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CHAPTER II
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
This chapter discusses overview of reading ability, overview of Descriptive text, overview of Numbered Heads Together (NHT) technique, and
review of previous study.
A.Overview of Reading Ability
Reading ability or it is usually called as reading skill, is one part of language skill that must be mastered by language learners. Because the absent of the skill can influence bad effect towards the development of learning
language itself.
a. Understanding of Reading Ability
Reading is one of the basic skills in learning language. There are numerous definitions of reading. Browne (1998) defines reading as subtle and complex process which involves a relationship between the text and
the reader. Alderson (2000) defines process of reading as interaction between reader and text. Meanwhile according to Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary (2008), reading is defined as the skill or activity of
getting information from books or written text. Based on the definitions above, it can be concluded that reading is reader’s activity in getting
information from book or written text. In getting information from book or written text is cannot be separated from an understanding about the content
of the book or the written text.
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of ‘skill’. Moreover, ability is defined as the physical or mental power or
skill that is needed to do something (Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary :2008). From the explanations, it can be concluded that ability is
skill of people that is needed to do something such us to do writing or reading.
Reading is reader’s activity to get understanding of information
from book or written text. While ability is skill of people that is needed to do something such us to do writing, or reading. Therefore, in here, reading
ability is defined as ability or skill of people that is needed to get understanding of information from book or written text. Moreover,
Mahfoodh cited in Divina and Floris (2009) states that having good reading skill or proficiency means that the reader has abilities to understand written statements or any type of written texts accurately and efficiently.
b. Purpose of Reading
According to Rivers and Temperley cited in Nunan (1989), second learners will want to read because of the following purpose: to get information for several purposes or because readers are curious about some
topics, to get instructions on how to perform some tasks for our work or daily life, to act in play, ply a game such as do a puzzle, to keep in touch with friends by writing or to understand business letters, to know where or
when something will takes place or what is available, to know what is happening or has happened ( newspapers, magazines, etc.), and to
xix c. Model of Reading Text
There are three models of reading present here, namely the bottom-up-model, the top-down model, and interactive model. By considering the three models of reading can help teachers to appreciate all the processes that involved in reading, understand underlying principles, and
guide to select appropriate practices (Browne, 1998).
The bottom-up-model is a reading model that emphasizes the
printed text or written text, it says that reading is driven by a process that results in meaning and that reading proceeds from part to whole (Liu,
2010). While Browne (1998) describes that this model is begun with the identification of letters or sounds and later involves using higher levels of linguistic knowledge such as word identification and sentence
structure. With bottom-up approach, reading as viewed as a process of decoding written symbols that working from smaller units (individual letters) to larger ones (words, clauses, sentences), or readers use strategies
to arrive at meaning (Nunan, 1989).
The Top-down Model is a reading model which suggests that readers start to read by drawing on what they know about the structure and meaningfulness of language, the structure of stories and other genres and their knowledge of the world to predict the general
meaning and specific words in the text (Browne, 1998).
The interactive model is a reading model that readers use their
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written material, their knowledge about reading and their expectation
of meaning to make predictions about content and words (Browne, 1998). In this model, every component.
d. Level of Understanding in Reading
In understanding a text, there is a different level of understanding. According to Alderson (2000), there are three levels of understanding a text, they are: literal understanding of the text, an understanding of the
meanings that are not directly stated in the text, and an understanding of the main implications of the text. Literal understanding of the text refers to reader’s understanding of meanings that are directly stated in text. While
an understanding of the meanings that are not directly stated in text refers to inferring meaning from the text. An understanding of the main
implications of the text refers to an understanding of the text critically. The difference level of understandings above clearly related to the product of reading (Alderson, 2000). Because the product view of reading
is usually associated with the static information produced by testing techniques (Page, 1972). When we are interesting to test reading ability,
we should determine which level of understanding in reading text that we are going to test.
a. Testing Reading Ability
According to Isnawati (2015) the function of a reading test is to
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might be used to test reading skill/ability, namely multiple choice,
completion, true/false, short answer, summary cloze, information transfer, identifying order of event, identifying referent, and guessing the meaning
of unfamiliar words from context. Multiple choice requires test takers provide evidence of successful reading by marking a mark against one out of a number of alternatives. Completion requires test takers to complete a
sentence with a single word, for example: ………. was a teacher that is very responsible. True/ False requires test- takers to respond to a
statement by choosing one of the two choices: true or false. Short Answer requires test- takers to answer briefly, for example: What is synonym of skill? Guided Short Answer is the alternative of short answer in which test
takers are guided to have the intended answer and they have to complete sentence presented in them, for example: Complete the following based
on the fourth paragraph! Based on 13 curriculum, English subject becomes …. subject in junior high school. Junior High School students
are demanded to master listening skill, … skill, reading skill, …..and
writing skill. Summary Cloze is a reading passage is summarized by tester, then the tester left gaps in the summary for completion by the test
takers. Information Transfer is one way to minimize demands on writing by test takers which requires the test takers to show successful completion of a reading task by supplying simple information in a
table, following a route on a map, labelling a picture, and so on. Identifying Order of Events, Topics or Arguments requires test takers to
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referents, for example: What does the word ’it’ (line 15 ) refer to? ...
And Guessing the Meaning of Unfamiliar Words from Contex, such as: Find a single word in the passage (between lines 1 and 2) which has the same meaning as ‘making of laws’.
B. Overview of Text Types
Many types of texts that must be knew by English learners in Indonesia. Based on 2006 curriculum (KTSP), there are five texts that should be taught to the
Junior High School students, namely Descriptive text, Narrative text, Procedure text, Recount text and Report. Descriptive text is text that says the description of
particular person, animal, place, or thing. Its purpose is to describe something. While the generic structure of the text are identification and description. Narrative text is an imaginative story with complication or problematic events, and there is a
resolution to overcome the problem within the story. The purpose of the texts is to amuse or to entertain readers. While the generic structure of the text are orientation, complication, resolution, and re-orientation/ coda. Procedure text is a text which
gives readers instruction to do something. The purpose of the text is to tell how to do or to make something. While the generic structure of the text are goal,
ingredient/material, and step. Recount text is a text that retells experiences in the past. The purpose of the text is to retell past experience. While the generic structure of the text are orientation, events, and reorientation. While Report is a text
that announce the result of investigation or announce something. The purpose of the text is to tell information about something. While the generic structure of the text
xxiii C. Overview of Descriptive Text
Descriptive text is kind of texts which describes the features of someone,
something, or a certain place. As other type of texts, Descriptive text has social function and generic structure. According to Wadirman et. al. (2008) the social function of Descriptive text is to describe a particular person, place or thing, while
the generic structure of Descriptive text is identification and description. Identification is structure of Descriptive text which identifies phenomenon to be
described or the part of the paragraph which introduces the character . While description is structure of Descriptive text which describes parts, qualities, and
characteristics or the part of the paragraph which describes the character. Descriptive text also has special language features as follows:
1. Descriptive text focuses on specific object. For example: My favorite
teacher, My mother, My house, and so on
2. Descriptive text uses Simple Present Tense.
Simple Present Tense is a tense says that something was true in the past, is true in the present, and will be true in the future also (Azar, 1999).
Simple Present Tense has rules to construct a correct sentences. Here (table 2.1.) are the formulas of Simple Present Tense:
Table 2.1 the Formulas of Simple Present Tense
Verbal Sentences
xxiv Note: * s/es only is used if subjects is he/she/it/ name of person or animal or
thing
To make verb 1 agrees with subject (he, she, it, and name of person
or animal or thing), it is very necessary to pay more attention to verbs that are ended by ss, sh, ch, x and o must be added by s, example: she kisses her baby, she washes my clothes, she teaches her students, she boxes these pencils, she goes to school. Verbs that are ended by y that precedes consonant, the letter y must be changed becomes I then it is added by es.
Example: She carry the bag she carries the bag. Verbs that are ended by y but precedes vocal, only needs to be added by s. Example: He play the guitar He plays the guitar.
Simple Present Tense is often used with adverbial of time,
adverbial of place, adverbial of frequency, and adverbial of place always
precedes adverbial of time (Mas’ud, 2005). The example of adverbial of
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3. Descriptive text uses adjectives. For example beautiful, patient, large, etc.
D. Overview of Numbered Heads Together
As the researcher mentioned previously. Numbered Heads Together
(NHT) is a technique that comes from Cooperative Learning approach. Cooperative Learning approach requires students to work cooperatively. The more detail explanation about Numbered Heads Together NHT and Cooperative
Learning as follows:
1. Understanding of Cooperative Learning
Based on Richard and Rodgers (2001) Cooperative Learning is an approach to teaching which makes maximum use of cooperative activities involving pairs and small group of students in the classroom. The more
detailed definition of Cooperative Learning has been proposed by Olsen and Kagan cited in the Richard and Rodgers (2001), the definition is :
Cooperative Learning is group learning activity that is organized, so that learning is independent on the socially structured exchange of information between students in groups and in which each students is held accountable
for his or her own learning and it is motivated to improve the learning of others. With cooperative learning, students work together in groups whose
usual size is two to four members of group (Richards and Renandya: 2002). The essence of Cooperative Learning is requiring students to work together in small groups to support each other to improve their own learning
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the interaction of students in pairs/groups. While according to Kagan &
Kagan (2009) the difference between Cooperative Learning and group work is based on implementation of PIES principles. PIES principles are Positive
interdependence, Individual accountability, Equal participation, and Simultaneous interaction. Cooperative Learning principles and techniques are tools that teacher can use to encourage mutual helpfulness in the groups
and the active participation of all members (Richards and Renandya: 2002). Kagan & Kagan (2009) describes the good effects of PIES
principles one by one. Positive interdependence principle can create mutual support among students, can create peer norms to support achievement, and
can increases the quality and frequency of peer tutoring. This principle means a feeling of ‘one for all and all for one’( Jollife, 2007). Individual
accountability principle can increase student’s participation and motivation
in learning. Because it means that each member of the group is accountable for completing his or her part of the work (Jolliffe, 2007). Equal Participation principle can make students who would not participate or who
would participate very little become engaged if we equalize participation. And simultaneous interaction principle can increases the amount of
participation per student and the efficiency in teaching and managing the classroom.
Based on Jolliffe (2007), when students are wanted to be truly
cooperative, learning should consist of key elements and two of these are particularly vital: positive interdependence and individual accountability.
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make Cooperative Learning (key 1: structure, key 2: teams, key 3:
management, key 4: class-building, key 5: team-building, key 6: social-skills, and key 7: basic principles (PIES) ), but in fact, a teacher very easily could learn ‘’ key 1’’ and integrate them in the classroom to reach great
success, without knowledge or mastery of any of the other keys. Key 1, that is structure, it refers to how use Cooperative Learning instructional
strategies. Key 2, that is teams, it refers to how to form and how to re-form the various types of teams. Key 3, that is management, it refers to how to
manage the cooperative classroom. Key 4, that is class-building, it refers to how to create a caring or cooperative community of students. Key 5, that is team-building, it refers to how to develop powerful learning teams. Key 6,
that is social-skills, it refers to how to develop students’ ability to cooperate. The last is, key 7, that is basic principles (PIES), it refers to how to use the
proven principles of cooperative learning.
Key 1, that is structure can be describe as the relationship among teacher, students, and learning content (Kagan & Kagan, 2009). Kagan &
Kagan (2009) carefully designed some structure to promote achievement, engagement, thinking skills, and social skills, and the structures are used
world-wide by ten of thousands of teachers because there are over 200 Kagan structures. Some of them are Numbered Heads Together, All Write Consensus, All Write Round Robin, Carousel Feedback, Fan-N-Pick, Find
Someone Who, Find-the-Fiction, Flashcard Game, Inside-Outside Circle, Jot Thoughts, Match Mine, Mix-Freeze-Group, Mix-Pair-Share, One Stray,
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Rally Coach, Rally Robin, Rally Table, Round Robin, Round Table, Round
Table Consensus, Showdown, Simultaneous Round Table, Spend-A-Buck, Stand Up–Hand Up–Pair Up, Stir-the-Class, Talking Chips, Team
Stand-N-Share, Telephone, Think-Write-Round Robin, Three-Step Interview, Timed Pair Share, and Traveling Heads Together.
2. The Advantages of Cooperative Learning in Teaching Reading
There are a lot of advantages from cooperative learning. According
to Jolliffe (2007) the advantages of Cooperative Learning include improvement in achievement, in interpersonal relationships, in
psychological health and in social competence. Improvements in learning or achievement have included: greater productivity, greater transfer of learning from one situation to another, more time on task, higher process
gain (that is, more higher-level reasoning, more frequent generation of new ideas and solutions), and greater problem-solving. Improvements in interpersonal relationships have included: promoting the development of
caring and committed relationships, establishing and maintaining friendships between friend, a greater sense of belonging and mutual support,
improved morale. While improvements in psychological health and social competence have included: greater independence, higher self-esteem, improved self-worth, increased self-confidence, supporting sharing of
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Moreover, Liang, Mohan, Early, Olsen and Kagan cited in
(Richards and Renandya ( 2002) states that in second and foreign language learning, theorist propose some advantages for Cooperative Learning that
rise from cooperative learning, they are: increasing students talk, more different talk, a more relaxed atmosphere, greater motivation, more negotiation of meaning, and increased amounts of comprehensible input.
Cooperative Learning could be applied in listening class, speaking class, reading class and also writing class. Even, it could be applied to
another lesson such as Mathematics, and those advantages above are the advantages of implementing Cooperative Learning in general. While the
advantages of Cooperative Learning in reading class as follows: 1.) Coopertaive Learning could help students in gaining comprehension and develop other language skills such as writing, and speaking (Bolukbas, et. al., 2011), and 2.) Cooperative Learning could improve students’ reading
comprehension, encourage students to help other friends by sharing their ideas, and motivates students to read the text ( Pratama, 2013),
3. Numbered Heads Together (NHT)
Numbered Heads Together (NHT) is one type of structural approach in Cooperative Learning which is developed by Spencer Kagan in 1992 year. He describes Numbered Heads Together (NHT) as follows:
Teammates put their “heads together” to achieve consensus (a generally accepted decision or opinion among a group of people) on the team’s
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asked to teams. Numbered Heads Together (NHT) encourages successful
group functioning, because NHT demands all members need to know and to be ready to explain their group’s answer (s), and when students help their
group mates means that they help themselves and their whole group, because the answers given belongs to the whole group, not just to the group member who gives it (Richards and Renandya: 2002).
Some variations that appear from NHT that is developed by Kagan are Paired Heads Together, Travelling Heads Together, and Stir-the-Class.
Paired Heads Together is students are in shoulder partner pairs, after teacher asks a question, pairs talk secretly to improve the answers they have each
written, then teacher calls for either A or B to share their best answer with their face partner. Traveling Heads Together is rather similar with NHT. Traveling Heads Together is started by the same as Numbered Heads, but
when the teacher calls a number, the students with that number on each team stand, then “travel” to a new team to share their answers. Stir-the-Class is teams stand around the outside of the class with spaces between teams and
teammates stand shoulder-to-shoulder, the teacher asks a question, then students write their own answers on an Answer-Board or small of paper,
teammates talk secretly to achieve consensus, next, the teacher choses a number and tells students with that number how many teams to rotate forward to share their answer.
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There are basic steps to implement Number Heads Together (Kagan
& Kagan, 2009). They are: student count off ( each students in a group of four get number 1, 2, 3, or 4), teacher asks a problem and gives time to
students to think (Example: “How are rainbows formed? Think about your best answer.”), students write their answers privately, students stand up and “put their heads together’’ to show their answers, to discuss, and to teach
each other, students then sit down when everybody knows the answer or has something to share, teacher calls a number and students with that number
answer simultaneously using: Answer Board Share, Chalkboard Responses, Choral Practice, Response Cards, Finger Responses, or Manipulative.
Then, the basic steps of Numbered Heads Together technique above is ever used by Sprencer Kagan in an English Second Language Learning (ESL)/ English Foreign Language Learning (EFL) in reading class. The description of Kagan’s reading class by using NHT technique as follows: 1.)
Every students in group of four gets a number 1, 2, 3, or 4, 2.) The teacher or a student asks a question based on the text that class is reading, 3.)
students in each group put their heads together to come up with answer(s), 4). They should be ready to supply support for their answer(s) from the text
xxxii E. Review of Previous Study
The researcher has found three relevant studies that could be the researcher’s references in conducting the research. The first study was taken
from Fithiawati (2014), whom used Quantitative method with quasi-experimental design in the research. The objective of the research was to know the effectiveness of Numbered Heads Together (NHT) technique on students’ reading ability of narrative text. And the result of the research
showed that Numbered Heads Together (NHT) technique was effective on students’ reading ability of Narrative text. Rahmawati (2014), whom used
Quantitative method with Experimental design in the research. The result of
the research showed that the application of Cooperative Learning type NHT technique is effective in teaching reading comprehension. Nikmah (2015), whom used Quantitative with Quasi Experimental Design in the research. The
result of the research showed that there was very significant effect of NHT in teaching reading comprehension.
There were some differences between this study and the previous
studies above. The differences were the objective of the research, the method of the research, and the manner in implementing NHT technique. The
objectives of the previous studies above was to know whether NHT technique was effective or not in teaching reading while the objective of the research was to improve students’ reading ability. And the method of the previous studies
was Quantitative while the method of the research was Classroom Action research (CAR). The manner in implementing NHT technique in the previous
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researchers only implemented the technique without modified it, while in this
research, the implementation NHT technique could significant improve students’ reading ability after the researcher modified it. This modification was
very needed because the students in the researcher’s class could not engage in
the teaching and learning processs well before the researcher modify it.
The researcher modified the technique through making group works
based on NHT technique but did not ask students to count off any more. The researcher made group works by mixing the students that often would not
engage in teaching learning process with the students that always engage in teaching learning process well and mixing the students who have high ability
with the students who have low or average abilities become one group. Then the teacher asked them to sit down with their group mates and gave them number 1-3/4. After that, the teacher gave text and some questions about the
