Another statement from Jeremy Harmer.” the purposes of reading divided into some areas:
a. Predictive skills
b. Extracting specific information
c. Getting the general picture
d. Extracting detailed information
e. Recognizing function and discourse patterns
f. Deducing meaning from context”.
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Generally, based on the purposes above is to understand or to comprehend the reading passage from the printed text. Whether there is an action or not after
reading a text. Related to the purpose of reading itself, it embraces a wide variety of tasks, skills, activities, and mental process. For example, when reading to get
specific information, a reader needs to consider the accuracy of words meaning in order to comprehend the information of the text.
Based on all statements above, the general purposes of reading is to be able to use any techniques of reading activity and to reach the meaning or
message toward kind of reading. According to the purpose of reading classified by Francoise Grellet
, “there are main ways of reading are as follows:
a. Skimming
Skimming is reading quickly running one’s eyes over a text to get the gisit of it. b.
Scanning Scanning is reading quickly going through a text to find a particular piece of
information. c.
Extensive reading Extensive reading is reading using longer texts, usually for one’s own pleasure.
This is a fluency activity, mainly involving global understanding. d.
Intensive reading
13
Jeremy harmer, The Practice of English language Teaching,New York: Longman, 1983, p.183-184.
Intensive reading is reading shorter texts, to extract specific information. This is more an accuracy activity involving reading for detail
”.
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In conclusion, the purposes of reading will ease the readers in reading appropriate text. That is why they have to decide and know exactly what kind of
purposes they have in reading text because in one reading text may have multiple purposes in which for each purpose has its own reading technique.
3. The Levels of Reading Comprehension
Comprehension needs differ in terms of the goals of an individual, the nature of the reading material, and the purposes of reading. The terms of
comprehension can be called “level”. The levels of comprehension divided into three levels: literal, interpretive, and applied.
a. Level One
Literal- what is actually stated. Literal comprehension is getting primary, direct, literal meaning of an idea
in context. In literal comprehension, readers attempt to understand the words the author has written on the page as exactly as possible-in light of
their experiential backgrounds. Tests in this level are objective test dealing with true false, multiple
choice, and fill in the blank question. Common questions used to illicit this type of thinking are who, what, when, and where questions.
b. Level Two
Interpretive- what is implied or meant, rather than what is actually stated. In interpretive level, readers “read between the lines,” make connections
among individual stated ideas, make inferences, draw conclusions, or experience emotional reactions. The readers probe for greater depth than in
literal level. They are concerned with supplying meanings not directly stated in the text.
Tests in this level are subjective, and the types of questions asked are open-ended, thought-provoking questions like why, if, and how.
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Francoise Grellet, Loc Cit.
c. Level Three
Applied- taking what was said literal and then what was meant by what was said apply the concepts or ideas beyond the situation.
o Analyzing
o Synthesizing
o Applying
In this level we are analyzing or synthesizing information and applying in to other information.
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4. The Problems of Reading
According to Paula Flaming,” there are some typical causes which then arise towards students’ difficulties in reading such as:
a. Limited intelligence
b. Over emphasizes on word recognition
c. Over emphasizes on oral reading.
d. Insufficient background for reading selections.
e. Failure to adjust reading technique to reading purposes.
f. Lack of appropiate teacher guidance”.
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The six problems above would be explained concerning the causes and how to overcome those shortcomings in order a reader is able to comprehend
kinds of resding selections. In the first problem, it is fairly close relationship exists between intelligence and the ability to read. Since general intelligence
become the most important factor for readiness in reading.intelligence tests are useful for appraising phrase of readiness to read.
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There is correlation between intelligence and reading ability that child’s ability to comprehend in reading is limited by the conceptual load that his mental
ability enable to carry. As a teacher, we should adjust the task to students capability to grows student’s power toward reading.
15
http:academic.cuesta.eduacasuppas303.htm.Retrieved April 7 , 2010
16
Paula Flaming, Better Reading Skills,Hong Kong: Oxford University Press, 1981,p.6
17
J.Charles Alderson, Op.Cit, p. 101.
The second problem is word recognition. Students may get difficulty in recognizing the word as students read. The caused of this problems is difference s
in syntactical patterns of students native language and target language.
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In order students are able to understand the text, they have to know the words meaning
based on context sentences. Students often look up dictionary to know the meaning of sentences, but sometimes the meaning is not appropiate to the
sentences. And that is way teacher must introduce new words toward familiar words which students have known first.
The third problem is oral reading, if doesn ’t work well, it can have an
undesirable effect on comprehension.the reader become conscious that he was fail what readers read. Reading orally of a selection is particularly difficult for the
reader to increase students understanding. Over emphasizes on oral reading also make a reader self conscious while reading to others that his concentration how
and what students read. The fourth problem is related to insufficient background for reading a
selection. This statemnet means that the lack of experience background causing of poor comprehension what students read. According to J. Charles Alderson
state that “self –evident that if readers do not the language of the text, then they will great difficulty in processing the text: indeed in studies of first language
reading the language knowledge of the reader is often taken for granted”.
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Based on experiencing background is what we called schema theory. In preparing for reading, student mentally access their schemata on the incoming reading topic
and consider what they already know. The students who gain sufficient knowledge about many reading selections, they are able to connect the
information they hae with incoming text, so it would be helpful for students to build their comprehension in reading.
The fifth problem is failure to adjust reading techniques to reading purpose and type of reading material. Appropiate techniques should be taught for the
18
Jo Ann Aebersold, From Reader to Teaching Reading,New York: CBS, 1982,p.17.
19
J. Charles Alderson, Op.Cit, p.31
