Chapter
I
Introduction
This
chapter presents background of the study,
statement of the problem, the objectives of the study, significance of the
study, scope and limitation of the study, definition of key terms.
1.1 Background
of the Study
English
is the most popular language in the world. In fact, English is the
international language. Most of the people use it as communication to other
people in the world. So that, every country make compulsory for the English
education at schools. On the other hand, although the students dislike English
at all, they must take the course in school, if they don’t do it, they won’t
pass the examination. Then, English became an important thing especially for
education automatically.
There
are many kinds of technique in language teaching. There are many ways to make
students understand in English as a foreign language. Teachers should choose
one of them to select on their teaching learning activity in the class. They
must know which one that appropriate with the students environment. It will be
easier for the students to understand in using English as a foreign language.
As we know there are four skills in teaching-learning English, which are
reading, writing, listening and speaking. All of them are important for the
language teaching-learning, especially reading skills. According to The Outline of Teaching Material of 2004 (Garis
Besar Pokok Pengajaran or GBPP) the competence standard should be mastered
by SMP students in reading
is to understand various meaning in written texts. The competence covers interpersonal,
ideational, and textual meaning (Depdiknas, 2004: 16). It means that the students should master the
above meanings in written
texts.
According
to Berns dan Erickson (www.nccte.com, 2001: 2), CTL is
defined
as follows:
Contextual
teaching and learning is a conception of teaching and learning that helps
teachers relate subject matter content to real world situations; and motivates
students to make connections between knowledge and its applications to their
lives as family members, citizens, and workers and engage in the hard work that
learning requires.
Based on the statement above, contextual
teaching and learning is one of methodology that comfort for the learners which
have different environment with the native speaker. Beside that, the learners
will be easier to learn English as a foreign language because of the basis of
methodology is a concept teaching- learning that the materials or the subject
is related to the students environment.
As teachers collaborated on lesson design, it became apparent that
individuals differed in their beliefs, definitions, and experiences related to
CTL (Jakarta: wendi, 2008).
Contextual
teaching learning is one of method that relates the learning material with the
students’ environment. It is regarding motivate them to make a correlation
between their knowledge and the application in their live as a community. The
learning process works naturally on their experience. It is related to how to
make successful in reading ability of the students. We discuss about student of
senior high school who had learned English by using contextual teaching
learning technique to improve their reading ability.
Every
student especially the students of SMP Wahid Hasyim have different environments
of their live. And they have to learn together and receive same lesson from
teacher. Therefore, they often difficult when learn English as a foreign
language. Because it different with their mother language from USA and ENGLAND
that have different culture, social and nature with our country (Indonesia).
Besides that, the students will find many difficulties in examination while
they don’t understand about the question paper. It can be depressing for the
students.
According
to the explanation above, many difficulties from student learn English as a
foreign language. So that, many methods that made to help student on the
learning in the class. Contextual teaching learning is one of them.
This
method usually is used by a creative teacher to increase students’ skill
especially reading ability of the students. When the students easy to
understand and can participate in the English learning, their achievement will
increase automatically.
1.2 Statement
of the Problem
The
statement of the problem is; how can Contextual Teaching Learning method can
improve reading ability on the second grade students of SMP WAHID HASYIM at
Malang.
1.3 The
Objective of the Study
The
objective of the study is; to describe How Contextual Teaching Learning method
can improve reading ability of first grade students of SMP WAHID HASYIM.
1.4 Significance of the Study
The
purpose of the study is expected to be able to give profits to the students,
the teachers, and the school. For students, their reading ability increases, easier
to understand English task in examination as well as the ordinary activity
while teaching- learning process is happening and they will be able to far from
depressing material that called English. For the teachers, it also can be
guidance for their teaching-learning activity, raise the teachers’ creativity
in the class and increase the quality of their students. Besides that, the school
can conduct this study for other subject material especially by contextual
teaching and learning method. It means for developing and increasing the
students' reading ability. At last, the improvement of learning achievement can
give a good effect to increase a credibility of the school. Then the least for
other researcher, the result of the study can be used as a reference for
starting point to conduct further study about teaching and learning English,
especially by applying Contextual teaching and learning methodology in every classroom activity. For the reason,
it can be seen from some researches that the application CTL method shows the
improvement of students' achievement and motivation in learning English.
1.5 Scope
and Limitation of the Study
This
study is about using Contextual teaching and learning method to improve
students’ reading ability in second grade students of SMP Wahid Hasyim at
Malang. There are reading, speaking, listening, and writing skills in teaching-learning
English. But, the researcher only focuses on reading ability. Because of
limited time and opportunity, the researcher limits study only describes the
process and result of using CTL method to improve the students’ reading
ability, which limits to the process of the way teacher, can improve students’
ability through Contextual teaching and learning method.
1.6 Definition
of key term
The following
definition of key term in used of the study to avoid the wrong assumption from
the reader about this proposal thesis, so that the researcher gives it:
a.
Improvement :
Making some better (pocket dictionary),
increase the result of the reading ability that desire.
b. Reading
ability :
Motivation
of the students to understand text and answer the question easier than before,
that also shown by their score of English course.
c.
Contextual Teaching and
Learning method:
Giving material of the study that related to
the students’ environment in order to motivate the students to make a
correlation between their knowledge and the application in their live as a
community.
Chapter II
Review of Literature
This chapter deals with theoretical overviews related
to the topic being discussed. They are the definition of reading, the
definition of reading, the important of reading, types of reading , reading
process , teaching reading, reading assessment, contextual teaching and
learning (CTL), the use of CTL in
reading and previous study.
2.1 The Definition of Reading
Related to Frederick Cline (2006:7)
state, reading is decoding and understanding written text. Decoding requires
translating the symbols of writing systems (including Braille) into the spoken
words they represent. Understanding is determined by the purposes for reading,
the context, the nature of the text, and the readers’ strategies and knowledge.
In other words, reading can produce knowledge that we want when we read.
Another definition is given by
Christopher Johnston (2006:3) which reading is decoding and understanding text
for particular reader purposes. Readers decode written text by translating text
to speech, and translating directly to meaning. To understand written text,
readers engage in constructive processes to make text meaningful, which is the
end goal or product.
On the other hand, reading is a complex cognitive process of decoding symbols for the intention of constructing or deriving meaning
(reading comprehension). It is a means of language acquisition, of communication,
and of sharing information and ideas. Like all language, it is
a complex interaction between the text and the reader which is shaped by the
reader’s prior knowledge, experiences, attitude, and language community which
is culturally and socially situated (Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia). It
means that reading has crucially contribution for the language function itself.
Based on the Elizabeth S.Pang’s (1986:6) state : reading is
about understanding written texts. It is a complex activity that involves both
perception and thought. Reading consists of two related processes: word
recognition and comprehension. Word recognition refers to the process of
perceiving how written symbols correspond to one’s spoken language.
Comprehension is the process of making sense of words, sentences and connected
text. Readers typically make use of background knowledge, vocabulary,
grammatical knowledge, experience with text and other strategies to help them understand written
text.
2.2 The Important of Reading
Reading makes our knowledge. When we read books, or
other written text we will be found anything that we called as a new knowledge.
Noble Peace Prize winner and former President of Israel - Shimon Peres very
wisely said :
“Your best friends are not only human beings, but books. To read books
is like going to swim in a sea of wisdom, endlessly fascinating. And there are
so many wise people all over the world, throughout history, and you can have it
free, for nothing. And reading must become a daily habit. It's not that you can
read once a week. I read day in and day out, and you make acquaintances with
books. After a few pages, you know with whom you are dealing. Serious,
unserious, far-sighted, repetitive.”
On
the other hand, based on the statement of McClintock (1980:81) “The reading you are read really anxious to
improve you must do to get information”. It means that reading activity is kind
of improvement to get new information from the reading text. Besides that, "Reading, like no other medium, can
transform your life in a flash, and you never know which book, at which time in
your life, might be the one that rocks your world and inspires you to grow in
ways you never thought possible."---Burke Hedges.
Reading is indeed inspire us and make us creative or imaginative. It is also related to the
article from SquidooHQ and LLC (2011), there are 5 reasons for why reading is
important : 1.)Reading is an active mental process that improves your concentration
and focus,2.)Improves your discipline and memory,3.)Builds self-esteem and
improves creativity,4.)Reading improves your vocabulary and reduces boredom,5.)Gives
you a glimpse into other cultures and places of the world, so you always have
something to talk about.
2.3 Kinds of Reading
Related to the article
from Demand Media(1999-2011),Inc. There are 3 kinds of reading, as follows:
1. Decoding
Decoding is an early reading skill students learn in
kindergarten and first grade. Decoding (sounding out) words are the foundation
of reading instruction. Phonics is the method teachers use to instruct
students. Letter-naming and recognition is taught along with initial sounds.
Children must understand that each letter is represented by a corresponding sound
before they can read text. Once children know sounds, they learn to blend them
into words. This skill, phoneme segmentation, should be practiced daily along
with alphabet and sound fluency until decoding becomes an automatic procedure.
2. Fluency
Fluency is the ability to read accurately and expressively
while maintaining a rate of speed that facilitates comprehension. Students
learn fluency in a variety of ways. Teachers model fluent reading in the
classroom, and students listen to books on CD. Students receive direct
instruction in fluency through guided practice using methods like choral and
repeated readings. Teachers assess fluency with timed readings that give a
score in words read per minute. Students who fall below the average score for
their grade level receive additional, individual help.
3. Comprehension
Comprehension is the ability to understand what has been
read. Comprehending involves strategies that students learn to use when reading
independently. Teachers focus on several key comprehension skills. These are
inferring, predicting, comparing and contrasting, sequencing and summarizing.
Students usually learn how to use these strategies in a small group guided by
the teacher who demonstrates their use. Students then practice comprehension
techniques with a partner by discussing what they read, making connections with
prior knowledge and identifying the main ideas in the story
2.4 Reading Process
According to the statement of
Brenda Smith (1999) in the Breaking Through to College Reading, that
good readers understand the processes involved in reading and
consciously control them. This awareness and control of the reading processes
is called metacognition, which means "knowing about knowing." Some
students don't know when they don't know. They continue to read even though
they do not comprehend. Poor readers tolerate such confusion because they
either don't realize that it exists or don't know what to do about it. Poor
readers focus on facts, whereas good readers try to assimilate details into a
larger cognitive pattern.
Based on the statement above, Brenda Smith (1999) explained that there are five thinking of reading process:
1. Predict:
Make educated guesses
Good
readers make predictions about thoughts, events, outcomes, and conclusions. As
you read, your predictions are confirmed or denied. If they prove invalid, you
make new predictions. This constant process helps you become involved with the
author's thinking and helps you learn.
2. Picture:
Form images
For good readers, the words and the ideas on
the page trigger mental images that relate directly or indirectly to the
material. Images are like movies in your head, and they increase your
understanding of what you read
3. Relate:
Draw comparisons
When
you relate your existing knowledge to the new information in the text, you are
embellishing the material and making it part of your framework of ideas. A
phrase of a situation may remind you of a personal experience or something that
you read or saw in a film. Such related experiences help you digest the new
material.
4. Monitor:
Check understanding
Monitor your ongoing comprehension to test
your understanding of the material. Keep an internal summary or synthesis of
the information as it is presented and how it relates to the overall message.
Your summary will build with each new detail, and as long as the message is
consistent, you will continue to form ideas. If, however, certain information
seems confusing or erroneous, you should stop and seek a solution to the
problem. You must monitor and supervise you own comprehension. Good readers
seek to resolve difficulties when they occur; they do not keep reading when
they are confused.
5. Correct
gaps in understanding
Do
not accept gaps in your reading comprehension. They may signal a failure to
understand a word or a sentence. Stop and resolve the problem. Seek solutions,
not confusion. This may mean rereading a sentence or looking back at a previous
page for clarification. If an unknown word is causing confusion, the definition
may emerge through further reading. When good readers experience gaps in
comprehension, they do not perceive themselves as failures; instead, they
reanalyze the task to achieve better understanding.
On
the other hand, Heidi Byrnes (1998) wrote in the “Reading in the beginning and intermediate
college foreign language class” that reading is an interactive process that
goes on between the reader and the text, resulting in comprehension. The text
presents letters, words, sentences, and paragraphs that encode meaning. The
reader uses knowledge, skills, and strategies to determine what that meaning
is. Which these include, a.)Linguistic competence: the ability to recognize the
elements of the writing system; knowledge of vocabulary; knowledge of how words
are structured into sentences, b.)Discourse competence: knowledge of discourse
markers and how they connect parts of the text to one another, c.)Sociolinguistic
competence: knowledge about different types of texts and their usual structure
and content , d.)Strategic competence: the ability to use top-down strategies,
as well as knowledge of the language (a bottom-up strategy).
2.5 Teaching Reading
As Williamson (1988:8) states that in language
acquisition, reading is considered as an important activity because it promotes
better spelling, better writing, higher reading comprehension, and a more
advanced vocabulary.
When students already have reading skill, they not only can get
information easily but also get many kinds of knowledge automatically in
language especially.
Besides that, the teaching reading for the students
will make them able to conclude all of the information that they get through
read. It related to the statement from Zukowski & Faust, 2002 in Korniaty (2008) that the purpose of equipping the high school students with particular reading comprehension is to train
them to get general and specific information from the text. Students are also
asked to practice the academic skill of finding the main idea, making inferences, and drawing conclusion.
2.6 Contextual Teaching And
Learning (CTL)
Related to Henikmd’s blog (2009), Contextual Teaching
and Learning (CTL) helps us relate subject matter content to real world
situations and motivate students to make connections between knowledge and its
applications to their lives as family members, citizens, and workers and engage
in the hard work that learning requires.
Moreover, “This approach differs from other ways to
think about teaching and learning. Here, we are not attempting to raise
achievement scores by teaching basic skills. Furthermore, a quiet, orderly classroom
is not to be expected. Principals, school boards, parents, and other members of
the community must support this approach
to increase its probability of success” (Carr, M., et al., 1999, p.2).
For CTL to be successful for all students, a school must value and support the
approach. Newmann and Wehlage (1997) describe a system of support for authentic
learning that has been adapted to describe supports for CTL.
In
Newmann and Wehlage’s circles of support, the ultimate goal is to support high
quality student learning. To do so, everyone in the school must agree on a
definition of what students should learn and what strategies support learning.
Next, teaching and learning strategies, (whether in the classroom, school, or
community) require considerable support from the school organization. Finally,
external supports provide encouragement and resources to help students and
educators create high quality teaching and learning environments.
Contextual Teaching and Learning (CTL)
assists students in meeting content standards by applying knowledge to their
current and future lives as family members, citizens, and workers.
Effective use of CTL are emphasizes
problem-solving, recognizes the need for teaching and learning to occur in
multiple contexts, teaches
students to become self-regulated learners, anchors teaching in students’
diverse life contexts, encourages
students to learn from each other in interdependent groups, and employs
authentic assessment. (The Ohio State University, 1999)
2.7 Contextual Teaching and
Learning Procedure
Teachers need to
understand their own thinking to become more effective in nurturing the
thinking of their students. When new teachers have acquired an understanding of
the social and situated nature of learning, an appreciation of the importance
of authentic contexts, the habit of reflecting upon their own experiences, and
the willingness to question their own assumptions and beliefs, then they will
be more prepared to create the kinds of learning climates that will enable
students to learn the lessons that really matter. This view is consistent with
the recommendations of a special Committee on the Teaching of Educational
Psychology, created by Division 15 of the American Psychological Association,
who advocated that future teachers use a psychological perspective on learning
to create a coherent framework of ideas about student learning (Anderson,
Blumenfeld, Pintrich, Clark, Marx, & Peterson, 1995). They argued that
deeper understanding of the cognitive, motivational, and situated
characteristics of learning can help teachers design better instruction.
For CTL to be
effective, all strategies must be present in the teaching/learning experience.
Implementation of CTL may not require drastic changes in practice for all
educators. It may require enhancement of practice in one characteristic and not
another. Continual use and reflection on CTL processes broadens and deepens
educators’ knowledge and ability to facilitate learning. Contextual teaching
and learning procedure, that is:
- Problem-based
CTL can begin with a simulated or real
problem. Students use critical thinking skills and a systemic approach to
inquiry to address the problem or issue. Students may also draw upon multiple
content areas to solve these problems. Worthwhile problems that are relevant to
students’ families, school experiences, workplaces, and communities hold
greater personal meaning for students.
2. Using
multiple contexts
Theories
of situated cognition suggest that knowledge can not be separated from the
physical and social context in which it develops. How and where a person
acquires and creates knowledge is therefore very important. CTL experiences are
enriched when students learn skills in multiple contexts (i.e. school,
community, workplace, family).
3.
Drawing upon student diversity
On the whole, our student
population is becoming more diverse, and with increased diversity comes
differences in values, social mores, and perspectives. These differences can be
the impetus for learning and can add complexity to the CTL experience. Team collaboration
and group learning activities respect students’ diverse histories, broaden
perspectives, and build inter-personal skills.
4.
Supporting self-regulated learning
Ultimately, students must become lifelong
learners. Lifelong learners are able to seek out, analyze, and use information
with little to no supervision. To do so, students must become more aware how
they process information, employ problem-solving strategies, and use background
knowledge. CTL experiences should allow for trial and error; provide time and
structure for reflection; and provide adequate support to assist students to
move from dependent to independent learning.
5. Using
interdependent learning groups
Students
will be influenced by and will contribute to the knowledge and beliefs of
others. Learning groups, or learning communities, are established in workplaces
and schools in an effort to share knowledge, focus on goals, and allow all to
teach and learn from each other. When learning communities are established in
schools, educators act as coaches, facilitators, and mentors.
- Employing authentic assessment
CTL
is intended to build knowledge and skills in meaningful ways by engaging
students in real life, or "authentic" contexts. Assessment of
learning should align with the methods and purposes of instruction. Authentic
assessments show (among other things) that learning has occurred; are blended
into the teaching/learning process; and provide students with opportunities and
direction for improvement. Authentic assessment is used to monitor student
progress and inform teaching practices.
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