2

J. Charles Alderson,Assessing Reading, (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000), p. 3.

3

Sandra Silberstein, Techniques and Resources in Teaching Reading, (New York: Oxford University Press, 1994), p. xiii.

4

pronunciation and speaking.5 Through reading, students can improve their other

skills such as speaking through the learning how to pronounce the words, writing

through the learning the sentence structure from the text, and listening through

reading aloud. Moreover, reading also can be a process for students to improve

their linguistic competence. As Grabe stated that reading can be defined as a

linguistic process which means that the readers will make phonemic connection,

recognize the words and the structural phrases organizing the words, and

linguistic knowledge of the language of the text.6

Thus, it can be drawn a conclusion that reading is an active attempt that

involves the readers to use their eyes and mind simultaneously in order to

construct the message of the text with their background knowledge as

information. In addition, the purposes reading can be determined in various ways.

2. Types of Reading

In teaching and learning process, reading is a common activity for students

to get information. In the reading activity, there are two types of reading which

are usually done by the students. They usually read a short text for getting detail

information. In addition, they usually read a longer text for getting the overall

meaning of the passage. The kinds of reading are intensive and extensive reading.

a. Intensive Reading

Intensive Reading is reading a short text to extract specific or detail

information of the text. Students usually need a short time to do this kind of

reading. Intensive reading can be a way for the students to increase their

knowledge of language features and their control of reading strategies.7 In

addition, Intensive reading usually involves translation and comprehension of the

text. The use of the translation is to analyze language features that they learned,

5

Sacha Anthony Berardo,The Use of Authentic Materials in the Teaching of Reading, (The Reading Matrix: Vol.6 (2), 2006), p. 60. Retrieved from

http://www.readingmatrix.com/articles/berardo/article.pdf.

6

William Grabe,Reading in a Second Language: Moving from Theory to Practice, (New York: Cambridge University Press, 2009), p. 16.

7

and to make sure their comprehension.8 To reach students’ comprehension, they

need to pay attention of accuracy of reading regarding to the text, vocabulary, and

organization. The purpose of intensive reading is to help students to get the detail

meaning of the text, to develop their reading skill such as identifying main ideas,

recognizing text connectors, and the knowledge of grammar.9

b. Extensive Reading

Extensive reading is reading a larger text in order to comprehend a whole

meaningful text. In reading extensively, students usually spend more time because

sometimes they need to understand the part of sentences, paragraphs, and

chapters. As Nation stated that extensive reading is a learning activity which

focuses on meaning input and fluency development. When reading, the students

need to pay attention to the meaning of the text rather than the language features

of the text.10 Extensive reading can be a way for the students to build a reading

culture and their fluency by reading in quantity. In addition, extensive reading

provides positive experiences and motivation for the students in reading.11

3. Purposes of Reading

Students can read anything every time and ever where. Of course, they have

different purposes in reading. For example, when students read a newspaper,

getting main point of the information is their purpose of reading. On the other

hand, when they read a novel, the purpose of reading is for pleasure. According to

Grabe and Stoller, there are some purposes in reading:12

a. Reading to search for simple information

In reading to search, typically the readers do scanning a text for getting a

specific word or specific information.

8

I.S.P Nation,Loc. cit.

9

Jack C. Richards and Willy A. Renandya, Methodology in Language Teaching: An Anthology of Current Practice, (Cambridge: Cambridge Press University, 2002), p. 296.

10

I.S.P Nation,Op. cit., p. 50.

11

William Grabe,Op. cit., p. 322.

12

b. Reading to skim quickly

In reading to skim quickly, the readers read for getting general comprehension

of text in a short time.

c. Reading to learn from texts

Reading to learn from texts refers to learning substantial information which

requires linkingthe text with the readers’ background knowledge.

d. Reading to integrate information

For getting information, reading to integrate information requires the reader to

decide what information they are going to pick.

e. Reading to write

Similar to reading to integrate information, reading to write refers to reading

for selecting information being read which can be a source for developing

writing.

f. Reading to critique texts

In reading to critique text, the readers need to select, critique and compose the

information of the text.

g. Reading for general comprehension

Reading for general information is actually a complex reading activity which

requires the readers to process words, strong skills in forming general meaning

in representing of mind ideas, and efficient coordination of many processes

rapidly and automatically under very limited time constraints.

4. Definition of Reading Comprehension

Reading is an activity which requires the reader to interpret a written text. In

interpreting the text, students need to convert word by word of the text by using

their eyes and brain simultaneously and process it with their background

knowledge in order to get a meaningful understanding of the text. The process of

According to Lems, reading comprehension is a skill to create meaning that

is given from a printed text.13 Alexander determined comprehension as an active

process to comprehend a text which requires learners’ background knowledge

with the information of the text.14 It can be described that comprehension needs

active readers who bring their ideas or background knowledge related to the

information of the text in order to make appropriate inferences easily. Without

comprehension, the readers just read word by word without getting the meaning of

the text.

Furthermore, reading comprehension is also determined as getting the

essential information from a text and understanding it as efficiently as possible.15

Students read a text and comprehend it based on their purposes of reading by

getting the information which they are looking for. For example, when they get an

advertisement, they deny the unimportant information and seek the most

significant information of the text. Therefore, comprehension above means that

the readers need the ability to locate the relevant information carefully based on

their particular purposes of reading.

Comprehending a text requires readers who have good comprehensions to

construct an appropriate message of the text. According to Gillet,et al., there are

some characteristics of being a good comprehensive reader such as: recalling their

prior knowledge of the reading topic, inquiring some questions about the topic

before and during the reading, constructing appropriate interpretations of the text

if the ideas are implicitly stated, and getting main ideas, making a summary, and

some representation of the words in the text.16

Based on the explanation above, thus, reading comprehension is important

and it is a complex process, which requires the readers to integrate words and

13

Kristin Lems, et al., Teaching Reading to English Language Learners: Insights from Linguistics, (New York: The Guilford Press, 2010), p. 170.

14

J. Estill Alexander,Teaching Reading, (Boston: Scott, Foresman and Company, 1989), p. 127.

15

Frangoise Grellet, Developing Reading Skill a Practical Guide to Reading Comprehension Exercise, (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press 1999), p. 3.

16

sentences of the text using their brain into a meaningful whole.17 It means that

comprehending a text needs active readers to analyze and process words and

sentences to construct an appropriate meaning by connecting to their background

knowledge, personal experience and vocabulary mastery to get a meaningful

understanding of the text.

5. Strategies for Reading Comprehension

A message of written text can be properly received by the readers with

varying degrees of comprehending. Readers who have good skills in

comprehension will easily construct the meaning of the text. However, being good

comprehensive readers is not easy because sometimes they face some reading

problems which can disturb their comprehension. There are several essential

comprehension strategies for the readers to improve their reading

comprehension.18

a. Using Prior Knowledge

In order to comprehend a text, students need to integrate their new information

from the text with their background knowledge related to the text.

b. Asking and Answering Questions

When reading, making some questions and reading to answer the questions are

reading activities in improving their ability to get significant details from the

text. By asking some questions related to the text, the students will more pay

attention to the information to answer the questions.

c. Determining What is Important

The purpose of reading is getting information. However, most texts contain so

much information which sometimes make students confuse what information

should they get from the text. In this case, students need to deny the

unimportant information and focus on the most significant information from

the text based on their purpose of reading.

17

Jane Oakhill,et al.,Understanding and Teaching Reading Comprehension:A Handbook, (New York: Routledge, 2015), p. 1.

18

d. Summarizing

Students need to summarize of what they read using their own words by

selecting the important ideas and choosing significant detailed from the text.

Practice in summarizing a text may lead the students to improve their skill in

understanding a reading text.

e. Making Inferences

Sometimes, many texts have unstated ideas which require the readers to

construct the full meaning of the text. Therefore, in this strategy, students infer

the meaning of what they read when the ideas of the text are not explicitly

stated. Inferring the meaning of the text can be done by using information

from the text and students’ existing schemata to fill in information.

f. Dealing with Graphic Information

Sometimes, a text consists of illustrations, graphs, maps, or diagrams.

Students need to pay special attention to the graphic information because they

often provide key points that students can use to support them in

understanding the message of the text.

g. Imaging

When imaging, it is necessary for students to create mental pictures of the text.

The imaging consists of graphically organizing key ideas of the text. Imaging

can help students to visualize what they read so that they easily have fully

understanding of the text.

h. Monitoring Comprehension

To achieve greater comprehension of texts, students need to monitor their

comprehension by considering their desire to gain from a text and their

understanding of the text. Students can monitor their comprehension by asking

them some questions such as “Am I understand what the author is saying?

What can I do to increase my understanding?” Students can reread the text to

build meaning and they can use dictionary if they face unfamiliar words

B. Collocation

1. Definition of Collocation

When students learn a language, they also will learn the form of words of its

language. All languages have different word formations that become a uniqueness

of every language. However, many languages may have similar word formations,

for instance, the combination of words which usually go together. Some linguists

call the combination of words as ‘lexical phrases’ or ‘lexical items’, others prefer

to call them ‘chunks’ of language. Meanwhile, the combination of words with

words which usually go together has been called as collocation.

Collocation is important and crucial in every language. Collocation can be

found in many kinds of text, such as magazines, newspapers, and/or educational

texts. When people hear the word ‘collocation’, they may have different

perspectives to define it because there is no single definition of collocation. The

first definition of collocation was introduced by Firth, J.R. who defined

collocation as ‘the company words keep’ which means the relationship of one

word with other words.19 The term of collocation is originally from the Latin verb

‘collocate’ that means ‘to set in order/to arrange’.

Other definitions of the term of collocation have been defined by linguists in

different ways. According to Palmer, collocation is a combination of two or more

words which must be learned by analyzing its essential whole part of its

component not pieced together.20 In addition, Hunston added, the statistical

tendency of pair of words which co-occur together can be defined as collocation.21

For example, the word shed collocates with words garden, job, etc. When shed

collocates with garden as garden shed, the word shed is a noun. In other case, it

becomes a verb when it collocates with the wordjobasshed job. According to the

19

Michael Lewis, Teaching Collocations: Further Developments in the Lexical Approach, (Boston: Language Teaching Publications, 2000), p. 48.

20

Graeme Kennedy, Amplifier Collocations in the British National Corpus: Implications for English Language Teaching, TESOL Quarterly, vol. 37 (3), 2003, p. 468. Retrieved from

https://www.jstor.org/stable/3588400.

21

definitions above, collocation is determined by structure and occurs in pattern

which is considered from the statistical/frequency-based perspective.

On the other hand, other linguists defined the term of collocation from

lexical point of view. Unlike statistical/frequency-based definition of collocation,

a lexical definition identifies collocation as a combination of two or more words

that frequently occur in a language.22 Michael Lewis pointed the words that to be

considered as collocation, are not combined freely, but the words co-occur

naturally.23 In addition, the statements above are in line with McCarthy who

argued that collocation is combination of words in a language which is closely

associated each other in natural way, for instance, it is common to sayshe has got

blonde hairrather than she has got yellow hair.24 Although both of the sentences

have similar meaning, learners are not suggested to collocate one word with other

words as they wish. Since there are many words combinations that usually stick

together, this does not mean that all co-occurring words can be considered as

collocation. Then, there are no rules to combine words to be collocation, people

usually determined the collocation by seeing the words that often stick together in

common sense. In short, collocation consists two or more words that sound

naturally for native language.

From definitions above, it is worth noticed that there is no single definition

of the word ‘collocation’. Since, there is no single meaning to describe what

collocation is, the form of collocation is usually unclear for many EFL learners

because sometimes the form of the words combination in target language have

different meaning when it is translated into the native language. For example, the

students may translate “membuat kesimpulan” from L1 into L2 “make a

conclusion”. However, the words are not usual for native speakers because they

usually use “draw a conclusion”, inwhich “membuat kesimpulan”as its definition

in L1. Therefore, it is translated as “draw a conclusion” to make the words

22

Ronald Carter, Vocabulary Applied Linguistic Perspectives, (2nd Ed.), (New York: Routledge, 1998), p. 51.

23

Michael Lewis,Op. cit.,p. 132.

24_{Michael McCharty and Felicity O’Dell,}

acceptable without destroying the meaning and keep the original message in the

source language.

2. Types of Collocation

Knowing patterns of collocation is important because the words occur

together based on its patterns. Many experts classify collocation into several

types. There are two major classifications of collocation; grammatical and lexical

collocation.

a. Grammatical Collocation

Grammatical collocation is the words occur together within a combination of

lexical and grammatical word.25 In grammatical collocation, the co-occurring

words consist of a noun, an adjective, or a verb, plus a preposition or a

grammatical structure such as an infinitive or clause.26 A grammatical item is a

unit of language whose presence in the text is due to its grammatical function

rather than to any meaning it may represent. According to Ilson,et al., in The BBI

Combinatory Dictionary of English, grammatical collocations fall into following

combination:27

Type Pattern Example

G1 Noun + Preposition blockade against

apathy towards

G2

Noun followed byto+

Infinitive

It was apleasureto do it.

They had theforesightto do it.

They felt acompulsionto do it.

They made anattemptto do it.

He was afoolto do it.

G3 Noun followed bythat

clause

we reach an agreement that she would

represent us in court

25

Michael Lewis,Op. cit.,p. 134.

26

Jens Bahns, Lexical Collocation: a Contrastive View, ELT Journal, (Oxford University Press, vol. 47 (1), 1993), p. 57. Retrieved fromhttp://eltj.oxfordjournals.org/content/47/1/56.

27

Type Pattern Example

G4 Preposition + Noun

by accident

in advance

in agony

on somebody’s advice

G5 Adjective + Preposition They areangry atthe children

They arehungry fornews.

G6 Adjective and a followingto

+ Infinitive

Adjective with dummy subject “it”:

It was necessary to work

Adjective with real and animate subject:

She (the girl) is ready to go.

G7

Adjective followed bythat

clause

She was afraid that she would fail her

examination

It was imperative that I be there at three

o’clock

G8 Verb Pattern of Collocation

Verb with specific preposition and an

object:

They came by train

Verb followed by an object + to infinitive:

They permitted the children to watch

television

b. Lexical Collocation

Lexical collocation is the words occur together within two lexical different

elements.28 Unlike grammatical collocation, lexical collocation does not contain

of prepositions, infinitives, or clauses, but typically contains of various

combination of nouns, adjectives, verbs and adverbs.29 A lexical item is a unit of

language which represents a particular area of meaning which has a unique pattern

of combination with other lexical items. According to Ilson, et al., in The BBI

28

Michael Lewis,Loc. cit.

29

Combinatory Dictionary of English, lexical collocations fall into following

combination:30

Type Pattern Example

L1

Verb (usually transitive) +

Noun/Pronoun (or prep.

phrase)

Verb denoting creation:

Come to an agreement

Compose a music

Verb denoting activation:

Fly a kite

Launch a missile

L2 Verb (eradication and/

nullification) + Noun

Reject an appeal

Break a code

L3 Adjective + Noun Strong tea

A chronic alcoholic

L4 Noun + Verb Bombs explode

Bees sting

L5 Noun + Noun

Larger unit to which a single member

belongs:

A herd of buffalo

A bouquet of flowers

The specific, concrete, small unit of

something larger, more general:

A bit of advice

An article of clothing

L6 Adverb + Adjective Hopelessly addicted

Sound asleep

L7 Verb + Adverb

Amuse thoroughly

Apologize humbly

Appreciate sincerely

30

In addition, due to the importance of learning collocation, Hill suggested the

types of collocation which need to be taught to English language learners, as

follows:31

Pattern Example

Adjective + Noun A huge profit

Noun + Noun A pocket calculator

Verb + Adjective + Noun Learn a foreign language

Verb + Adverb Live dangerously

Verb + Preposition + Noun Speak through an interpreter

Adverb + Verb Half understand

Adverb + Adjective Completely soaked

Furthermore, He also classified collocation into more specific types, as

follows:32

a. Unique Collocations

Unique collocations are fixed collocations in the sense that the word fixedly

collocates with the word and cannot be replaced by other words. For example,

foot the billand shrug our shoulders.

b. Strong Collocations

Strong collocations are less fixed than unique collocations but they have a

strong and very strong combination. Few words can replace the target

collocates, for example,rancid butterandmove to tears.

c. Weak Collocation

Weak collocations are easily predictable combinations of usual words in

English. For example, long hair and green shirt. Since they cause no real

31

Jimmie Hill, Revising priorities: from grammatical failure to collocational success. In M. Lewis (Ed.), Teaching collocations: Further Developments in the Lexical Approach, (Boston: Language Teaching Publications, 2000), p. 51.

32

difficulty for learners, they need to be made aware of their predictable

collocations.

d. Medium-Strength Collocations

Medium-strength collocations are words that frequently go together. These are

neither free nor completely fixed. Students may know the individual words

hold and conversation, but not the word combinations. For example, hold a

conversationandmake a mistake.

3. Definition of Collocation Knowledge

The acquisition of vocabulary is a significant component in using a

language. The knowledge of words can be seen as a learners’ ability to store

words in their memory and use them accurately and appropriately in a given

context. Doczi, et al., grouped vocabulary knowledge into passive and active

vocabulary knowledge. Passive vocabulary knowledge is an ability to recognize

and understand lexical units. Meanwhile, an ability to use lexical units in speech

and writing is called active vocabulary knowledge.33 Learners need to have

vocabulary knowledge because by having vocabulary knowledge, they are able to

use it to form a language production and form a meaning in comprehension as

needs in communication.

Nevertheless, having vocabulary knowledge does not only know words but

also know the combinatory possibilities of the words. Learners must be able to

combine words to other words to form phrases, and combine words to form

grammatical patterns, clauses, and sentences to use a language. The combination

of words with words usually has been called as collocation.34 Meanwhile, the

ability to store sequences of words as the bases of language learning is called

collocation knowledge.35

Having knowledge of collocation is clearly crucial for foreign language

learners in learning English. Hill pointed out that “It is possible that up to 70% of

33

Brigtta Doczi, and Judit Kormos,Longitudinal Developments in Vocabulary Knowledge and Lexical Organization, (New York: Oxford University Press, 2016), p. 7.

34

Robert Ilson,et al.,Op. cit., p. vii.

35

everything we say, hear, read, or write is to be found in some form of fixed

expression.”36It seems that knowledge of collocation relates to the proficiency of

language learning. Having collocation knowledge can help learners to form an

appropriate understanding of text. The reason that learners do not understand what

they read is that they read every word as if it were separate from every other word.

In other words, they do not recognize collocation as meaningful phrases, which

would inhibit their understanding of the text. Moreover, knowledge of collocation

can help learners to use appropriate words in producing a language. For instance,

the words beautiful and handsome have similar meaning, however, it is not

appropriate to say she is a handsome girl and he is a beautiful boy. There are

many collocations that are more appropriate to use in natural way. It means that

the given context is central in using collocation to create the appropriateness of

words.

However, for English foreign language learners, having collocation

knowledge might be nearly impossible. Collocation sometimes cannot be

understood literally, therefore the words cannot be used with confident. Learners

may know words but their collocation knowledge is very limited because

collocation frequently occurs in spoken and written English in fact English is not

used in everyday life in foreign language learners’ area. Therefore, there should

be a further effort to learn collocation to improve their collocation knowledge.

Ideally, the acquisition of collocation is not instantaneously acquired. It

must be learned gradually from numerous exposures. Collocation can be learned

in various ways. There are varieties of collocation dictionary for those who wish

to learn more about collocation. The dictionaries provide a much more

comprehensive account of a word collocates rather than the traditional dictionary.

Novels, newspapers, magazines, radio programs, and movies also can be sources

for learning collocation. In addition, corpora concordances also can be a good

resource for learners to determine their collocation frequencies and explore the

collocation use.

36

From the explanation above, it can be concluded that collocation knowledge

is defined as an ability to store the combination of words to other words which

sound naturally, to use them accurately to produce a language, and to construct

meaning in comprehension. In addition, collocation must be recognized in a text

or speech and learned in order to improve collocation knowledge. By having

collocation knowledge, it will improve English learners’ fluency, accuracy, and

appropriateness in forming a language production and meaning in comprehension.

C. Related Previous Studies

The relationship between collocation and the language proficiency has been

conducted by some researches. Zahra Yazdandoost, et al., has investigated The

Relationship among Collocation Knowledge and Listening, Speaking, Reading

and Writing Proficiency of Iranian EFL Learners. The study focused on

investigating both lexical and grammatical collocation knowledge and their

relation to the language proficiency; reading, writing, speaking, and listening.

There were 50 male and female Iranian graduate students of different fields of

study who were studying English as a foreign language involved in this study.

Both lexical and grammatical collocations tests are conducted in this study to

measure the students’ collocation knowledge. For finding out students’ listening,

reading, speaking, and writing proficiency, the study took an IELTS sample tests

(IELTS Practice Plus Pearson Education Longman University, Version two). The

study revealed that the language proficiency has a relationship with students’

lexical and grammatical collocation knowledge. Moreover, knowledge of

collocation can predict the students’ performance or proficiency in all four

language skills.37

In addition, Elsa Sastrawati, et al., investigated A Correlation between

Students’ Reading Interest and Their Lexical Knowledge of Collocations towards

Their Reading Ability. The aims of the study were to find out the relationship

between students’ reading interest and their lexical knowledge of collocations and

37

Zahra Yazdandoost, et al., The Relationship among Collocation Knowledge and Listening, Speaking, Reading and Writing Proficiency of Iranian EFL Learners, Journal of International Scientific Publications, vol. 8, 2014, pp. 408—419. Retrieved from

how these affected to their reading ability. There were 88 second year students of

English Department of Bung Hatta University who were involved in this study.

For correlation study, approximately 30 samples were regarded enough that

relates variables. This study distributed questionnaire to find out the students’

response in reading interest, conducted collocation test to measure the students’

knowledge in lexical collocation, and conducted reading test to find out the

students’ ability in reading. The result of analyzing data of this study revealed that

reading interest has a relation with lexical knowledge of collocation towards

students’ reading ability.38

Another study isThe Effect of Teaching Collocation on Enhancing Iranian

EFL Learners’ Reading Comprehension by Seyyede Samaneh Sadat Kiaee, et al.

The study used quasi-experiment as a research design to examine the effect of

collocation instruction on enhancing Iranian EFL learners’ reading

comprehension. The study involved 70 EFL intermediate students from Safir

English Institute in Tehran, Iran. They were randomly divided into experimental

group and control group. The experimental group was given collocation treatment

while there was no treatment for control group. In experimental group, the

procedure of collocation instruction included teaching and recognizing

collocations, giving examples, and practicing activities, all of which were

designed to enhance the participants’ understanding of collocations. The study

used reading comprehension pretest and posttest consisted of three reading

passages which had about 40 collocations to test the level of students’ reading

comprehension. The result indicated that the experimental group outperformed the

control group in reading comprehension. Thus, it revealed that the teaching of

38

Elsa Sastrawati, et al., A Correlation between Students’ Reading Interest and Their Lexical Knowledge of Collocations towards Their Reading Ability,Abstract of Undergraduate of Faculty of Education of Bung Hatta University, vol. 4 (1), 2015, pp. 1—14. Retrieved from

http://ejurnal.bunghatta.ac.id/index.php?journal=JFKIP&page=article&op=view&path%5B%5D=

collocation has a significant role in improving EFL learners’ reading

comprehension.39

Although there has been a study examined EFL learners' collocation

knowledge with language proficiency and there has been a study examined the

relationship between reading interest and lexical knowledge of collocation

towards reading ability, not many studies have investigated EFL learners'

collocation knowledge which is limited in lexical collocation with respect to a

specific language skill, reading. Moreover, since there has been the investigation

that concerns with the effect of teaching collocation on enhancing EFL learners’

reading comprehension in the Iranian setting, it is worth noting that the present

study, therefore, examined the relationship between students’ collocation

knowledge limited in lexical collocation and their reading comprehension in

Indonesian setting.

D. Thinking Framework

Based on the theories above, reading is one of language skills which is

important to be learned. In learning a language, students will get information

through reading in order to improve their knowledge to produce a language.

Reading is defined as a process of interpreting text to get information and expand

knowledge. In reading, the use of eyes and brain are required to process the words

and connect it with their background knowledge to get information appropriately.

Reading is not only knowing the words but also comprehending the text.

Comprehending a reading text is a skill to construct meaning of the text

appropriately. Hence, comprehending a text needs an active reader who is able to

connect their particular knowledge to the information provided in the text to

interpret the message properly. Without comprehension, the readers just read

word by word without getting the message of the text.

Moreover, when students read a text, they also will analyze words in the text

to construct meaning. There are many word formations in passages. One of them

39

S. S. S. Kiaee, et al., The Effect of Teaching Collocations on Enhancing Iranian EFL

is multi words, namely collocation. Collocation consists of two or more words

which co-occur together frequently in natural way. Collocation can be found in

English texts such as books, magazines, newspapers, novels, etc. In learning a

language, collocation is crucial because by having collocation knowledge, it will

help students in comprehension and production of a language. Collocation

knowledge is defined as an ability to store multi words which frequently co-occur

together.

Having a better knowledge of collocation also has an impact to thestudents’

language proficiency, especially reading. In reading, students frequently translate

word by word to understand the text. However when they face collocation in a

text, they may not translate it word by word. For example, students who have lack

of collocation may translate “have second thoughts about something” as think

about it twice, however the correct one is decide that it may not be a good idea

after all. When students face collocation words, they have to guess the meaning of

one word to the collocated word and connect it to the context of the text in order

to get complete comprehension. Therefore, the students need to aware every

collocation they get after hearing or reading, in order to improve their knowledge

of collocation. By having better knowledge of collocation, it will help them in

comprehending a text accurately.

Thus, based on the explanation above, it can be identified that collocation

has a great deal with reading. It can be supposed that the more students getting

aware about collocation and having a better collocation knowledge, they will

easily and quickly get a complete comprehension of the text; while students who

have lack of collocation knowledge will not able to comprehend the text properly.

E. Theoretical Hypothesis

Based on the theories discussed above, it can be proposed theoretical

hypothesis that there is a significant relationship between students’ collocation

24

X Y

This study was conducted for two months, from May to June 2016. The

study was conducted for distributing collocation knowledge and reading

comprehension tests. The place of the study was at Syarif Hidayatullah State

Islamic University of Jakarta which was located at Jalan Ir. Juanda No.95,

Ciputat, Tangerang Selatan. The consideration of conducting the study at this site

was because of the accessibility and familiarity of the situation and the

participants.

B. Method and Design of Research

The method of this study was quantitative method. Meanwhile, the research

design of this study was correlational study. The real design of the study is

[image:37.595.109.504.344.618.2]

represented as follows:

Figure 3.1

Research Design

Note:

X = Independent Variable

Y = Dependent Variable

r = Relationship

From the chart above, this study investigated the correlation between two

variables. The variables were independent and dependent variables. The

independent variable was “collocation knowledge” which was known as X

variable. Meanwhile, the dependent variable was “reading comprehension”which

was known as Y variable.

C. Population and Sample

The population of the study was the fourth semester students of Department

of English Education at Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University of Jakarta in

academic year 2015/2016. There were 3 classes; 4A, 4B, and 4C and each class

consisted of 17, 23, 23 students. The total number of 3 classes was 63 students.

The target population of this study was chosen because they have already passed

or learned the related subjects investigated in this study such as vocabulary,

morphology and reading subjects. According to Cohen, taking the larger sample is

better to give greater reliability and facilitate more sophisticated statistics to be

used.1_{Therefore, the study was considered to take large sample for collecting data}

consisted of 46 students which were selected using purposive sampling technique.

The samples were chosen from 4B and 4C classes of Department of English

Education. Meanwhile, the other 17 students from 4A class were involved to be

participants in testing validity and reliability of the research instrument.

D. Instrument of Research

In this study, test was used as the instrument for collecting data. There were

two different tests conducted in this study; reading comprehension and collocation

knowledge tests.

1. Reading Comprehension Test

In this study, the reading comprehension test was adopted from Longman

Complete Course for the TOEFL Test Preparation for the Computer and Paper

Test by the reason that the book consisted of the TOEFL paper-based test which

usually used in the institutional TOEFL. In other words, the test was suitable for

the participants of this study as undergraduate students. After being analyzed

manually, the passages in the reading test contained lexical collocation whose

score was appropriate to be correlated with the score of lexical collocation

knowledge in order to find its significant relationship.

1_{Louise Cohen, et al., Research Method in Education (6}th_{Ed.), (New York: Routledge,}

a. Conceptual Definition

Reading comprehension is an ability to understand the meaning of a text by

identifying main idea, detailed information, finding reference and similar words,

and making inference of the text. Reading comprehension test was conducted to

identify the students’ reading comprehension.

b. Operational Definition

Reading comprehension is an ability shown by the score gained by the

students based on the test, which comprises of main idea, detailed information,

reference word, similar word, and inference of text. The test was conducted by

using multiple choice test type which consisted of four passages. Total items were

twenty which were divided by five items in each passage.

[image:39.595.110.514.313.711.2]

Here was the blue print of reading comprehension test:

Table 3.1

The Blue Print of Reading Comprehension Test

Aspect Indicator Item Number Total

Item

Comprehending

the English

Text.

1. Determining main idea of the text 1, 6, 11, 16 4

2. Identifying stated detail

information on the text 3, 13, 20 3

3. Identifying unstated detail

information on the text 5, 9, 15 3

4. Making inference based on the

text 4, 8, 18 3

5. Finding reference word in the text 7, 14, 17 3

6. Identifying similar word in the

text 2, 10, 12 19 4

2. Collocation Knowledge Test

In the collocation knowledge test, the items were adapted from two

collocation workbooks, Natural English Collocation written by Jon Marks and

Alison Wooder; and Using Collocation for Natural English written by Elizabeth

Walter and Kate Woodford. The test was conducted by using multiple choice test

type. Before administering the test, there were 40 items which have been analyzed

to check the validity and reliability of the test (see appendix 5). The result

revealed that the validity and reliability of the test were 0.65 and 0.79 (see

appendix 6). After being analyzed, there were 20 items of collocation knowledge

test which were chosen for collecting data (see appendix 1).

a. Conceptual Definition

Lexical collocation knowledge is an understanding about a combination of

two or more words such as various combinations of nouns, adjectives, verbs, and

adverbs that go together frequently and naturally in a language. In this study,

lexical collocation knowledge test was conducted in order to know students’

knowledge of lexical collocation.

b. Operational Definition

Collocation knowledge is an understanding shown by the score gained by

the students based on the test, which comprises of 8 lexical collocation categories

such as V + N/Pronoun, N + V, Adj + N, N + N, Adv + Adj, V + Adv, V + Adj +

N, and Adv + V.

[image:40.595.105.515.309.751.2]

Here was the blue print of collocation test:

Table 3.2

The Blue Print of Collocation Test

Aspect Item Indicator Item Number Total Item

1. Understanding the meaning of

collocation based on the context.

Verb (transitive) +

Noun/Pronoun 1, 4, 16 3

Noun + Verb 5, 20 2

Aspect Item Indicator Item Number Total Item

2. Using collocation based on the context.

Adjective + Noun 2, 11, 19 3

Adverb + Adjective 6, 14, 18 3

Verb + Adverb 3, 9, 17 3

Adverb + Verb 10, 13 2

Verb + Adjective + Noun 8, 12 2

TOTAL 20

E. Technique of Data Collection

This study employed two different tests for getting the data. The tests used

in this study were collocation knowledge test and reading comprehension test. The

tests were conducted to measure the students’ collocation knowledge and their

reading comprehension. A multiple-choice test type was used in designing both

tests and each test consisted of 20 items. The assessment guideline for assessing

the tests was number of true score was divided by total number of the test and was

multiplied by 100. In collecting the data, the first test conducted in this study was

collocation test for collecting data of students’ collocation knowledge. Afterward,

reading comprehension test was conducted for collecting data of students’ reading

comprehension test.

F. Technique of Data Analysis

For analyzing the data, the study used a formula of Pearson

Product-Moment Correlation. Pearson product-moment correlation can be used to analyze

data which is collected from the result of the two variables measurement in

interval scale.2 The formula used for finding the number of correlation, as

follows:3

2_{Jonathan Sarwono, Metode Penelitan Kuantitatif dan Kualitatif, (Yogyakarta: Gra}