109 students have the moral obligation to share it to the class on how it should be.
Based on the data gained from the observation, questionnaire distribution and interview, the researcher inferred that the students employ analysis to activate
their critical thinking towards the text when they are curious about the “how” and the “why” of the text.
4.3.4 Readers’ Ability on Connecting, Synthesizing and Transforming Information
In Critical Reading and Writing 1 class CRW 1, the students were encouraged to analyze and evaluate what they read and give comment or
judgment on it. Judgment as the implementation of critique in critical review focused on the development of the subject matter, as proposed by Arnaudet and
Barrett 1984. In commenting on the article, the students were encouraged to focus on one point and develop the comment into a bigger point. The way
students developed the comment into a bigger point was by connecting, synthesizing and transforming the information they gained on the point they are
commenting on. The data gained from the observation, questionnaire distribution and interview show how the students connect, synthesize and transform the
information. The elaboration of the data gained is presented as follows. Based on the observation, the researcher found out regarding the
presentation session students presented the information they gained. This was also the challenge for them to be able to see the relation between information, to be
able to put the information together and to use the information to support their
110 topics. Based on the observation on two presentations, the researcher found out
that one group was able to present a good relation between information to support their topic but another group was not able to present it in a good point. One
seemed to connect, synthesize, and transform the information they gained to support a topic. They also focused on small points they wanted to support so that
the structure of the presentation was clear and the information presented was also well developed. However, another group seemed to not really able to connect,
synthesize, and transform the information they gained. They presented all the information they gained without showing the focus of their presentation, what was
or were the points that they wanted to emphasize on their presentation. It shows that they read many sources and searched many sources for their topic but did not
know how to put the information together to support their topics. Based on the data gained from the questionnaire, the researcher found out
that in their reading section, the students learned how to examine the ideas and connect the ideas to the topic through evaluation. The question and statement that
indicate critical reading focusing on evaluation are question part B number 4 and statement part C number 4. For question part B number 4, the question is on how
the class knows whether the arguments are weak or strong.
Table 4.13 Students’ Ability on Examining and Connecting the Information in Text
No Stages Points
Percentage B.4 Critical Reading
By seeing the facts or examples provided 78.6
C.4 Critical Thinking In your reading section class, you are able to find out whether they are relevant to the
topic of the text when you see the main ideas of the text
82.1
The questionnaire is attached on the appendices
111 The data show that the students starting to connect the information they
gained by examining the main ideas presented. After that, the students are able to find out the topic of the text. By examining whether the arguments are weak or
strong, they try to synthesize the arguments that could be put together. Based on the interview with the lecturer, the researcher found out that the
students were encouraged to connect, synthesize and transform the information they gained by trying to interpret the point or issue presented in the text. Based on
the interview, after analyzing and evaluating what happened, the students then were asked to interpret the issue. Interpreting is involving how the students
connect the issue to the reality or what happened in their surroundings and how they transform the information they gained from synthesizing what they gained
from the text and what they figured out in the real world into future prediction of the issue. In the reading section, after reading the text, the students were asked to
take one point on text to be commented on. They provided the complete comment by first reading other relevant sources about the point, connected the point to the
real world as they connecting it to their personal experience, and to what they heard from their friends. Then they make the future prediction based on the
information they collect. The lecturer explained that connecting the information was like picking one point from one source and another point from another source
where at the same time the reader needed to examine the similarity, the connection, or even the contrast information within the two points. However,
connecting, synthesizing and transforming information was not easy to be conducted. The lecturer stated that some students were critical enough; they were
112 able to put things together to create arguments. However, other students were not
yet able to synthesize the information they gained to support one single idea. Based on the interview with 7 respondents, the researcher also found out the
same result. Some of the respondents were able to connect, synthesize, and transform the information to support their arguments but the other were still not
yet able to do it. Then, two out of seven respondents stated that while composing comment on one point they got from the reading, they firstly connected the point
to their experience and to what happened in the real world. Then, they tried to find the connection of it and related it to their topic. Next, they transformed the
information they got from connecting and synthesizing between the point and the real world into their writings. On the other hand, three out of seven respondents
stated that they connected the point to what happened in the real world but they did not synthesize or transform the information they gained. Next, two out of
seven respondents stated that they did not even connect the information they got.
4.3.5 Readers’ Innovative Thinking
