revised edition of Bloom’s taxonomy, this study will give broader insight about
the higher order thinking skill based on the revised edition of Bloom’s taxonomy. Thus, the students need to have higher order thinking skills because Paul
and Elder also highlight that, “No matter what your circumstance or goals, no
matter where you are, or what problems you face, you are better off if your thinking is skilled. As a professional, shopper, employee, citizen, lover, friend,
parent, and in every realm and situation of your life, good thinking pays off.”
12
It means that the higher order thinking skill is not only necessary in academic
matters but also in every parts of our life to present our opinion and make a logical decision whoever and wherever we are.
Additionally, the focus in the college life is on the higher order thinking for being active to evaluate the ideas and information.
13
For this reason, the higher order thinking skill plays a vital role throughout the learning process because it
could improve students’ ability in critical thinking skill to evaluate information. Moreover, for the eleventh grade of senior high school students who will continue
their study to the college or even for them who want to go to work, having the higher order thinking skill is very important for preparing themselves to do their
own thinking in the real world. Further, the writer chooses the textbook because it implicates the 2013
curriculum. In the 2013 curriculum, there are the five scientific approaches which are considered as the steps in teaching and learning process; observing,
questioning, associating, experimenting, and networking.
Suharyadi explains that in the observing process, the students can connect
what they have learned with what they are going to learn. The questioning and the associating could be useful for the students to develop their critical thinking
skills in logically and systematically process of thinking. The experimenting could help the students to solve the problems they face in everyday life. Then, in
the networking process, it allows the learners to face various changes and
12
Richard W. Paul and Linda Elder, Critical Thinking: Tools for Taking Charge of Your Professional and Personal Life, New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 2002, p.26
13
Gregory Bassham, et.al., Critical Thinking: A Student’s Introduction, New York:
McGraw Hill, 2005, p.8
challenges to learn together.
14
Hence, it can be seen that those scientific approaches are also related with the higher order thinking skill. It is supported by
Brookhart ’s statement which states that the higher order thinking skill engages the
problem solving and critical thinking skill.
15
In addition, the author tells the reader that it practices the four-skills: listening, speaking, reading, and writing- which eventually help the students to
develop their discourse competence. By having that competence, the author hopes that the students can survive in the English communication environment to access
information and express themselves in different kind of texts. To sum up, the writer believes that an analysis of the higher order thinking
skill in the reading exercise of the textbook is important because it may improve the students’ critical thinking skill in the reading skill and may support the
students to survive in the English communication environment.. Moreover, Woodward and Elliot as citied by Reed and Bergemann
explain that, “…textbook can be improved with more emphasize on problem solving and higher order
cognitive process.”
16
Therefore, the writer choose to analyze the distribution of the higher order thinking skill of reading exercises in the Pathway to English
textbook for the 11
th
grade of senior high school students to make sure that the textbook has been support the students in encouraging their competence to survive
in the English communication environment by providing the higher order thinking skill in the reading exercises.
B. The Formulation of the Problem
The writer would like to formulate this study as: “How does the distribution of the higher order thinking skill in the reading
exercise of Pathway to English textbook look like?”
14
Suharyadi, State University of Malang, English Department, Exploring “Scientific
Approach” in English Language Teaching, 2014, p.1350-1352, www.teqip.com.
15
Susan M. Brookhart, How to Asses High-Order Thinking Skills in Your Classroom, Alexandria: ASDC Member Book, 2010, p.3
16
Arthea J S Reed, Verna E Bergemann, and Mary W. Olson, In the Classroom: In Introduction to Education, Boston: McGraw-Hill, 1998, p.258
C. The Scope of the Study
This study is limited only on analyzing the reading exercises in Pathway to English textbook. The writer will only focus on the essay questions of the reading
exercises because those essay questions could give broader insight into students’
thinking so that they could train their higher order thinking skill properly. The essay reading question that will be analyzed are only the questions preceded by
WH-question words What, Who, When, Where, Why, and How in Pathway to English textbook which is used by 11
th
grade of senior high students. The writer only analyzes the essay questions that come after every reading
text or in the other word it is the reading comprehension questions. Those questions are analyzed based on the higher order thinking level in the cognitive
domain of the revised edition of Bloom’s taxonomy which consists of analyze,
evaluate, and create skill.
D. The Objective of the Study
In line with the formulation of the problem above, the objective of this study aims to get the empirical evidence of the distribution of the higher order thinking
skill based on the revised edition of Bloom’s Taxonomy in the essay question of
the reading exercises in Pathway to English textbook which is used for the 11
th
grade of senior high school student.
E. The Significance of the Study
This study has significance for the writer herself as a candidate of a teacher and for the reader. For both of them, this study is expected to give broader insight
or perception about the textbook selection, the reading exercises, and the higher order thinking skills from the revised edition of
Bloom’s Taxonomy.
7
CHAPTER II THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
A. Textbook
1. The Understanding of Textbook
Textbook is one of the instructional resources in the classroom for the teachers and the students during the teaching and learning process. It is a
resource that could affects the students’ outcome in the teaching and learning process. Airasian and Russel claim that,
“Another resource that greatly influences what is planned, taught, and learned in classroom is the textbook.
More than any other single resources, the textbook determines instructional plans in many classrooms.”
1
To sum up, the textbook is the resource that could influence the teaching and learning process because it is considered as an
instructional plan for teacher to teach their students in the classroom. Moreover, Reed,
Bergemann and Olson believe that, “Textbook are the single most used instructional tool in the classroom.”
2
It means that the textbook is the instructional resources that mostly used by many teachers in the
teaching process. Furthermore, they add that, “Textbooks provide a common
resource for all students. It includes pictures graphs, maps, and other illustrations to facilitate the learning process.”
3
It means that the textbook is one of the instructional tools that could be a media of active learning and could
facilitate the students in the learning process because it provides some interesting illustrations.
1
Peter W. Airasian and Michael K. Russell, Classroom Assessment: Concepts and Applications, Boston: McGraw-Hill, 2008, 6
th
Ed., p. 63
2
Arthea J S Reed, Verna E. Bergemann, and Mary W. Olson, In the Classroom: An Introduction to Education, Boston: McGraw-hill, 1998 , p.256
3
Ibid.,
In summary, textbook is one of the instructional resources that consist of pictures, graphs, texts, maps, exercises, and other media of learning that is
considered as the resource that is mostly used in the classroom that could facilitate the teachers and the students in the teaching and learning process. It
also influences the teaching and learning process in the classroom.
2. The Use of Textbook
People could not deny that the textbook has many advantages in the teaching and learning process. As stated before that it is considered as the
resource that is mostly used in the teaching and learning process, thus the textbook has important role in the teaching and learning process.
In addition, Airasian and Russel highlight that, “The instructional
resources available to a teacher influence not only the nature of instruction but also the learning outcomes that are possible.
”
4
It is clearly said that the textbook, as one of the instructional resources, could help the teachers to make
the better outcomes in the teaching and learning process. Ornstein in Reed, Bergemann and Olson also adds
that, “The textbook has had the longest and most obvious influence on curriculum, to the extent of,
in effect, standardizing teaching and instructional practice.”
5
It means that the textbook is important equipment in the teaching and learning process because it
can standardize the instructional practice in the classroom. The textbook also provides the students with such illustration materials
like pictures and graphs to make it interesting to be read. Therefore, the textbook is obviously useful for both the teachers and the students because it
facilitates the teachers and the students with interesting illustrations that could help the students to be more interested in the teaching and learning process.
4
Airasian and Russel, op.cit., 2008, p.62
5
Reed, Bergemann, and Olson, loc.cit, 1998, p.256
