Purposes of Reading Comprehension
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supposed to be accustomed to the activation of background knowledge prior to reading. Studies have shown that readers who activate their schemata, the
“performance on reading tasks can improve as a result of such training” Alderson, 2000, p. 43.
In reading a text, “readers actually bring information, knowledge, emotio
n, experience, and culture” Those aspects are called schemata Brown, 2001, p. 358. Schemata are divided into two: formal and content schemata
Carrell, 1983. Formal schemata include readers’ knowledge of the language
and genres or text type. Meanwhile content schemata are more about knowledge of the content of the text. It includes knowledge of subject matter
or topic, the world, and culture. As the word suggests, formal schemata mean
readers’ background knowledge on formal surface. It is line with Nation
2005 that besides “the meaning of individual words, domain knowledge is also considered crucial for
comprehension” p. 261. By possessing sufficient knowledge of the subject matter, readers are enabled to move from explicit words in a text to broader
knowledge which is integrated from their prior knowledge. Even Chiesi, Spilich and Voss
1979 point out that readers’ background knowledge predicts their comprehension of the text.
In formal schemata, the knowledg e includes readers’ knowledge of the
language and text types Alderson, 2000. If someone reads in a foreign language, the process will be more complex and the comprehension might be
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lower than reading in the first language. Thus, proper knowledge of the language is badly needed. However, “readers’ linguistic knowledge continues
to deve lop with age and experience” Alderson, 2000, p. 34. Hence, it is clear
that if readers are more accustomed to reading, the comprehension level might increase. Besides the language, the knowledge of the text type is a part of
formal schemata. If one knows the text type, he will likely know how the text is organized, how information is signaled, and how to look for the main idea.
Meanwhile, content schemata are more about the text. Therefore, knowledge about the topic of the text is extremely important. Alderson 2000
believes that if readers know nothing about the topic, the process of understanding the text will be difficult. Alderson and Urquhart 1985 have
shown that most reading tests on texts with subject disciplines that students had studied were sometimes easier to process. It is clear that the knowledge of
the subject matter is essential. Besides, knowledge of the world helps readers understand the text better. It means that readers know how the world works
through the knowledge of general rules and universal values or norms. The last important aspect of content schemata is cultural knowledge. One will
relatively be easier to process and understand a text if the cultural setting is familiar to them Alderson, 2000.