☛ ☞ ✌
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ABSTRACT
Abdul Malik Hakim, 2016. The Effectiveness of Using Manga Stories in Teaching Reading of Narrative Text (A Quasi-experimental Study at the Twelfth Grade of Ibadurrahman Senior High School Tangerang). Skripsi, Department of English Education, Faculty of Tarbiyah and Teachers Training, Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University Jakarta.
Advisors: 1. Drs. Syauki, M.Pd.
2. Ismalianing Eviyuliwati, M.Hum.
Keywords: Teaching Media, Manga, Reading, and Narrative Text
This research is aimed at finding the effectiveness of using Manga stories
as an alternative media in improving students’ reading skill of narrative text at
second grade students in Class XI of Ibadurrahman Senior High School academic year 2015/2016 which is located on Jl. K.H. Hasyim Ashari, Cipondoh-Tangerang. The total number of population is 74 students, class 5 PI (Putri) 24 students, class 5 PA (Putra) 26 students, and class 5 EXP 24 students. The samples of this study are Class 5 PI and Class 5 EXP (Experiment). The achievement of this study refers to the student’s Test Score.
The research design of this study was Quasi-experimental. This study was using accidental sampling which used the sample provided by the school. The instrument used in this study was test, 20 multiple choice questions, formulated
from Student’s English book class XI and some materials taken from internet. The
data, or grades, of students’ reading skill in narrative text are acquired after the
students run the test, pre-test and post-test. The students were given pre-test, treatment (two times), and post-test. The Analysis data used in this study were normality, homogeneity, and T-Test.
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ABSTRAK
Abdul Malik Hakim, 2016. The Effectiveness of Using Manga Stories in Teaching Reading of Narrative Text (A Quasi-experimental Study at the Twelfth Grade of Ibadurrahman Senior High School Tangerang). Skripsi, Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris, Fakultas Ilmu Tarbiyah dan Keguruan, Universitas Islam Negri Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta.
Pembimbing: 1. Drs. Syauki, M.Pd.
2. Ismalianing Eviyuliwati, M.Hum.
Kata kunci: Teaching Media, Manga, Reading, dan Narrative Text
Penelitian ini ditujukan untuk menemukan keefektifan dalam menggunakan cerita manga sebagai sebuah media alternatif untuk meningkatkan skill membaca teks narasi siswa di tahap kedua kelas XI Sekolah Menengah Atas Ibadurrahman tahun akademik 2015/2016 yang berlokasi di Jl. K.H. Hasyim Ashari, Cipondoh-Tangerang. Jumlah total populasi ada 74 siswa, class 5 PI (Putri) 24 siswa, class 5 PA (Putra) 26 siswa, dan class 5 EXP (Experiment) 24 siswa. Sampel di penelitian ini adalah kelas 5 PI dan kelas 5 EXP. Pencapaian penelitian ini di sadurkan dengan nilai tes siswa.
Desain penelitian ini adalah Quasi-experimental. Penelitian ini menggunakan sampling aksidental yang menggunakan sampel yang telah disediakan oleh sekolah. Instrument yang digunakan adalah test, 20 butir pilihan ganda, yang diformulasikan dari buku bahasa inggris kelas XI dan internet. Data atau nilai-nilai dari kemampuan siswa dalam membaca teks narasi di dapatkan setelah para siswa mengerjakan tes yang terdiri dari pre-test dan pos-test. Tehnik analisis data yang digunakan adalah normality, homogeneity, dan T-Test.
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful.
Praise be to Allah, the all-knowing, Lord of the universe who has blessed and given the strength to the researcher in completing this skripsi. Sholawat and Salam are given upon the prophet Muhammad PBUH, who has taught us the wisdom, the way of truth, and the purpose of life that will bring us the light to the truth defeating the lies of evil beings.
Through this occasion, the researcher would like to express his greatest honor and gratitude to the advisors, Drs. Syauki, M.Pd. and Ismalianing Eviyuliwati, M.Hum., who have spread their time and for giving consultation, contribution, guidance, pray, and patience to the researcher during completing this skripsi. May Allah always blesses the kindness of their hearts with happiness on their life and helps them in the Day of Judgment.
From the deepest heart and soul, the researcher was so thankful. He realized that if there were no support and motivation from the people around him, he could not finish this skripsi. Therefore, he would like to express his gratitude and give his best appreciation to:
1. Prof. Dr. Ahmad Thib Raya, MA., as the Dean of the Faculty of Tarbiya
and Teachers’ Training.
2. Drs. Alek M. Pd., as the chairman of the Department of English Education, Zaharil Anasy, M. Hum., as the secretary of the Department of English Education, Drs. Syauki, M.Pd., and Ismalianing Eviyuliwati, M.Hum., as his academic advisor.
3. A very deep thank is presented to all of the lecturers and staffs of the Department of English Education. They have given the researcher the wonderful knowledge and experiences in learning, and also precious knowledge.
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SMA Ibadurrahman, and the students of Class 5 PI and Class 5 EXP for their help during the research.
5. The researcher’s parents, Nahari, and Maimunah. This skripsi is dedicated to them who have given him the opportunity of an education from the best institutions and support the researcher in the lifespan, their moral support, affection, and guidance.
6. The researcher’s family members, his beloved brother and sister, Siti Rohmah, Nurmala Khoiriah, and Al-Faqih A’ly Akbar, his relatives who always give their support, happiness, and spirit in finishing his study. 7. All his friends in the Department of English Education, especially for C
Class 2009 for their support and friendship. He also would like to thank Arief Rahman, Ibmi Subiar, Hamdan Rijali, Ahmad Nurfatoni, Salahuddin Al-Ayyubi, and Umar R. Jatnika as the best friends, and the group of skripsi advisory for their support, attention and motivation during finishing this skripsi.
And may this skripsi can be useful to the readers, especially for the teachers, the tutors, and particularly for the researcher himself. Also, the researcher realized that this skripsi is far from being perfect. It is a pleasure for him to receive constructive criticism and suggestion from anyone who read his skripsi.
Jakarta, April 2016
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ENDORSEMENT SHEET ... iii
SURAT PERNYATAAN KARYA SENDIRI ... iv
ABSTRACT ... v
ABSTRAK ... vi
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ... vii
TABLE OF CONTENTS ... ix
LIST OF TABLES ... xii
LIST OF PICTURES ... xiii
LIST OF CHARTS………... xiv
LIST OF APPENDICES ... xv
CHAPTER I : INTRODUCTION ... 1
A. Background of the Study ... 1
B. Identification of the Problem..…………...……….... 5
C. Limitation of the Study ... 6
D. Formulation of the Problem ... 6
E. Purpose of the Study ... 6
F. Significance of the Study……….. .. 6
CHAPTER II : THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK ... 7
A. Reading ... 7
1. The Definition of Reading ... 7
2. The Purposes of Reading ...………. 10
3. The Characteristics of Reading Process……….. 11
4. The Reading Skills……….. 11
5. The Development Stages of Reading Skills……… 13
6. The Reading Material……….. 14
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2. The Strategies of Reading Comprehension .……… 18
3. The Process to Reading Comprehension……….……… 20
4. The Assessment of Reading Comprehension……….. 23
C. Text ……… ... . 24
1. The Definition of Text………. 24
2. The Categories and the Dimensions of Text……… 25
3. The Types of Printed Text……… 25
D. Narrative……….. 26
1. The Definition of Narrative Text ... 27
2. The Characters of Narrative Text…. ... 27
3. The Schematic Structure of Narrative Text……… 28
4. The Grammatical Features of Narrative………. 33
5. The Language Features of Narrative……… .. 33
6. The Types of Narrative Text……… .. 35
E. Manga……….. ... 35
1. The Definition of Manga……… .... 35
2. The Design of Characters ... 41
3. The Manga Stories as English Teaching Media………. 52
4. The Advantages and the Disadvantage of Using Manga………… 55
5. The Manga as a Medium in Teaching Narrative……… 55
F. Previous Study ... 56
G. Theoretical Thinking ... 58
H. Hypothesis……….. 59
CHAPTER III : RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ... 60
A. Place and Time of Study ... 60
B. Research Method and Design ... 61
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G. Statistical Hypothesis………. 64
CHAPTER IV : RESEARCH FINDINGS ... 66
A. Description of Data ... 66
1. The Experimental Class Data ... 66
2. The Controlled Class Data ... 68
B. Analysis of Data ... 70
1. The Normality Test ... 70
2. The Homogeneity Test ... 77
3. The Hypothesis Test ... 79
C. Interpretation of Data ... 83
CHAPTER V : CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTION ... 89
A. Conclusion ... 89
B. Suggestion ... 89
REFERENCES ... 91
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Table 2.3 Seinen Manga ... 40
Table 2.4 Josei Manga ... 40
Table 3.1 The Timeline Design ... 60
Table 3.2 Nonequivalent Controlled Group Design ... 61
Table 3.3 The Schedule of Treatment Experimental Class ... 63
Table 3.4 The Schedule of Treatment Controlled Class ... 63
Table 4.1 Students’ Scores from Experimental Class ... 66
Table 4.2 The Frequency Distribution of Experimental Class………. 68
Table 4.3 Students’ Score of Controlled Class ... 68
Table 4.4 The Frequency Distribution of Controlled Class………….. 70
Table 4.5 Calculation of Pre-test Normality in Experimental Class .... 71
Table 4.6 Calculation of Post-test Normality in Experimental Class ... 73
Table 4.7 Calculation of Pre-test Normality in Controlled Class…… . 74
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Picture 2.3 The Angry Eyes ... 44
Picture 2.4 The Crying Eyes ... 45
Picture 2.5 The Sad Eyes ... 46
Picture 2.6 The Shock Eyes ... 46
Picture 2.7 The Evil Eyes ... 47
Picture 2.8 The Blood Types... 48
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Picture Diagram of Students’ Gained Score in Control …..
Chart 4.3 Column Diagram of Students’ Gained Score in Experimental Class 84
Chart 4.4 Column Diagram of Students’ Gained Score in Controlled Class…. 85
Chart 4.5 Pie Diagram of Students’ Gained Score in Experimental Class……. 85
Chart 4.6 Pie Diagram of Students’ Gained Score in Controlled Class………. 86
Chart 4.7 Line Diagram of Students’ Gained Score in Experimental Class…... 87
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LIST OF APPENDICES
1
describes background of the study, identification the problem, limitation of the problem, formulation of the problem, purpose of the study, and significance of the study.
A.
Background of the Study
Reading is important as one of four language’s skills. It is a way to gain some information. The development of technology is demanding people to search information as much as possible. The one with most information could leads others and the people who left behind are just enable to play a role as followers. It states the fact that reading activity really takes an important role in our lives. Nowadays, unable to read English words, people would have some troubles, because English has already been used everywhere, in many countries, around the world as an international language, in order to be understood by the foreigners who travel into those countries. Therefore, teaching English becomes very important. To master English, students must study four skills in English language, namely; listening, speaking, reading, and writing. But, reading is the very important skill used by students. Because, students need to gain some knowledge and information from many English printed books, students’ ability in reading would determine their achievements in schools.
boredom. Because they are written with old fashioned and too formal utterances, that rarely used in daily conversation. Students think that what they learned are meaningless and useless, they need materials that could useful in their daily life directly. Richard stated that there are five negative effects of commercial textbooks, those five negative effects are as following: (1) They may contain inauthentic language: the contents are especially written to incorporate teaching points, not to express real language use. (2) They may distort content: textbooks often present an idealize view of world (in one subjective side) and fail to represent real issues. (3) They may not reflect students’ needs: textbooks are written aimed for global market, they ignore students’ needs and interests which are different one another. (4) They can deskill teachers: teachers’ role as material maker is reduced. Because of the materials are already provided in the textbooks, as teaching guide. Therefore, teachers think that they do not need to work hardly just to make the materials for students, based on their needs and interests. (5) They are expensive: commercial textbooks represent financial burden for students.1 Expected to be helpful for the teachers that could facilitate materials in easier ways, in contrast, as Richard mentioned above, textbooks have some negative possibilities that can affect the teaching-learning process out of the purpose and that already stated in lesson plan.
Second, the students are not confident to read full essay English text. It is often occurred to the beginners that never ever read some English books. Students confused to see many words that they did not familiar; they felt unsure that they could understand the content instead. Wayne W. Haverson mentioned “Being unfamiliar with a classroom and the tool of literacy, many learners will enter the program filled with anxiety and a lack of self-confidence”.2 At this rate, teaching-learning process cannot go on smoothly. Teachers want to treat students with many English books to build their reading habit. But, instead of following
1Jack C. Richard, Curriculum Development in Language Teaching, (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1991), pp. 255 – 256.
2
Marianne Celce-Murcia (ed.), Teaching English as a Second or Foreign Language
teachers’ instructions, because of their anxiety and lack of self-confidence, they avoid it.
The last, the students are not having vocabularies enough.3 Beside of unfamiliarity, the lack of vocabularies is the main factor of students’ anxiousness in reading English books. It is contras from the expectation written in lesson plan. Teachers want to add the richness of students’ vocabularies through reading English books activity. On the contrary, because of their lack on vocabularies, they stagnate on avoiding the treatment, reading English books, before entering the program. In such a way, lesson plan’s expectation would never be achieved. Therefore, teachers must encourage students by the simple easy attractive ways. One of that ways is to treat them by an interesting media; manga – Japanese comic style – would be effective for students to receive some vocabularies to encourage them to read real English books.
Narrative is about story telling whether it is related a single story or several related ones.4 With narrative the story is stated clearly as chronological issues from the first stage, second stage, third stage, and so on until the story ends. The story is usually formed with the past words. It is suitable for students to practice their tenses material by using it in real activity like getting some information from the narrative story. Story telling by narrative illustrates a point or event that awakening emotions.5 If students had already gotten these awakening emotions, they would be able to go journey into the world inside the story through the book. Not only about learning and practicing, they are also able to enjoying that narrative story telling texts. Nowadays, narrative is not only formed in writing texts, but its picture additions are existed that called cartoon like The Peanuts Cartoon, the books that contain cartoon stories are named comic. Reading comic becomes very popular between children and teenager, serials like Spiderman, Batman, Tin-tin, Donal Duck, Mickey Mouse, etc. are examples from the comics
3
The interview with Sarifudin, S.Pd, Lc. (English teacher at SMA Plus Ibadurrahman).
4
John Langan, College Writing Skill with Reading (New York: The McGraw-Hill Companies, 2006), p. 195.
5
that created in the west countries, it is also known as western comics. The stories are formed as narrative, it is similar with the short stories or novel with additional pictures.6 Currently, manga or Japanese comics are reaching their popularity around the world, which had been being translated into many language including English and Bahasa Indonesia. Their readers are mostly students in school ages. Rather than reading manga in Bahasa Indonesia, it is better if they read them in English language.
Manga is Japanese comic style that consists of narrative stories. As the alternative medium to encourage students’ reading habit, manga, at least has three benefits. First, manga is attractive. Its pictures are full of expressions that made it very interesting. The story tells about hero, adventures, school lives, etc.7 the main characters are children in school ages. Students can see through the stories as similar as their own lives. So that, most children in school ages and even students in universities like reading it every week. But, they usually read it in their native language. In this case, why did not teachers treat them with manga in English words? Whereas, teaching English vocabulary using media that is loved by students can decrease students’ anxiousness in the learning process. Conversely, it can increase students’ interest and build their reading habit, even make students who previously did not like reading English books, to like it. Second, manga is simple. Its words are daily conversations that had already being translated by a team consist of both native English speakers and Japanese speakers.8 Not like full English textbook that only filled with words that make students bored, manga consist of pictures and words, it is filled more by pictures then words. Only by seeing the picture, students can guess the meaning of the vocabularies that they did not know before. It will be benefit when students treated by both visual and verbal input at once.
6
John Langan, op. cit., pp. 283 – 284.
7
Ikue Kunai and Clarissa C. S. Ryan, Manga as a Teaching Tool: Comic Books Without Borders, (California State University, East Bay, Proceeding of the CATESOL State Conference, 2007), p. 3.
8
The last, manga is suitable for teaching material. While manga is presented narrative stories, it is suitable for teaching reading. Teachers can command students to find the main character, to conclude, to interpret the value of the story, and even to play a role based on the story. As an attractive media, Daikoku, Et al. makes a research of manga as a media in organizing science lesson plan. This research is conducted because teachers are not only need to have science knowledge and skills, but also ability to structure appropriate teaching methods and strategies to design them in the materials based on students’ needs and interests – manga is students’ interest. Teachers also expected to predict students’ actions and questions to identify the ways how to make them respond into the lesson plan. This program is evaluated by the program participants through questionnaire surveys. The result stated that the program (manga as a teaching media) was judged to be effective to develop ability to lesson plans creation.9
Thus, manga stories can support creativities of both teachers and students. The teachers can create their lesson plan with an interesting medium and the students can find out that there are many things than can be used as learning media. In this way, students also do not feel compelled to understand the material given by the teachers; instead they are happy and looking forward to the new material every day. The writer will focus the research in teaching reading of narrative text by using manga stories; the title of his research is “The
Effectiveness of Using Manga Stories in Teaching Reading of Narrative
Text”.
B.
Identification of the Problem
Based on the background of study, the researcher identifies the problem as follows:
1. The students have no confidence to read full English books.
2. An attractive medium that can encourage them to read English book is needed.
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3. The English textbook that is used cannot fulfill students’ needs.
4. Many students like reading manga stories because those are attractive, but the possibility of manga stories to be used as teaching medium is still questioned. 5. The relationship between manga stories and narrative text is still unclear.
C.
Limitation of the Study
In order to keep the data in a comprehensive form, the writer limits the study on the effectiveness of using manga stories in teaching reading of narrative text.
D.
Formulation of the Problem
Based on the previous background the researcher formulates the problem of this research as follow: “Are manga stories effective to use in teaching reading of narrative text?”
E.
Purpose of the Study
Based on the problem formulation above, the purpose of this study is to find out the empirical evidence whether or not the uses of manga stories are effective to be used in teaching reading of narrative text.
F.
Significance of the Study
The result of this study is expected to be able to help both of teachers and students in the learning and teaching process, in term of:
1. Providing a new alternative for teachers to present material in teaching English, especially reading.
2. Encouraging students to read books, magazine, newspapers, or comics in English language as the practice media.
3. Building students’ reading habit in their daily lives.
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CHAPTER II
THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
This chapter consists of some theories that are related to the study. The discussion focuses on the effectiveness of manga stories as alternative media to teach narrative text in reading class. It is also including concept of reading, text, narrative, manga, previous study, theoretical thinking, and hypothesis.
A.
Reading
As one of four language skills, reading is an important activity and has a significant role, especially for students. Because, it is the only way, besides listening, to get some information that is needed to live in this world. The teachers need to give reading materials for their students, and the students, of course, need to read that materials to gain some knowledge. It states that reading takes a significant place for human being to live in this world.
1.
The Definition of Reading
Reading is an important skill used by people anywhere and anytime. It has a unique process and need to be trained to make the process faster and effective. Harmer mentions that “reading is an exercise dominated by the eyes and the brain. The eyes receive messages and the brain then has to work out the significance of these messages”.1
The eyes have the most significant roles in reading process. It is absolutely impossible to read without eyes, as impossible as to listen without ears and to speak without a tongue. But the eyes are just the first step in reading process; they are just decoding the sign symbols, the words, and then letting the brain to handle identifying words’ messages or meaning of words, in order to know what the writer wants to say through these compositions of words.
1
Starting from reading the words, students develop to read sentences, paragraphs, essays, short passages, articles, and finally the whole of books. But, reading progresses are not only stop here, Allen and Valette mention that “the teacher helps the students develop techniques for inferring the meanings of new words, reading for information and increasing comprehension of structural signals”.2
This statement explains that reading process is not that simple as just reading the writers’ printed words loudly or silently. Identifying the meaning of the symbol words is the nucleus of reading activity, how to know and respond to the messages that writers sent through sentences. Therefore, the progress of reading process is limitless, comparing that there are bunches of countless messages that the writers aimed to share to the readers in various books with different field of studies entire the world.
Supporting the statement above, Artur W. Heilman of Pennsylvania State University mentions the explanation of reading that “reading is a process of getting meaning from printed word symbols”.3 The similar opinion is also mention by Grabe and Stoller they mention that “reading is the ability to draw meaning from the printed page and interpret this information appropriately”.4
The readers, while reading a paragraph, do not look at the kind of theme fonts of the words, but they are looking at the main idea of the paragraph. They look for the meaning of the text, not the shape of the text. The meanings of the text are the information that writers want to share with the readers. It could be said that reading is an interaction process between writer and reader. The writer aimed to give some information that he has to the readers.
The writer want the readers know what he knew in order to be some helps for the readers. The readers, while reading, are supposing like they directly meet with the writer face to face. They read a paragraph, but they are alike hearing the
2
Edward David Allen and Rebecca M. Valette, Classroom Techniques: Foreign Languages and English as a Second Language, (New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, INC., 1977), p. 249.
3
Artur W. Heilmen, Principles and Practices of Teaching Reading, (Ohio: Charles E. Merrill Publishing Company, 1967), p. 8.
4
sound of the writer that says it directly, through the paragraph, right in front of themselves. When this interaction occurs quite long time, the readers could know writer’s thought and characteristic. Because, everyone has his/her own language style in writing the printed texts influenced by his/her own characteristic and thought. In this case, the meaning of the printed text takes the most dominant role rather than the shape of the words itself. David Nunan mentions that “reading is an interactive process between what a reader already knows about a given topic or subject and what the writer writes”.5
Nunan explains that reading is not just the interactive limited between the reader and the writer only. But deeper, it is the interaction between the information that the reader already has then coupled with the information that would be given by the writer. Afterward, there will be occurred the process of identifying, comparing, and analyzing. Is the information given similar and appropriate by what the reader had already has or not? If it is not, so there are some parts of information which are dumped. If the readers do not know about the topic or the subject, then they will absorb all of the information without doubt. But sometimes, blending and mixing are also occurred between information that the readers already has and information from the writer. Nunan adds that “good readers are able to relate the text and their own background knowledge efficiently”.6
Background knowledge is very important to interpret information found from the writer. Readers’ understanding about written text is based on the number of their background knowledge. If the background knowledge is much, so the understanding is high. It will be higher as much as the background knowledge increases. If the readers do not have enough background knowledge, it will be difficult for them to understand the message from the texts, or even they do not interest at all. The background knowledge is come from readers’ experiences, circumstances, and adventures, through reading some texts and books.
Angelita D. Romero and Rene C. Romero collect the different opinions of reading definitions that are agreed by many reading educators, as follows:
5
David Nunan, Designing Task for the Communicative Classroom, (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999), p. 33.
6
a. Reading is decoding written symbols
b. Reading is getting meaning from the printed page c. Reading is putting meaning into the printed page
d. Reading is the process of interpreting the written symbols
e. Reading is a process of communication between author and reader7
Thus, the writer concludes that reading is a process to gain meaning from printed word symbols dominated by the eyes and the brain as interactive process between reader and writer.
2.
The Purposes of Reading
People who read some printed texts have purposes. But, there are many reasons for them in searching the information. The purposes of reading are divided into two categories, informational purpose and pleasurable purpose. a. Informational Purpose
The main purpose of reading is because it will help the readers to gain some information that they need. For example, someone who wants to operate a new mobile phone must reads its instruction on manual book device, a politician who want to know politic news must read a newspaper, or even a college student who reads textbook in order to finish the assignments.
b. Pleasurable Purpose
Besides to gain some information for their need, people also read to get some pleasures for their minds. Because, it can decrease their stress and boredom, such as reading novels, comics, poems, magazine, etc.8
The reader does not only have two purposes to read, but there are some more specific reasons that make people read some texts. William Grabe and Fredika L. Stoller suggest the purposes of reading into seven, those are:
7
Angelita D. Romero and Rene C. Romero, Developmental Reading: a Skill Text for College Students, (Manila: REX Book Store, 2008), p. 2.
8
a. Reading to search for simple information. b. Reading to skim quickly.
c. Reading to learn from texts. d. Reading to integrate information.
e. Reading to write (or search for information needed for writing). f. Reading to critique texts.
g. Reading for general comprehension.9
3.
The Characteristics of Reading Process
Reading activity is a process to decode the code or to understand the meaning of the words from the text. And that process, while the reader reads, has some characteristics. Those characteristics are:
a. Reading is a complex process.
b. Reading is a two-way process (communication between writer and reader). c. Reading is largely a visual process.
d. Reading is an active process (it is a thinking process). e. Reading is a decoding process by using a linguistic system. f. Reading is partly dependent on the readers’ prior knowledge.10
4.
The Reading Skills
To be a skillful reader and to read in effective way, the readers need to train some reading skill. Because, reading without purposes and techniques are just wasting time and effort. Davis defines eight reading skills, as follows:
a. Recalling word meanings.
b. Drawing inferences about the meaning of a word in context. c. Finding answers to questions answered explicitly or in paraphrase. d. Weaving together ideas in the content.
e. Drawing inferences from the content.
9
Ibid., p. 13. 10
f. Recognizing a writer’s purpose, attitude, tone, and mood. g. Identifying a writer technique.
h. Following the structure of a passage.11
Concerning the reading skill, Munby’s Taxonomy in micro skill has been influential in syllabus and material design. Munby distinguishes these following reading microskills:
a. Recognizing the script of a language.
b. Deducing the meaning and use of unfamiliar lexical items. c. Understanding explicitly stated information.
d. Understanding information when not explicitly stated. e. Understanding conceptual meaning.
f. Understanding the communicative value of sentences. g. Understanding relations within the sentence.
h. Understanding relations between parts of text through lexical cohesion devices. i. Understanding cohesion between part of text in grammatical cohesion devices. j. Interpreting text by going outside it.
k. Recognizing indicators in discourse.
l. Identifying the main point or important information in discourse. m. Distinguishing the main idea from supporting details.
n. Extracting salient details to summarize (the text, an idea). o. Extracting relevant points a text selectively.
p. Using basic reference skills. q. Skimming.
r. Scanning to locate specifically required information. s. Transcoding information to diagrammatic display.12
11
J. Charles Alderson, Assessing Reading, (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000), p. 9 – 10.
12
5.
The Development Stages of Reading Skills
Reading skills are cannot gained on one or two days. It needs some processes and a long time of training. There are several processes to develop reading skills, as follows:
a. Pre-reading Stage
On this stage, the readers are engaged in a program of experiences to increase their oral language development to the level, equal or even greater, of the material for beginner. They are also trained auditory and visual treatment, listen to, tell, and discuss stories, and learn basic works and study habits. And the further experiences provide the readers to develop theirs mental, physical, emotional, and social readiness for reading.
b. Initial Reading Stage
During this stage, the readers begin to use pictures, contexts, and configuration clues to recognize words. They start to learn getting specific information from the text. They begin to develop their skills in finding main ideas, anticipating outcomes, making inference, finding detiles, and noting sequence.
c. Stage of Rapid Progress
The readers start to learn a variety of words recognition techniques and begin to use dictionary for finding meaning, spelling, and pronunciation of words. They extend their comprehension skills to understand the variety of reading materials. They start to read independently for pleasure or information.
d. Stage of Extended Reading Experience
e. Stage of Refinement in Reading Abilities, Attitudes, and Tastes
The readers have become independent in locating and utilizing a variety of materials. They have known the varied purposes for reading and developed critical evaluation of reading material skills.13
6.
The Reading Material
Reading materials play a significant role in reading activity. Because, the readers unable to read without a reading material, electronic text or printed text.14 But, the readers also have some reasons to choose the materials to read. They usually choose the materials that provide the information that they need and, especially for the students, to improve their reading ability. Therefore, Angelita D. Romero and Rene C. Romero suggest that reading materials are purposed for:
a. Developmental Reading
The materials are created and prepared aimed to develop students’ reading skills. Vocabulary and sentence structure are arranged by following lesson plan criteria. The students also are trained by reading sub-skill that presented in a hierarchical fashion.
b. Remedial Reading
The materials are purposely set for the students who suffer some difficulties, especially limited vocabulary. So that, the materials are designed to help the students in order to overcome their difficulties, to enrich their vocabularies, and to improve their reading skill.
c. Recreatory Reading
The materials are designed to provide for development of appreciation in reading activity to taste some selections and enjoyments of reading matter.
13
AngelitaD. Romero and Rene C. Romero, op. cit., pp. 3 – 4.
14
d. Functional Reading
The materials are arranged to help the students’ improvement on the comprehension and utilization skills in areas of study, reference materials, and reading in other subject fields.15
7.
The Guidelines for Teaching Reading
Grabe derives a general set of guideline for reading teaching and curricula for current reading research, as follows:
a. Reading should be taught in the context of a content centered integrated skills curriculum, since content provides motivation and integration reinforces learning.
b. Individualized instruction should additionally be provided in a reading lab, including a range of skills and strategies (timed reading, vocabulary learning strategies etc.).
c. Sustained silent reading should be encouraged to develop automaticity, confidence, and enjoyment.
d. Reading lessons should take account of background knowledge through pre-, during-, and after-reading tasks.
e. Specific skills and strategies should be practiced consistently: the nature of these will depend on the group and goals.
f. Group work and cooperative learning should promote discussions of the readings and explorations of different task solutions and textual interpretations. g. Students need to read extensively: students need to learn by reading.16
8.
The Test and the Assessment for Reading
The parallel implications for testing and assessment might be characterized as follows:
a. Reading might be tested within a content focused battery: texts that carry meaning for readers that interest them, that relate to their academic
15
Angelita D. Romero and Rene C. Romero, op. cit., p. 7.
16
background, leisure interests, intellectual level and so on, might be motivate a deeper reading than the traditional, relatively anodyne or even contentless text. b. Students should be tested on a range of relevant skills and strategies, with the
result possibly being provided in a diagnostic, profile-based format.
c. Students should be encouraged to read longer texts, rather than short snippets, and task should attempt to get at the degree of enjoyment experienced. Task should be do-able in the time available and not discourage students because of their difficulty level.
d. Background knowledge should be recognized as influencing all comprehension, and therefore every attempt should be made to allow background knowledge to facilitate performance, rather than allowing its absence to inhibit performance.
e. Test should be open to the possibility of multiple interpretations. Test designers should be as open as possible in the range of different interpretations and understanding they accept.
f. Group task might be devised for a discussion of student interpretations of text. g. Extensive reading should not be discouraged by the assessment procedures. h. The importance of identification skills needs to be explored, and means need
to be found of testing them.
i. Inevitably, there will be settings and tests where it will be impossible to reduce extrinsic motivation to a minimum and to emphasize enjoyment.
j. Similarly, there will be occasions when integrated testing, say of reading and writing skills, is not possible or desirable since a clear pictures is required of a student’s reading ability, in as uncontaminated a way as possible.
l. Above all, perhaps, test designers need to consider to what extent their test reflect and build upon what recent research into reading suggests about the process, not just the product.17
B.
Reading Comprehension
Reading does not only merely telling the sound of the words loudly or silently. But, comprehending the content of the text is the real purpose; skillful reader can comprehend the text’s content in a short time while many readers, especially foreign learners, have some difficulties to comprehend the information from the text. The factors are varies, from the difficult vocabularies, unfamiliar text, lack of training, etc. Thus, reading comprehension is very important and needed to be trained to the students, so that they can absorb the knowledge as much as possible from any books. As a significant aspect, through reading comprehension, students are able to comprehend every text they read.
1.
The Definition of Reading Comprehension
Reading comprehension is the process of extracting and constructing meaning simultaneously, through reader’s interaction and involvement with written language.18 Therefore, the reader not only read loudly or silently without purposes. Reading must be meaningful as an important activity to collect information as much as possible. Snow mentions that comprehension entails three elements; the reader who is doing the comprehending, the text that is to be comprehended, and the activity in which comprehension is a part.19 The reader, the text, and the reading activity are three elements that play significant role in reading comprehension. Without reader, it is impossible for the reading activity exists, then the text is only a mere paper, without meaning. The reader is not called reader if he/she does not do reading activity, although the text is in front of him/her.
17
J. Charles Alderson, op. cit., pp. 29 – 30.
18
Catherin E. Snow, op. cit., p. 11.
2.
The Strategies of Reading Comprehension
To comprehend the text, the readers need some strategies. Because, with the strategies the process and the result of reading will become as they planned. Zimmermann and Hutchins stated seven strategies are; activating or building background knowledge, using sensory images, questioning, making predictions and inferences, determining main ideas, using fix-up options, and synthesizing. 20
a. Activating or building background knowledge
The readers activated and developed this skill over the course of many times of training and experiences. Human brains seek out patterns; their thinking involves making connections. So that, in the human thinking process information is explained by the older information. Then, understanding the importance of background knowledge to comprehension is critical because the readers have to connect new information with their prior knowledge before integrating and organizing the new information.21
b. Using sensory images
During reading, automatically, the readers activate the sensory images. Sensory experiences are a significant aspect that influences the background knowledge. Sensory imagery is an important part of the schemas in the readers’ mind. When they think about the sensory experiences, they are creating representations of those experiences in theirs memories.22
c. Questioning
Questioning is the natural competencies that human being brought with them since they born until they die. But in the school, many children begin to think in order to answer the teacher’s questions rather than asking and answering their own questions. Questioning is very important because, the children must
20
Judi Moreillon, Collaborative Strategies for Teaching Reading Comprehension: Maximizing Your Impact, (Chicago: AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, 2007), p. 11.
21
Judi Moreillon, op. cit., p. 19.
22
keep this kind of curiosity as long as they live, not only in the school, but everywhere and anytime. In reading comprehension, this is the fundamental factor that affecting the reader to comprehend the text.23
d. Making predictions and inferences
Besides questioning, the readers often find themselves answering their own questions with their predictions about what will happen next or with the inferences drawn from the author’s or illustrator’s creations. According to Judi Moreillon, Predictions are “educated guesses about what will happen next based on what is known from reading the text; prediction can also involve readers’
background knowledge.”24
And his idea for inferences is that “inferences require that readers go beyond literal meaning; they use the print and illustrations plus their prior knowledge and experience to interpret the text.”25 Through these processes, the readers find out some clues from the content of the text then making predictions or inferences and, finally, draw conclusions. These conclusions are an important part of reading comprehension. The readers that do predictions and inferences before, during, and after reading are actively engaged in the meaning-making process to reach the purpose of reading comprehension.26
e. Determining main ideas
Main ideas are always become dependent to the text on the purpose of a reading. It is the point of whole text, the reason why the text is written. Other aspects of the text are just interpretation or specification of main idea. Although the information of interpretation or specification is important, in reading comprehension, but the main ideas is most important. Because, it is the basic of all information in the text, knowing the details without understanding the basic is meaningless and understanding the basic without knowing the detail is imperfect but it is enough to understanding the text. The readers are not required to
23
Ibid., p. 58.
24
Ibid., p. 76.
25
Judi Moreillon, op. cit., p. 76.
26
remember, or even memorize, all words in the text, but they have to identify what can be forgotten and make judgments about what should be remembered and integrated into their schemas.27
f. Using fix-up options
Losing comprehension on reading is often occurred to the readers. In this case, monitoring their meaning-making and getting back on track may be the most difficult. The fix-up strategy is the way to recover meaning, such as rereading, reading ahead, or figuring out unknown words. Those all strategies above are can be used in the recognition of a loss of comprehension and in the effort to recover it. If the readers have lost connection between content of the text and the background knowledge, then the interest is lost. Therefore, the readers have to fix their comprehension up from the beginning.28
g. Synthesizing
Synthesizing is putting it all those strategies together. It is occurred after reading all the text with comprehension. Unlike conclusion or summary that is just the facts and the main ideas collected by the readers, but it is farther more. The readers analyze the content of the text that they read with the other texts, bringing together information from several sources from the readers’ point of view. When the readers are synthesizing, they collect, sort, and evaluate information. They may find agreement among texts that they read or probably encounter conflicting facts. Synthesizing is like determining main ideas, requires that readers make value judgments of the information they read.29
3.
The Process to Reading Comprehension
To comprehend the reading is not only reading the text without purpose or without preparation. There are some points that must to do to reading
27
Ibid., p. 96 – 97.
28
Judi Moreillon, op. cit., p. 114.
29
comprehension. While the eyes are looking at the words, the brain are doing the most significant part, comprehending the content of the text. But, its processes need to be prepared before, during, and after reading the text.
Here, the readers are intended to do these steps to improve their skill in reading comprehension. There are some points that the readers have to do before reading, during reading, and after reading, are as following:
a. Before reading
The readers have to do these consciously or unconsciously:
1) Previewing the text by looking at the title, the pictures, the graphics, and other relevant items (chapter headings, summaries, etc.), to evoke ideas, thoughts, and relevant memories and experiences.
2) Predicting from the preview what is already known about the topic, content, and/or genre that can help the reader understand, as well as what is known about the form of the reading material.30
Those can help the readers to connect their background knowledge with the text. In this way, comprehending the text is easier and more effective. Previewing the text is can be done by finding the clues. Especially on narrative story, these clues can be found from looking at the genre, tittle, scene, background, character, plot, etc. Then, after doing those strategies the readers will feel more familiar with the content of the text.
b. During reading
These are what the good readers have to do during reading:
1) Checking understanding by keeping track of the gist of the material. This can be done by paraphrasing, by imaging, or by asking, ―Does this make sense?‖
30
2) Integrating the new information with what is already known by making connections, making inferences, creating images, or adding elaborations to what the author says.
3) Monitoring comprehension by using all cueing systems to figure out unknown words, by determining what is important in the reading material, and by using ―fix-up‖ strategies (such as rereading and reading ahead) when difficulties are encountered.
4) Continuing to predict/question, to refine those predictions and answer or reformulate the questions, and to ask new questions.31
After reading, the readers do not stop here; they have to reflect on and use their new knowledge. To compare what they had already known with what they have just known.
c. After reading
These are what the good readers have to employ after reading:
1) Summarizing and synthesizing what has been read by dealing with the plot and/or central ideas, as well as the author’s purpose and perspective. This constructs a meaning for the whole that goes beyond the meaning of the individual parts read (chapters, sections, etc.).
2) Responding appropriately: personally, critically/evaluatively, and/or creatively.
3) Reading multiple sources and cross-checking information when appropriate, or making other connections across texts and knowledge types.
4) Checking for fulfillment of the purpose of reading. Were questions answered? Was the author’s presentation adequate? Does the reader need or desire to read or learn more or search further for information?
31
5) Using what is read in some application. All of these sets of strategies—ones used before, during, and after reading—assist readers in being active, constructive readers who can gain and use information.32
Then, for the deeper comprehension the reader can relating and comparing the story with the preview that they already know. So that, not only the plot of story, but the readers can know the author’s thought, massage, purpose, character, and point of view for life.
4.
The Assessment of Reading Comprehension
To know the improvement of students’ reading comprehension, the teachers need to keep controlling their students’ reading comprehension skill. It is cannot be ignored to have an available good data. To get an available good data, the teachers need reliable and valid assessments; the good assessments that are tied to curriculum are needed.33 The minimum requirements of a good assessment for reading comprehension are as following:
a. Capacity to reflect authentic outcomes.
b. Congruence between assessments and the processes involved in comprehension.
c. Developmental sensitivity.
d. Capacity to identify individual children as poor comprehenders. e. Capacity to identify subtypes of poor comprehenders.
f. Instructional sensitivity.
g. Openness to intra-individual differences. h. Usefulness for instructional decision-making.
i. Adaptability with respect to individual, social, linguistic, and cultural variation. j. A basis in measurement theory and psychometrics.34
32
Ibid., p. 34.
33
Catherin E. Snow, op. cit., p. 52 – 53.
34
C.
Text
People lives are suspended by the text. It has been becoming the interactional tool, as conversational text, that used by all human being in this world.35 It shows that text is really influence human lives and the civilization. The texts are used to record the development of human’s knowledge. Therefore, text is very important for human development in this world.
1.
The Definition of Text
Text, as Snow defines, is “broadly construed to include any printed text or electronic text”. 36 During reading, the reader constructs different representations that are important for comprehension of the text, printed text or electronic text. The representations are including: the surface code, the text base, and a representation of the mental models embedded in the text. The surface code is the exact wording of the text and the text base is idea units representing the meaning.37 From the definition above, a text is a set of written symbols that representation the meaning through the words, sentences, paragraph, and essays. A text is usually used as reading media, it is meaningless without the readers and the readers are unable to read without texts. Martin added that English text evolved as a pair with the richness of English grammar extant. It is designed to complete grammatical respond interfacing to textual considerations.38
In contrast, Halliday and Hasan mention that a text is any instance of living language that is playing some part in a context of situation, it could be spoken or written, or others medium of expression.39 It explains that the text is the language itself, it is not limited by the written words. In other hand, any communication media like gesture, symbol, code, spoken, or written messages are parts of the text.
35
M. A. K. Halliday and Ruqaiya Hasan, Language, Context, and Text: Aspects of Language in a Social-Semiotic Perspective, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1989), p. 11.
36
Catherin E. Snow, op. cit., p. 11.
37
Ibid., p. 14.
38
J. R. Martin, English Text: System and Structure, (Amsterdam: John Benjamin Publishing, 1992), p. 2.
39
The analysis of researches that the linguistics focused, in Australia, has evolved into two main contexts, they are:
a. It is as a means of exploring the relation between text and context or between text and register, genre, and ideology.
b. It is as one foundation for the development of an educational linguistic, which has been used in particular to focus on literacy development.40
2.
The Categories and the Dimensions of Text
Nowadays, the internet technology carries the world filled with the explosion of alternative text, especially electronic text, that vary in content, readability level, and genre. It could be profit or distract for the readers. To choose the right text for reading material, it is good to look at the categories and dimensions of text itself, they are:
a. Discourse genre (such as narration, description, exposition, and persuasion). b. Discourse structure (including rhetorical composition and coherence).
c. Media forms (such as textbooks, multimedia, advertisement, hypertext, and the internet).
d. Sentence difficulty (including vocabulary, syntax, and the propositional text base).
e. Content (including different types of mental models, cultures, and socioeconomic strata).
f. Text with varying degrees of engagement for particular classes of reader.41
3.
The Types of Printed Text
Anderson mentions ten types of printed text and each purpose, as below:
a. Poetic: to express the feeling or experiences of the poet so as to describe, praise or criticize.
40
J. R. Martin, op. cit., p. 2.
41
b. Dramatic: to portray human experience through enactment, sometimes in order to make social comment.
c. Narrative: to construct a view of the world that entertains or informs the reader or listener.
d. Response: to respond to an artistic work by providing a description of the work and judgment.
e. Discussion: to present differing opinions on a subject to the reader or listener. f. Explanation: to explain how or why something occurs
g. Exposition: to argue or persuade by presenting one side of an issue.
h. Information report: to classify, describe or to present information about a subject.
i. Procedure: to instruct someone on how something can be done
j. Recount: to retell a series of events, usually in the order they occurred.42
D.
Narrative
Narrative is a basic human strategy that related to the time, process, and change.43 Mankind from ancient time had narrated their stories on the ancient encryptions or epigraph, when the papers have not being known. It always becomes the record of time, processes, and change that is absolutely occurred everywhere in any ages. People from the ancient ages until the modern age used narrative text for interaction, because it is also a form of communication.44 Narrative is also could help people to enlarging their vision and deepening their understanding of reality.45 Many narrative stories are narrated as the lesson for the human being, to make them become the wise man that could carry the world to the better.
42
Mark Anderson and Kathy Anderson, Text Types in English 2, (South Yarra: Macmillan Education Australia, 1997), pp. 3 – 5.
43
David Herman, Basic Elements of Narrative, (Malden: Wiley Black Well, 2009), p. 1.
44
Luc Herman and Bart Vervaeck, Handbook of Narrative Analysis, (Vertelduivels: University of Nebraska Press, 2005), p. 16.
45
1.
The Definition of Narrative
Narrative is a story telling that aimed to present a view of world to the readers as entertainment and information.46 Narrative text is identic by the story, both fiction and nonfiction, emphasized by the series of events chronologically. It attracts the readers with its sequence of events in order to makes them curious what is going on or how the story ends. Therefore, narrative is commonly used to entertain people by the entertainment companies, such as; short stories, novels, comics, etc. Most films, dramas, animations, and anime are created based on the story in the best seller novel, like Harry Potter and The Pirate of Caribbean, and comics, like Batman, Donald Duck, Spiderman, Doraemon, Naruto, One piece, etc. Narrative text is mostly used as pleasure and enjoyment, Sanggam Siahan and Kisno Shinoda noticed that narration is any written English text in which the writer wants to amuse, to entertain people, and to deal with actual or vicarious experience in different ways.47
Narrative texts also enable students to take lessons from the plot of the stories, there are many valuable stories that the students can learn. Narrative stories are usually filled by the moral advises for the readers. Students can make connection between the story they are reading and the stories they already read, or even with their own real lives. Pamella said that “reading narrative is a cooperative venture between the author and the reader.”48
In addition, reading English narrative texts is very important for the foreign learners to gain new vocabularies, to learn native utterances, and in same time to enjoy the pleasurable texts.
2.
The Characters of Narrative Text
The Narrative story is surely filled with its characters. Without characters, it could not be called a narrative story. Characters are very important in a narrative
46
Mark Anderson and Kathy Anderson, op cit., p. 6.
47
Sanggam Siahan and Kisno Shinoda, Generic Text Structure, (Yogyakarta: Graha Ilmu, 2008), p. 73.
48
Pamela J. Farris, Teaching Reading: A Balanced Approach for Today’s Classrooms,
story. In a fairy tales story, Tinker Bell is one example of main characters in the story and the characters like Jack Sparrow, Harry Potter, and Cinderella are the characters that make the story attractive and interesting. Here, the seven basic character types or roles, those are:
a. Villain
b. Donor or provider c. Hero (seeker or victim) d. Dispatcher
e. Helper f. Princess g. False hero49
3.
The Schematic Structure of Narrative Text
An effective narrative text has several significant characteristics which a reader may use as standard to guide his reading. In a traditional narrative, the focuses of the stories in narrative texts are on series of actions as following: a. Orientation
Orientation tells about the setting in time and place, and characters. Thus, in the first paragraph the narrator tells the audience who is in the story, when it is happening, where it is happening, how the end is, and what is going on.
b. Complication
This is the part of the story where the narrator tells about something that will begin a chain of events. These events will affect one or more characters that influence what will happen in the story. Then, telling the problems that will be solved by the main character in the end.
c. Sequence of events
This is where the narrator tells how the characters react to the complication. It includes their feelings and what they do. The events can be told in
49
chronological order, the order in which they happen, or with flashbacks. The audience is given the narrator’s point of view.
d. Resolution
In this part of the narrative where the complication is sorted out or the problem is solved. It means that how is the problem that created in the complication part finally being solved.
e. Coda
This is a part where narrator gives the readers a coda if there are any moral values or lessons that must be learned by the readers from the story.50
This is an example of narrative text that started by orientation, then complication, sequence of events, resolution, and the last coda.
The Drover’s Wife
The two-roomed house is built of timber, slabs and stringy-bark, and floored with split slabs. Bush all round-bush with no horizon, for the country is flat. The drover, and ex-squatter, is away with sheep. His wife and children are left here alone.
Four ragged, dried-up looking children are playing about the house. Suddenly one of them yells ‗Snakel Mother, here’s a snakel’.
It is near sunset, and she knows the snake is there. She makes up beds for the children and it sits down beside them to keep watch all night. She has an eye on the corner and a green sapling club ready by her side. Alligator, the dog, lies nearby. It must be one or two o’clock in the morning. The bush woman watches and listens, thinking about her life
50
Mark Anderson, op. cit., p. 36. Orientation
telling who and where
Complication that triggers
a series of events
alone while her husband is gone. It must be nearly daylight now. The hairs on Alligator’s neck begin to bristle. Between a crack in the slabs an evil pair of small, bead-like eyes glisten. The snake-a black one-comes slowly out.
Alligator springs. He has the snake now. Thud, thud as the woman strikes at the snake. The dog shakes and shakes the black snake. The snake’s back is broken. Thud, thud, its head is crushed.
She lifts the mangled reptile and throws it on the fire. The eldest boy watches it burn then looks at his mother, seeing tears in her eyes. He throws his arms around her and exclaims, ‗Mother, I won’t never go droving; blarst me if I do!’51
But, the simple narrative text only has three schematic structures; orientation, complication, and resolution. It is the most basic schematic structures to write a narrative story. If the story has these three parts step by step, it could be called a good narrative story. Here the example of narrative text story with three schematic structures, like the following example:
The Fortune Teller
In the great city of Taipei, there lived a man called Lin and his wife. They had no children. Because of this, they were very unhappy. One day, they found a baby boy outside their door. He was wrapped in a blanket and crying. They took the baby into their house and called him Sau Ling. They loved him very much.
51
Mark Anderson and Kathy Anderson, Text Types in English 3, (South Yarra: Macmillan Education Australia, 2003), p. 5.
Orientation Resolution in which the problem from the complication solved Coda that gives the moral to the
When Sau Ling was a young man, a fortune-teller came to the house. ―You must send your son away,‖ he said. ―One day he will become a thief and cause you a lot of trouble.‖ Mr and Mrs Lin were very sad to hear this. They believed what the fortune-teller said. They gave Sau Ling some clothes and money and send him away.
Several years later, Sau Ling was having a meal in an inn several miles from Taipei. He put his bag on the floor near his table. After finishing his meal, he picked up his bag. ―That’s strange!‖ he taught, ―it feels so heavy.‖ He looked inside. It was full of small gold bars. Then he realized that someone had taken his bag by mistake and left another bag, in its place.
That evening, a young man came to the inn, ―Has anyone seen my bag?‖ he asked. Sau Ling was very honest. He returned the bag to him. The young man thanked him. ―You are really very honest,‖ he said, ―I shall ask my father to give you a job.‖ The young man father was a rich merchant. He gave Sau Ling a good job. ―But go home first,‖ he said, ―and take a holiday.‖ Sau Ling returned to Taipei. Mr. and Mrs. Lin were delighted to see him again. The fortune-teller was also present. Sau Ling told them what had happened. The fortune-teller did not know what to say. He left the house without saying a word. Mr. and Mrs. Lin never believed in fortune-teller after that. Sau Ling took them to live with him and they were very happy and contented
