READABILITY IN TALK ACTIVE 2 TEXTBOOK FOR THE
ELEVENTH GRADE SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
A THESIS
Submitted to Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the
Degree of Sarjana Pendidikan
By:
HERA FITRA LUBIS
Registration Number: 2123121019
ENGLISH AND LITERATURE DEPARTMENT
FACULTY OF LANGUAGES AND ARTS
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ABSTRACT
Lubis, Hera Fitra. Registration Number: 2123121019. Readability in Talk
Active 2 Textbook for the Eleventh Grade Senior High School. A Thesis.
English Educational Program, State University of Medan, 2016.
This research aimed to analyze and describe the readability of reading texts in a textbook entitled Talk Active 2 for the Eleventh Grade Senior High School. This research concerned on measuring six reading texts in the textbook which were selected by using random sampling. The measurements used in this research were Flesch Reading Ease Formula and Cloze Test. The test was distributed to the 40 eleventh grade students at SMA Swasta Galih Agung. Furthermore, the writer used descriptive method. From the analysis by using Flesch Reading Ease Formula, it was found that 3 of 6 texts are readable for the eleventh grade students. The three texts are the third text Emperor Penguin (57.06), fifth text Should Parents Censor Their Children’s Reading Material? (63.59) and sixth text Dewi Sartika (53.47). But, only the third text and sixth text are appropriate for the eleventh grade students because the scores are between 50 to 60 (Fairly Difficult) which estimated for 10th-12th grade. The average readability score of the six texts by using Flesch Reading Ease Formula is 51.35 (Fairly Difficult) which is appropriate for 10th – 12th grade. Moreover, the results by using cloze test showed that text 6 has score 78.80% (Independent Level) which is predicted to be quite easy and the students can read the text independently. Meanwhile, text 1 to 5 have score between 40% to 60% (Instructional Level). The average score of six texts is 59.7% (Instructional Level) which predicted to be appropriate difficulty and it can be concluded that the reading texts are appropriate for the eleventh grade students and the students need teacher’s assistance to comprehend the texts.
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
All praises be to Allah SWT who has given guidance, patience and
strength to the writer to finish her Thesis as a partial to fulfill the requirements for
the degree of Sarjana Pendidikan. Peace and Prayers be upon to our Prophet
Muhammad SAW who has taken us the way of truth and brought us the true light
of life.
In the process of writing this Thesis, she has encountered a lot of
difficulties since the beginning to the final. Many people have directly helped,
guided, and motivated her. Therefore, she would like to acknowledge her sincere
gratitude for all of them:
Department and her Examiner for the valuable suggestions and critics. Dra. Meisuri, M. A., the Secretary of English and Literature Department,
Nora Ronita Dewi, S. Pd., S. S., M. Hum., the Head of English
Education Study Program, and Syamsul Bahri, S. S., M. Hum., the Head of English Literature Study Program Faculty of Language and Art, State University of Medan.
Drs. Johan Sinulingga, M.Pd., and Anggraini Thesisia Saragih, S.Pd., M.Hum, the Thesis Advisors for the generous guidance, advices and
assistance.
Rita Suswati, S.Pd., M.Hum, her Examiner for the valuable suggestions
and critics.
For all Lectures who have given her the priceless and valuable
knowledge during her study at the English and Literature Department, Faculty of Language and Arts, State University of Medan.
Eis Sri Wahyuningsih, M. Pd., and Pantes, the Administration (staff) of
English Department, for their attention, help and information during the completion process of this Thesis.
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For her beloved friends, who have given care, support and always beside
her, Debby Septia, S.Ak., Lestriana Lestari, Andi Vera Aprillia, S.M.,
Chairul Imam, S.Pd., and Nita Maury.
For her beloved friends, who have given support, spirit, love and laugh, Nurwahidah R. Waruwu, Dwita Sundari, Khairunnisa, Fajriah Hasanah and Eli Saprida. Thank you for the time and precious moments
of togetherness we have spent during four years.
For her unbiological sisters, who have given help and motivation, Kak
Tikah and Kak Yossi.
All of friends in English Regular C 2012 and all of her PPLT 2015 friends at SMP Negeri 1 Galang, Astrid, Mey, Adel, Helmi and Cita, who have given motivation.
Last but not least, Drs. Zulfan Arifin Marpaung as the principal of SMA Swasta Galih Agung who has given permission to conduct her research there and the English teachers, Ms. Febby and Sir Suprapto.
The writer realizes that her thesis is far from being perfect therefore she
warmly receive any comments and suggestions that will improve the quality of
her thesis. She hopes that this thesis will be useful for further research.
Medan, October 2016
The Writer,
Hera Fitra Lubis
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CHAPTER II. REVIEW OF LITERATURE ... 6
A. Theoretical Framework ... 6
1. Textbook ... 6
a. Definition of Textbook ... 6
b. The Role of Textbook ... 7
c. The Criteria of Textbook ... 9
d. Textbook Evaluation ... 10
e. Textbook Selection ... 11
2. Reading ... 12
3. Reading Text ... 15
4. Readability ... 16
a. Definition of Readability ... 17
b. Factors Influence Readability ... 17
5. Measuring Readability ... 19
a. Flesch Reading Ease Formula ... 20
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a. Definition of Cloze Test ... 24
b. Types of Cloze Test ... 25
c. Procedure of Cloze Test ... 26
d. Scoring Cloze Test ... 28
B. Relevant Studies ... 30
C. Conceptual Framework ... 31
CHAPTER III. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ... 33
A. Research Design ... 33
B. Place and Time of Research ... 33
C. Population and Sample ... 34
D. Technique of Collecting Data ... 34
E. Instrument of Collecting Data ... 35
F. Technique of Data Analysis ... 35
CHAPTER IV. DATA ANALYSIS, FINDINGS, DISCUSSION ... 37
A. Data Analysis ... 37
B. Findings ... 49
C. Discussion ... 52
CHAPTER V. CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTIONS ... 55
A. Conclusion ... 55
B. Suggestions ... 56
REFERENCES ... 57
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LIST OF TABLES
Table 2.1. Flesch Reading Ease Score ... 21
Table 2.2. The Judgment of Cloze Score ... 29
Table 4.1. The Result of Calculating Score by Using Flesch Reading Ease Formula ... 43
Table 4.2. The Number of Data Analysis of Deleted Words ... 46
Table 4.3. The Percentage of Data Analysis of Deleted Words ... 47
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LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 2.1. Flesch Reading Ease Chart ... 23
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LIST OF PICTURE
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LIST OF APPENDICES
APPENDIX A. The Reading Texts ... 61
APPENDIX B. The Cloze Test ... 67
APPENDIX C. Students’ Answer Sheet ... 75
APPENDIX D. The Readability Chart of Six Reading Texts ... 91
APPENDIX E. The Frequency of Students’ Right Answer of Each Text ... 97
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CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
A. Background of the Study
In teaching, teachers have learning objectives which the students are hoped
to achieve it. Hence, teachers need tool to facilitate teaching and learning activity
in the classroom to achieve the objectives of the study. The tool mostly used is
textbook.
Textbook is used as a tool to facilitate both teacher and students in the
classroom to achieve the goal of teaching and learning. Cunningsworth (1995: 7)
points out that coursebooks are best seen as a resource in achieving aims and
objectives that have already been set in terms of learners needs. Textbook is either
published by government or publishers. It contains learning materials about
particular subject that will be taught agree with the students’ grade. The good
textbook will help the learners in the learning process if it provides good quality
of materials and discussions that are needed by the students.
It cannot be neglected that teachers mostly teach rely on the materials
provided in the textbook. Each subject in the Indonesia schools has textbook that
is used in the learning process, including English subject. English textbook
generally contains four language skills integrated; speaking, listening, reading,
and writing, and also grammar, pronunciation and vocabularies.
Reading is one of four language skills that should be mastered by the
students. It is not only about read a text, but also understand and comprehend the
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to get new information. It is obvious in that any person could say that
understanding a text is a purpose of reading (Grabe & Stoller, 2002: 19).
In the reading section of a textbook, it contains reading materials to
practice and improve students’ reading skill. Reading materials are any materials
for reading which purposed to help the readers to improve their reading skill.
Reading materials provided in English textbook are various. It can be in the form
of text, dialogue, notice, announcement, invitation letter, etc. Text is the most
common reading material that can be found in the textbook. Students mostly
practice reading through texts.
Textbook has requirements to be fulfilled. There are some components
considered for evaluating a textbook as stated in the Article 43 Paragraph (5): “the
feasibility of content, language use, presentation, and the graphic of a text book
will be evaluated by BSNP and set by the Regulation of Minister”. The
component of language in the article is divided into some indicators, including the
readability of the textbook (BSNP, 2007).
Readability comes from word readable which means easy to read and easy
to understand. Readability is a concept that describes the degree to which a text is
easy or difficult to read (Brown, Janssen, and Trace, 2012: 1). It measures the
difficulty of the text whether easy of difficult to read by particular reader.
Text has level of readability which indicates the text is relative easy or
difficult to read. The level of readability of a text can be analyzed through
readability formula and cloze test. If we have known the readability of a text, we
3
As quoted by Janan & Wray (2012: 1), learners who are given reading
materials that are too easy are not challenged and their learning growth can be
stunted (Chall & Conard, 1991) while learners who are given reading materials
that are too difficult can fail to make progress (Gambrell, Wilson, & Gantt, 1981).
Therefore, the reading materials with appropriate difficulty can help the students
to practice their reading skill.
Reading texts cannot be generalized similarly. A text can be regarded easy
or difficult by different students. Sometimes some students may face some
obstacles when they read particular text. They cannot read it clearly because they
do not understand it. They may face the obstacles either in the grammar or
vocabulary. Consequently, they cannot catch the information well from the texts
that they have read. As found by the researcher, the eleventh grade students in
SMA Swasta Galih Agung faced some obstacles in reading the texts. They cannot
construct the meaning of the text. Here is the example of sentences they confused
its meaning:
The river catfish may be overshadowed by its famed cousin, the Mekong giant catfish, which shares the same river system in Southeast Asia.
These unique fish have the nickname "iridescent shark catfish," a seemingly ill-suited comparison for a toothless, freshwater fish.
Besides, they also found some unfamiliar words in those sentences such as
catfish, overshadowed, iridescent, seemingly, ill-suited. That problem caused them
need extra time to read the text. Furthermore, they also cannot answer clearly the
teacher’s questions related to the text, such as the main idea of the text.
4
As the obstacles faced by the students in reading the text, the writer tried
to find out the readability of reading texts in the English textbook they used in the
learning activity. The textbook used by the eleventh grade students at SMA
Swasta Galih Agung is Talk Active 2 textbook. This book is written by Lanny
Kurniawan, published by Yudhistira in 2013 and has been developed based on the
National Curriculum 2013.
In the matter of improving students’ reading skill, it is important to know
the readability of the reading texts in the textbook. By doing this, the teacher can
help students to understand a reading text. Moreover, we can see whether the
reading texts in the textbook are appropriate or not with the grade level of the
students. If the texts are too difficult, the students are hard to understand it and not
able to follow the learning activity well.
B. The Problem of the Study
Based on background of the study above, the writer identified the problems of
the study as follow:
1. How is the readability level of the reading texts in the textbook entitled
Talk Active 2 for the eleventh grade Senior High School by using Flesh
Reading Ease Formula and administering Cloze Test?
2. Are the reading texts readable for the eleventh grade students at SMA
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C. The Objective of the Study
The objectives of the study were:
1. To find out the readability level of reading texts in the textbook entitled
Talk Active 2 for the eleventh grade students Senior High School.
2. To find out whether the reading texts in that textbook are readable for the
eleventh grade students at SMA Swasta Galih Agung.
D. The Scope of the Study
The scope of the study was finding out the readability of reading texts in
the textbook entitled “Talk Active 2 for Grade XI Senior High School”. It applied
in the second grade senior high school. The main focus was analyzing the
readability of six selected reading texts in that textbook by using Flesh Reading
Ease Formula and Cloze Test.
E. The Significance of the Study
The results of this study were expected to provide information practically
and theoretically for English teachers.
Theoretically, the results of this study later will add some new theories and
provide information for the readers in the matter of readability especially in the
case of English textbook.
Meanwhile practically, the results can be source of reference for English
teachers in their attempts to find out the readability of reading text for their
students. Moreover, it is hoped that the results of this study can inspire other
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CHAPTER V
CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTIONS
A. Conclusion
Based on the analysis that has been done in the previous chapter, it can be
concluded:
1. There are three texts readable for the eleventh grade students by using
Flesch Reading Ease Formula, they are text 3 Emperor Penguin (57.06),
text 5 Should Parents Censor Their Children’s Reading Material? (63.59)
and text 6 Dewi Sartika (53.47). Meanwhile, text 1 River Catfish (45.25),
text 2 Marine Pollution (41.26) and text 4 Bullying and Teasing (47.51) are
considered into Difficult level and appropriate for College. Among six
texts, only text 3 and text 6 are appropriate for the eleventh grade students
because those two texts have the score between 50 to 60 (Fairly Difficult)
which is estimated for 10th - 12th grade. Whereas, text 5 is appropriate for
8th and 9th grade. The average readability score of the six texts by using
Flesch Reading Ease Formula is 51.35 (Fairly Difficult) which is
appropriate for 10th – 12th grade.
2. The result of students’ cloze test showed that text 6 (78.80%) has score
above 60% and the judgment of the score is Independent Level which
predicted to be quite easy. The students can read the text independently
because it is short text with familiar topic & vocabulary for most of them.
Meanwhile, text 1 to text 5 have the score between 40% - 60% and the
judgment of the score is Instructional Level which predicted to be
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59.7% (Instructional Level) and it can be concluded that the texts are
appropriate for the eleventh grade students at SMA Swasta Galih Agung
and the students need teacher’s assistance to comprehend the texts.
B. Suggestions
Based on the result, the writer suggests that:
1. For Teacher
It is recommended for teacher to know the readability of reading texts used
in the classroom. By doing this, it is hoped the texts used match with students’
grade level in order to the activity of teaching and learning in the classroom can
go well. Besides, if the texts are not readable for students, the teacher can look for
the appropriate text from other sources or design their own texts for students. The
easy way to find out the readability is by using readability formula. It does not
spend much time. But, if the teacher wants to involve students, s/he can use cloze
test. In addition, the teacher should help the students when they face difficulties to
read and understand the text because the students have different ability.
2. For the Writer of Textbook
The writer of textbook is better to check the readability of reading texts
they put in the textbook because the students learn reading through the reading
texts provided in the textbook. The writer should know the appropriateness of the
reading texts with the students’ grade.
3. For Other Researchers
It is better for other researchers to conduct the similar study to enrich the
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