Significance of the Study

specific words or specific information. For instance, we have this purpose when we try to find someone‟s phone number on the phone book, to find the meaning of words on dictionary, to find specific words or phrases that indicate we are in the right page or chapter while reading prose, etc. b. Reading to skim quickly In reading to skim, the reader need to skim the text in order to find the general idea of it by guessing the location of the significant information on the text, and then by trying to comprehend those information until the general idea is acquired. c. Reading to learn from texts In reading to learn, the reader not only need to find the main idea of the text, but also remember it, elaborate it with the details, develop the organization of the information, and connect the text with background knowledge. This purpose usually used in professional and academic field to get information as much as possible. d. Reading to integrate information In reading to integrate information, the reader tries to broad the information on the text. The goal may be just to add more information related to the text, to agree with the information on the text, or to disagree with it. e. Reading to critique text Reading to critique is part of reading to integrate information on the text. To find the strength or the weaknesses of the text, the reader need to, related to his or her own goal, evaluate the text, find the information he or she wants to integrate, and in what way she or he wants to integrate it. f. Reading to write As same as reading to critique the text, reading to write also part of reading to integrate the text. Both are usually used in academic purposes. The reader needs to read many texts as his or her resources on his or her writing, and it requires him or her to integrate those texts by selecting, criticizing, and arranging the information he or she needs. g. Reading for general comprehension From all purposes mentioned by Grabe and Stoller, reading for general comprehension is the most basic one. It is the most complex process. To comprehend the text requires reading skill, reading strategies, and background knowledge of the reader. Thus, Grabe and Stoller classified the purposes for reading into seven points specifically. Every person may has different purpose in reading depends on their needs. Some readers often make their decision to read very quickly or even unconsciously. They also may have more than one purpose in one reading. For instance, when they pick up a newspaper, they may usually read the front page first to search whether there is any information they expect to read. After they find the headline which cues it, they may skim quickly for the length of paragraph and then read some paragraphs for comprehension. However in academic or professional ones, the readers may set their purposes before reading in order to read effectively because they usually need several reading sources. Harmer categorized the reasons of reading into two broad categories. 6 a. Instrumental reason, it means people do reading because they have some specific reason in their mind and it would give some usefulness. For instance, people read a map to know the direction, people read the guideline book of a smart phone to know how to operate it, etc. b. Pleasurable reason, it means people read some reading text in order to get their own pleasure. For instance, people read magazines, novels, or comics because they like to do that, even as a hobby or they want to spend their boring day with reading. Therefore, it can be concluded that there are two reasons in making decision to read some kinds of written text, which are to get some instrumental information or to get some pleasure. In reading for the instrumental reason, the readers usually have specific reason to read something that would give some benefits to them. 6 Jeremy Harmer, The Practice of English Language Teaching 3 rd edition, New York: Longman, 2001, p. 200.