CHAPTER II
THEORETICAL REVIEW
A. Reading
1. The Definition of Reading
Reading is one of important skills in learning foreign language. By reading, the readers can get the knowledge and information from the foreign text that they have read. Besides that, reading activity will help the readers in increasing their foreign language because they will get some new vocabularies. Some language experts shared their opinion on reading.
Reading as a message-getting, problem-solving activity which increases in power and flexibility the more it is practiced. Reading as message-getting means that reading focuses on the role of the reader in making meaning. Thus, reading without meaning is not really reading. By defining reading as “message-getting”, we commit to a focus on the creation of meaning in the reader‟s brain. Reading as problem-solving means that the reader have to know that it‟s their jobs to figure out
unknown words based on what they know about letters, sounds, words, language, and texts. They may use a glossary or other resource to learn more about the word (Clay in Scharer, 2012: 1).
Moreover, reading is a conscious and unconscious thinking process. The reader applies many strategies to reconstruct the meaning that the author is assumed to have intended. The reader does this by comparing information in the text to his or her background knowledge and prior experience (Mikulecky, 2008: 1).
Based on the definition above, reading is a message-getting, problem-solving activity which increases in power and flexibility the more it is practiced which is done and used by reader to get message from the writer through word or written language. In short, reading is a thinking process of understanding the message from the writer through written language.
2. The Importance of Reading
Reading is one of language skills that have to be improved by the students in mastering English. By reading, the students can get many knowledge and information that they need. They can also increase their language and get new vocabulary from the text that they have read. That‟s why reading is one of the important aspects for the students. Ramelan (1990: i) stated that:
good reading ability, he will have a better chance to succeed in his study at school.”
From the statement above, it can be concluded that reading is one of important skills for the students, because the students will explore many information and knowledge. By reading, it will influence the student‟s study.
3. The Purpose of Reading
The purpose of reading is to find out the right information and knowledge from the texts or books that we have read. According to Martin (1991: 1), the purpose of reading is to connect the ideas on the page to what you already know. If you do not know anything about a subject, then pouring words of text into your mind is like pouring water into your hand. You do not retain much. For example, try reading these numbers:
- 7516324. This is hard to read and remember. - 751-6324. This is easier because of chunking.
- 123-4567. This is easy to read because of prior knowledge and structure.
Similarly, if you like sport, then reading the sports page is easy. You have a framework in your mind for reading, understanding and storing information.
a. Reading for Details or Fact
The students read the text to get detail information of text or know the inversion that have been done by the writer or solve the problem of the writer.
b. Reading for Main Idea
The students read the text (books) to know why the topic is good or interesting find the problems on the passage and make summaries of the passage.
c. Reading for Sequence or Organization
The students read the text to know what is happening in each part of the passage in every episode and solve the problem of the text. d. Reading for Inference
The students read the text in order to find out the conclusion from the action or idea in the text.
e. Reading to Classify
The students read the text to classify some information or actions of the writer in the text or paragraph.
f. Reading to Evaluate
g. Reading to Compare or Contrast
The students read to compare the plot of the text or content that having similarity with the readers or even contrast.
(Anderson in Tarigan, 1979: 10-11)
4. The Components (Parts) of Reading
The components of reading will help the students in understanding the text. The students will comprehend the text easily. The students will really get the right knowledge and information from the text (it means that the students know what the writer means in the text). According to National Center for The Study of Adult Learning and Literacy (2005: 27-28), there are four of the components of reading:
Figure 2.1
The Components (Parts) of Reading
DECODING FLUENCY
VOCABULARY COMPREHENSION Analyzing words and
knowing words by sight
Reading with speed and ease
Learning meaning of words
a. Decoding
Decoding is the process of sounding out or analyzing individual letters and words. It explains that sometimes it is not possible to sound out or decode a word because the word does not follow the rules. For example, it is difficult to decode the word “because”. It is easier to
memorize the word or “learn it by sight”.
b. Fluency
Fluency is reading with ease. It explains that we need to read with speed and accuracy to understand easily what we read. Practice builds fluency.
c. Vocabulary
Vocabulary refers to words and their meanings. It explains that knowing what a word means is often as important as knowing how to say it.
d. Comprehension
Comprehension means understanding what you read. It explains to learners that we need to be able to understand what we read so we can get information, be entertained, communicate, etc.
The other expert also stated that there are seven major components of reading.
a. Decoding Knowledge
b. Vocabulary Knowledge
Vocabulary knowledge refers to the knowledge one has about word meanings used to determine the appropriate meaning for a word in a particular context.
c. Syntactic Knowledge
Syntactic knowledge includes understanding word-order rules that exist within sentences and permit you to determine the grammatical function and often the meaning and pronunciation of words.
d. Discourse Knowledge
Discourse knowledge is the knowledge of language organization at units beyond the single sentence level.
e. Readiness Aspects
Readiness refers to two different concepts. Traditionally, reading readiness is the ability of a student to benefit from initial reading instruction. Recently, reading readiness has also included being ready to read and understand a particular selection.
f. Affective Aspects
Reading is a language process but it is also an affective process. Affective aspects of comprehension include a reader‟s attitude and
5. The Strategies of Reading
When the reader wants to develop their reading skill, they have to know the strategies of reading, so they will not feel difficult in developing their reading skill. The strategies can help them, and show them what they have to do in reading a text. Here are some strategies of reading that can be used by the reader:
a. Prior Knowledge
Readers activate what they currently understand or misunderstand about the topic and use this knowledge before, during, and after reading to clarify misconceptions and understand the text.
b. Making Connections
Readers relate what they read to personal experiences (text-to-self), to information from other text (text-to-text), and to information about the world (text-to-world) in order to enhance understanding of self, text, and life.
c. Questioning
Readers ask questions about the text and the author‟s intentions
and seek information to clarify and extend their thinking before, during and after reading.
d. Visualizing
e. Inferring
Readers think about and search the text, and sometimes use personal knowledge to construct meaning beyond what is literally stated.
f. Summarizing
Readers identify key elements and condense important information into their words during and after reading to solidify meaning.
g. Evaluating
Readers judge, justify, and/or defend understanding to determine importance based on stated criteria.
h. Synthesizing
Readers create original insights, perspective and understanding by reflecting on text(s) and merging elements from text and existing schema.
i. Strategies Together
Readers combine strategies as needed to come to a fuller understanding of text. Strategies interact with each other, overlap, and recursive. They are not “stand alone.”
6. Reading Skill
Reading skills are the cognitive processes that a reader uses in making sense of a text. When the readers given the challenging text, they will apply these reading skill in order to comprehend the text. By using reading skill, the reader can read the text easily. According to the Mikulecky (2008: 3-4), reading skills divide into;
a. Automatic decoding. Being able to recognize a word at a glance. b. Previewing and predicting. Giving the text a quick once-over to be
able to guess what is to come.
c. Specifying purpose. Knowing why a text is being read.
d. Identifying genre. Knowing the nature of the text in order to predict the form and content.
e. Questioning. Asking questions in an inner dialog with the author. f. Scanning. Looking through a text very rapidly for specific information. g. Recognizing topics. Finding out what the text is about.
h. Classification of ideas into main topics and details. Categorizing words and ideas on the basis of their relationships; distinguishing general and specific.
i. Locating topic sentence. Identifying the general statement in a paragraph.
k. Recognizing patterns of relationships. Identifying the relationships between ideas; overall structure of the text.
l. Identifying and using words that signal the patterns of relationships between ideas. Being able to see connections between ideas by the use of words such as first, then, later.
m. Inferring the main idea, using patterns and other clues.
n. Recognizing and using pronouns, referents, and other lexical equivalents as clues to cohesion.
o. Guessing the meaning of unknown words from the context. Using such clues as knowledge of word parts, syntax, and relationship patterns. p. Skimming. Quickly getting the gist or overview of a passage or book. q. Paraphrasing. Re-stating texts in the reader‟s own words in order to
monitor one‟s own comprehension.
r. Summarizing. Shortening material by retaining and re-stating main ideas and leaving out details.
s. Drawing conclusion. Putting together information from parts of the text and inducing new or additional ideas.
t. Drawing inferences and using evidence. Using evidence in the text to know things that are unstated.
u. Visualizing. Picturing, or actually drawing a picture or diagram, of what is describe in the text.
w. Reading faster. Reading fast enough to allow the brain to process the input as ideas rather than single words.
x. Adjusting reading rate according to materials and purpose. Being able to choose the speed and strategies needed for the level of comprehension desired by the reader.
B. Fun-Reading Technique
1. The Definition of Fun-Reading Technique
Fun-Reading Technique is one of reading comprehension techniques. Fun-Reading technique is a technique in reading the text which in the implementation the teacher will cut some words and the students have to find the cutting word by discuss with their friends in-group. Mehmet Ali Akgun, an English teacher in Turkey, firstly has done this technique. In this technique, there are many activities for the students. The students never got their teacher bring a scissor and cut the text. The students will be curious what will happen next. Fun here means interesting. When the students discuss with their friends in-group, they have to work hard to find the right cutting word (Akgun, 1997: 1).
2. Learning Preparation
a. Find The Material
The teacher finds an interesting text, which the teacher takes may appeal to most of your students such as a joke from a magazine, a brochure about Disneyland, or anything that is colorful and fun.
In this research, the teacher will give procedure and descriptive texts based on the syllabus of junior high school.
b. Type The Text.
The teacher types the text on a page using large margins so that the text itself is not spread from one end to the other but rather it is squeezed up into a thin column. It will make the teacher in cutting the text easily.
c. Copy The Text
After finishing to type the text, the teacher has to copy the text as many as possible because the teacher will give the text to the students in the classroom.
d. Prepare The Equipment
Besides the teacher prepares the material (text), the teacher also has to prepare a pair of scissors. The teacher needs the scissor to cut the word(s) of the text.
3. The Advantages of Fun-Reading Technique
students are not reading for comprehension, not enjoying themselves, not learning new words in context, not practicing their grammar, and not involved in a communicative and interactive learning activity. According to Akgün (1997: 1) Fun-Reading Technique has some advantages, such as:
a. First, they will be reading for comprehension.
b. Second, they will have to think of words/phrases, which call for both their passive and active vocabulary stocks.
c. Third, they will also have to practice their spelling.
d. Fourth, they will absolutely use their grammar knowledge since they will need to know the parts of speech to guess the words.
e. Fifth, they will practice speaking and listening while they are discussing in pairs and will have the opportunity to learn the different ways that others reason things.
4. The Teaching Reading of Using Fun-Reading Technique
The following steps are teaching reading using Fun-Reading Technique as follows:
a. The teacher gives a text to the students, and asks them to read the text. The teacher gives some minutes for the students to read the text. b. After that, the teacher collects the text that has been read by the
scissors, it will signal to the students that they will be doing something different that day. The teacher cuts one or two words of the text. c. The teacher divides the class into seven groups, so every group
consists of three students.
d. Then the teacher gives the cutting text to every group. The teacher asks the students to read and try to find the missing word(s).
e. The students are given some minutes to discuss with their group to find out the missing word(s).
f. The teacher asks to the students to write their guessing word in whiteboard. There will be seven guessing words. The teacher and the students check the word together, and choose the best right one.
g. The teacher will cut the other word, and the students have to find out again.
h. Do this activity for four or five times. After that, the teacher will give some questions that are related to the text.
(Akgün, 1997: 1)
C. Basic Assumption
The researcher assumes that teaching reading using Fun-Reading Technique will improve the students‟ reading skill. Fun-Reading Technique is
the cutting word by discussing with their friends in-group. Although it is a simple technique, this technique can help the students in comprehending the text because it can stimulate the students to read the text. When the students know that the teacher will cut some words or sentences, they will try to read the text and understand the content of the text, so they can guess the missing words or sentences. By using Fun-Reading technique, the students will not feel bored again, because they have some activities in reading class, they do not only read the text and answer the question. They will be active, because they work with their friend in-group, and they can share their ideas with other students.
D. Hypothesis
