Using Reading Race in Improving Students' Reading Ability at Islamic Junior High School Bahrul Ulum, Gowa Regency - Repositori UIN Alauddin Makassar

USING READING RACE IN IMPROYING STUDENTS'
READING ABILITY AT ISLAIWC JTTMORI{IGH
SCHOOL BAHRUL ULTIM, GOWA REGENCY

A Thesis

Submittedto the Tarbiyah and TeaclringScienceFaculty of UIN Alauddin
Makassar in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements
for the Degree of Sarjana Pendidikan

By:
Nuraziza Aliah
Reg.Number:T20401106150

ENGLISH EDUCATION DEPARTMEI{T
TARBTYAII A}\tD TNACIIING SCIENCE F'AC{JLTY
ALAUDDIN STATE ISLAMIC TJNTVERSITYOF
MAKASSAR
2010

USINGREADING RACE IN IMPROVING

STUDENTS'
READINGABILIryAT ISLAMIC
JdMOR IilGH
SCHOOLBATTRULULUM, GOWA
REGENCY

A Thesis
submittedto the Tarbiyahand Teaching
scienceFacalty of jIIN Atauddin
p y tiat Fulfi tIie nt of:
Mala ss
tni i" qui, ments
7r \
1or the l)egree of Sarjanapendidikan"

By:
Nuraziza Aliah
Reg.Number:T20401l06tj0

ENGLISH EDUCATION DEPARTMENT

TARBTYAH AND TSACIIINC SiTAXCN
T,ACULTY
ALAUDDIN STATE ISLAMIC UIIIVERSITTOT
MAKASSAR
2010

PENGESAHANSKRIPSI

Skripsiyangberjudul"Using ReadingRacein Improving Students'Reading
Ability at IslamicJunior High SchoolBahrul ulum, Gowa Regencyr,yangdisusun
oleh saudari: NURAZIZA ALIAH NIM 20401106150,
pendidikanBahasa
mahasiswa
Inggris FakultasTarbiyah dan KeguruanUIN Alauddin Makassar,telah diuji dan
dipertahankan
dalamsidangmunaqasyah
yangdiselenggarakan
pada.hariSelasa,tanggal
27 Juh2010M bertepatan
dengantanggall5 Sya'ban1431H dandinyatakantelahdapat

diterimasebagaisalahsatu syaratuntuk memperolehgelar Sarjanapendidikan(S.pd)
dalamilmu TarbiyahJurusanpendidikanBahasaInggrisdenganbeberapa
perbaikan.
Makassar,

27 Juli20l0 M
l5 Sya'ban1431H

DEWAN PENGUJI
(SK DekanNo. 144Tahun20f0)
Ketua

: Dra.DjuwairiahAhmad,M.Pd.,M.TESOL

Sekretaris

: Dra.Kamsinah,
M.Pd.I

MunaqasyI

: Muh.RusydiRasyid,S.Ag.,M.Ag.,M.Ed

Munaqasytr

: Dra. St.Azisah,M.Ed. St

Pembimbingl

: Prof. HamdanJuhannis,M.A., ph. D.

Pembimbingll

: Nursalam,S.Pd.,M.Si.

-/)
"'"'"'{

DiketahuiOleh
FakultasTarbiyahdanKeguruan

16 198303I 004

PERSETUJUAIYPEMBIMBING
Pembimbing penulisan skripsi saudari Nurazha Atiah Nim: 2040f106t50,
mahasiswi Jurusan Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris pada Fakultas Tarbiyah dan
Kegunran UIN Alauddin Makassar, setelah dengan salcsamameneliti dan
mengoreksiskripsi yang bersangkuan,de,nganjudul '.Using Reading Race in
Improving Students' Rcading Abtlity at Islamic Junior lligh $chool Bahml
Ulnm, Gowe Regency', memandangbahwa skripsi tersebut telah memenuhi
syaratilmiah dandapatdisetujuiuntuk diajukanke sidangmunaqasyah"
Demikian persetujuan ini diberikan untuk dipergunakandan diproses
selanjutrya.

Makassar,14 Juli 2010

Pembimbingl

Prof, Ham$rnJuhannis.lVLA.. Ph.D.
NIP.19701231

1996031 005

Prmbimbing II

PER}TYATAAN KEASLIAN SKRIPSI

Dengansenantiasamengharapkanridha Allah SWT, yang bertandatangan
di bawah ini menyatakan bahwa skripsi ini adalah benar-benarhasil kerja
penyusun sendiri. Jika dikemudian hari terbukti bahwa penulisan skripsi ini
merupakan duplikat, tiruan atau dibuat orang lain secara keseluruhan atau
sebahagian,maka skripsi ini dan gelar yang diperoleh kmenanyabatal demi
hukum.

Makassar,12Juli 2010
Penulis

NurFziza Aliah
20401106150

tv

ACKNOWLEDGEMANT

Alhamdulillah Rabbil Alamin, the witer expressesher gratitude to the
God Almighty who bestows and blessesher, so she could finish writing this
thesis.
The writer realizesthat this ovritingwould not finish without helping and
the guidancefrom the other people, so shewould like to expressto her deepest
to the following person:
indebtedness
1. Beloved parent, Hj. St Asiah Aliah, her sisters and brotherso her
grandmother and also to all her family, for their love, prayosupports,and
sacrificeswhen the writer was studying at English Deparftrent of Tartiyah
andTeachingFacuttyof Alauddin StateIslamic University Gn{) Makassar.
2. Prof. DR. H. Azhar Arsyad, MA, the Rector of Islamic StateUnivenity of
Alauddin Makassarfor his adviceduring her studiedat the university.
3. Prof. DR Natsir Mahmud. MA. The Dean of Tarbiyah and Teaching
ScienceFaculty for adviceandmotivation.
4. Dra. DJuwariah Ahmad, M.Pd., M. TESOL and Dra. Kamsinah M.Pd.I,
The Headandthe Secretaryof English Deparhnentof Tarbiyahand Teaching

ScienceFaculty of Alauddin StateIslamic University (UIN) Makassarwho
havehelped,guided,and supportedthe writer.

5. The writer t}anks for the guidanceand correction to this uriting; deeply
thanksare expressedto somepeople,especiallyto Prof. Hamdan Juhannis,
MA., Ph. D. as the frrst consultantand Nursalrm, S. Pd., M. Si. as the
secondconsultantwho alwaysgive adviceand guidance.
6. All the lectures and staJf of Tarbiyah and Teaching Faculty especially
English EducationDepartrnentfor their guidanceand assistanceduring the
yearsofthe wdter's study.
7. The writer's especiallyindebtedgoesto the Headmasterand all the teachers
of MTs. Bahrul Ulum Kab.Gowa"who have given opportmity to conductdtis
researchin MTs. Bahrul Ulum Kab. Gowa also for the first and the second
year students,she would like to say many thanks for their cooperationand
their participationduring the completionthis research.
8 . The writer also would like to say thanksfor her bestfriends: A. Musyawarah
Darwis, SE, Ummu Kalsum, Khadiiah Malilq Habibatul Mutshirah Hasan,
SE, Sukmawati,A. Mq Yuli Sutriani who alwayshelpedand supportedher to
continueher studyin the university.
9. The uniter alsowould like to ttrankto her bestfriends andher belovedfriends

in PBI 7 and PBI 8 academicyear 2006 who always helping to solve the
problemsand give spirit andmentalsupportto her.

10.Special thanks to the writer's friends in English Lovers Club and
GAPPEMBARfortheir supportin finishing her study.
11. Alt people who help her and those whom the writer cannotmention one by
one.

vl

Finally the writer is sure that this thesis is far from being perfect so the
writer sincerelyappreciatesthe constructivecriticism from the reader.

Makassar,12 July 2010
The writer

M

IYurazizaAliah
I\ttM.20401106150

vil

LIST OF CONTENT
TrTLE PAGE......

..........
i

PENGESAHANSKRIPSI

............
ii

PERSETUJUANPEMBIMBING.......

..........iii

PEI\IYATAAI\IIGASLIAN SKRIPSI.

.........iV

ACKNOWLEGEMENT .............

...................
v

LIST OF CONT8NT...........
LIST OF TABLES ............
LIST OF APPENDIXES........

......viii
............
x
......xi

ABSTRACT.............

...................xii

CIIAPTER I

INTRODUCTTON
A. Background
....................
I
B. ProblemStatements
.......3
C. TheObjective
of Reaseach.........
.......................
3
D. Significance
of the Research...
.........4
E. Scopeofthe Research
.....................4
F. TheOperational
Definitionof Terms..................................
4

CHAPTER II

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATT]RE
A. SomePreviousResearch
Finding.....
.................6
The
of
reading.
B.
Concept
..................7
1. Thedefinitionof reading
......................6
2. Reading
abilities
.................8
a. Reading
speed........
.......8
b. Understanding
of what is read
........9
3. TheReasons
for Reading....
.............,....9
4. Kindsofreading.
...............
l0
ru1es.........
5. Reading
...........
16
6. Technique
of improvingreadingski11...............:...
l8
7. Somedifficultiesin reading.
...............
20
C. TheConceptofreadingrace..........
.................
2l
1. Definitionof readingnrce..........
.........21
2. Themajorpurposes
of readingrace......................
2l
3. Procedure
of readingrace..........
.........22
D. ReadingRaceandSpeedReading
...................22
l. The SamenessbetweenReading Race and Spsd
Reading....
........22

vill

2. The DifferentiatebetweenReadingRaceand Speed
Reading....
........23
E Resume....
.....................23
F. Theoretical
Framework
..................23
CHAPTER III METHOD OF TIIE RNSEARCH
A. Research
Design
B. Variableof theResearch..
C. PopulationandSample
D. Instnrmentof Research
E. Procedure
of collecting
data..........
F. Technique
of DataAnalysis...
CHAPTER TV FINDING AI\[D DISCUSSION
A. Findings
B. Discussion
CHAPTER V

..........25
..............25
..................
26
..................26
..................27
........29

.....32
....................38

CONCLUSSION AND SUGGESTION
A. Conclussion.................:....................................
40
B. Suggestion
....................41

BIBLIOGRAPI{Y
APPENDIX
CURRTCULUM VTTAE

ix

LIST OF TABLES

Table 1

ClassifringScoreof Students

Table2

Theclassification
of students'pre-test...

Table3

The classificationof students'post-test

Table4

T::i:T::* :::T:::::::::::::::::::T:::5,7

Table 5

in Pre-testandPost-test...................
MeanScoreof the Students
30

...................25
.....................25
....25

LIST OF APPENDDGS
Appendix I

TheTestof Pre-test
andPost-1es1...............

.....42

Appendix II

TreatnentMaterialsandTest-...

..-.46

Appendix III

TheAnswerKey........

Appendix tV

The ResultScoreof Students'Pre-testandPost-test.......65

Appendix V

TheTreatrnent
Score

AppendixVI

T-Test

Appendix VII

TheAttendance
List

....................64

66
-.-.....,..................67

xl

......................68

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ABSTRACT
Title
Researcher
Consultant I
Consultan II

*Using Reading Racein Improving Students'Reading Ability
at Islamic Junior High SchoolBahrul Ulum, Gowa Regenry'.
Nuraziza Alieh
Prof. Ilamdan Juhannis, MA-, Ph. D.
Nunalrrm, S. Pd., M. Si.

This was a pre-experimentalresearchusing one group pre-test and postest design, which was aimed at finding out the effects of Reading Race
Technique in improving students' ability in reading at Islamic Junior High
SchoolBahrul Ulum, GowaRegency.
The population of this research was Islamic Junior High School at
academicyear.Therearethreeclassesof this school;they arefirst year
200912010
class,secondyear classand third year class.It consistsof 14 studentsoffirst year
classn13 studentsof secondyear class and 19 studentsofthird year class. The
total number of population is 46 students.The writer used purposive sampling
techniqueand it consistsof 27 students.
This researchemployedreading testing (multiple choice questions)as the
instnrmentof datacollection. The result of this test was used to assessto what
extentreadingrace techniqueto improve the students'ability in readingafter the
beahnent.After severalmeetings,this researchfound out the use of readingrace
techniquesignificantly effective to improve the stude,nts'ability in reading.The
result of this researchwas (1) the mean scoreobtainedby studentsthrough pretestwas 61.11andpost-testwas 82.59,(2) the valueof t-testwas 7.011,the level
significance: 0.000 degreeof freedom, dF 29 and level of confidence: 95,. It
meansthat this is a siguificant differencebetweenthe nesultof the shrdents'pretestandpost-test.Therefore,hypothesis[Io wasrejectedand Hr was accepted.

xll

F
CHAPTER I
INTROI}UCTION
This chapter presents

, problem statemen! objective of the

research,the significance of the research,the scope of the researchand the
operationaldefinition of terms.
A, Background
Readingis one of the basic communicationskills and a processin which
readerfmdsirformation given by the writer in the wriuen form.
Reading ability is the most important thing today and no one can get
successwithout having this ability. This ability helps people to get information
from the simple readingtext to the more complex one. The eventsof the day to
the scientific issuecanbe known throughreadingability. As De Boer stateso
"One
of the best important ways of learning however is through reading. Successin
schoolandin life dependsin talrgepart on your abitity to reado'.(1982:166)
For this reason,the reading ability is importantly neededfor studentsin
acquiring the English languageskill. This can be seenin the teaching learning
process.Therearemany bookson scienceandtechnologiesarewritten in English.
This meansthat learnersaxeexpectedto be able to understandthe English written
information in the book used.Hence,the readingability is significantly neededby
the student.

2

I

But" in fact there are many shrdentswho feel afraid and wonied to know
the material given in futly English and without translation in the unitten form.
However,this is not only the singleproblem facedby the studentin acquiringthe
Fnglish languageskill, particularly readingskill. Thereis also anothersignificant
obstaclethey faced in understandingthe reading passage;it is the speedand
cornprehensionof the stud€nt.They always fry to find out the meaningof every
word so they are difficult to understandthe meaningof the text. Kumba in Ratna
(1995:30)statesthat "the averagestudentsare still poor in readingespeciallyin
comprehendingthe passage".This statementis zupportedby the result of some
researcherswho found out that the students'ability in readingespeciallyin speed
and comprehensionis very low. YeL like any other skill, the ability to read
efficiently canbe developedwith training.
In training, the techniqueis significantly neededby the teacher.Because
the technique or teaching influences the students' succ,ess,so the teacher of
English should selectthe suitabtemethodor techniqueto teachdre students.So,
this thesis,the wrikr ties to introducereadingracetechnique.
Readingracetechniqueis techniquewhich is usedto improve the reading
speedand comprehension.By reading race studentscan read information more
quicHy. The studentsmay also get a better understandingof it, as we witl holdmore of it in short term memory. Readingrace also is how can the studentsread
with better comprehensionduring quicker and rememberit well also at the same
time. Nurhadi (1987: 3t-32\ statesthat r€ad fast and effective is kind readsthat
grvetop priority speedo
without leavecomprehensiontowardsthe readingaspect.

Caring out the situation above, the writer is interested to conduct a
researchon "Using Reading Race in Improving StudentsnReading Ability at
Istamic Junior lligh SchootBahrultllum, Gbwa Regencyt.
B. Problem Statements
Relatedto the backgrotrndabove,the writer fonnulatesresearchquestions
asfollow:
l. What is the students'readingability before using readingrace of the
studentsat Islamic Junior High SchoolBahrul Ulum, GowaRegency?
2. What is the students' reading ability after using reading race of the
studentsat Islamic Junior High SchoolBahrul Ulum, GowaRegency?
3. Is the use of reading race effective to improve the sfudents'reading
ability at Islamic Junior High SchoolBahrul Ulum, GowaRegency?
C. Objectives of the Research
In relating to the problem statementsabovethe objective of the research
areto find out:
1. The students'readingability beforeusing readingrace of the students
at Islamic Junior High SchootBalrul Ulum, Gowa Regency.
2. The students'readingability after using readingraceof the studentsal
Islamic Junior High SchoolBahd Lllum, GowaRegency.
3. The effectivenessof reading race in improving the reading ability of
the students at Islamic Junior High School Bahrul Ulum, Gowa
Regency.

4

D. Significanceof the Research
The results of the researchare expectedto be useful information and a
referencefor the English studentsin general, and for the teachers.It is also
expectedto give a new insight in developingthe Englishreadingskill.
E Scopeof the Research
The researchis restrictedto the use of ReadingRacestrategyto improve
reading ability at Islamic Junior High School Batrrul Ulum, Gowa Regency.In
this research,the writer usesreadingtest with diff€refit tupic as dre iustnnnentto
m@surethe studentsreadingability.
F. The Operational llefinition of Terms
l. ReadingAbility
Readingabitrty is skill to recognizethe meaningfulwritten symbol and the
comprehensionof massagewhich is communicated.As Foertschstates,"Learning
to readmeanslearningto bring meaningto a text in orderto get meaningfrom it".
(1998).Petty and Jensen(1980:208)say when a peffionreads,he is processing
infomratioruof course,they do not saythat all informationprocessingis reading.
In reading, understandingonly not enough, but also need the speed in
reading. This ability is necessaryto make relevance between the students'
knowledgeandthe growing of scienceandtechnologynow. In fact, sometest like
naional examination,TOEFL test, etc, the shrdentsrequired to find answerto
specificquestionin limited time. Combinationbetweenspeedand comprehension
in reading,the researchercalls "the readingability".

2. ReadingRace
Readingrace is techniquewhich is usedto improve the readingspeedand
comprehension.Application of this strategy iu teaching learning processwill
makesall the studentsmore activein classroomandto decreasethe students'habit
that readsand fanslates text word by word. In teachinglearningprocess,reading
is formulated like a motor ftrce or car race championship,where the sfudents
confronteachother in readingspeedand comprehension.
Basedon the definition above,the writer concludethat the applicationof
readingrace in improving the students'readingabilif meansthat the application
of reading race can becomeoue of effective ways in teaching reading process,
where studentscan overcomethe barriersto learn for getting result in improving
their readingabillty.

CHAPTER II
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATTTRE
A. SomePrevious ResearchFinding
Rani Musfirah (2004) conducteda researchon catching the main idea
throughspeedreading,shereportedthat the studentsof SMLJNI Selayarare able
to catchthe main ideq because 18 (60%) of studentscan catchthe main idea of
pamgraph.
Hj. Sabaxiain Muslimah (2008) conclude out that one of the teachers'
most effective instrumentfor stimulatingand grddingthe studentsin teachingand
in tearningprocesson the part of the teaching,a teachercan begin by focusingon
the questionthe teacheruses.
Supiani(2009) statesthat the useof skimming and scanningtechniquewas
successfulto improved the students'reading comprehensionachievementat the
third year studentsof SMP Negeri 3 Bontotiro.
Harianain Muslimah (2008)reportedthat readingmaterialin variousways
coutd improvethe students'interest.
Basedon the previousrelatedresearchabovethe researcherconcludesthat
there are many ways that the teachercan use to improve the studentsreading
ability. In this case,the teachersare expectedto use maly kinds of techrique or
methodon the readingclass.So, in this thesis,the writer wantsto inroduce a new
technique to improve reading speed and comprehensionnamely reading race
technique.The writer is surethat the facts shownftrough conctmion of previous
researcherxilre the writer this researchis visible to conduct.
6

B. The Concept of Reading
Before going on discussion of the aspect related to reading, the
researcherwould like to presenta verse of the Al-Qur'an versenamely the first
andthe third verseof Al-alaq;

@ i]t'xier$:;ijgj@.3l3.,silcqr
1;Uiyf
*(t) Readin the ftrme of thy Lord Who created.Readand your Lord is the
most
generous".(Al-alaq: l, 3). (www.quranexplorer.com)
The first verseshowsthe requisite of reading;before reading someone
mustread basmatahto get Gods' mercy and the third verseshowsthat if someone
always repeat his/trer reading, the God will give mercy and knowledge for
himlher. In conclusion,reading is very important and the people must be read
somethingnot only such a text, but also read anything &at in which they get
information or knowledge.
1. TheDefinition of Reading
Reading is an exercise dominated by eyes and the brain. The eyes
receive messagesand the brain then has to work out the significanceof these
messages(JeremyHormer, 1991:190).Readingmust be recognizedthat is a
langtrageprocess.It is cl'oselylfuilrsdto other languageprocesses,patieulady to
cognitive process.It is centeredin brain and it involves all the processthat brain
usesin the normal courseof mental activity like: we pay attention,we perceive,
we remember,we forget etc. (BarbaraTaylor, 1988).
Three basic definition of reading have driven literacy progftrmsin the
United States(Foertsctr,1998).According to the first definition, learningto read

reans learningto pronouncewords. According to the seconddefinition, learning
to readmeansleaming to identifu words and get their meaning.According to the
ftird definition, leamingto readmeansleamingto bring meaningto a text in order
to get meaningfrom it.
Guy L. Bond andEva Bond Wagnerexplainedthe meaningof readingas
the processof acquiringand author's meaningand of interpreting,evaluatingand
effectingupon thosemeaning.Eddiewilliams (198a;2)statesthat the definition of
readingis that it is a processwherebyone looks at andunderstandswhat hasbeen
written
From the quotes above, the writer can conclude that reading is the
interactionbetweenthe readerand the writer where the readertackles what the
writer means.The readerexpr€ssesit by giving attention,encodingand retieval
with eyesandbrain.
2. Reading Abilities
Two basicparametersfor rrcading:
a. ReadingSpeed
Mc. Whorter (1992:3)definesreadingspeedas performingreadingwith
the minimum expenseor waste time. On the other hand, readrng speedis the
abitity of the readerto usetime effectively without losing comprehension.
Readingspeedor reading faster helps you to understandmore. In fact,
your brain works better when you read faster. If you read slowly, you read one
word at a time; you must remembermany separatewords. Soonyou can get tired
or bored.But if you read faster,you can read groupsof words together,and then

you can think about ideasand not just single words. That is why you understand
betterandremembermore.
b. Understandingof What Is Read
M. R. Davenport (2002) views reading as a process of constructing
meaning,not of sayingwords, and perceivesmiscuesas a window into a reader's
sfiategiesfor creatingmeaning.The goal of creatingmeaningand the processof
perceive miscue is appearinga new idea or concl.usionand the ability of the
students'to find answerto specific questions.When the studentscan achievethe
goals,it is meanthat the studentsunderstandaboutwhat they havebeenread.
3. The Reasonsfor Reading
Peopleread somethingto know any information that they need.Grellet in
Mursalim (1988:26)therearethreemain reasonsfor reading,they are:
Readingfor information
In most cases,reading for information is relevant to current study of the
reader.They readto find of informationto reducetheir uncertainties.
Readingfor pleasrne
Is done without other people order but accordingto individual readerare
wish, mood and taste. Reading for pleasureaims at giving the reader pleasure
througlt an imaginative experieflceand c€ntersupon hurnan concem such love,
ambition"war, revenge,family live at, etc. it is purposeis to enableand enrichthe
readerby Deepingshis emotionallive sharpeninghis sensitivelife value.

t0

Further,the purposeof readingin any languageis to inform ourselvesabout
somethingwe are interestedin, or to challengeour knowledgeon certain mattef,
in otherwords,to extendour experienceof the word in which we live.
Readingfor Purpose
Readingfor purposecould be specific like looking up a telephonedirectory
for somebody nrnmbersor address.The ptrryose wtll usually determine the
appropriatetype of readingandthe relevantreadingskills to be used.
4. Kinds of Reading
There are four kinds of reading, namely; silent reading, oral reading,
reading{oud, and speedreading.
Silent reading; the aim of silent reading understanding,we can do silent
readingfasterthan oral readingbecausein silent readingthere is no physical
movementof speechorgan. [n silent reading,a readeronly saysthe words in
mind. To develop the studentsunderstandingin silent reading we may give
tlrcm shoft readingpassagein the beginning and ask afterward;s.To test our
studentsspeedandunderstandingwe cando the following steps:
1) Give them a limited time to reada certainpassage
2) Give them a particularquestionto answeraboutit
Oral reading:in oral reading,a readervocalizesthe printed words one by one.
Soo a reader who does oral reading can practice and try to improve his
pronunciation, stess, and intonation. In oral reading the student will get
experiencein producingthe soundwhich shouldbe practicedasmanytimes as
possible.

ll

c. Reading aloud; is completely different activity. Its purpose is not only to

underetanda text but alsoto conveythe informationto someoneelse.Reading
aloud is very useful in the early stageof foreign languagelearningto practice
pronunciation.It is obvious that reading aloud is some difficult then silent
readingbecauseour attentionis divided betweenreadingand speakingbut it is
very importanteqpeciallyfor thosedrose pronuuciationis inadequate.
This kind of readingis usedto improve speedand comprehensionin reading.
This skill is very important for student.If they do not have skill of speed
reading,call the processof studyingwill be slow and ineffective. That is why,
speedreading should be regardedas one the main skills in reading.The skill
,$

of speedreadrngmust run sideby sideswith the main purposeof readingthat
is comprehension.
In order to reach the maximum speed reading, the readers need to
understandthe physical factors involved in the readingprocessesand how these
affects the speedwhich the reader read. There three physicat factors that are
influence.They areasfollow:
l. EyeMovements
The visual symbol a reader seeson the printed page are the meansby
which his mind interpretswhat shereadsoin other words, readingis a visual as
well as mental process.This sectionis intendedto explain the visual role in the
tota"treadingprocess.

t2

a. Fixation
In reading,a fixation is madeeyesstopto focus on a word groupof words.
Very slow readersfixate or focus on each word in the sentences.Some
slow readersmay evenfixate on eachsyllable.The durationof the fixation
is as the number of fixation. The eyesusually remain on word rmtil the
mind perceivesthe meaning,tfter€fore,if fte ffrmberof is fixation is large
and the duration long, the readingprocesswill be exceedingslow. (Zoon,
1980:25)
b. RecognitionSpan
The nrnnber o*f words a reader recognizes and perceives during one
fixation is called his or her recognition span. Many studies have been
madeto detemine the numberof words the ayesis capableor seeingtime.
The result of this study indicatesthat the ayescan actually seenot more
thanfwo or wordsfor fixation,Q,wu 1980:5)
c. Regression
.

In the readingpnrcess,a readerregresseswtren he or she goesback and
rereadswhat he or she just reads. Some regressionera normal, even
necessary,in order to gain completeunderstandingof what the readers
read. However, habifual regressionnot only decreasestlre reader'sspeed
but lows his or her level comprehensionaswell.
Z. Lip Movement
As mentioned earheE reading is a complex process,reading is both a

visual andmentalprocess.The mind is capableor perceivingthe massagedirectly

13

from the eyes contact with printed page. Therefore,lip movementsare seldom
necessaryand in fact, will interferewith reader'sspeedof reading.Thereare two
kinds of tip movementswhich arenot accepted.They areasfollow:
a- Vocalization
If a readermoveshis or her lips or whisperseachword as he or shereads,
he or she is yssalizing. This indicatesftat he or shedid fixating on each
word and pronouncing the words as he or she is reading orally. This
practicewill limit his or her readingrate. (Simanjutak,1988:46).
b. SubVocalizatran
Although a reader might lrot actually whisper or moves his or her lips
while reading,he o she might say the words to him or herself. In other
words, he or she vocalizes. Since thinking is essentialto the reading
process.
3. Phrasing
In other to comprehendwhat a readerreadsohe or shemust readfor ideas.
An idea is seldom containedin a single word, but rather in a group of words.
When the readerspeaks,he or she does not distinetly say each individual word
instead,he or shespeaksin phrases.
Leamngto readrapidly and well pr€suppscs that you havethe necessary
vocabularyand comprehensionskill. When the studentshave advancedon the
reading comprehensionmaterials to a level at which that the students can
understandcollegelevel materials,they will be readyto speedreadingpracticein
eamest.Understandingthe role of speedin the readingprocessis essential.There

t4

is somereasonto believethat the factorsproducrngslow readingare alsoinvolved
in lowered comprehension,most adults are able to increasetheir rate of reading
considerablyand rather quickly without lowering comprehension.These same
individual seldomshow an inqease in comprehensionis actually better at higher
rates of speed.Such results, of courseoare heavily dependentupon the method
used to gain the increasedrate. Simply reaimg more rapidty without actual
improvernentin basicreadinghabitsusually result in loweredcomprehension.
Someof the fact which reducereadingrate as follow:
l . Limited perceptualspan:word-by-wordreading.

2. Slow perceptualreactiontime: slownessof recognitionandresponseto the
material.

3. Vocalization, including the need to vocalize in order to achieve
comprehension.
4. Faulty eye movements,including inaccuracyin placementof the page,in
return sweep,in rhythm andregularity of movement.
5 . Regression,both habituatand asassociatedwith habitsof concentration.
6. Faulty habits of attention and concentration, beginning with simple
inattentionduring the readingact and faulty processesof retention.
7. Lack of practicein reading,due simpleto the fact that the personhasread
very little and has limited reading interest so that very tittle reading is
practicedin the daily or weekly schedule.
8 . Fearof losing comprehension,causingthe personto suppersmore time on
the individual words.

15

9- Habitual slow reading,in which the personcan not read fasterbecausehe
hasalwaysreadslowly.
10.Poorevaluationof which aspectsareimportantandwhich areunimportant.
ll. The effort to remembereverythingratherthan to rernemberselectively.
There are two very encouragingthings about increasingreadingspeedin:
tD it is easiestreadingskills to improve, dnd (2) tro rfidttef how fast peopleread,
can learn to read still faster.As an excellentreaderpeople can still achieve

ty

Eher speedin reading.When peoplewant to increasetheir reading speedthey
do, so if they understandrapid reading,having careful guidancein applying

c

principlesand arewilling to pmctice.

be

Whenwe try to readfast, it is importantfor us alsoto know: first is how to
tmunce

evefy word in the text. second,peopteof the studentswhich can read

fu, can cover the text and understandthe meaningof the lines in print fasterand
than the people who can only read slowly, they can only see and

rilely,
*stand

short angteof the tine in the text. Poor readersusually view glancea

meaninglessunits of few letterswords. For somepeoplethey will think that

-ll,
&y

can really read faster if they could leam to gasp more large meaningful

lib'

throughout each eye pause. Some people also think that they

o-rrFrehensionmay improve if a readerleamedto readin understandingthought
-ts rather than separatewords or in small units or translatingthem into first
huage

words per words which finally the words itself do not have much a

sning

in themselves.Third, to increaseour reading speedis to leam to grasp

Inger units or thought. Fourtlu thing to do for fasterreadingskills is to quicken

t6

the readingpace.Just as one can walk faster when he wants to, he can also read
fasterif he wantsto5. ReadingRules
Laidlaw Brothers (1962:84) divides three reading rules that can improve
the readingskill:
Cultivatethe habit of reading
Someonenever learn to becomean efficient readeror to evaluatewhat
you havereadunlessyou havefirst bcome a steadyreader.
Learningto readactively
This mears, thitking white you read, you learned that mistske in
reasoningare easy to make bit often hard to spot. Thus, when you read
especiallywhen you read anything of controversialnature, you must be on
alet for pitfalls in reasoning.If you ty to absorbmaterial without thinking
aboutit, the scopeof your readingability will remainvery fturow.
Leamingto apply a principle of subordinationto what you read.
It is mean that you must learn to recognize important ideas and to
separatethem from less important ideas and details. When reading to learq
studentsneedto follow four basicsteps:
1) Figure out the purposeof reading.Activate backgroundknowledgeof the
topic on order to predict or anticipate content and identiff appropriate
readingstrategies.

t7

2) Attend to the partsof ttre text that arerelevantto the identified purposeand
ignorethe rest. This selectivity enablesstudentsto focus on specific items
in the input and reducethe amount of infonnation they have to hold in
shortterm memory.
3) Select shategiesthat are appropfiateto the reading task and use them
flexibly and interactively. Studentsocomprehensionimproves and their
confidence increase when they use top down and bottom-up skills
simultaneouslyto constructmeaning.
4) Check comprehensionwhile reading and wtren the reading task is
completed. Monitoring

comprehension helps

students detect

inconsistenciesand comprehensionfailures, helping them learn to use
alternativestrategies.(Heidi Byrnes;I 998:I I ).
After the studentsfollow the four basic stepswhen they are reading,the
shrilentshaveto know somehabitsto avoid whenreadingprocess.
l) Unconsciouslyforming words with the lips or in the throat. This habit
called"Sub-vocalizing".
2) Going back over the tracks.
When you read very difficuh materials,you may refirn and readpassages
that prevent you from what comes next. But such a refurn should be
deliberatedback and forth. And lose the thread of what you are reading.
The next sentenceor paragfaph may clear up what was puzzting you.
(LaidlawBrothers;1962:12).

t8

6. Techniquesof Improving Reading Skill
There are some techniquesthat able to help the studentsto improve
readingskill as follows:
a Leamingto readin word grcup
A good readerreadsin word groups.He doesnot centrehis attentionon
word as such as the eyestravel acrossa line of print the eyesmove from left to
right pausingslightly at intervalsand then moving along the line, wherethe eyes
retum sweepto the beginning of the text line. It is during this pausethat actual
readingtake place.Naturally, the fewer pauses,the fasterthe rate of reading.The
fewer that pauses,the less fatigue there will be too, sincethe eyesdo not haveto
*op and go so many times. To develop greater speed,a reader should widen
recognitionspanand pausefor a shortertime. The readerseesno more thanjust a
word at a time andpracticeseeinga whole phrase.Whenreadinggroups,the eyes
look at the centreof the group.@rewton,et. aI. 1962:119).
1) Pre-reading
This techniqueis intendedto help understandthe meaningof an article
or book, therefore a reader needsto read and understandessentialpoints of a
(Wiryodijoyo,I 989:54)
writtenmessage.
2) Skimming
Speedis often important in reading;the readersmay have a lot of to
readbut not much time, fot this kind of reading,the readersusually do not know
and rememberthe information from the book or article they read. Therefore,in
this casethe readersneedone techniqueof readingnamelyskimming.

r
Skimming is a techniquein which you selectively read and skip in
order to find only the most important ideas. The readerdoes not need to spend
much time to read every wordophrase,sentenceor paragraph,they just quickly
acrossdnd down a pageto find the specificinformation.
In skimming technique,the studentsgo through the reading material
quickly in orderto get the gisf of it, to know how fte materiatis organized.
Robert D postnan (1985:20)there are three basic aims of skimming,
they are:
A. To get infoffiation from a book or article or shortstory
B. To find specificcasefrom a readingmaterial
3) Critical reading
Irr reading, areadet not only waiits to kiiow something,but also w6nts
to evaluate it. The ability to evaluate is more determined by the reader's
educationalbackground,&ge,experienceand personality.However, every person
commonlycan evaluatesomethingif his thinking power or mind power develops
sufficient.(Wryodrjoyo, I 989:45).
4) Reportingwtrat hasbeenread
The abitity to read includes the ability to interpret and summarize
accuratelythe contentor meaningof what hasbeenread.In the form of summary,
the reader should tell briefly, using his own words, what the book chapter,or
article is about.@rewton,et. aI. 1962:126).

20

5) Key word
Another techniquedone to be an efficient reader is to look for key
words of readingmaterial.To do this, a readershouldconcentratehis attentionon
the important words. To a large extent,by ignoring or paying a little attentionto
anotherwords, a readermust seeevery word (identifr and recognizeit) but just
spend time a word if can help the reader find the information o,r ideas in a
ninimum amountof time. (Bakk4 1989:25)
6) Concentration
ln order to be able to understandthe reading t€xt, concentrationis
extremelyrequired.Concentrationis mentalconditionthat candirect attentionto a
c€rtain object. It is too diffrcult or comprehendsa piece of writing without
coneentiation.That is why a re?rdetwho wishes to improve his reading abilrty
shouldhaveconcentrationin reading.(Wiryodijoyo, 1989:54).
7. SomeDfficulties in Reading
a. Habit of regression
One habit to avoid in readingthat of *Going back your track". Almost
every reads in this wayotlnt is by doing the habit of regressionwhen reading
every difficult material,the readerssometimesrereadand return the passage:this
habit is allowed; however in ordinary reading, this reading should not be so
frequentbecauseit canbe block readingrate and compreherrsion.
b). Word by word reading
Albe* J. Harris (1980) statedthat the studentmay have misconception
that reading is saying the wordsoaloud or to oneself,and may not be trying to

2l

groupthe words in thoughtunits. Many slow readershavethe misconceptionthat
they haveto readeveryword.
c). Poorconcenfiation
Concentrationis exfemely important in effective reading. The reader
cannot submergehimself completely in reading processif he is poor or less
oone€ntration in rcading. Consequently, high reading speed and perfeet
cmprehension cannotbe realizedwell without concentation.
C The Concept of Reading Race
1. Delinitioo ogpsgrtingRace
a) Arie SusaniQO08)statedthal'?eading raceis techniquewhich is design
like a motor or cir race where the studentsrival eachother to read the
terft and this technique is used to decreasethe students' habit that
alwaysreadandtranslatethe text word by word".
b) The Amazing Reading Race is an innovative initiative to promote
literacy andthe way to get the studentsinvolved in readingfor pleasure.
(Ann Wilson).
2. The Major Purposesof Reading Race
a) To makesall the studentsmore activein classroom.
b) To decreasethe students'habit that readsand translatestext word bv
word.
c) To increaseawarenessof the importanceof readingandto makereading
asa habit.

"))

d) To trains goup work activity.
e) To increasethe studentsability to retelling wtrat they havebeenread.
3. Procedureof ReadingRace
a) The teachermakes3 (three) kinds of reading text and then copiesthe
readingtext, eachreadingis copiedto become4 (four) sheets.
b) 12 sheetsof reading text are patchedon tfte wall of class(frront behin4
right side,and left sideof the class).
c) The studentsmust bolt if they want to readthe readingtext (they readthe
readingtext like they readthe wall magazine).
d) The studentsreadrapidly with silent modein 15minutes.
e) After that, the studentsdivided into somegroupsand then they must be
discuss about rvhat they have been read to answer multiple choice
questionsin 10minutesandto retelling the readingin 5 (five) minutes.
0 All groupsraceto answerthe entire questionsto becomea winner.
D. Reading Race and SpeedReading
1. The Samenessbetwecn Reading Raceand SpeedReading
Reading Race and Speed reading have the same purpose; to improve
reading ability,
comprehension.

especially to

improve reading speed without losing

23

2. The l)ifrerence betweenReading Race and SpeedReading
a. To practice ReadingRace, someoneneedsthe other personas a rival
but to practice SpeedReading someonedo not need the other person
becausehe canpracticeit by his/trerself.
b. ReadingRaceis measuredby how many questionsthat tlre studentscan
answerafter they read in limited time but SpeedReadingis measured
by how many words that the studentscanreadin limited time.
E. Resume
Bas€don the pertinent ideas,the researcherrcsumedthat: reading is the
interactionbetrveenthe readerand the writer where the readertackles what the
writer mean.The readerexpresseswhat he/shehad beenreadby grving attention"
encodingand retrieval with eyesand brain. Readingunlike many other forms of
communication,is individual, communication usually from the author to the
reader.While readingability can be defined as the ability to understandwhat the
writer qrites on the text. To improve students'ability in reading,the teacherscan
use reading race. Reading race is a good method that makes studentscould
understandasfast aspossible,sothe studentscaneasilyto readEnglishtext.
F. Theoretical Framework
The theoreticalframeworkofthis researchis illusfiated as follows:
Termsand activities
given in caseof
treatnent (Reading
racetecbnique)
INPUT

Readingtest
multiple
choicequestions)to
knowReadingRace
affectivity.
PROCESS

Figure 1. Variable affectinguiriting achievement

tnproving the
students'ability in
readingspeedand
comprehension
OUTPUT

.

Input, has something to do with any activities and terms that were
committed as treafinentwithin the classduring the researchbasedon the
readingracetechnique.

o Processrefers to the reading test (answeringmultiple choice questions)
given whoseaims to know the influence of readingrace techniqueto the
students'ability in reading.
o Output, asthe output of the process,it refersto the improving of students'
ability in readingspeedand comprehension.

l

CIIAPTER IN
METHODOLOGY OF TIIE RESEARCH
This chapterpresentsresearchdesign,variable of the research,population
and sample,the instrument of the research,procodureof collecting data and
techniqueof dataanalysis
A. ResearchDesign
The methodof this researchwas pre-experimentaldesignwith pre-testand
post test design.The comparisonbetweenthe pre-testand post test scoredepends
on the successof the treatment. The designwasptesentedin the fotlowing figwe:

Or
Pre-Test

X
Treatment

ff>

-+

0z
Post-test

Figure2. Researchdesign
Where:Or

: Pre-test

X

= Treatnoent

Oz

: Post-test
(Gay,1991:225)

B. The Variable of the Research
This researchhas one dependentand one indepeudentvariable. The
dependentvariable of this research is the students' reading ability and the
independentvariableof this researchis readingrace.

25

26

C. Population and Sample
1). Population
To know more aboutthe condition of ppulation in composingthis thesis
so that for the first time the writer explain definition of population,According to
Arikunto: (2006) has a view that population is the total of the researchsubject
The population of this researchwas Islamic Junior High School at 2009/2010
academicyear. There are three classesof this school; they are first year clasq
secondyear classandthird year class.It consistsof 14 studentsof first year class,
13 studentsof secondyear class and 19 studentsof third year class. The total
numberofpopulatiou is 46 students.
2). Semple
Sarrple is most of representativesof the populationwtro are researched.
(fuikunto, 2006). The samplingtechniquein this researchis purposivesampling
becausethe third year students cannot join with this researchbecausethey
concernon their final examinationso the researchjust takestwo classesnamely
first year and secondyear classat Islamic Junior High SchoolBahrul UlurU Gowa
Regency.The total numberof sampleis 27 students.
D. The Instrument of the Research
The researchinstnment plays an important role to collect data. The
ins6umentusedin this researchis an objectivetest, and the writer usedone type
of objective test, wtrich is multiple-choice tlpe. Multiple-choice tlpe can be
scoredobjectively andcanmeasurelearningout comedirectly.

27

This research,the test consistsofreading passages;eachreadingpassage
consistsof severalmultiple-choicequestions.The test consistedof 20 items with
four alternatives.The altemativesinclude one correct answer and three wrong
answers.Comprehensionis measuredby asking sfudentsto chooseone out of
severalaltemativeanswers.The measureof comprehensionskills wasthe number
of questionsansweredcorrectly.
E. Procedure of Collecting Data
In collecting data the writer usedsomeproceduresas follow:
1) Pre-test
The researcherdistibuted the pre-testto the studentsfirst. It was aimed
at finding out the students'prior knowledgeabout readingtext. The pre-testwas
doneon February fi'e}}rc.
2) Treatment
Activating readingrace techniquemeantresearcherhelpedthe studentto
leam how to read as speedas possiblewithout losing the meaningof the text. The
researchergavethe freatmentfor eight meetings;it takes90 minutesand gavethe
different topic for eachmeeting.
a) In the first meeting of treatmenton February 18ft 2010 was conductedin
the classroomfor 90 minutes. In this meeting,the researcherintroduced
aboutthe readingrace techniqueand then begin to apply the readingrace
techniquewith the following steps:

28

(1) The teachermakes3 (the€) kinds of readingandthen copiesthe
reading eachreadingis copiedto become4 (fow) sheet.
(2) 12 sheet of reading are patched on the wall of class (frong
behind,right side,and left sideof the class).
(3) The studentsmust be bolt if they want to readthe reading(they
readthe readinglike they rcadthe wall magazine).
(a) The studentsreadrapidly with silentmode in 15minutes.
(5) After that, the studentsdivided into somegroupsand then they
must be discuss about wbat they have been read to answer
multiple choice questionsin l0 minutes and to retelling the
readingin 5 (five) minutes.
(6) All groups race to answer the entire questionsto become a
winner.
b) In the secondmeeting on February 19rt'2010,third meeting on Feb'ruary
zftz}l},fourth

meetingon Februaryz3'd}All,fifth

meetingon Febnrary

24fr 2010, sixth meeting on February 25tu 2010, seventh meeting on
February 26fo 20!0, and eighth meeting on Febnrary 28fr 2010 was
conductedin the classroomfor 90 minutes.Then, the researcherdoesthe
sameactivity with the first meeting of teatnent, But she have to grven
with the different topic ofthe text.
3) Post-test
Post-testwas the last procedurein this study. It was given to the students
after treatrrent. The post-testwas conductedto find out the studentsachievement

29

andtheir progress.It was usedto know the result of teatrnent; it was also usedto
know whetherthere is an improvementor not. The post-testwas done on March
1"2 0 1 0 .
F. Technique of Data Analysis
The collecting data through the test by using inferential statistic
percentagescoreis also usedto know the students'ability. The stepsundertaken
in quantitativeanalysisemployingthe following formulas:
l. Scoringthe sfudents'correctanswerof pretestandposttest
Scare =

Student s'carr ect onswer

Totalnurnberof items

r 100
(Sudjana:
1999)

2. Classiffing the students'scoreinto following criteria:
The scoreof the studentsis classifiedinto sevenlevelsas follows:
Criteria

No

Rateof Score Categories

I

96- 100

Excellent

The studentscan answerthe entire questions
correctly.

2

8 6 *9 5

Very Good

The studentscananswer18 or 19 questions
correctly.

J

76-8s

Good

The studentscananswer16 or 17 questions
correctlv.

4

66-75

Fairly Good The studentsjust answer14 or 15 questions
correctly.

5

5 6 *6 5

Fair

I

The studentsjust answer12 or 13 questions
correctly.

30

6

36-55

Poor

just answer8, 9, 10,or 11
The students
questionscorrectly.

7

00-3s

Very poor

All ofthe sfudents'answersarewrong,just
answerI questioncorrectly,andjust answer
correctly.
2,3,4,50 6, or 7 questions

Table1.ClassifuingScoreof Students
The total numbers of questions in pre-tesVpost-testarc 20 items. The
scoring is 5 (five) for each corect answer and 0 (zero) for the wrong
answer.
Adaptedfrom Nurhtdayah,2A09
3. To find out fhe students'mean score,standarddeviation, and significmt
differencebetweenpretestandposttestthe researcheranalyzeusing SPSS
progr:rm.The formula of standarddeviation of pre-test and post test as
follow:

7\,

Where:S = Standarddeviationofpre-test and posttest
x i : N i la i ke -i
I

=Mean score

N =Numberofdata
(Subana
dkk,2005:87)

3l

T-testasfollow:

t=

where: Xr = rn€doscoreof pretest
Xe =rDom scoreofpostest
Sr : sfandarddeviationof pretest
52 = standarddeviationofposuest
Sr2- the squareof stsndarddeviationofprretest
Sz2= the squareof standarddeviationof posttest
r : conelation of pretestand posttest.
(Sugiono,2003:119)

CHAPTERW
FINDINGS AIID DISCUSSIONS
This Chapterpresentsthe researchfinding and discussion.The findings
presentthe descriptionof the datacollectedthroughtest. The furtlrer explanations
ad interpretationaregiven in the discussionsection.
A. X'indings
i

The findings of the researchdeal with the description of data the

I

i

$udents' readingability before and after using readingrace,the frequencyin the
rde percentage of the sfudents' scores, mean scores, the t-test value and
hypothesistesting.
l. The Descriptionof Data
As it hasbeenmentionedin the previous chapter,the uniter usedthe preexperimentalresearch.She held this researchby uking the scoresaf 27 students
as a respondentand analyzedthosescoresin order to find out whetherthereis any
impact after using ReadingRaceTechniqueby using the t-test. So, in total there
ae 54 scoresbecausethe sampleshad 2 setof scores.
The first scoreis pre-test scorethat consistsof 20 items and the second
oneis post-testscol€that alsoconsistsof 20 items.The scoringis 5 (five) for each
oorrectanswerand 0 (zero) for the vt/ronganswer.The data of pre-testand posttest scoreresult canbe seenin the following tables.
(Ihe fonn of the testand the result scorec:tn be seenin appendix).

32

aa
JJ

l. The students'readingability beforeusing readingraceis presentedin the table
below:
Table 2. The