Teaching Reading at the Junior High Schools
15 implemented this curriculum in the first semester of the academic year of
20132014. It still uses the School-Based Curriculum. The School-Based Curriculum arranged how the teacher teaches reading in
school. Although the development of the School Based Curriculum is taken references on the Content Standard and the Graduate Competence Standard, a
teacher can develop the teaching method and techniques in the English teaching and learning process based on the syllabus. However, there are several important
components in this curriculum that need to be considered when a teacher develops their syllabus. They are the standard of competence and the basic competence.
The teachers determined the materials, the learning activities, the evaluation, the time allocation, and the source of learning which were adjusted with the standard
of competence and the basic competence. Based on the standard of competence and basic competence, the areas of
reading for the Junior High School include the ability in understanding written texts to reach the functional literacy and the ability in understanding many kinds
of short functional texts and genres such as procedure, descriptive, recount, report and narrative. The following table shows the expected reading competence of the
first semester of the eighth grade students in the junior high school:
16 Table 1
.
The Standard of Competence and the Basic Competence of Reading for the Junior High School
Standard of Competence Basic Competence
5. Understanding meaning in
functional written text as well as simple and short essay in the
forms of descriptive
and
recount to be able to interact in
daily contexts 5.1.
Reading aloud functional written text and simple and sort essay in the form
of descriptive and recount with acceptably speech, stress and
intonation to be able to interact in daily contexts
5.2. Responding to meaning in simple and
short functional written text accurately, fluently, and acceptably
to be able to interact in daily contexts,
5.3. Responding to meaning and
rhetorical steps in simple short essay accurately, fluently, and acceptably
to be able to interact in daily context in the forms of written descriptive,
and recount.
Before an English teacher teach students, it is important for them to design a syllabus and a lesson plan. The syllabus contains the subject, the standard of
competence and the basic competence, materials, activities, indicators, assessment, time allocation and source. The syllabus is developed based on the
Standard of Content and the Graduate Competence Standard and guide of composing School-Based Curriculum. Then, the syllabus spells out how the
lesson plan is designed to direct students to achieve the basic competence. In lesson plan, there are several components that have to be included. They are the
subject, the standard of components, the basic competence, the indicators of the teaching and learning objectives, the objectives, the materials, the time allocation,
the method, the activities, the assessments and the source.
17 Besides considering the standard of competence and the basic competence
in designing the lesson, it is also important for an English teacher to consider other factors related to the teaching learning process. The first factor is the
students. The English teacher should design a lesson that meets with students’ need, wants and necessity. He also should consider the students’ proficiency level
and students’ characteristics. The teacher should also consider the teaching and learning situation. It includes the classroom situation, the facilities, etc.
The other factor that a teacher should consider in designing a lesson is the teaching methods. Nowadays, the students are required to develop their
communicative competence. This competence will give them competence in dealing with other people in the real world. That is why, it is important for
teachers to use the current language teaching approach that is the Communicative Language Teaching approach. Because the School-Based Curriculum contains
different kinds of texts that an English teacher should teach to the students, it is also important for the teacher to use the Text-Based Instruction. This approach
gives suggestion for a teacher how to teach different kinds of the text. The teacher can use several phase in order to make students can comprehend the text and
respond to it. Meanwhile, the use of the Multiple Intelligences-based techniques can be used by teacher to expand their repertoire of teaching strategies especially
in teaching reading comprehension. The lesson that is based on the Communicative Language Teaching approach and the Text-Based Instruction can
be enriched with various kinds of activities which are offered by every
18 intelligence. Besides, this technique can appreciate students’ differences in
acquiring new knowledge. In conclusion, the teaching reading at the Junior High School should be
based on the syllabus and the lesson plan that has been designed by teacher with some consideration. They are the standard of competence, the basic competence,
the students’ profile which include their needs and characteristics, the teaching and learning situation and the teaching methods. The elaboration of the
Communicative Language Teaching approach, the Text-Based Instruction and the Multiple Intelligences-based technique can be used to help an English teacher in
their teaching and learning process so that students can develop their ability especially reading comprehension ability.