identification, prior knowledge and the effective use of cognitive strategies. In addition, they not only read the text but also comprehend the meaning of written
text being read. It thus concludes that, reading comprehension is understand the meaning from a text, interpret what should be understood about the context, and
express the idea what we knew in order to get the author purposes.
2. Variables that Affect the Nature of Reading
There are some variables that affect the nature of reading based on Alderson. Here the more explanation about those variables.
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a. SchemataBackground Knowledge
The nature of knowledge that readers have will influence not only what they remember of text but their comprehension of the text also. The development
of schema theory has attended to account for consistent finding that what readers know affects what they understand. Schemata are seen as interlocking mental
structures representing readers‘ knowledge. When readers process text, they integrate the new information from the rest into their existing schemata. More
than that, their schemata influence how they recognize information as well as how they store it.
In short, the readers‘ schemata or background knowledge influence process by recalling the information that readers have before.
In addition, Schematabackground knowledge usually consists of five parts below:
1 Knowledge of Language There is an Indonesian reader who want to read Korean newspaper. Of
course, the reader will have great difficulty in processing the text. It because the readers have not study about Korean language. But, if the
newspaper is changed to English, the reader will have enough understanding. It because heshe have got English lesson when heshe was
in formal school. It means that vocabulary, structural of the sentences, or
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J. Charles Alderson, Assessing Reading, Cambridge: Cambridge university Press: 2000, p. 50-55
other rules is needed to understanding the text. So, from the example, it is clear that knowledge of language is an essential need for readers.
2 Knowledge of GenreText Type Knowing how text are organized, knowing how information is signalled
and how changed of content might be marked, are the way that can be thought in facilitating reading. For example, knowing to look for main idea
in a paragraph, and being able to identify how subsidiary ideas are marked are help a reader process the information. In addition, there are many text
types that each has different characters. It will be easier to readers if they know about the characters of the text that they read.
3 Knowledge of Subject MatterTopic If readers absolutely nothing about the topic of a text, they will find it
difficult to process. Similarly that readers will find it easier to read text in areas they are familiar with. It because the readers who have familiar with
the topic mean that they have existent information handling. In other words, Similarities can be seen with something already knows which can then be
used to process the new. So, knowledge of Subject mattertopic is needed in reading process.
4 Knowledge of the World Knowledge of the world means that the reader must know how the world
works. For example ―The policeman held up and the car stopped‖. The
normal readers have no difficulty understanding the sentence. The sentence means the car has a driver, that the policeman holding up his hand is a signal
to the driver stop the car. None of this stated but it is part of reader knowledge of how the world works.
b. Reader Purpose in Reading
Another possible cause of the variation between readers and readings which must consider is that different readers read text with different purposes. The
purposes why people read are definetely different depending on their needs and goals. There are great various of reasons why people want to read. For instance,
when people want to know about the last news in order to know what is going on