The Relationship between Idiom Mastery and Reading Comprehension

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Education of UIN Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta)

BY:

TIAS ATMA ANDRIANI NIM: 1110014000056

THE DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH EDUCATION

FACULTY OF TARBIYAH AND TEACHERS TRAINING

STATE ISLAMIC UNIVERSITY SYARIF HIDAYATULLAH

JAKARTA

2014


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Education of UIN Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta)

“A Skripsi”

Presented to the Faculty of Tarbiyah and Teachers’ Training In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements

for the Degree of S.Pd. (Bachelor of Arts) In English Language Education

BY:

TIAS ATMA ANDRIANI NIM: 1110014000056

THE DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH EDUCATION FACULTY OF TARBIYAH AND TEACHERS TRAINING SYARIF HIDAYATULLAH STATE ISLAMIC UNIVERSITY

JAKARTA 2014


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i

Education Students of UIN Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta)

“ASkripsi”

Presented to the Faculty of Tarbiyah and Teachers’Training In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements

for the Degree of S.Pd. (S-1) In English Language Education Compiled by:

Tias Atma Andriani

Approved by:

Advisor I Advisor II

Dr. M. Farkhan, M.Pd. Devi Yustinita, M.Pd. NIP. 19650919 2000 031 002

THE DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH EDUCATION FACULTY OF TARBIYAH AND TEACHERS TRAINING SYARIF HIDAYATULLAH STATE ISLAMIC UNIVERSITY

JAKARTA 2014


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certifies that the “Skripsi” scientific paper entitled, “The Relationship between Idiom Mastery and Reading Comprehension (A Correlational Study The 4th Semester of the Department of English Education of UIN Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta)” written by Tias Atma Andriani, student’s registration number: 1110014000056, was examined by committee on September 24th, 2014 and was declared to have passed and have fulfilled one of the requirements for the degree of S.Pd. (Bachelor of Arts) in English language Education at the Department of English Education.

Jakarta, September 29th, 2014 EXAMINATION COMMITTEE

Chairman : Drs. Syauki, M.Pd. (………..)

NIP. 19641212 199103 1 002

Secretary : Zaharil Anasy, M.Hum. (………..)

NIP. 19761007 2007101 002

Examiner I : Dr. Ratna Sari Dewi, M.Pd. (………..) NIP. 19720501 199903 2 013

Examiner II : Neneng Sunengsih, M.Pd. (………..) NIP. 19730625 199903 2 001

Acknowledged by

The Dean of Faculty of Tarbiyah and Teachers’Training

Dra.Nurlena Rifa’i, M.A., Ph.D. Nip. 19591020 198603 2 001


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Reading Comprehension (A Correlation Study at the 4 Semester of The Department of English Education Students of UIN Jakarta), Skripsi, The Department of English Education, The Faculty of Tarbiyah and Teachers Training, Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University Jakarta, 2014. Key Words : Idiom, Reading Comprehension.

The aim of this study is to know whether there is significant relationship between idiom mastery and reading comprehension at the 4th semester of Department of English Education students at UIN Jakarta. The sample of this study is 33 students. The method used in this study was quantitative method and the technique used was a correlational technique. In collecting the data, idiom test and reading comprehension test were used. The scores of idiom test were collected from twenty multiple-choice questions. In addition, the reading comprehension test was also given to the students to assess their reading comprehension. The result of this study shows that there is a positive relationship between idiom mastery and reading comprehension. It is proved by the ro(0.446) which is bigger than rtablein

the degree significance 1% (0.442). It is considered that the null hypothesis (Ho) in this study is rejected and the alternative hypothesis (Ha) which states that there is significant relationship between idiom mastery and reading comprehension is accepted. In conclusion, there is a positive relationship between idiom mastery and reading comprehension. It means that students with higher idiom mastery get better in reading comprehension than the lower ones. In other words, the better idiom mastery the students have, the better ability they will have in reading comprehension.


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Mahasiswa Semester 4 Jurusan Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris di UIN Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta), Skripsi, Jurusan Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris, Fakultas Ilmu Tarbiyah dan Keguruan, Universitas Negeri Islam Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta, 2014.

Kata Kunci : Idiom, Pemahaman Membaca.

Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui apakah ada korelasi antara penguasaan idiom (idiom mastery) dan kemampuan pemahaman bacaan (reading comprehension) pada mahasiswa semester 4 Jurusan PBI (Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris) UIN Jakarta. Sampel yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini berjumlah 33 responden. Metode yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini adalah metode kuantitatif melalui teknik korelasi. Dalam pengumpulan data, peneliti menggunakan test. Test idiom dan test pemahaman membaca digunakan dalam penelitian ini. Pada analisis data penilaian test idiom dan test pemahaman membaca menggunakan dua puluh pertanyaan pilihan ganda disetiap test. Kemudian, hasil dari penelitian ini menunjukkan bahwa terdapat korelasi positif antara penguasaan idiom (idiom mastery) dan kemampuan pemahaman bacaan (reading comprehension). Terbukti dari besarnya ro0.446 > rtablepada signifikan 1% (0.442). Itu dianggap bahwa null hypothesis (Ho) ditolak dan alternative hypothesis (Ha) diterima. Oleh karena itu, penelitian ini dapat disimpulkan bahwa terdapat adanya korelasi positif antara penguasaan idiom (idiom mastery) dan kemampuan pemahaman bacaan (reading comprehension). Ini berarti bahwa semakin baik penguasaan idiom siswa, maka akan semakin bagus pula kemampuan mereka dalam memahami bacaan.


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Allah, Lord of the world, who has given His loving and blessing to the writer to finish her “Skripsi”. Peace and salutation be upon to the prophet Muhammad SAW, his family, his companion, and his followers.

It is a pleasure to acknowledge the help and contributions to all of lecturers, institution, family and friends who have contributed in the different ways hence this “Skripsi” is processed until it becomes a complete writing which will be presented to the Faculty of Tarbiyah and Teachers Training in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree S.Pd. (Bachelor of Arts) in English Language Education.

The first, she would like to thank her parents who always pray and give motivation to finish her study. The writer also would like to give her sincere thanks to her advisors Mr. Dr..Farkhan, M.Pd. and Mrs. Devi Yusnita, M.Pd. who have given precious help, the guidance, and the advices patiently to the writer during the completion and the development of the study.

Then, the writer also realized that she will never finish this paper without the help of some people around her. Therefore, the writer would like to give her gratitude and appreciations to:

1. Dra.Nurlena Rifa’i, M.A.,Ph.D., as the Dean of Faculty of Tarbiya and Teachers’ Training Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University Jakarta.

2. Drs. Syauki, M.Pd., as the Head of The Department of English Education.

3. Zaharil Anasy, M.Hum., as the Secretary of The Department of English Education.

4. All lecturers in The Department of English Education who always give motivation and valuable knowledge during her study.


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7. Her best friends Tika Maulidah, Yomi Handayani, Febria Afia, Gayatri Chitrasari, and Ima Febri Yanti who always help her in this study. 8. All of her friends in The Department of English Education academic

year 2010, especially B class and all the people who contributed in this study.

The words are not enough to say any appreciation for their help and contribution in this paper. May Allah, the Almighty bless them all. Moreover, the writer also realized that this paper is far from perfect. It is a pleasure for her to get critiques and suggestions to make this paper better.

Jakarta, September 29th, 2014


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ENDORSEMENT SHEET ... ii

ABSTRACT ... iii

ABSTRAK ... iv

ACKNOLEDGEMENT ... v

TABLE OF CONTENTS ... vii

LIST OF TABLES ... ix

LIST OF APPENDICES ... x

CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION ... 1

A. Background of the Study ... 1

B. Limitation of the Problem ... 3

C. Formulation of the Problem ... 3

D. Objective of the Problem ... 4

E. Significant of the Problem ... 4

CHAPTER II: THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK ... 5

A. Reading ... 5

1. The Definition of Reading ... 5

2. Kinds of Reading ... 6

3. The Purpose of Reading ... 8

4. Definition of Reading Comprehension ... 9

5. Strategies in Comprehending Text... 11

6. Techniques in Assessing Reading Comprehension ... 13

B. Idioms ... 14

1. The Definition of Idiom ... 14

2. Types of Idiom ... 16

3. Idiom Comprehension ... 18


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CHAPTER III: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ... 26

A. Place and Time of the Study ... 26

B. Research Design ... 26

C. Population and Sample ... 26

D. Research Instrument ... 26

E. Technique of Data Collecting ... 28

F. Technique of Data Analysis... 29

G. Hypothesis Testing Criteria ... 31

CHAPTER IV: RESEARCH FINDING ... 32

A. Data Description... 32

B. Data Analysis ... 34

C. Data Interpretation... 40

CHAPTER V: CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS... 42

A. Conclusions ... 42

B. Suggestions ... 42

BIBLIOGRAPHY... 44


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Table 3.2 The Blue Print of Reading Comprehension Test ... 28

Table 3.3The Score of “r” Product Moment... 31

Table 4.1 Normality Test Table ... 34

Table 4.2 Linearity Test Table ... 35

Table 4.3 Data Analysis Table ... 36

Table 4.4 Correlation Table ... 38


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APPENDIX 2 Reading Comprehension Test ... 48

APPENDIX 3 Idiom Score ... 52

APPENDIX 4 Reading Comprehension Score ... 54

APPENDIX 5 Output ANATES ... 56

APPENDIX 6 Output SPSS Correlation... 65

APPENDIX 7 Kisi-Kisi Idiom... 66


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1

A. Background of the Study

In Indonesia, English is a foreign language. To learn English, students learn four skills; listening, speaking, reading, and writing. One of skills that many materials are easy to be found by the students is reading. They can read the English texts in a lot of media; such as English books, magazine, newspapers, novels, film, advertisements, and even status in Facebook. Through reading, students can get new information to enrich their knowledge.

Reading is one of receptive skills. A receptive skill is a passive skill. Meanwhile, reading is not totally passive, because reading requires a reader to receive the messages, process in their brain, and make understanding on what has been delivered by a writer. This skill is not easy because it requires many knowledge and comprehension. If the reader fails to comprehend the message, she or he also fails in reading.

Reading has many purposes for the reader. For example, the purpose of reading at the fourth semester of The Department of English Education of UIN Jakarta is to help the students to be able to comprehend reading passages consist of minimum 2000 words. To understand the written text, students must be able to decode the words on the page and extract the meaning. Reading can be useless when the students do not understand on what they read, because reading is an activity that requires the readers to understand what they read. To understand what students read, they should know the meaning of its words.

Reading is an activity to deliver messages from the writer to the reader. In delivering the message, every writer has a style to deliver and express the messages by using language style. One of language styles that uses several terms or specific words to express is by using idiom. As Peter states, idioms refer to expressions or phrases which are peculiar to a given language and which carry either a literal meaning or a non-literal meaning depending on the intent of the


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writer.1In other words, idioms, as the term is used here, are ambiguous, and to be understood must either be known as a unit or deduced from the context.

Idioms consist of two or more words and make a new meaning. It has different meaning from the lexical words. For example, “It is cats and dogs raining” if it translates word by word and literally, it will become weird and irrational. The aim of learning idiom is to understand what the meaning of idiom based on context to get a complete comprehension. Sometimes, students translate the text word by word and idiom cannot be translated word by word because idiom has a different meaning with its individual word. This is the cause some students get difficulty to understand the text which consists of idioms because students do not have previous knowledge about idioms.

Mastering idioms is like mastering vocabulary. Vocabulary cannot be mastered if students do not know the meaning, and this is especially true for idioms. There is variety of idiom dictionaries for those who wish to learn more about idioms. Newspapers and magazines, radio programs, television shows and films are also sources of idioms. Roleplaying, writing and interactive activities such as matching the parts of idioms are some activities that can help non-native speaker expand their knowledge and use of idioms.

Based on writer’s observation, some forth semester students of UIN Jakarta have difficulty in understanding novel and text that consist of idioms. Most of idioms that occur in their reading are phrasal verb. Phrasal verb is common type of idioms. A phrasal verb is verb which is a combination of a verb and an adverb, a verb and a preposition, and a verb with an adverb and a preposition. For example,take off, get in, turn on,etc. They interpret the meaning of idioms by translating word by word that has different meaning from the real meaning words. This misunderstanding can bother their reading comprehension, because the complete comprehension can be reached when the students know and understand the meaning of sentences constructed from some words including idioms. Moreover, this case may happen when the students are not aware about

1

Peter Edwards, Idioms and Reading Comprehension, Journal of Literacy Research, 6, 1974, p. 288.


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the idioms that they read in the text. This thing emphasizes that idioms need to be noted in reading, because it also influences reading comprehension.

If idiom comprehension is related to general abilities in processing linguistic information, skilled text comprehends should also be better at comprehending an idiomatic expression than children with poorer text comprehension skills. In other words, a child’s comprehension skills should be strongly related to his/her ability to understand an idiomatic sentence.2The aim of idiom mastery must be directly proportional with the aim of reading comprehension. It can be said that students who master idioms well, they get better in reading comprehension. Then, students who lack of idiom mastery, they also lack of reading comprehension, because when students read a text and find idioms, they must know what the meaning of idioms itself, at least they guess the meaning of idioms by the context, to get a complete comprehension.

Based on the explanation above, the writer assumes that mastering idioms has a relationship with reading comprehension, so the writer wants to conduct a research with the title: The Relationship between Idiom Mastery and Reading Comprehension (A Correlational Study at 4th Semester Students’ of The

Department of English Education of UIN Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta).

B. Limitation of the Problem

Based on the background of the study, the writer focuses on the relationship between idioms mastery and reading comprehension. It is conducted at fourth semester students of The Department of English Education of UIN Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta.

C. Formulation of the Problem

The formulation of the problem in this study based on the limitation above: “Is there any significant relationship between idioms mastery and reading

2

Maria Chiara Levorato, Barbara Nesi, and Cristina Cacciari, Reading Comprehension and Understanding Idiomatic Expressions: A Developmental Study, Brain and Language, 91, 2004, p. 305.


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comprehension at fourth semester students’ of The Department of English Education of UIN Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta?”

D. Objective of the Study

The objective of this study is to find out whether there is significant relationship between idioms mastery and their reading comprehension at fourth semester students’ of The Department of English Education of UIN Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta.

E. Significance of the Study

The writer expects that the study will give the benefits for English students in reading comprehension. The more students know about idioms, the more they get better comprehension in reading. Students can learn and master idiomatic expression to give them the benefit in learning and comprehending. And for English teacher, they can give knowledge about idioms and train their student to master idioms expression.


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A. Reading

1. The Definition of Reading

According to Grabe and Stoller, “reading is the ability to draw meaning from printed text and interpret the information. A reader has several purposes and each purpose has different skills and strategies to understand the text”.1 Reading is an interaction between the reader and the writer. The texts provide messages from the writer, and the reader understands what the writer wants to give. Reading is also about comprehending process. The readers need to understand what the writer intended to convey in written text2, they have to be active to construct the meaning of the message, so that there is no misunderstanding between the writer and the reader.

Reading means different purposes for people. Some of them recognize written words, and for the others it is an opportunity to teach pronunciation and practice speaking.3 Students can learn many skills from reading. They can learn speaking from how to pronounce the word in the written text, they also can learn grammar from how to analyze the sentence from the text, learn vocabulary from how to know the unfamiliar words, learn how to write by identifying how to make sentences, and learn to listen from reading aloud.

In the same line, Harmer also stated that reading is useful for other purposes too; any exposure to English is a good thing for language students. Some of language sticks in their minds as part of the process of language

1

William Grabe and Fredricka L. Stoller, Teaching and Researching Reading,(Harlow: Longman, 2002), p. 11.

2

William Grabe, Reading in a Second language: Moving from Theory to Practice, (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2009), p. 15

3

Sacha Anthony Berardo, The Use of Authentic Materials in the Teaching of Reading, (The Reading Matrix: Vol.6, No.2, September 2006), p. 60.


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acquisition, and, if the reading text is interesting and engaging, acquisition is likely to be successful.4

As the experts mentioned about the definition of reading above, it can be concluded that reading is a process delivering messages from the writer to the reader. The readers read the written text with their eyes and bring it to their brain and interpret them with their background knowledge as information. Every reader has different purposes in reading. The important of reading is when students read the text, and then they understand what the writer wants to share with us.

2. Kinds of Reading

Most of reading skills are trained by studying short texts to get detail information. But others require the use of longer texts to complete books. There are two kinds of reading; intensive and extensive reading.

a) Extensive Reading

Extensive reading is often assumed to comprehend the whole book. Sometimes students have to understand the part of sentences, paragraphs, and chapters. Actually, they do not have to understand the whole book in every single part of it. They just get the general on what they read. Therefore, students can use some strategies to practice in understanding longer texts, such as scanning and skimming.5 The using of scanning is to get detail information on what they want to know. Then, skimming is the way students get the general information or main idea in the longer texts.

Extensive reading can be a source of enjoyment and a way of gaining knowledge of the world. Extensive reading is focused on the story not on items to learn.6 So, it can be said that the aim of extensive reading is to read pleasure and get the general idea of the story or texts.

4

Jeremy Harmer,How to Teach English, (Harlow: Longman, 1998), p. 68.

5

Christine Nuttall,Teaching Reading Skills in a Foreign Language, (Oxford: Heinemann, 1996), pp. 38-39.

6

I. S. P. Nation,Teaching ESL/EFL Reading and Writing, (New York: Routledge, 2009), pp. 49-50.


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b) Intensive Reading

Intensive reading can be increasing learners’ knowledge of language feature and their control of reading strategies. It can increase their comprehension skill. “The classic procedure for intensive reading is the grammar-translation approach where the teacher uses the first language to explain the meaning of the text, sentence by sentence”. Intensive reading usually involves translation and comprehension of the text. The use of translation is to analyze feature of language that they learnt, and to make sure the learners’ comprehension.7

According to Nuttal, intensive reading can focus on several aspects:8

1. Comprehension 2. Vocabulary 3. Grammar 4. Cohesion

5. Regular and irregular sound-spelling relations 6. Information structure

7. Genre features 8. Strategies

In comprehension, intensive reading can aim the understanding a particular text. This comprehension comes from the interaction between the words and how the students relate their background knowledge to get the comprehension. Moreover, students’ attention on vocabulary can be drawn to useful words, underlying the meaning and use of these words for later study. By reading texts, students will discover new words that will be useful for their language skills. Intensive reading is important for students after they were taught by the teacher. Students can learn autonomously outside the classroom by

7

Nation,Ibid, p. 25.

8


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reading. They can learn everything through reading; even the difficult grammatical features can be explained and analyzed by reading.

The students also learn phonics, spelling rules, and reading aloud. Reading is one of language skills that often used by foreign language students, because they can read in anytime and anywhere. Certain texts contain certain kinds of information and students can be helped to identify these different kinds of information.

Intensive reading can focus on how the text achieves its communicative purpose through these features and what this communicative purpose is. The more students read, the more they understand their learning style. Intensive reading can be used to help students develop useful reading strategies. They can use the most effective way that they think can improve their learning achievement.

3. The Purpose of Reading

When students start to read, they may have some purposes in their head. For examples, when students read newspaper, they usually read the head line of the news and search what they interested in. Unconsciously, students do scanning and skimming to find what they want to read. Moreover, when students read magazine they love, they will read it from the start until the end because they love reading that magazine. Those are several examples their purposes in reading.

According to Grabe and Stoller, there are some purposes in reading:9 a) Reading to search for simple information

b) Reading to skim quickly c) Reading to learn from texts d) Reading to integrate information

e) Reading to write (or search for information needed for writing) f) Reading to critique texts

g) Reading for general comprehension

9


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Many experts have their own point of view in dividing purpose of reading. Actually, they have same general purposes of reading, such as reading to get general information, reading to get specific information, and reading for pleasure and for interest. The first purpose is reading to get general information. Students read a text or a book is to know what the content talking about. They just want to know what the book or text discussing about generally. Then, the second purpose is reading to get specific information. Here, the students read the text to search what they want to read to get information that they want. They do not have to read the whole book or text because it takes a long time. The last is reading for pleasure and for interest. Reading can be fun when students love the content and interested in the information inside the text. For example, reading many novels is not a big deal because they like to read novels. The students can spend their leisure time to read and it can be their enjoyment.

4. Definition of Reading Comprehension

Reading without understanding is not actually reading. Reading requires interpreting on the printed text. To understand the text, students transform word by word in written text from eyes to brain, and then their brain processes it with their background knowledge, so that they understand what the text means. As Kristin Lems stated, reading comprehension is a skill to get meaning from the printed text. It is not a static competency; it depends on the purpose of reading and the text that is involved. Reading comprehension interact the text and background knowledge of the reader.10

According to Judy Willis, to be successful in reading comprehension, students have to be active in processing meaning on what they read. Constructing meaning from text or spoken language is not separate literacy skill, but merging of all acquired prior knowledge, personal experience, and vocabulary with strategies of deductive and inductive

10

Kristin Lems, Lead D. Miller, and Tenena M. Soro, Teaching Reading to English Language Learners: Insights from Linguistics, (New York: The Gilford Press, 2010), p. 170.


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reasoning and making connections.11Moreover, Scott and Ellen said (as cited in Susan and Gerald’s book), “Reading comprehension is only a subset of an ill-defined larger set of knowledge that reflects the communicative interaction among the intentions of the author/the speaker, the content text/message, the abilities and purpose of the reader/listener, and the context/situation of the interaction”.12

Reading Framework Committee (as quoted in Susan and Gerald’s book) also defines reading comprehension as “an active and complex process that involves understanding written text, developing, and interpreting meaning, and using meaning as appropriate to type of text, purpose, and situation”.13 Without comprehension, students just read text word by word without understand meaning of text and purpose the writer gives.

There are many definitions mentioned above, it can be concluded that reading comprehension is an ability to construct and comprehend meaning from written text through interaction between eyes and brain and background knowledge to interpret the meaning of the text. It is not easy to understand the text, it needs active reader to analyze and processing word by word to construct meaning by connecting personal experience, background knowledge, and vocabulary. When students read text without knowing the meaning of vocabulary, they will get difficulty in comprehending the text. They can use some strategies such as context clues that connecting our background knowledge to guess the vocabulary. Furthermore, background knowledge and personal experience are very helping in construct meaning because students can get better comprehension when they already have little or even much knowledge on what they read.

There are two ways readers process the text; Top-Down and Bottom-Up. “Top-Down processing is where a global meaning of the text is obtained, through “clues” in the text and the reader’s good schema

11

Judy Willis,Teaching the Brain to Read,(Alexandria: ASCD, 2008), pp.127-128.

12

Susan E. Israel and Gerald G. Duffy, Handbook of Research on Reading Comprehension, (New York: Routledge, 2009), p. 32.

13


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knowledge”.14 Meanwhile, “Bottom up processing is when the reader builds up meaning by reading word for word, letter for letter, carefully both vocabulary and syntax. This is often associated with poor and slow reads, but can sometimes occur when the readers own schema knowledge is inadequate”. In other words, Top-Down is used to predict the meaning of the text by activating past experiences, expectation, and intuition. Then, Bottom-Up is used to decode each individual element in text to construct the meaning of the text.

5. Strategies in Comprehending Text

The purpose in reading is to get information by comprehending the text. In comprehending, sometimes students do not know the meaning of words or unfamiliar words, so that it can disturb their comprehension. There are several strategies that readers use to comprehend text:15

a. Skip words they do not know

Finding the unfamiliar words in a text is common problem in reading. Students should not know all the words to comprehend the text. They can skip these words and get the complete meaning from the previous or the next words. b. Predict the meaning of unfamiliar words from the context

Sometimes learners took most of their time in reading foreign language by discovering meaning in dictionary. Meanwhile, they can use their background knowledge about the topic and some words in the sentences that they have known. So, they should not check all of the unfamiliar words but guess the meaning by looking up the words that interrelated.

14

Berardo,op. cit.,p. 61.

15

Jerry G. Gebhard,Teaching English as a Foreign or Second Language, (United Stated of America: The University of Michigan Press, 2009), p. 196.


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c. Do not constantly translate

Students do not have to translate all words because sometimes there are multi-words or idioms that cannot be translated literally.

d. Ask someone what a word means

Students can ask to their teacher or their friends about the meaning of words they do not know. It will help the students to comprehend the text.

e. Have knowledge about the topic

To make students comprehend the text easier, students have to relate their background knowledge to the topic. f. Draw inferences from the title

Before read a text, students usually guess what will be discussed by seeing title. The title of a text must be have a relation or draw the content of the text.

g. Read things of interest

Students can easily comprehend the text if they interested in what they read. They can be curious to know the content of the text.

h. Study pictures and illustrations

Some texts usually provide pictures or illustration to make the reader understand what the writer wants to say. The pictures or illustrations must draw the content of the text.

i. Purposefully reread to check comprehension

To make sure the students have got the complete comprehension, they can reread the text because some sentences or important words may be missed and that can make the students misunderstand.


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6. Techniques in Assessing Reading Comprehension

Typically comprehension question are used as the major means of focusing on comprehension of the text. The learners read a text and then answer question about the content of the text. There is a variety of question types that can be used:16

a. Pronominal questions

Questions begin with who, what, when, how, why, etc. these questions often test writing ability as well as reading ability because the students must write the answers.

b. Yes/no questions

This question only needs short answer, so the students do not need to have a high level of writing skill.

c. True/false sentences

The students look at each sentence and decide if it is true or false according to the passage.

d. Multiple-choice questions

Good multiple-choice questions are not easy to make and often they are more difficult than they should be, because the wrong choices must seem possible and not stupid.

e. Sentence completion or Gap-filling test

The students complete sentences by filling the empty spaces to show they understand the reading passage.

f. Information transfer/Matching Technique

The students complete an information transfer diagram based on the information in the text.

g. Translation

The students must translate the passage into another language with their own words.

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h. Summary Test

The students read the passage, and then they write the summary of the text and can be discussed in group work.

B. Idiom

1. The Definition of Idiom

All languages have phrases that cannot be understood literally and therefore cannot be used with confidence. They are usually opaque or unpredictable because they do not have a clear meaning. Even if people already know the meaning of all the words in a phrase and understand all the grammar of the phrase completely, sometimes the meaning of the phrase is still confusing. A phrase or sentence of that type is said to be idiom.17 Idioms can be found in many kind of texts, these can be found in educational texts, magazines or in advertisement on a newspaper.

Idiom consists of two or more words that have different meaning from their individually meaning of every word. Idiom forms a new meaning that usually unclear and different from the meaning of its words. Moreover, idiom is the assigning of a new meaning to a group of words which already have their own meaning.18 When these words meet and joined into a word it will make a new meaning.

According to Gairns and Redman, "idiom is a sequence of words which operates as a single semantic unit, and like many multi-word verbs the meaning of the whole cannot be deduced from an understanding of the parts".19So to understand the meaning of idioms, the reader cannot translate or separate the words into a single part of semantic unit because the meaning of the idiom can be interpreted by interrelate of its words. For example, if the students translate the sentence that contains of idiom in “this works are piece

17

Richard A. Spears, Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs, (New York: McGraw-Hill, 2004), p. V.

18

Adam Makkai, M. T. Boatner, and J. E. Gates,A Dictionary of American Idioms, (New

York: Barron’s EducationalSeries, 1987), p. VI.

19

Ruth Gairns and Stuart Redman, Working with Words: A Guide to Teaching and Learning Vocabulary, (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2003), p. 35.


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of cake for me” word by word it can be has a weird meaning, but when the idiom is not translated word by word the sentence can be interpreted as “this works are easy for me”.

Laflin also added, idiom is a phrase which means something different from the meanings of the separate words that are a part of it. It usually cannot be understood by literal interpretation of the words that make up the expression. They put together but the meaning is often uncorrelated to the individual words in the idiom.20 In the same line, Lado stated that idiom is a sequence of words that cannot be translated literally. They have a new meaning that is different from the meaning of every word.21 It can be said idiom has a new meaning that cannot be translate word by word because it will change the meaning of idiom. The meaning of idiom can be known by understand the whole words.

An idiom is a sequence of words which has a different meaning as a group from the meaning it would have if you understood each word separately. Idioms add color to the language, helping us to emphasize meaning and to make our observations, judgments, and explanations lively and interesting. They are also very useful tools for communicating a great deal of meaning in just a few words. Idiom is a language style that used in writing, so the writing can be interesting for the reader.

Ammer said that an idiom is a set phrase of two or more words that means something different from the literal meaning of the individual words.22 The way in which the words are put together is often odd, illogical, or even grammatically incorrect. These are the special features of some idioms, but the other idioms are completely regular and logic in their grammar and

20

Shelley Vance Laflin, Something to Crow About: A Concise Colloction of American English Idioms for Everyday Use, (Washington D.C.: Materials Development and Review Branch, 1993), p. iii.

21

M. J. Lado,Ungkapan Kata Kerja dan Idiom (Phrasal Verbs and Idioms), (Jakarta: PT. Gelora Aksara Pratama, 1989), p. i.

22

Christine Ammer,The American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms, (Boston: The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust, 2003), p. preface.


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vocabulary. Because of the special features of some idioms, learners have to learn the idiom as a whole and cannot change any part of it.23

Many definitions about idioms mentioned above, they can be concluded that an idiom is a group of words that has different meaning from the individual word as part of it. It cannot be translated word by word, but the meaning of idiom is the meaning of a whole word. Idioms are sometimes irrational and ungrammatically, but another idioms are rational and fixed grammatical. It can be understood by guessing from the context.

2. Types of Idiom

According to Makkai, as quoted Lynn Grant, and Laurie Bauer, there are two 'idiomaticity areas' in English: the lexemic and the sememic. The lexemic idiomaticity area consists of expressions of more than one word, which are "subject to a possible lack of understanding, despite familiarity with the meanings of the components, or the erroneous decoding: they can potentially mislead the uninformed listener.” The sememic idiomaticity area involves expressions with more than one word, which "have both a logical literal meaning and a moral or a deeper meaning." Makkai further classifies lexemic idioms into 6 groups24:

1. Phrasal Verbs Idioms

A phrasal verb is a verb that contains of two kinds of words. The first word is a verb, and the second word is particle. Examples:take off, put off, get in, get on, look after, etc.

2. Tournures Idioms

Tournures idioms are the largest lexemic idioms, usually containing at least three words and mostly are verbs. A tournures idiom mostly falls into sentences. Based on its structure, tournures idioms are divided into:

23

Jennifer Seidl, English Idioms and How to Use Them, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1978), p. 4.

24

Lynn Grant, and Laurie Bauer, Criteria for Re-defining Idioms: Are We Barking up the Wrong Tree?,Applied Linguistics, 25, 1, 2004, pp. 40-41.


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a. The form contains the compulsory definite and indefinite article.

Example:to do a guy(to disappear secretly.)

b. The form contains an irreversible binomial introduced by a preposition.

Example: to be at seven and eight (to be in a condition of confusion, at odds.)

c. A direct object and further possible modifiers follow the primary verb.

Example: to build castle in the air(to make impossible plans.)

d. The leading verb is not followed by direct object but by preposition plus noun or nothing.

Example:to dance on air(to get hanged)

3. Irreversible Binomial Idioms

Irreversible Binomial Idioms consist of two words, which are separated by conjunction. The words orders in this structure are fixed.

Example: high and dry (without resources), Romeo and Juliet (institutionalized symbols of ideal love or symbol of true love).

4. Phrasal Compound Idioms

Phrasal Compound Idioms are containing primarily nominal made up of adjective plus noun, noun plus noun, verb plus noun, or adverb plus preposition.

Example: black mail (any payment force by intimidation), bookworm(a person committed to reading or studying).


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5. Incorporating Verbs Idioms

Incorporating Verbs Idioms have the forms are Noun-Verb, Adjective-Noun, Noun-Noun, and Adjective-Noun. Usually incorporating verb separated by (-).

a. Noun-Verb

Example: Sight-seemeans “visit the famous places in a city, country, etc.”

b. Adjective-Noun

Example: Blackmail means “The crime of demanding money from a person by treating to tell somebody else a secret about them.”

c. Noun-Noun

Example:Bootlegmeans “Made and sold illegally.” d. Adjective-Verb

Example: Whitewash means “An attempt to hide unpleasant facts about somebody/something.”

6. Pseudo-Idioms

Pseudo-Idioms are also being able to mislead or misinform an unwary listener.

Example: Cranberry (bright red acid berry produced by any plant of the genus oxycoccus), In the sentence “make a cranberry face”. It means the face become red. Another example is tic-tac-toe (special game).

3. Idiom Comprehension

Idiom comprehension has three major factors: semantic transparency, familiarity, and context.25

First, transparency is the degree of agreement between the literal and figurative meanings of an idiom. The meaning of a transparent idiom matches

25

Gholamreza Rohani, Saeed Ketabi and Mansoor Tavakoli, The Effect of Context on the

EFL Learners’ Idiom Processing Strategies,English Language Teaching, Vol. 5, No. 9, 2012, p. 105.


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well with the image it describes. An idiom like “go by the book” is highly transparent because its literal meaning, to follow directions in a book exactly, is closely associated with its nonliteral meaning, to closely follow rules and regulations. But the expression “beat around the bush” is not transparent, because its literal meaning is not associated with its nonliteral meaning, reluctance to talk about a topic. Semantic transparency is not a fixed and absolute feature.

Second, familiarity is the frequency of occurrence of an idiom in the language. While an idiom such as “piece of cake” is frequently used in English, another idiom like “get yourwires crossed”is one that is rarely used. High-familiarity idioms were easier to understand than those of low familiarity.

The third major factor influencing idiom comprehension is context. Idiomatic expressions are understood in relation to the context in which they are used. As a result, the skills used to process and understand language in context are thought to be important for the development of idiom understanding.

4. Idiom Mastery

There is common assumption that the more words a learner knows, the larger the learner’s vocabulary knowledge. However, there is another dimension to vocabulary knowledge that should be considered, namely how far a learner knows the combinatory possibilities of a word. Some linguists call them ‘lexical phrases’ or ‘ lexical items’, others prefer the term ‘multi -word chunks’ or just ‘chunks’ of language. It is the development of permanent sets of associative connections in long-term memory and the process which underlines the attainment of automaticity and fluency in language. Whatever the term, they are an important feature both in language use and language


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acquisition. These multi-word chunks or expressions are namely: idioms, proverbs, sayings, phrasal verbs and collocations.26

Ideally, vocabulary shouldn’t be learned in a vacuum, and this is especially true for idioms. There are a variety of idiom dictionaries for those who wish to learn more about idioms. Newspapers and magazines, radio programs, television shows and films also sources of idioms. Roleplaying, writing and interactive activities such as matching the parts of idioms are some activities that can help foreign learners expand their knowledge and use of idioms.

Even though complete mastery of idioms may be nearly impossible, every language learner must be prepared to meet the challenge because idioms occur so frequently in spoken and written English such as textbooks, novels, and conversation. They figured that "most English speakers utter about 10 million novel metaphors per lifetime and 20 million idioms per lifetime. This works out to about 3,000 novel metaphors per week and 7,000 idioms per week. Because of a lower level of linguistic competence in the target language, foreign learners get disadvantage in understanding idiom expressions; they will meet idioms in all forms of discourse: in conversations, lectures, movies, radio broadcasts, and television programs, newspapers, magazines, and book. Indeed, mastery of a second language may depend in part on how well learners comprehend initially and produce eventually the idioms encountered in everyday language.27

The problem is learner does not have a satisfactory home environment where he can be exposed to a wide variety of language and reading experiences. If the learner has had little or no experience in identifying and understanding the complexities of idiomatic language, he will be at a disadvantage when confronted with idioms in his reading material. A good

26

Sridhar Maisa and T. Karunakaran, Idioms and Importance of Teaching Idioms to ESL Students: A Study on Teacher Beliefs ,Asian Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences (AJHSS), Vol. 1, No. 1, May 2013, p. 111.

27

Thomas C. Cooper, Processing of Idioms by L2 Learners of English,TESOL Quarterly, Vol. 33, No. 2, 1999, pp. 233-234.


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understanding of idiom will usually help this difficulty. Familiarity with idioms and metaphors will also enable a young person to cope more effectively with the changing nature of the English language.

“Mastery of idiom comes only slowly, through careful study and observation, through practice and experience, but remember: practice makes perfect and all things are difficult before they are easy.”28 Learning with idiom, practice, and apply it in daily are the best way to master idiom because when students know and understand the meaning of its idiom, it will be saved in their brain like they saved new vocabulary in their mind.

Knowledge of three major components seems useful to teach idioms effectively. Practical suggestions for implementing these components follow:29

a. Definition

Most idioms can be taught directly, just like any new word or concept, by defining and explaining them when they are en countered in context. In this way the idiom's actual meaning is clarified immediately. When an idiom occurs in either speech or writing, the literal meaning needs to be discussed. When this is compared with the actual meaning, the nonsense of the literal meaning can be seen. Investigating the original meaning of an idiom and learning its derivation is an effective way to teach idiom. It will increase students' awareness of idioms. Additionally, classification activities with various types of idioms (idioms involving colors, animals, action, etc.) and provides idiom lists. b. Usage

Once the idiom has been defined, its origin explained, and its meaning compared to its literal interpretation, students can be given a variety of opportunities to use it in class. A simple way to demonstrate knowledge of something is to identify its equivalent 28

Seidl,op. cit.,p. 8.

29

Karen D'Angelo Bromley, Teaching Idioms, The Reading Teacher, Vol. 38, No. 3, 1984, pp. 274-275.


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from a number of alternatives, using both oral and written exercises. Oral and written exercises in rewording and rewriting sentences to include an appropriate idiom can give students practice in producing the appropriate idiom. A class might create a dictionary of idiomatic sayings. A reference list of idioms might first be brainstormed by the group and then each student could choose one or two to illustrate and define. Individual students might make dictionaries of their own. Students can be given practice in listening for and identifying idioms used orally. Students might also choose an idiom which they would be responsible for using once a day for a week in conversation or writing.

c. Application

Understanding idioms used in class needs to be accompanied by opportunities to apply this new knowledge outside the school. A class might compile a running list of idioms they heard on TV or radio and in the conversations of parents or friends. The list could also contain idioms met in their own personal reading. Idioms lend themselves especially well to creative writing. Students might choose an idiom that they have not been introduced to yet, hypothesize about its possible origin, and create a story describing the phrase's beginning. Another possibility for helping older students apply their learning to new situations is through children's literature. Several books for children contain idioms, homonyms, homophones, and homographs and could be read aloud to an individual, small group, or class.

C. Previous of Related Study

Cain, Oakhill, and Lemmon investigated The Relation between

Children’s Reading Comprehension Level and Their Comprehension of Idioms. There were 56 idioms used in this study namely, 14 for each type namely “real


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-transparent”, “real-opaque”, “novel-transparent”, and “novel-opaque”. The participants were 28 Caucasian children from urban schools, and the majority of them were from lower middle-class families. The children were tested individually. The findings revealed that children were slightly more likely to recognize “real-transparent” idioms than “real-opaque” idioms. In context, the real idioms were more likely to be interpreted more correctly than the novel expressions.30

Similar study, Levorato, Nelsi, and Cacciari investigated The Relationship between Text Comprehension and Idiom Comprehension in Italian Elementary School-Age Children. The participants were 101 Italian second-graders and 98 Italian fourth-second-graders in an elementary school in the north of Italy. The researchers conducted Experiment 1 and Experiment 2. The results of both experiments showed that the ability to understand a text indicated the children’s understanding of idioms in context. For verification, possible improvements in children’s comprehension skills that might produce an increase in figurative language understanding, experiment 3 was carried out. A group of poor comprehenders who participated in Experiments 1 and 2 were tested eight months later. The results of Experiment 3 showed that children’s general comprehension skills improved their performance on an idiom comprehension test.31

Another study aboutThe Advantages and Importance of Learning and Using Idioms in English by Eliana Edith Roberto De Caro has main purpose to share the results of a small scale project based on guiding students in the use of idioms through dialogues and readings, in order to improve students' communicative skill. The project was applied at Universidad Santo Tomás -Tunja, with one group of eleven Electronic Engineering students who attend to an undergraduate education program. Dialogues, interviews, and informal speech or conversations were used to collect the data in this action research study. Findings

30

Kate Cain, Jane Oakhill, Kate Lemmon, The Relation between Children’s Reading

Comprehension Level and Their Comprehension of Idioms, J. Experimental Child Psychology, 90, 2005, pp. 65–87.

31

Maria Chiara Levorato, Barbara Nesi, and Cristina Cacciari, Reading Comprehension and Understanding Idiomatic Expressions: A Developmental Study, Brain and Language, 91, 2004, pp. 303–314.


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demonstrated that by learning and using some idioms, the learners were able to increase their knowledge about idioms, they learned new vocabulary, and improved their communicative skill.32

D. Conceptual Framework

Based on theoretical above, reading is a process eyes seeing the printed words and then deliver them to their brain and connect them to their background knowledge to get information. Reading is also to get pleasure when students read something interest. There are several kinds of reading; reading to get general information, reading to get specific information, and reading for pleasure. All of the purposes are only to rich our knowledge by reading.

Reading is not just read the words. It needs comprehension to understand what the writer wants to deliver to us. Reading needs skill to comprehend text. When students comprehend the text, students also analyze the structure, grammar, and word knowledge of the text. Words unite and form a sentence, sentence forms a paragraph, and paragraph forms a passage. There are many vocabularies in a passage. Some of them are multi words, namely idiom. Idiom consists of two or more words that have a new meaning. In reading, students frequently translate word by word to understand the text, but when they translate idiom, it differ from translate word by word. Idiom can be understood by translating as a whole word and by guessing from the context. To understand the text, idioms should be known their meaning to get a complete comprehension.

The more students getting know about idiom and master it, they also get better in reading comprehension. Because idioms almost appear in every English text, so students must be aware and familiar with idiom to help them in comprehending the text.

32

Eliana Edith Roberto De Caro, The Advantages and Importance of Learning and Using Idioms in English,Cuadernos de Lingüística Hispánica N, 14, 2009, pp. 121-136


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E. Theoretical Hypothesis

Based on the theoretical and conceptual framework above, the writer formulated the hypothesis as follows:

1. There is no significant relationship between idiom mastery and their reading comprehension.

2. There is significant relationship between idiom mastery and their reading comprehension.


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26

A. Place and Time of the Study

The place of this study was at State Islamic University (UIN) Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta at Jl. Ir. Juanda No.95, Ciputat, Tangerang Selatan. The study was conducted from May to August 2014.

B. Research Design

The study was conducted through quantitative method and the design was correlational study. In this study, bivariate correlation was used to describe relationship between two variables. Two variables were independent and dependent variables. In this study, the independent variable or the variable that explained and affected another variable was “idiom mastery” or usually known as X variable. For the dependent variable or the variable that being affected by the independent one was “reading comprehension” or usually known as Y variable.

C. Population and Sample

The population of this study was 70 students of fourth semester of Department of English Education of UIN Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta, and the sample of this study was 33 students. The writer took the samples by random sampling where the sampling was chosen by odd number.

D. Research Instrument

The instrument of this study used test achievement. Tests were divided into two tests: Idiom test and reading comprehension test. The test of idiom was taken from Basic Idioms in American English, and the test of reading comprehension test was taken from EPT Preparation Program Reading Comprehension. Idiom test consisted of twenty multiple-choice questions and was used to measure students’ idioms mastery. For reading comprehension test consisted of four passages and each passage contained five multiple-choice


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questions and was used to measure students’ reading comprehension. Below were the blue-print of Idiom Test and Reading Comprehension Test:

Table 3.1

The Blue Print of Idiom Test

Standard Competency

Basic Competency

Indicator Item Indicator Kind of Item Number of Item Students can understand the meaning of idiom and kind of idiom that occur in English text.

Students can use idiom in English well and based on the context to express their feeling. • To understand the meaning of idiom based on the context. •To use idiom based on the context.

Phrasal Verb PG 1, 2, 3

Tournure Idioms PG 8, 9, 11,

12, 14, 15

Irreversible Binominal Idioms

PG 10, 18, 19

Phrasal Compound Idioms PG 20 Incorporating verb idioms

PG 7, 13, 16, 17


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Table 3.2

The Blue Print of Reading Comprehension Test Standard Competency Basic Competency Indicator Item Indicator Kind of Item This course aim

are to help the students to be able to comprehend reading passages consist of minimum 2000 words from various types or genres and identify various types of reading comprehension questions in international standardized tests Student can: Finding main

idea from the text.

Answer reading comprehension questions on international standardized test

1. Finding main idea of the text

PG 1, 11, 13

2. Identifying supporting detail or information

PG 2, 7, 8, 12, 19

3. Identifying the topic of the text

PG 6

4. Finding

reference word in the text

PG 4, 10, 14, 18

5. Identifying similar word in the text

PG 3, 9, 13, 17

6. Finding the conclusion of the text

PG 5, 15, 20

E. Technique of Data Collecting

Before collecting the data, the writer conducted a pilot study. Pilot study was used to try out the instruments to get validity and reliability in this study. As Polit, Beck, and Hungler stated that a pilot study can be used as a “small scale


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version or trial run in preparation for a major study”. A pilot study is often used to pre-test or try out a research instrument. A sample size of 10–20% of the sample size for the actual study is a reasonable number of participants to consider enrolling in a pilot.1 Then, sample that the writer took in this pilot study was 20 students. The writer used forty multiple choice questions for idiom test. After that, the data of pilot study was processed by Anates to measure the validity and reliability.

After doing a pilot study, the writer collected the data. The writer used tests as the instrument to measure idioms mastery and their reading comprehension about the text they have read. The writer gave two tests: First, idiom test consisted of twenty multiple-choice questions in order to measure their idioms mastery. Second, the writer gave twenty multiple-choice questions, it consisted of four passages and each passage consists of five questions in order to measure their reading comprehension.

The assessment guidelines used in the tests was number of true are divided number of test and is multiplied 100 (True x 100).

20

F. Technique of Data Analysis

To find out the relationship between idioms mastery and reading comprehension, firstly the writer tested the data by testing normality and testing linearity. After that the writer used the correlation formula by Pearson Product Moment Correlation Formula to test the significant relationship between them. The formula used as follows:

1

Simon, M. K.,Dissertation and Scholarly Research: Recipes for Success, Seattle, WA: Dissertation Success, LLC, 2011, p. 1.


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a. Finding the number of correlation using formula2:

N = the number of respondent

X = the student’s score in idioms mastery

Y = the student’s score in reading comprehension ΣX = the sum of idioms mastery scores

ΣY = the sum of reading comprehension scores ΣX2= the sum of squares of idioms mastery scores

ΣY2= the sum of squares of reading comprehension scores (ΣX)2= the squares of the sum of idioms mastery scores

(ΣY)2= the squares of the sum of reading comprehension scores

ΣXY = the sum multiple of idioms mastery scores and reading comprehension scores

b. To know the significance between two variables, the formula of the significance test is:3

tcount=

tcount = t value

r = value of correlation coefficient n = number of participants

c. To interpret the index scores of “r” correlation, product moment (rxy) usually used the interpretation such as bellow:4

2

Budi Susetyo,Statistika Untuk Analisis Data Penelitian, (Bandung: PT Refika Aditama, 2010), p. 180.

3

Budi Susetyo,Ibid, p. 181.

4

Ridwan and H. Sunarto,Pengantar Statistika Pendidikan,Sosial, Ekonomi, Komunikasi, dan Bisnis, (Bandung: Alfabeta, 2011), p.81.


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Table 3.3 Pearson Correlation The score of “r”

product moment (rxy)

Interpretation

0.00–0.19

There is a relationship between X and Y, but the correlation is very weak or little so it is ignored or it is considered no correlation in this rating.

0.20–0.39 There is a relationship between X and Y, but it is weak or little.

0.40–0.69 There is a relationship between X and Y. The value is medium.

0.70–0.89 There is high relationship between X and Y.

0.90–1.00 There is a very high relationship between X and Y.

G. Hypothesis Testing Criteria

1. If ro> rt, = Hais accepted. There is a relationship between idiom mastery and reading comprehension.

2. If ro< rt, = Ha is rejected. There is no relationship between idiom mastery and reading comprehension.


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32

A. Data Description

The writer conducted the research at UIN Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta where the 4th semester students of Department of English Education were chosen as the sample of the research. The writer used two tests to measure idiom mastery and reading comprehension. There were twenty multiple-choice questions in each test. The first test was idiom test; the question was taken from Basic Idioms in American English. The second test was reading comprehension; the question was taken from EPT Preparation Program Reading Comprehension. There were four passages and its passage contained five questions. The data as follows:

1. Idiom Score

These are the scores from the test of idiom that has been conducted by the writer from twenty questions. The score was gotten by dividing the number of correct answers with the number of test and was multiplied by 100. The students who got score 65 were 3 students, score 70 were 3 students, score 75 were 2 students, score 80 were 8 students, score 85 were 6 students, score 90 were 7 students, score 95 were 3 students, and score 100 was 1 student.

From the data above, it is known that the respondents are 33 students. The mean score of idiom test is 82.42. Meanwhile, the highest score of idiom test is 100 while the lowest score is 65. Then, the median score or the middle score of idiom test is 85. In addition, the mode score or the score that appear the most is 80.

In The Department of English Education, the standardize scores that are used as follows:

80–100 = A 70–79 = B


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60–69 = C 0–50 = D

An “A” is characterized as an excellent score. It is the highest score

and the students who obtained it, passed the test excellently. Then, “B”is characterized as good score. Next, “C”is characterized as medium, or the test takers passed the test but it is suggested to retake the test or remedial the test. The last, “D” score is characterized as not good or the test takers failed to pass the test.

Based on the scores above, the 4th students of Department of English Education obtained good scores in idiom mastery. It can be seen that most of students obtained score 80, in which score 80 is characterized as A, the excellent score. Overall, the 4th students of Department of English Education of UIN Jakarta have good idiom mastery; they passed idiom test, which can be proved from the description above.

2. Reading Comprehension Scores

These are the scores from the test of reading comprehension that has been conducted by the writer from twenty questions. The score was gotten by dividing the number of correct answers with the number of test and was multiplied by 100. The students who got score 55 were 2 students, score 60 were 4 students, score 65 were 4 students, score 70 were 6 students, score 75 were 7 students, score 80 were 5 students, score 85 were 2 students, and score 90 were 3 students.

From the data above, it is known that the respondents are 33 students. The mean score of reading comprehension test is 72.58. Meanwhile, the highest score of reading comprehension test is 90 while the lowest score is 55. Then, the median score or the middle score of reading comprehension test is 75. In addition, the mode score or the score that appear the most is 75.

In Department of English Education, the standardize scores that are used as follows:


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80–100 = A 70–79 = B 60–69 = C 0–50 = D

An “A” is characterized as an excellent score. It is the highest score

and the students who obtained it, passed the test excellently. Then, “B”is characterized as good score. Next, “C”is characterized as medium, or the test takers passed the test but it is suggested to retake the test or remedial the test. The last, “D” score is characterized as not good or the test takers failed to pass the test.

Based on the scores above, the 4th students of Department of English Education obtained good scores in reading comprehension. It can be seen that most of students obtained score 75, in which score 75 is characterized as B, a good score. Overall, the 4thstudents of Department of English Education at UIN Jakarta have good reading comprehension; they passed reading comprehension test, which can be proved from the description above.

B. Data Analysis

To analyze the data above, firstly the writer tests normality using SPSS software to know whether mastery of the idiom and reading comprehension came from the distributed normal population with the significant of 5%.

Table 4.1 Normality Test Table

T o

Kolmogorov-Smirnova Shapiro-Wilk

Statistic df Sig. Statistic df Sig.

Idiom .155 33 .044 .946 33 .103

Reading .113 33 .200* .959 33 .239


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From the table above, the writer used Shapiro-Wilk because it is more appropriate for small samples (< 50 samples). It can be seen that idiom was normally distributed, because value of idiom is 0.103 and is bigger than value of 5%, it means 0.103 > 0.05. Reading comprehension was normally distributed, because value of reading comprehension is 0.239 and is bigger than value of 5%, it means 0.239 > 0.05.

After that, the writer tests linearity using SPSS software to see regression of relationship between two variables is linear. The table as follows:

Table 4.2

From the table above, it can be seen that idiom and reading comprehension have linear regression. The Linearity is 0.006 and Deviation from Linearity is 0.135. It can be concluded that the data used have a good linear regression because linearity is smaller than the significant of 5% (0.006 < 0.05) and deviation of linearity is bigger than 5 % (0.135 > 0.05).

Next step, the writer used the formula of “r” Pearson product

moment to know the relationship between idiom and reading comprehension. Before doing the calculation, the data were described such as below:

Linearity Test Table

Sum of Squares

df Mean

Square

F Sig.

Idiom * Reading

Between Groups

(Combined) 1220.049 7 174.293 2.837 .025

Linearity 547.855 1 547.855 8.917 .006

Deviation from Linearity 672.193 6 112.032 1.823 .135

Within Groups 1536.012 25 61.440


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Table 4.3 Data Analysis Table

Participants X Y XY X2 Y2

Student 1 65 55 3575 4225 3025

Student 2 90 60 5400 8100 3600

Student 3 90 60 5400 8100 3600

Student 4 70 55 3850 4900 3025

Student 5 80 60 4800 6400 3600

Student 6 80 60 4800 6400 3600

Student 7 90 65 5850 8100 4225

Student 8 80 65 5200 6400 4225

Student 9 80 85 6800 6400 7225

Student 10 80 70 5600 6400 4900

Student 11 70 65 4550 4900 4225

Student 12 80 85 6800 6400 7225

Student 13 75 75 5625 5625 5625

Student 14 90 75 6750 8100 5625

Student 15 85 75 6375 7225 5625

Student 16 90 90 8100 8100 8100

Student 17 70 70 4900 4900 4900

Student 18 95 80 7600 9025 6400

Student 19 80 75 6000 6400 5625

Student 20 85 80 6800 7225 6400

Student 21 80 70 5600 6400 4900

Student 22 75 75 5625 5625 5625


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Participants X Y XY X2 Y2

Student 24 85 80 6800 7225 6400

Student 25 85 75 6375 7225 5625

Student 26 90 70 6300 8100 4900

Student 27 65 70 4550 4225 4900

Student 28 100 75 7500 10000 5625

Student 29 95 80 7600 9025 6400

Student 30 95 90 8550 9025 8100

Student 31 85 70 5950 7225 4900

Student 32 90 80 7200 8100 6400

Student 33 65 65 4225 4225 4225

N = 33 ΣX=2720 ΣY=2395 ΣXY=198700 ΣX2=226950 ΣY2=176875

Formula:

Calculation: N = 33

ΣX =2720

ΣY =2395

ΣX2= 226950

ΣY2= 176875

(ΣX)2= 7398400

(ΣY)2= 5736025


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0,446

To make sure the result of the calculation above, the writer used SPSS program. The using of SPSS is to know whether the calculation that the writer did manually was correct and to make sure that there is no mismatching calculation between scores that the writer counted. The calculation of SPSS was described as follows:

Table 4.4 Correlations Table

Idiom Reading

Idiom

Pearson

Correlation 1 .446

**

N 33 33

Reading

Pearson

Correlation .446

**

1 .009


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The Pearson correlation above from the 33 respondents was found the relationship between two variables rxy0.446, which means the relationship is positive or there is a relationship between two variables (idiom mastery and reading comprehension).

The results of those two calculations (manual calculation and SPSS calculation) are the same. The correlation value analyzed by SPSS is rxy 0.446. It means that there is no mismatch in the process of calculating the data.

After finding the “r” correlation score, the writer counted the significance of variables by calculating rxy is tested by significance test formula:

Formula: tcount= Description: tcount = t value r = 0.446

n = 33

Calculation:

t

count

=

=

=

=

=

= 3.091


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Before testing the tcount, the writer made two hypotheses of significance; they are:

Ha : There is significant relationship between two variables Ho : There is no significant relationship between two variables

The formulation of test:

1. If to > ttable, it means that the null hypothesis is rejected and there is significant relationship.

2. If to < ttable, the null hypothesis is accepted and there is no significant relationship.

Based on the calculation above, the result is compared by ttablein the significant of 1% and n=33, the writer found the Degree of Freedom (Df) with the formula:

Df= N–nr = 33- 2 = 31

FromDf = 31, it is obtained ttableof 1% = 2.744. It indicates that to> ttable, in which 3.091 > 2.744. Therefore, the alternative hypothesis (Ha) is accepted. In other words, there is a significant relationship between idiom mastery and reading comprehension.

C. Data Interpretation

Based on the calculation above, it shows that the correlation value is ro 0.446 and the degree of freedom (Df) is 31. In the table of significance shows ifDfvalue is 31, while the table of significance 1% is 0.442.

The statistical hypotheses state: 1. If ro> rt, the Hais accepted.

2. If ro< rt, the Hais rejected.

Based on the score of ro 0.446, it indicates the score of ro > rt, in which 0.446 > 0.442. It means that Hais accepted; or in other word there is a relationship between idiom mastery and reading comprehension.


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To interpret the gravity of ro0.446, the table of “r” product moment shows that the correlation value is on the medium size, in which between 0.40 - 0.69. The table of “r” interpretation was adopted from Ridwan and

Sunarto’s theory:

Table 4.5

Correlation Interpretation Table The score of “r”

product moment (rxy)

Interpretation

0.00–0.19 Very low

0.20–0.39 Low

0.400.69 Medium

0.70–0.89 High

0.90–1.00 Very high

The medium correlation means the relationship tends to the positive value and there is no negative relationship. To know whether the correlation value is significant, the data were tested and the result was significant in which indicates thitung > ttable. The score of significance thitung is 3.091. Meanwhile, the Df = 31 indicates the significant score of 1% is 2.744. It means that the correlation score is significant.

To sum up, the data interpretation shows a finding that idiom mastery and reading comprehension correlate each other. Idiom mastery gives contribution ro 0.446 to reading comprehension. It means reading comprehension is affected by idiom mastery. The relationship of idiom mastery and reading comprehension has significant value. It means the better students master idiom, the better students in reading comprehension.


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42

A. Conclusions

Based on the research finding in the previous chapter, it can be concluded that there is a significant relationship between idiom mastery and reading comprehension. The research shows the relationship in the medium level. Then, when it was tested by the significance t contribution, it shows that the result was significant. The score of to is bigger than ttable. The score of significance thitungis 3.091. Meanwhile, theDf= 31 indicates significant score of 1% is 2.744. It means Ha is accepted. Therefore the researcher summarizes that idiom mastery has relationship to reading comprehension. The better students master idiom, the better comprehension they get in reading.

B. Suggestions 1. For Teachers

Based on the result of this research, it is suggested to give students input of idiom as much as possible because the input of idiom will be an encouragement and helping for students to comprehend the text. Therefore, introducing idiom can be given by knowing the definition, and then use them, and then apply them in daily activity, so the students become familiar with idiom in the text.

2. For Students

For language learners, it is suggested to enrich their knowledge and comprehension through idiom if they want to improve their reading comprehension skill. Idiom can be found in many English sources like books, magazines, newspaper, journals, television, songs, advertisements, etc., so they can be familiar with idioms. The more they master idioms, the more they get better in comprehending the text.


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3. For the Next Researchers

When the writer conducted the research, she found some students still unfamiliar with idiom, so she got difficulty in choosing idiom that already familiar and common for students. Moreover, it is also suggested to teach them idiom in reading or speaking. Remembering idiom also gives contribution in comprehending the text, therefore it is suggested to the next researcher to teach idiom effectively and interesting to increase their skill in reading comprehension. Hopefully this suggestion can be beneficial for the next researcher.


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38 38 0.663 Sangat Signifikan 39 39 0.106

-40 -40 0.419 Sangat Signifikan

Catatan: Batas signifikansi koefisien korelasi sebagaai berikut: df (N-2) P=0,05 P=0,01 df (N-2) P=0,05 P=0,01

10 0,576 0,708 60 0,250 0,325 15 0,482 0,606 70 0,233 0,302 20 0,423 0,549 80 0,217 0,283 25 0,381 0,496 90 0,205 0,267 30 0,349 0,449 100 0,195 0,254 40 0,304 0,393 125 0,174 0,228 50 0,273 0,354 >150 0,159 0,208 Bila koefisien = 0,000 berarti tidak dapat dihitung. KUALITAS PENGECOH

================= Jumlah Subyek= 20 Butir Soal= 40

Nama berkas: C:\USERS\TIASATMA\DOCUMENTS\IDIOM.ANA

No Butir Baru No Butir Asli a b c d * 1 1 0-- 19** 1--- 0-- 0 2 2 18** 2--- 0-- 0-- 0 3 3 13--- 1-- 1-- 5** 0 4 4 1+ 0-- 18** 1+ 0 5 5 4-- 2++ 14** 0-- 0 6 6 2++ 4-- 0-- 14** 0 7 7 5--- 14** 0-- 1- 0 8 8 3+ 4** 11--- 2- 0 9 9 6-- 2+ 1- 11** 0 10 10 1-- 3** 15--- 1-- 0 11 11 4** 7+ 5++ 4+ 0 12 12 0-- 3--- 16** 1+ 0 13 13 0-- 13** 4- 3+ 0 14 14 1++ 2-- 0-- 17** 0 15 15 4** 3+ 6++ 7+ 0 16 16 7** 0-- 3+ 10--- 0 17 17 16** 1+ 2+ 1+ 0 18 18 1+ 0-- 18** 1+ 0 19 19 1+ 18** 1+ 0-- 0 20 20 1++ 0-- 2-- 17** 0 21 21 18** 1+ 0-- 1+ 0 22 22 19** 0-- 0-- 1--- 0 23 23 1- 14** 1- 4-- 0 24 24 1--- 0-- 19** 0-- 0 25 25 13** 0-- 1- 6--- 0 26 26 16** 2+ 1+ 1+ 0 27 27 0-- 8--- 11** 1- 0 28 28 7** 7- 1-- 5++ 0 29 29 0 20** 0 0 0 30 30 2--- 0-- 18** 0-- 0


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63

31 31 19** 0-- 1--- 0-- 0 32 32 17** 1++ 0-- 2-- 0 33 33 0 20** 0 0 0 34 34 19** 1--- 0-- 0-- 0 35 35 2-- 17** 0-- 1++ 0 36 36 20** 0 0 0 0 37 37 0-- 1--- 19** 0-- 0 38 38 0-- 2+ 16** 2+ 0 39 39 0-- 12** 6--- 2+ 0 40 40 1+ 1+ 0-- 18** 0

Keterangan:

** : Kunci Jawaban ++ : Sangat Baik + : Baik

- : Kurang Baik -- : Buruk

---: Sangat Buruk REKAP ANALISIS BUTIR ===================== Rata2= 29.10

Simpang Baku= 3.75 KorelasiXY= 0.41

Reliabilitas Tes= 0.58 Butir Soal= 40

Jumlah Subyek= 20

Nama berkas: C:\USERS\TIASATMA\DOCUMENTS\IDIOM.ANA

Btr Baru Btr Asli D.Pembeda(%) T. Kesukaran Korelasi Sign. Korelasi 1 1 0.00 Sangat Mudah -0.119

-2 -2 -20.00 Sangat Mudah 0.-237

-3 -3 -20.00 Sukar -0.110

-4 -4 0.00 Sangat Mudah -0.082

-5 -5 60.00 Sedang 0.46-5 Sangat Signifikan 6 6 80.00 Sedang 0.674 Sangat Signifikan 7 7 20.00 Sedang 0.227

-8 -8 20.00 Sukar 0.0-89 -9 -9 40.00 Sedang 0.2-9-9

-10 -10 0.00 Sangat Sukar -0.126

-11 -11 -20.00 Sukar -0.219

-12 -12 80.00 Mudah 0.560 Sangat Signifikan 13 13 0.00 Sedang 0.106

-14 -14 60.00 Mudah 0.624 Sangat Signifikan 15 15 20.00 Sukar 0.055

-16 -16 20.00 Sedang 0.180

-17 -17 40.00 Mudah 0.560 Sangat Signifikan 18 18 0.00 Sangat Mudah 0.100

-19 -19 20.00 Sangat Mudah 0.4-19 Sangat Signifikan 20 20 0.00 Mudah 0.126

-21 -21 20.00 Sangat Mudah 0.373 Signifikan

22 22 20.00 Sangat Mudah 0.445 Sangat Signifikan 23 23 60.00 Sedang 0.525 Sangat Signifikan 24 24 -20.00 Sangat Mudah -0.307


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26 26 20.00 Mudah 0.321 Signifikan

27 27 100.00 Sedang 0.629 Sangat Signifikan 28 28 40.00 Sedang 0.266

-29 -29 0.00 Sangat Mudah NAN NAN 30 30 20.00 Sangat Mudah 0.237

-31 -31 20.00 Sangat Mudah 0.445 Sangat Signifikan 32 32 0.00 Mudah 0.088

-33 -33 0.00 Sangat Mudah NAN NAN

34 34 20.00 Sangat Mudah 0.445 Sangat Signifikan 35 35 20.00 Mudah 0.318 Signifikan

36 36 0.00 Sangat Mudah NAN NAN

37 37 -20.00 Sangat Mudah -0.245

-38 -38 80.00 Mudah 0.663 Sangat Signifikan 39 39 20.00 Sedang 0.106


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65

APPENDIX 6

Descriptive Statistic of Idiom

and Reading Comprehension

Correlation between Idiom Mastery and Reading Comprehension

Idiom Reading Comprehension

Idiom

Pearson Correlation 1 .446**

Sig. (2-tailed) .009

Sum of Squares and

Cross-products 2756.061 1293.939

Covariance 86.127 40.436

N 33 33

ReadingComprehension

Pearson Correlation .446** 1

Sig. (2-tailed) .009

Sum of Squares and Cross-products

1293.939 3056.061

Covariance 40.436 95.502

N 33 33

Report

Idiom ReadingComprehe nsion

Mean 82.42 72.58

Median 85.00 75.00

Minimum 65 55

Maximum 100 90

Range 35 35

Std. Deviation 9.280 9.773


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66

Nama Universitas

: UIN Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta

Mata Kuliah: Vocabulary (Idiom)

Jurusan/Prodi

: Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris

Semester

: 4 (Empat)

Standar

Kompetensi

Kompetensi

Dasar

Indikator

Indikator Soal

Jenis Soal

Nomor Soal

Mahasiswa

memahami

makna idiom

dan jenis-jenis

idiom yang

terdapat didalam

bacaan Bahasa

Inggris.

Dapat

menggunakan

idiom bahasa

Inggris dengan

baik dan sesuai

konteks untuk

mengutarakan

maksud atau

ekspresi

Memahami

makna idiom

sesuai dengan

konteks.

Mampu

menggunakan

idiom sesuai

dengan konteks

Phrasal Verb

Tournure Idioms

Irreversible Binominal

Idioms

Phrasal Compound

Idioms

Incorporating verb

idioms

Phrasal Verb

PG

PG

PG

PG

PG

PG

1, 2, 3

8, 9, 11, 12,

14, 15,

10, 18, 19

20

7, 13, 16, 17


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67

APPENDIX 8

KISI-KISI SOAL READING COMPREHENSION INSTRUMEN PENELITIAN

Nama Universitas

: UIN Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta

Mata Kuliah: Reading

Jurusan/Prodi

: Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris

Semester

: 4 (Empat)

Standar Kompetensi

Kompetensi Dasar

Indikator

Jenis Soal

Nomor Soal

Memahami bacaan

yang terdiri dari

minimal 2000 kata

dari berbagai jenis

bacaan dan

mengidentifikasi

jenis pertanyaan

reading

comprehension yang

ada didalam test

berstandar

internasional.

Siswa dapat:

Menemukan ide

pokok dari bacaan

Menjawab

pertanyaan

reading

comprehension

berstandar

internasional

1. Menemukan ide

pokok dari sebuah

teks

2. Mengidentifikasi

berbagai informasi

spesifik dari teks

3. Mengidentifikasi

topik dari teks

4. Menentukan

reference word

dalam sebuah

kalimat.

5. Mengidentifikasi

sinonim kata

(

similar word)

dalam sebuah

kalimat.

6. Menentukan

kesimpulan dalam

cerita.

PG

PG

PG

PG

PG

PG

1, 11, 13

2, 7, 8, 12, 19

6

4, 10, 14, 18

3, 9, 13, 17