The Teaching Reading Skills

b. The Teaching Reading Skills

According to Bonnie and Jean 2002: 85-87, there are activities involved in reading process, namely pre-reading activity, while-reading activity, and post- reading activity. For the further explanation will be discussed as follows. 1 Pre-reading Activity According to Bonnie and Jane 2002: 85, pre-reading activity is important to help the students understand the selection. There are some activities involved in pre- reading activity: a Activate Background Knowledge According to Bonnie and Jane 2002: 85, background knowledge may derive from all of the experiences that the reader has. When the students activate their background knowledge, they recognize and use information they already have. The meaning construction happens when the students connect new information from the selection with the information they have to build meanings. One of the ways which can be used to activate the students’ background knowledge is by asking the students to question the topics. The teacher may also ask the students to make predictions about what will be discussed in the reading passages from the titles and the illustrations presented. On the other hand, if the students deal with unfamiliar topics, it is the teacher’s job to give brief instruction about the concepts of what is being read. b Build Vocabulary Base Bonnie and Jane 2002: 63 stated that build vocabulary holds the important role in the success of reading. The vocabulary knowledge grows through repeated PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI exposure. The practice building the vocabulary base should be conducted regularly in order to facilitate the students to understand the reading text. Moreover, it is the essential to provide the students with some key vocabulary words to help them understand the selection. Nunan 2003 suggested teaching the students the basic vocabulary and the use of the context-based approach in guessing meaning so that the students do not need to understand all of the words in the selection to grasp the meaning. c Set Purposes and Direction for Reading According to Bonnie and Jane 2002: 85, the aim of setting purposes is to assist the students focus their attention to what they look for and to facilitate them connecting their background knowledge to new information. Purposes can be drawn by asking the students to predict what will be discussed in the selection or by asking the students to question the text. The direction may occur at the end of pre-reading activity. It is used as the direction for the students to enter while-reading activity. 2 While-reading Activity One of the ways to achieve comprehension is by questioning. Question helps the students to understand the selection and helps the teacher to figure out the understanding of the students. Question related to the selection may help the students organize and integrate information. Furthermore, this questioning may facilitate the students to relate what they are reading and what they already know. There are also many activities conducted which can assist the students during the learning process. Bonnie and Jane 2002 suggested some activities. PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI a have the students to follow pre-reading activity by asking them to find the answers of the questions they pose or by asking them to confirm their predictions about selection. b remind the students to use some comprehension strategy suggested. c ask the students to draw inferences, conclusion, or make prediction outcomes. d ask the students to record the main ideas and supported details, outline, or summarize. 3 Post-reading Activity The main purpose in post-reading activity is to enhance students’ understanding about what has been read. It can be used as a device to fortify the students’ background knowledge with the new information. According to Bonnie and Jane 2002: 87, the teacher can encourage the students to think critically and creatively about what they have read and to apply the information for their new learning. There are some activities suggested in post-reading activity. Bonnie and Jane 2002: 87 suggested some activities. a Further questioning The formulated questions should help the students apply, synthesize, or elaborate the information in the materials they have read. b Discussion It is used as the place for the students to share and exchange ideas. Furthermore, small group discussions facilitate the students to grasp the comprehension on the selection. PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI c Writing Writing will help the students connect the information they know with the new information from selection. There are many activities in written form, namely: summaries, journals, reports, stories.

3. Cooperative Language Learning