1

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN READING TEXT WITH

FAMILIAR AND UNFAMILIAR TOPIC AND STUDENTS’
COMPREHENSION
(A CASE STUDY AT SMK COMPUTER MUTIARA ILMU
MAKASSAR)

HUBUNGAN ANTARA TEKS DENGAN TOPIK YANG

FAMILIAR DAN YANG TIDAK FAMILIAR DAN PEMAHAMAN
MEMBACA SISWA
(STUDI KASUS DI SMK COMPUTER MUTIARA ILMU
MAKASSAR)

BESSE HARDIANTI
P0600215024

ENGLISH LANGUAGE STUDY PROGRAM

FACULTY OF CULTURAL SCIENCES
POST GRADUATE PROGRAM
HASANUDDIN UNIVERSITY
2017
 ii

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN READING TEXT WITH

FAMILIAR AND UNFAMILIAR TOPIC AND STUDENTS’
COMPREHENSION
(A CASE STUDY AT SMK COMPUTER MUTIARA ILMU
MAKASSAR)

HUBUNGAN ANTARA TEKS DENGAN TOPIK YANG FAMILIAR DAN

YANG TIDAK FAMILIAR DAN PEMAHAMAN MEMBACA SISWA
(STUDI KASUS DI SMK COMPUTER MUTIARA ILMU MAKASSAR)

Thesis

Submitted as partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Magister Degree

in English Language Studies Program

Written and submitted by :

BESSE HARDIANTI
P0600215024

To

ENGLISH LANGUAGE STUDY PROGRAM

FACULTY OF CULTURAL SCIENCES
POST GRADUATE PROGRAM
HASANUDDIN UNIVERSITY
2017
iii
 iv

PERNYATAAN KEASLIAN TESIS

Yang bertanda tangan dibawah ini:

Nama : Besse Hardianti

Nomor pokok Mahasiswa : P0600215024

Program Studi : Bahasa Inggris

Menyatakan dengan sebenar-benarnya bahwa tesis yang saya tulis ini

benar-benar merupakan hasil karya saya sendiri, bukan merupakan
penganbilan tulisan atau pemikiran orang lain. Apabila kemudian hari
terbukti atau dapat dibuktikan bahwa sebagian atau keseluruhan tesis ini
adalah karya orang lain, saya bersedia menerima sanksi atas perbuatan
saya.

Makassar, 12 Agustus 2017

Yang menyatakan,

Besse Hardianti
 v

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

The long journey of this study would not have been completed

without the bless from the almighty Allah SWT and from the people who

have provided the writer with guidance, advice, support as well as

supervision. I would like to express my heartfelt appreciation to Dr. Abidin

Pammu, M.A. Dipl. TESOL, the main supervisor, for his valuable

feedback during the writing of the thesis. I also would like to convey my

most sincere gratitude to Dr. H. Fathu Rahman, M. Hum., my co-

supervisor who has provided me with substantial academic direction

during my hard time at ELS program. His constant concern and attention

provides me with resistance to complete this study at the English language

Study Program at Hasanuddin University.

My deep appreciation also goes to the three examiners, Dr. H.

Mustafa Makka, M. S., Dra. Nasmilah, M. Hum., and Dr. H. Sudarmin

Harun, M. Hum. For their feedback, corrections, as well as constructive

criticism to provide further improvement of the thesis. I would like to

express my thankfulness to my classmates in ELS 2015 who have

provided me with useful insights and suggestions as well as useful

references to complete the thesis.

 vi

Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to express my sincere

and profound gratitude to the most valuable people in my life, my beloved

parents, Hj. St. Rohana and the late Ambo Lolo for their endless pray for

my success. The last but not least, I would like to pass my special thanks

to my husband, Muhammad Sukarno and my daughter, Besse Nurul

Fatin for their patience and love during the writing of the thesis.

Makassar, 1 July 2017

Besse Hardianti
 vii

ABSTRACT

BESSE HARDIANTI. The Relationship between Reading Text with

Familiar and Unfamiliar Topic and Students’ Comprehension: A Case
Study at SMK Computer Mutiara Ilmu Makassar (Supervised by Abidin
Pammu and Fathu Rahman).

The aims of this research were (1) to found out the relationship
between familiar and unfamiliar topic and the students’ reading
comprehension and (2) to determined how text familiarity and unfamiliarity
affected the students’ reading comprehension on those expository texts as
complex cognitive process.
The method was a qualitative and quantitative research method.
The primary data were from direct observation, in depth interview, field
notes, and as results of reading tests performed directly to the samples of
5 selected samples from SMK Computer Mutiara Ilmu Makassar.
Supplementary data were from open-ended questionnaire. The
determination of familiar and unfamiliar texts was performed by means of
topics delivery, and familiarity and unfamiliarity were indicated from 16
sample topics presented. The level of difficulty of the text used from the
study was carefully considered. The data were analyzed by means of
descriptive qualitative based on interpretative research paradigm.
The results of this research showed that text familiarity and
unfamiliarity were determined by their prevalence, their frequency of
exposure in written and electronic media and degree of reading
experience by the individual. The findings confirmed positive effect of
familiar topic on the reading test results in almost all the samples. The five
samples exhibited a relatively high score on the correct answers from the
total 10 questions. In addition, unfamiliar topic seemed to provide more
destructive effects rather than detrimental effect where almost all samples
exhibited unsatisfactory results on reading text with unfamiliar ones. The
reason for the differences was in reference to cognitive explanations
where strategies and prior knowledge play the roles.

Key words: Relationship; familiarity; unfamiliarity; reading text;

comprehension
 viii

ABSTRAK

BESSE HARDIANTI. Hubungan antara Teks Bacaan dengan Topik yang

Familiar dan yang Tidak Familiar dan Pemahaman Membaca Siswa:
Studi Kasus di SMK Komputer Mutiara Ilmu Makassar (Dibimbing oleh
Abidin Pammu dan Fathu Rahman).

Penelitian ini bertujuan (1) menemukan hubungan antara topik yang

familiar dan tidak familiar, serta pemahaman membaca siswa; dan (2)
menentukan pengaruh keakraban dan ketidakakraban teks terhadap
pemahaman membaca siswa sebagai proses kognitif yang kompleks
terhadap kinerja tersebut.
Metode penelitian adalah metode kualitatif dan kuantitatif. Data
primer diperoleh berdasarkan pengamatan langsung, wawancara
mendalam, catatan lapangan, dan hasil tes baca yang dilakukan langsung
pada kelima sampel terpilih di SMK Komputer Mutiara ilmu Makassar.
Data tambahan berasal dari tanggapan tertulis sampel menggunakan
kuesioner terbuka. Penentuan teks yang akrab dan tidak akrab dilakukan
dengan melihat pilihan para sampel dari enam belas contoh topic yang
disajikan. Data dianalisis secara deskriptif kualitatif berdasarkan
paradigma penelitian interpretatif.
Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa keakraban dan
ketidakakraban teks ditentukan oleh prevalensinya, frekuensi
keterpaparannya dalam media tertulis dan elektronik, serta tingkat
pengalaman membaca secara individu. Temuan tersebut mengkonfirmasi
efek positif dari topik yang familiar pada hasil tes baca di hampir semua
sampel. Kelima sampel tersebut menunjukkan skor yang relatif tinggi
terhadap jawaban yang benar dari sepuluh pertanyaan. Selain itu,
ketidakakraban terhadap topik tampaknya memberi efek yang lebih
destruktif, yakni hampir semua sampel menunjukkan hasil yang tidak
memuaskan pada teks bacaan yang tidak mereka kenal. Alasan
perbedaannya mengacu pada penjelasan kognitif, yakni strategi dan
pengetahuan sebelumnya memainkan peran.

Kata kunci: Hubungan; keakraban; ketidakakraban; membaca teks;

pemahaman
 ix

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Title Page ................................................................................................... i

Submission Sheet .................................................................................... ii

Approval Sheet........................................................................................ iii

Pernyataan Keaslian Tesis ..................................................................... iv

Acknowledgement .................................................................................. v

Abstract .................................................................................................. vii

Abstrak .................................................................................................. viii

Table of Contents.................................................................................... ix

List of Tables ........................................................................................... xi

List Of Figures........................................................................................ xii

List Of Abbreviation .............................................................................. xiii

List Of Appendices .............................................................................. xiv

CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION ............................................................................ 1

A. Background ...................................................................................... 1

B. Research Questions ....................................................................... 11

C. Objectives of The Research ........................................................... 12

D. Significance of The Research ........................................................ 12

E. The Scope of The Research .......................................................... 13

F. Organization of The Paper ............................................................ 14

G. Research Terms ............................................................................ 14

 x

CHAPTER II REVIEW OF LITERATURE ................................................ 17

A. Previous Related Studies ............................................................... 17

B. Theoretical Background ................................................................. 24

C. Conceptual Framework .................................................................. 45

D. Operational Definition .…………………………………..….….…….. 45

CHAPTER III RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ........................................ 47

A. Research Design ........................................................................... 48

B. Subject of the Research …………..……….….……………………. 50

C. Research Instruments…………………………..….………………….51

D. Sampling Techniques ……………………………………………….. 54

E. Determination of Familiar & Unfamiliar Topic…………….…………54

F. Data Collection Procedure…………………………...…………….…55

G. Data Analysis Techniques…………………………………………….56

CHAPTER IV: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION …...……….……………. 57

A. Finding ………………………..…...…………………………………….57
B. Discussion… ….………………………………………………...……....72

CHAPTER V: CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTION ………………..…...86

A. Conclusion ….. ………………………………………………………...86

B. Suggestion ……,.………………………………………………....……...87

BIBLIOGRAPHY ...................................................................................... 89

APPENDICES
 xi

LIST OF TABLES

Table Page

1. Distribution of Topics and Subject Response Learner 1 58

2. Distribution of Topics and Subject Response Learner 2 60

3. Distribution of Topics and Subject Response Learner 3 62

4. Distribution of Topics and Subject Response Learner 4 63

5. Distribution of Topics and Subject Response Learner 5 65

6. Distribution of Familiar & Unfamiliar Topics 67

7. Test Results of reading with Familiar Topics 69

8. Test Results of Reading with Unfamiliar Topics 71

9. Effect of Familiar and Unfamiliar Topic 83

 xii

LIST OF FIGURES

1. Coady’s Model of EFL/ESL Reader 27

2. Conceptual framework 45
 xiii

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

1. EFL English as Foreign Language 2

2. ESL English Second Language 2

3. L2 Second Language 2

4. RCS Reading Comprehension Strategies 3

5. LGBT Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender 60

6. PDST Professional Development Service for Teacher 31

 xiv

LIST OF APPENDICES
Number

1. List of Topics

2. The Visual Basic Programming

3. The Incredible Flea

4. Open ended Questionnaires

 1

CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

This chapter presents the background study and the problem

statement, such as the status of English as a foreign language in

Indonesia and the context of reading as a core component within the

national curriculum. This part also addresses the research questions,

objectives of the research, the significance of the research, scope of the

research, research terms, and organization of the paper.

A. Background

Over the years, teaching and learning of English Language can be

considered to be an integral part of Indonesia educational system for a

long time to now (Mappiasse & Sihes , 2014: 114). The status of English

in Indonesia is well documented in the state decree number 096/1967 of

the Ministry of Education and Culture of the Republic of Indonesia. This

status clearly defines English as a foreign language and as a compulsory

subject within the curriculum from secondary schools to tertiary levels

throughout the country. For over more than two decades from 1950 to

1975, the objective of teaching English has been to enhance reading skills

for dealing with English academic text. As core content within the national

curriculum, English contents included other skills, such as listening,

speaking, writing, and with still greater emphasis on reading in year 1984
 2

up to 1994. A shift of content orientation underwent slight changes with

moderate emphasis on communication and writing at both curriculum year

2004 and 2006 (Minister of Education and Culture, 2012).

English also gives access to the latest ideas and opportunities to

enhance professional credibility through participation in international

meetings, forum, and partnership. In this respect, distance seems to be no

longer a serious handicap as if countries constantly come closer to each

other. In addition, advancement in technology has enabled the people to

enter different countries and come home for dinner in the same day. In this

context, different nations will be able to establish a good relationship that

is only possible if countries share one language for communication. It is

commonly known that that communication offers us an opportunity to

engage in cultural interaction that will enrich the culture in more global

sense. Reading necessity does not only prevail within EFL setting such as

Indonesia but also in ESL context.

From among the four language skills, namely such as reading,

writing, speaking, and listening. Reading comprehension is considered to

be the most important skill, especially for L2 learners. This skill was so

important to language learning and teaching that by the end of the first

quarter of the twentieth century an approach named the “reading

approach” emerged which underlined reading as a tool for language

learning and emphasized reading skills for foreign languages (Brown,

2000). The importance of reading is proven by the emerging needs of EFL

 3

learners willing to pursue better education overseas. They have to deal

with a lot of readings in English that requires strategies to comprehend

those texts. Often the learners are prevented from the opportunities to go

abroad because they did not fulfill the standard of TOEFL score required

by the university overseas.

In an EFL context such as Indonesia, reading is considered to be

one of the most important language skills to be acquired because of lack

of enough exposure to the spoken form of the target language. Zhang

(2001:175), stated that Reading in Indonesia context is not only essential

in the comprehension of textbooks but also essential to perform

professional jobs, such as doing translation because there are too many

university or undergraduate students are not able to read. This is probably

one of the main reasons that the government is trying to integrate Reading

subject into the curriculum starting from secondary school to tertiary level.

Reading is a major academic skill that is introduced to students

during the early school years. Therefore reading instruction should prepare

students to interact in a meaningful manner with a variety of texts. Good

readers focus their attention on the major ideas as they incorporate the

metacognitive skills needed to accomplish the task of understanding text.

Consequently, good readers are strategic readers who have developed

the necessary skills to benefit fully from the decoding process of reading.

That is why reading comprehension strategies (RCS) have been given

ample attention in research on language learning strategies. Koda (2005:)

 4

believes that skillful readers continuously adjust their reading behaviors to

cope with the text difficulty, task demands, and other contextual variables.

They monitor their reading process carefully and take immediate steps

when encountering comprehension problems. They are aware of their own

cognitive and linguistic resources and are capable of directing their

attention to the appropriate clues in the texts. These and similar behaviors

which separate skilled from less-skilled readers are called strategic

reading.

The imposition of Reading as a core subject within the secondary

school curriculum implies that reading is an important skill for all learners

regardless of their educational and social background. In Indonesia, the

main objective of English language education is to promote discourse

competence (i.e., students’ communicative ability, both in oral and written

language in any communicative events). In order to achieve the goal,

learners also have to learn other competences: actional competence,

linguistic competence, socio-linguistic competence, and strategic

competence. Thus, discourse competence is the final goal oflanguage

learning while the other competences are treated as the supportive

competences but should be firstly acquired (Depdiknas, 2004). The

imposition of reading may benefit the students in all level of education

because the current curriculum does not seem to provide sufficient skills to

deal with the demands of literacy skills. The ability to comprehend

textbooks in English has been the main concern of Indonesian educators

 5

and teaching professionals. They often urge the government especially the

Department of Education and Culture to make revision of the curriculum.

English as a foreign language aims to equip the learners with

decent communication as well as literacy skills in order to be able to

pursue further education overseas. However, proficiency in English is

difficult to achieve because English is not the official language of the

country and is only in use within school instruction under the English

subject and exposure to the target language is relatively rare outside

classroom setting. This condition has made it difficult for EFL learners in

Indonesia to make sufficient practice required for the language proficiency.

Besides, the learners from all level of education in this country needs other

skills, such as speaking in order to deal with the global demands. The

global demands require that people from all over the world understand

spoken English because it has been the major language used in

international events, such as conferences, seminars and workshops.

At present, the Indonesian government demands its people to

acquire high standard of English in reading. The government has become

well aware of the need of literacy skills to establish political and economic

engagement with other countries. More recently, the government of

Indonesia through the Department of Education and Culture has urged its

people all over the country to improve their literacy skills in order to be

able to challenge the dynamic development of globalization era.

Meanswhile, Whitehead (2008) confirms that this mission is relevant to the

 6

need of language proficiency as an essential condition for its people in

order to gain resistant survival in this fast changing society. This mission is

relevant to the need of language proficiency as an essential condition for

its people in order to gain resistant survival in this fast changing society.

Whitehead (2008) confirms that in large part of the world, the use of

English creates a space that enables communication and debates to take

place.

The vitality of the language skills and its importance in the world of

global economy is apparent in a scholar’s statement. Richards (2008)

argues that one of the simple facts of life in the present time is that the

English language skills of a good proportion of its citizenry are seen as

vital if a country is to participate actively in the global economy and to have

access to the information and knowledge that provide the basis for both

social and economic development. He convinces that central to this

enterprise are English teaching and English language teacher education.

However, the learning and teaching of English in Indonesian tertiary

education has faced some challenges. More and more tertiary learners

find it difficult to read and understand academic text in their respective

subject disciplines. Recent investigation of the reading behaviour of EFL

learners in Indonesia demonstrated that their main motivation to read was

for fulfilling the assignment (Erna, 2012:3).

The apparent under performance of tertiary learners has raised

questions about current development of teaching and learning a foreign

 7

language in Indonesia. The development of language teaching does not

seem to provide significant impact on the improvement of learners’ poor

standard of EFL performance particularly in reading skills. There has been

strong perception among teaching practitioners, teachers, and educators

regarding poor standard of English achievement at all levels of education

(Syatriana, 1998; Hamra, 1996; Kweldju, 2001). They claimed that most

university graduates are not able to read with full comprehension. Such

perception is also justified through the profile of many tertiary graduates

who could not meet the TOEFL score of 500 and above in the admission

test for the postgraduates studies at Hasanudin University. The learners’

failure to achieve the TOEFL band score provides a clear outlook that a

large majority of university graduates have poor performance on reading

skills. As Lie (2007) claims that even though English is officially taught

through the country from secondary schools to tertiary levels, competence

in the English language among learners at both schools and universities is

generally low.

Successful comprehension monitoring requires the detection of

unknown or inconsistent information and an awareness of strategies that

can be utilized to alleviate the problem. Effective readers are able to

monitor their own comprehension and take the necessary steps to cope

successfully with difficulties encountered in comprehending text. The

public perception of Indonesia scholars and researchers show that the

majority of Indonesia students are not even able to comprehend textbooks

 8

in almost all disciplines. They often claim that the failure of teaching

English in Indonesia context is due to the lack of teacher training and the

complexity of geographical conditions that make it difficult for the

government to provide such needs. It is even difficult for the government to

establish standard of curriculum suitable for Indonesian context with

diverse cultural and social background.

The students’ attitudes toward reading can influence achievement.

The parents play a major role in promoting and sustaining children's

enthusiasm for reading. Regularly, children observe their parents and

other individuals reading. Therefore by observing their parents and others

interacting with print, children learn that reading and writing have

functional environmental uses (Brown, 2000 and Briggs, 1987). The

children easily ascertain the attitude that others have toward reading and

the importance of reading in daily life. Over a period of time, students have

gradually assimilated their attitudes toward reading from the actions and

beliefs of those with whom they regularly come in contact (Briggs, 1987).

Students who develop positive attitudes toward the value of reading will

approach reading instruction with a greater possibility for success.

Extensive research has been conducted on the teacher's influence in

helping to foster students’ attitudes toward reading. Schofield (1980) found

that teachers who value reading tend to promote positive attitudes and

higher achievement among their students. Obviously, when learning to

read, children are also developing attitudes toward reading and their own
 9

reading proficiency. Children are also affected by the instructional behavior

of their teachers.

Allington (1980), discovered that teacher-pupil interaction was

different for good and poor readers. He found that teachers are more likely

to interrupt poor readers who err when reading aloud than good readers

who err similarly. As a result, the actual instructional time allocated for

reading tasks is much less for the poor readers. In general, research (e.g.,

Kennedy & Halinski, 1978), has shown that good readers have a more

positive attitude toward reading than poor readers do. The poor attitude of

disabled readers may have a negative effect on reading achievement.

High interest in reading tends to be associated with high achievement, and

low interest in reading tends to be associated with failure in reading. The

failure in reading therefore must have relevance with the quality of

teachers, insufficient infrastructures, and professionalism. Reading must

be integrated with all sectors of education and as such teacher training is

important to deal with such problem.

An Indonesian researcher, such as Artsiyanti (2010) mentioned that

in Indonesia, most of the students got some problems in mastering English

language. Firstly, teachers rarely speak English in the classroom. The

second, Lessons are emphasized on grammar (and not in conversation),

but students are rarely given direction such as how and what the functions

of the grammatical elements that they are learning. Third, the

Vocabularies, which given by teachers ware not very useful in daily

 10

conversations. The last, the material of English lesson in junior high school

and high school was unsustainable. The students stated that there was a

repetition of the material (such as tenses) that had been taught at junior

high school, but the functions and applications were unclear enough.

Some of above problems, commonly found by all students in Indonesia,

the English language became important to learn but it is rather difficult for

students to learn especially junior high school students even in senior high

school or vocational school English language becomes a test of

determining their graduation.

The vitality of reading also applies for vocational secondary school

in South Sulawesi Province. An example of this is the vocational high

school of computer students of Makassar who are required to read the

written text of English language. This is because there is a lot of

information and knowledge about computers written in English. The public

have perceived that the students' performance in reading skill is still

unsatisfactory. The students of Computer Department in “SMK Computer

Mutiara Ilmu Makassar are regarded to have very poor reading ability and

they possess very little interest in English reading text. The vocational

school need to be the object of research and investigation in order to find

the existing problems that may inhibit the attainment of goals stipulated in

such institution. Researchers and educational practitioners in this region

need to consider improvement of vocational education in order to provide

better education for all people regardless their social and economic
 11

background. The result of research may be useful at the institution and

therefore the students’ literacy skills could be improved.

In this case the researcher was investigate whether reading text

with familiar and unfamiliar topic affect their comprehension over the

English expository text. This is crucial for such institution because

Computer Department will deal a lot of text written in English. Basically, if

students read a lot of English texts, they will get more language input from

the reading activity. Students can also enrich their vocabularies that can

help them understand the science of computer. Finally, the students of

computer school need the reading skill in English in order to equip them

with knowledge on computer as demanded by the school. The integrating

theory and practice in order to improve the students’ reading performance

to enable them pursue education not only at tertiary level in their own

country but also pursue education overseas.

B. Research Questions

The present study attempts to explore whether students’ familiarity

and unfamiliarity over the topic of particular English text bridges

comprehension. Therefore, the following are formulated as research

questions (RQ).

1. What is the relationship between familiar and unfamiliar textual topic

and students’ comprehension at vocational high school of Computer

Mutiara Ilmu Makassar?

 12

2. How do topic familiarity and unfamiliarity affect students’

comprehension at vocational High School of Computer Mutiara Ilmu

Makassar?

C. Objectives of The Research

The main objectives of the research is to find out the profiles of

students’ reading comprehension ability in the two types of text, familiar

and unfamiliar topic, so that conclusion can be made in which aspect of

reading the teacher can be recommended to improve their teaching

performance that leads to students’ improvement in reading. In particular,

the objective of current research are formulated as follows:

1. To explore whether there is a relationship between familiarity and

unfamiliarity of textual topic and students’ comprehension of students

of vocational high school of computer Mutiara Ilmu Makassar.

2. To elaborate arguments as to why text familiarity or unfamiliarity affect

students’ comprehension over the text.

D. Significance Of The Research

The present study deals with the relationship between topic

familiarity and unfamiliarity and students’ comprehension. The research

will have significant contribution to the development of research in EFL

reading in Indonesian context in general and in South Sulawesi Province

in particular. The finding from this research will add the existing literature
 13

regarding roles of text genre towards text comprehension. At least, the

present research contributes to the development of research in EFL

context in Indonesia so that it can bridge the research and classroom

pedagogical practices. The present research is expected to bring a

positive teaching implication to improve students’ reading skills at the

institution where the research is undertaken. Finally, the research will

benefit both teachers and students in terms of teaching and learning

improvement to enable them (students) comprehend textbooks in various

disciplines. At least, teachers from this institution can learn from the

research to improve their teaching methodologies in reading to enable

their students pursue education at higher level.

E. The Scope of the Research

The focus of the present study is the relationship between familiar

and unfamiliar topic of the English texts and students’ comprehension. The

concept of familiarity and unfamiliarity will be based on the subject

perception over the expository text that will be selected for this study. The

familiarity of text may derive from lexical item already possessed by

students during the data collection process. The familiarity may also derive

from students’ better awareness due to their experience in reading an

English text. The subject familiarity and unfamiliarity will be crosschecked

with their level of comprehension on the given English text. Finally,

 14

familiarity over the text may also derive from available reading strategies

used to assess the text.

F. Organization of the Chapters

In this paper consists of three chapters. Chapter One comprises the

background, problem statement, objective of the research, significance of

the research, scope of the research, and organization of the paper and

research terms. Chapter Two consists of literature review that consist of

previous research and theoretical background (reading skill and schema

theory). Chapter Three includes research design, research instruments,

technique of data collection, and technique of data analysis.

G. Research Terms

1. Reading comprehension is the process of constructing meaning is

the process in which the reader combines their prior knowledge with

the additional information from a text, draw the meaning of words, and

connect it to reach the clear understanding of 8 9 the written text

(Pang, et al., 2003:14).

2. Familiar is something or someone is easy to recognize because of

being seen, met, heard, etc. before. We can say that we know about

something or someone well. (Cambridge Advanced Learner’s

Dictionary & Thesaurus).

 15

3. Familiarity is a measure of how frequently a linguistic item is thought

to be used, or the degree to which it is known. This may be measured

by asking people to show on a RATING SCALE whether they think

they use a given word or structure never, sometimes, or often. Word

familiarity has been used as a way of selecting vocabulary for

language teaching. (Richards Jack C and Schmidt Richard,2002: 198).

4. Topic is in language teaching, a curriculum, course or syllabus in

which content and teaching and learning activities are centered around

topics or themes, such as family, leisure, music, etc. Other aspects of

the course (skills, grammar, etc.) are all linked to the core topics of

the course. (Richards Jack C and Schmidt Richard, 2002: 198). In this

study, the writer focus on topic in reading skill.

5. Schema Theory is The theory that in comprehending language

people activate relevant schemata allowing them to process and

interpret new experiences quickly and efficiently. Schemata serve as a

reference store from which a person can retrieve relevant existing

knowledge and into which new information is assimilated. When

encountering a topic in reading or listening, the reader activates the

schema for that topic and makes use of it to anticipate, infer, and

make different kinds of judgments and decisions about it. Schema

theory plays an important role in theories of second language reading

and listening comprehension. (Richards Jack C and Schmidt Richard,

2002). Then they continuous, they consist in two types of schema

 16

theory that are: 1).content schemata and 2). Formal schemata. A

difference is sometimes made between content schemata and

formal schemata. Content schemata deal with general background

knowledge related to the topic such as might be associated with the

topic of an earthquake. Formal schemata deal with the rhetorical

structure of language and a person’s knowledge of the structure of a

particular genre, such as news reports or journal articles.

 17

CHAPTER II

REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE

This chapter addresses fundamental information regarding previous

research that have been conducted in relation to the topic of the research.

This part clearly shows the gaps that make the present research is

different from the previous research. It also deals with theoretical

discussion that addresses the background information regarding familiar

and unfamiliar topic of reading. In addition, it also addresses the whole

conception about familiar and unfamiliar topic based on experts and

researcher. Every part sums up the whole ideas that will clearly show the

core component of each sub titles.

A. Previous Related Studies

There has been an overwhelming of research already done in

relation to topic familiarity and unfamiliarity and students comprehension..

These studies have already provided significant implication on the

teaching of Reading subject in various EFL contexts notably in Indonesia.

Despite the massive development of research on this issue,

researchers all over the world are still exploring the arguments as to why

relationship between familiarity and unfamiliarity of text topic contribute to

comprehension. Therefore, the present study attempts to fill the gap and

explore the role of familiar topic in L2 reading. However, most of the

research centers on the discussion of reading difficulty and reading

 18

strategies. Little attention has been paid to reading especially in relation to

text familiarity. Therefore, the present study attempts to fill the gap and

explore the role of text familiarity in L2/EFL reading. The present research

presents those research findings so that researchers have the scenario

about segment of reading that needs to further explored and investigated.

Chang (2006) investigated the effects of topic familiarity and

linguistic difficulty on the reading strategies and mental representations of

nonnative readers of Chinese. The research design employed a qualitative

research design because the researcher intended to reveal the holistic and

deep information about Chinese students in handling familiar topic. The

results suggest that subjects in all four groups predominantly engaged in

local-level processing with the exception of two types of global-level

processing: monitoring one’s comprehension and generation of inferences.

While monitoring efforts were motivated by both topic familiarity and

linguistic difficulty, inferencing events were primarily facilitated by topic

familiarity. In addition, topic familiarity was also found to have a facilitative

effect on the mental representations of the reading passages whereas no

effects due to linguistic difficulty was found.

Another important research about topic familiarity is by Chansri

(2008) who included gender perspectives. In this research, Chansri

(2008) investigated the relationship between topic familiarity, gender

differences, vocabulary, and English reading comprehension of students at

the university level in Thailand. By utilizing questionnaires and interviews

 19

as the research instrument, he came up with the finding that showed

positive relationship between the reading comprehension test of familiar

and unfamiliar topics and on the vocabulary test. In addition, the

participants also obtained a higher mean score on the topics that were

familiar to them than on the topics that were not familiar to them,

regardless of gender. This research confirmed that female participants

performed better than the mean score of the male participants on female-

related topics. On the reading comprehension test of familiar and

unfamiliar topics, the male participants obtained better score than the

mean score of the female participants on male-related topics. This

research confirmed that gender related readers helped in enhancing

comprehension.

Cultural context has also been under investigation on research

regarding familiar and unfamiliar topic. In this context, Erten and Razi

(2009) conducted research about “The effects of cultural familiarity on

reading comprehension”. The result of this study concluded that firstly,

cultural familiarity facilitates comprehension. Secondly, although reading

activities do activate schematic knowledge and promote strategic reading

behaviors, the influence of cultural familiarity still needed. Therefore, if

readers lack the relevant cultural schema, reading activities cannot fully

compensate for the discrepancy or help readers comprehend a text.

Research focusing on content familiarity of text has also been done

in the context of English as a foreign language in a Spanish institution.

 20

Martínez (2014), for example, conducted her research on the analysis of

the effect of content familiarity and gender on English as a foreign

language reading comprehension with Spanish University Students. The

result of the study showed that gender and content familiarity significantly

affected the students' overall comprehension of the texts. This study

showed that the linguistic threshold hypothesis as both the elementary

level and intermediate level readers of the study could read and

understand better when the text was familiar, irrespective of their language

knowledge and also it seems to support the interactive view of L2 reading

comprehension.

A more recent investigation of the relationship between topic

familiarity and comprehension has been under documentation in another

context of English as a foreign language. Yu-Jiao (2014), for example,

conducted a research on the effect of topic familiarity on L2 Incidental

vocabulary acquisition (IVA) in reading- an experimental study based on

path analysis”. This research explores the relationship between topic

familiarity, reading comprehension and L2 incidental vocabulary

acquisition with the help of path analysis SPSS 17.0. The result of this

research showed that topic familiarity has a significant influence on

reading performance and reading performance has a significant effect on

vocabulary learning and then topic familiarity has an indirect influence on

incidental vocabulary acquisition. The research confirmed that the

acquisition of vocabulary may occur through topic familiarity.

 21

A more dynamic investigation of the relationship between topic

familiarity and comprehension has been under investigation with the

involvement of test taking strategies. Lee (2011), conducted research on

second language reading topic familiarity and test score: test-taking

strategies for multiple-choice comprehension questions. The substance of

the study refers to describing what students do when they are taking

reading comprehension tests by asking students to verbalize their

thoughts. The research came up with the finding that the strategies used

by participants in the test-taking situation to process text were similar

regardless of topic familiarity. Besides that this study contributed toward

L2 reading assessment by presenting the test-taking strategies in regard

to different topic familiarity and by demonstrating the validity of multiple-

choice reading tests.

Research involving pre-reading activity and topic familiarity has also

been under investigation in the field of reading research. Rouhi A. &

Asghari F. (2011) conducted a research on the effect of topic familiarity

and pre-reading activities on reading comprehension and lexical

inferencing”. A review of the research literature indicated that superiority

of +F–P group over the –F+P group in terms of both reading

comprehension and lexical inferencing tests further implied that providing

readers with pre-reading activities on an unfamiliar topic could barely

make up for the lack of topic familiarity in either reading comprehension or

lexical inferencing.
 22

Investigation of topic familiarity and gender perspective has been

performed in the context of English as a foreign language. Jalilehvand et

al (2014) conducted a study an content familiarity and gender-neutral texts

in foreign language reading comprehension. The result from this study

was a two-way interaction effect between familiarity and gender. It was

found that females scored higher on familiar texts whereas males

outperformed the females on the unfamiliar texts. The study confirmed that

gender differences contribute to students’ performance in reading

comprehension. There was no account reported as to why females

outperformed the males in that context. One could be the main reason was

probably due to reading experience where males have more exposure to

reading text before the research was conducted.

The most recent development of reading research involving topic

familiarity has been performed in the context of English as a foreign

language. Mahmoudi & Mahmoudi (2017), conducted a study entitled,

“Can Topic Familiarity Override Language Proficiency in Reading

Comprehension?”. The obtained results indicated that topic familiarity

cannot override language proficiency in reading comprehension; that is,

low-proficiency students could not catch up with high proficiency students

even in familiar topics. The research confirmed that proficiency in the

language had stronger implication to understand text than familiarity of the

topic.
 23

Based on the research perspective involving topic familiarity and

comprehension, researcher from all over the world are convinced about

the effectiveness of text familiarity and comprehension. As mentioned in

the previous research, there has been a positive relation between topic

familiarity and students’ comprehension and thus these studies will have

significant teaching implication both in the context of English as a second

language and as a foreign language. In addition, some researchers

believe that there is correlation between familiar topic, schema theory,

gender, and vocabulary in reading comprehension. Despite a range of

studies that have been performed, little has been addressed regarding

what types of text genres contribute to comprehension.

In order to contextualize the research on reading particularly in

relation to text familiarity and comprehension, the present study explores

the relationship between text familiarity, unfamiliarity, and students’

comprehension. The focus of the present study is on the vocational

secondary school located in Makassar as the capital of the province of

South Sulawesi. The setting will be on SMK Computer Mutiara Ilmu

because the institution also impose the subject of Reading as a core

component in the curriculum. The study is expected to contribute to the

development of research on the field of reading particularly in relation to

text familiarity.
 24

B. Theoretical Background

1. Concept of Reading

a. Definition Reading

Experts in the field of language teaching and learning have

provided a wide range of reading definitions. Most available definitions are

based on the concept of reading that derive from both top-down and

bottom-up process of reading. Therefore, the meanings are often identical

because these definitions relate to the concept of reading as cognitive

process. The following definitions of reading are based on the notion of

reading as cognitive process, which take into account the process of

information transfer.

Reading is a process of manipulating phoneme-grapheme

relationships as described by a structural linguist Leonard Bloomfield

(Dubin & Bycina, 1991). The bottom-up model of reading, basically,

fostered practices in reading instruction which built up learners decoding

abilities from the bottom up, starting with the smallest units, single letters,

letters blends , and building up to words and phrases. With the emergence

of the more recent model, that is, the top-down model, this model of

reading which viewed that reading takes place by matching sounds and

letters became outdated

Anderson (1999) stated that reading is as an interactive, fluent

process which involves the reader and the text in building comprehension

of meaning. Such interactive processing also implies the interaction

 25

between reader and text. Recently, researchers view the reading

comprehension process as an interaction between the reader’s

background knowledge and text. Schema theorists have examined the

importance of background knowledge in the system called bottom-up and

top-down processing in order to facilitate reading comprehension.

Reading is an indirect communication between the author and the

reader, using the linguistic symbol and the prior knowledge by reader has

had to produce reading comprehension. From the previous conception of

reading, it may be understood that reading is a complex process which

involves the coordination of a multitude of skills. Strategic readers can be

distinguished from the less-skilled readers by their methods of interacting

with text. The mental processes of good readers must be understood in

order to make assumptions concerning the nature of reading.

b. Definition of Reading Comprehension

Reading comprehension processes was one of the goal of self-

reading skills. According to Tankersley ( 2003: 90 ) stated that in reading

comprehension, there are three factors which influence the level of

reader’s comprehension among other things, the first factor is the reader

has command of the linguistic structures of the text. The second factor is

the reader is able to monitor and reflect his or her own level of

understanding while reading the material. And The third factor and most

important criterian influencing the comprehension is the reader has

adequate background in the content and vocabulary being presented.

 26

Elizabeth (2003:15) stated that comprehension is the process of

deriving meaning from connected text. It involves word knowledge

(vocabulary) as well as thinking and reasoning. It means that Indeed the

reader's understanding in reading foreign language text is not based on

the content of his writing but the knowledge, they have already had it.

According to Research and Development (RAND) Reading Study Group

(RRSG, 2002) in Snow (2010) stated that the process of simultaneously

constructing and extracting meaning through interaction and engagement

with print. As addition, Watter Kerrin, et al. (2016:3) stated that Reading

comprehension is the act of interpreting written information from a text; this

involves using prior knowledge to interfere information, making a

representation in mind about the text and its content, and then applying

this information to a new situations.

c. The psycholinguistic model toward reading for English foreign

learner

Reading process is an interactive between readers and writers

through writing text media under the control of psycholinguistics. Good

reader is the reader to understand fully what he has read. Understanding

greatly aided by reflection or thinking about what they read. Coady

mentioned that the basic of psycholinguistics in the process of

comprehension by the reader can be seen from consolidation of three

important things, namely the aspects of the reader’ background

 27

knowledge Interact with the concept of the reader' ability to produce

comprehension and process strategy (Michael and Richards, 1989: 219).

we can see in figure 1.

CONCEPTUAL BACKGROUND
ABILITIES KNOWLEDGE

PROCESS
STRATEGIES

Figure 1. Coady’s Model Of The ELS/EFL Reader

The first, the conceptual abilities refer to intellectual ability, it is the

ability needed to perform various mental activities such as thinking,

reasoning, and problems solving. Actually, Individuals need to use the

intelligence and for the right reasons for assessing or determining

something. So, it should be emphasized, that the reading skills is not only

to know the vocabulary one by one from the reading text but it also needs

to be reasoning. The second, knowledge background refers prior

knowledge by the reader. According to Coady in Michael and Richards,

(1989:220) noted that knowledge background is important variable, we

have seen many students with western knowledge background of some

kind learn English faster On average compared with those without the

background knowledge. Coady mentioned also the interest and

 28

background knowledge will bring through for the learner to understand at a

plausible rate and keep him embroiled in The material despite the

difficulties syntax. And the last, process strategy refers to actions taken to

achieve specific objectives to obtain comprehension.

d. Establishing Reading Goals

Establishing a goal for reading is a prerequisite for monitoring the

reading process and planning appropriate strategies for understanding the

text. By setting goals, students are able to generate hypotheses and

formulate expectations which will guide their reading. Anderson and

Armbruster (1982) suggested that surveying the text and determining the

goal can improve both enjoyment and comprehension. Seeing a definite

need for goals, Stauffer (1969) emphasized the importance of goal setting

in his Directed Reading-Thinking Activity. Because of setting goals,

students gain experience in structuring the specific objectives, which will

guide and aid them in reading. Reading must be goal-directed because

readers must determine strategies for utilizing texts in various ways and

must establish appropriate goals.

Once goals are formulated, students will be able to make use of

their knowledge of the topic to stimulate the background knowledge

required for comprehension.. These goals of reading either explicitly or

implicitly can influence students’ understanding of text. In general, good

readers are constantly determining reasons for reading, performing an

overview and determining the intention of the author before they begin to
 29

read. Finally, setting the purpose of reading will confirm better

understanding of text. This cognitive process requires readers to depend

heavily upon their experiential background to comprehend what they are

reading. Therefore, students need to make themselves familiar with the

topic by increasing their vocabulary and reading awareness.

e. Teaching Reading Comprehension for Senior High School

In teaching English for EFL senior high schools, the students need

some strategies to comprehend the English text, so that messages

delivered by the author can be understood by the reader. Refer to

guideline English curriculum of reading comprehension for teacher

(PDST: professional development service for teacher) mentioned that in

fact the process of reading comprehension is seen instead of having

started reading. But before we read until reading resolved. As a reader

apply pre-reading for previewing text and post-reading for obtaining the

Information is needed.

In Indonesia, English for senior high lever has aim based on

Departemen Pendidikan Nasional (2006) is understanding students

interpersonal, ideational, and textual meanings in various written text.

Written text is in the form of descriptive, narrative, recount, procedure,

report, news item, anecdot, exposition, explanation, and discussion.

(Yuniarti, 2013:3).

Next Pardo (2004) stated that separating guideline into pre-reading,

when reading and post-reading, for the teacher can outline exercises for
 30

each phase that will enhance students comprehension and furthermore

give chances to teacher to exhibit procedures that readers apply at each

stage. He mentioned also comprehension is a procedure in which readers

build up signification by socialize with text by applying the reader' prior

knowledge and past experience, the output of the text and the

establishment of the reader pick up relationship to the content of text.

English teacher should teach strategy comprehension to their students

because it is mental processes.

f. Level of Reading Comprehension

Generally, there are three level toward reading comprehension.

Basaraba et all. (2012:352) stated that there are three levels of

comprehension, namely: the first is literal. the second is Inferential and the

last Evaluative.

1) Literal Comprehension

This first level, students are required to know the vocabularies and

synthetic in the reading text and also understand the meaning presented.

According to Rupley and Blair (in Basaraba et al., 2012:352) mentioned

that literal comprehension have two strategies, namely recall and

recognition. Recall is the ability to provide an idea (e.g., main idea or

detail) that was part of passage. Recognition is the ability to recognize

whether specific information is provided in a passage.

Guideline of English curriculum of the reading comprehension for

teacher (PDST: professional development service for teacher) mentioned

 31

that in the level literal comprehension of the four strategies. First, creating

images is “ to use the senses to help them to draw conclusions, make

predictions, interpret information, remember details and assist overall

comprehension”. (PDST: professional development service for teacher).

Second, skimming is “To involve glancing quickly through a text to gain a

general impression of the content. Graphics, italics and headings are

useful cues when skimming a text”. (PDST: professional development

service for teacher). Third, scanning is glancing through material to locate

specific details, such as names, dates, places or some particular content.”

(PDST: professional development service for teacher). Fourth, self

questioning is to encourage readers to constantly think of questions

before, during and after reading to assist them to comprehend text. Self-

formulated questions provide a framework for active reading and

engagement as students go in search of the answers.” (PDST:

professional development service for teacher).

2). Inferential Comprehension

Inferential comprehension is the reader comprehend for making

meaning toward text . At this level, the reader applies the information

available to predict the readings, draw conclusions and the reader can

explain the information from what he has read. so that readers can find

the attachment between the idea of reading text. make interpretations

about the author’s intended meaning and/or understand the relationships

between the elements presented in the text (Basaraba et al , 2012: 352).

 32

Guideline of English curriculum of reading comprehension for

teacher (PDST: professional development service for teacher) mentioned

that in the level literal comprehension of the four strategies. First,

connecting is to comprehend text by making strong connections between

their prior knowledge and the new information presented in text. (PDST:

professional development service for teacher). Second, comparing is “

closely linked to ‘Connecting’. When making connections to the text, self,

other texts and the outside world, pupils also make comparisons. There is

an emphasis on identifying similarities and differences.” (PDST:

professional development service for teacher). Third, inferring is “the

readers to comprehend text by making strong connections between their

prior knowledge and the new information presented in the reader to move

beyond the literal text and make assumptions about what is not explicitly

stated in the text. It can involve predictions, conclusions and

interpretations that are neither confirmed nor rejected.” (PDST:

professional development service for teacher). Fourth, predicting helps

readers to activate their prior knowledge about a topic, so they begin to

combine what they know with the new material in the text. Predictions are

based on clues in the text such as pictures, illustrations, subtitles and plot.”

(Reading Booklet. PDST: professional development service for teacher).

 33

3). Evaluative comprehension

In the last level, the reader is required to give criticism and explain

their understanding, so that this level is a follow up of the literal and

inferential. As applying the last level some of the action can be doing

(Reading Booklet. PDST: professional development), such as:

Synthesising is piecing information together as students read a text, to

keep track of what is happening. Next, determining the important important

information from phrase, sentence, paragraph, chapter or whole text.Then,

summarizing and paraphrasing is reducing larger texts to focus on

important elements and re-stating/re-writing text in own words using key

words to capture main focus. Finally, Self Questioning is providing a

framework for active learning as students engage with the text to find

answers.

2. The concept of Schema theory

a. Definition of Schema Theory

Actually schema theory is introduced by Frederic Bartlett (1932).

Bartlet (1932:2) stated that remembering consist of perceiving study, and

all of thinking, they are cognitive process and part of individual. This

Theory is the involvement of background knowledge and experience in the

past as an initial interpretation of the understanding. Schema theory

started from theory remembering by Bartlett, in his study about

experimental and social Psychology. It was foundation of schema theory.

 34

besides that, in his study claimed that two method from remembering.

Namely, repeated reproduction and serial reproduction. repeated

reproduction : The same individual repeatedly reproduces the same story,

than Bartlett Centered to how people remember the story and how their

memories will change over time, finally their ability for retelling. serial

reproduction used the children’s game of rumor or telephone. The first

person whispers a word or phrase into the ears of a second person, until it

reaches the last player, The last player says the word or phrase out loud.

From the this, we can hear how much it has changed from the first whisper

at the beginning. Another book by Bartlett, his book’s (1958) namely

Thinking: An Experimental and social study. Without, it’s book not enjoy

the first book “Remembering”. It is called Human Chain ( Roediger, 2003).

Then related with the definition of schema theory is the active role

of the organization as the influence of the past, it means that there is an

active role organizing the background knowledge or experience of the past

could be the foundation of one's understanding (Bartlett:1932).

Continued Goodman (1976)’s schema theory is the model

“guessing games”, that refers to the human which consist of memory high

level structure like structure abstract in heir mind. Continued Coady

(1979)’s basic psycholinguistic model is elaborate in three important

aspect they are conceptual abilities, process strategies, and background

knowledge for producing reading comprehension (in Michael and

Richards C. Jack, 1987: 219). Also, Richards C. Jack (1987: 220) stated
 35

that schema theory is the process of interpretation which guided by the

principle that every input is mapped against some existing schema and

those all aspects of the schema must be compatible with input

information. Finally, schema theory is abstract structure in brain of human

which organized by the comprehension of existing or past experience with

new knowledge and comprehension. Then, according to Brown (2011)

mention that The hallmark of the theoretical schema is The text of reading

does not give meaning by itself but, In the reader's brain there is already

information, experience, culture, emotions that are abstract shapes. This is

called the schema theory.

From the all, the writer conclude that schema theory is interactive

between readers with text readings. Readers read using abstract schema

(combination prior knowledge, experience, culture) in their minds. So that

it can get the available information of meaning in the text.

b. Types of Schema Theory

Michael and Richards (1987: 223), stated that just two type of

schema theory, they are formal schemata and content schemata. There

are three major types of schema theory, they are formal of schema theory,

content of schema theory and cultural of schema theory (carrel,

1983.1987, carrel and Eisterhold:1983). As general, there are three types

of schema theory, namely (Yousef et al.,2014; Hui et al., 2007). The

explanation of the each types are:

 36

1). formal of schema theory or textual schema is defined as knowledge

background which refers to comprehend the linguistic, organization

between text, rhetorical organization. Formal schemata is knowledge

background of the reader and comprehension about rhetorical

organization structure of the text (Michael and Richards, 1987: 223).

Formal schemata are the organizational forms and rhetorical structures

of written texts (Hui et. al., 2007). Formal schemata or textual schema

is knowledge of linguistic structure, rhetorical structure and knowledge

of the text how it is organized and what the main features of a

particular genre of written ( Yousef et. al., 2014). Recently, Weliati

(2015), stated that Formal schemata is The structures rhetorical and

text organizational. Like language structures, vocabulary, grammar and

level of formality differently. It described as expectation in our

attempts to understand a meaning abstract, encoded, internalized,

coherent patterns of meta-linguistic, discourse and textual organization.

2). Content of schema theory is knowledge background including text

area, such as text topic. Content schemata refers to the background

knowledge of the content area of a text, or the topic of a text talks

about (Hui et. al, 2007). Generally content schemata contain in

formation about topic text (Zhang : 2010). Next, Weliati (2015) stated

that content of schema theory refers on knowledge background

discusses the contents of the text and topics in the text, such as

familiar topics, knowledge background, and experience aspect.

 37

3). Linguistic of schema theory included knowledge background about

linguistic, like vocabulary and grammar. Hai (2007) stated that linguistic

schema is the foundation of other schemata, because linguistic

knowledge plays an essential part in text understanding. Then, Weliati

(2015) stated that This schema is the main foundation of other schema

because it has an important role in understanding the text. without

knowledge of language (linguistic)the reader does not know the

meaning of the text.

However, dissimilar with Brown (2001), defined that there are two

types of schema theory, as follow first, content schemata refers to

knowledge about people, the world, culture, and the universe. and

second, formal schemata is knowledge about discourse structure of the

text.

c. Schema Theory in Reading Comprehension

The process of the occurrence of schema theory for reading

comprehension has been presented by several experts. One of them,

Michael and Richards C. Jack (1987: 221) stated that two basic modes of

information possessing they are bottom up and top down. Bottom up (data

driven) is processing is evoked by the incoming data, the features of data

enter the system through the best fitting. Top down (conceptually driven)

occurs as the system makes general predictions based higher level,

general schemata and then searches the input for information to fit into

these partially satisfied, higher order schemata. Hui (2007) stated that in
 38

psychologists distinguished three kinds of processing: bottom-up model,

top-down model and interactive model.

Brown (2007) stated that there are three processes that cover

how reading skill. Firstly, bottom-up processing refers to how readers read

by knowing the meaning of every word in the text to get the idea.

Secondly, top-down processing is the process in which readers are aware

of core information submitted by the author although the reader is not

familiar with all the vocabulary contained in the reading text. Thirdly,

interactive reading processing is Readers combine between Bottom-up

Processing and Top-down Processing. The reader can know linguistic

structure include the meaning each vocabulary and comprehend discourse

knowledge

In addition, Mikulecky (2008:1) identifies that all of a person’s prior

knowledge, experience, and values are organized in categories, or

schemata. Finally, Knowledge has been obtained and the experience that

is passed through will be stored in the human brain in the form of abstract

structures which are called schemata theory. The schema theory admits

the importance of background knowledge in in the comprehension

process. Experts often argue that the background knowledge is essential

in visualizing the object being described in the text.

So previous information affects new information that involves the

schemes stored in our minds. According to Rumelhart (1976: 6) there are

three kinds in the modification of schema theory in learning process, as

 39

follows. Firstly, accretion refers to the process of encoding with new

information with an existing schema. This process is the interpretation of

new information with the existing scheme, this is called the process of

interpretation. it is as the basis for reconstruction of information

processing to change the system, answering questions that cannot be

answered before. It like cognitive dissonance (Adekoya, 2013). Secondly,

tuning or Schema Evolution refers to the function of applying the scheme

is slowly improving. So the combination of new information and

experience can not be fully accommodated in the existing scheme, As a

result the scheme should be more consistent with the new

experience.Thirdly, restructuring or Schema Creation refers to the process

of creating a new scheme from the new information.

d. Reading as Cognitive Process

As part of receptive skill, reading has been widely perceived as a

process of cognition that works within the mind. As a cognitive process,

reading involves processes that constitute a beginning state, an

intervening transformation, and an end state (Bernhardt, 1991). Taking

into account Just and Carpenter’s (1987) view, a reading process involves

what information in the text that accounts for as a point of departure, how

long the process takes, what information used during the process, and

what the reader has learned when the process is finished. This implies that

understanding cognitive process means examining the reading process as

 40

an interpersonal problem-solving task that takes place within the brain

knowledge structures (Bernhardt, 1991).

Reading is simply a receptive language process that requires

cognitive process. Goodman (1998), stated that reading is a

psycholinguistic process that starts with a linguistic surface representation

encoded by a writer and ends with meaning which the reader constructs.

As such, there is an essential interaction between language and thought in

reading. The writer encodes thought as language and the reader decodes

language to thought. Goodman (1998) argues that proficient readers, for

example, are both efficient and effective in constructing the meaning that

they can assimilate or accommodate that bear some level of agreement

with the original meaning of the author. As a cognitive process, reading

constitutes a social process that involves cultural transmission (Bloome &

Greene, 1984).

Language comprehension is generally viewed in cognitive theory

as consisting of active and complex processes in which individual

construct meaning from written information (Anderson 1985; Byrnes 1984;

Call 1985; Howard 1985; Pearson, 1985; Richards 1983). The mental

processes necessary for comprehending aural and written text are

sufficiently similar to comprehension of both can generally be discussed as

a common phenomenon. Anderson (1985) distinguishes comprehension

into three interrelated processes that include perceptual processing,

 41

parsing, and utilization. The meaning of each interrelated process may be

elaborated in subsequent paragraphs.

In perceptual processing, learner’s attention focusses on oral or

written text with portion of the text being retained in short term memory.

The capacity limitation of short term memory prevents specific word

sequences from being retained longer than a few seconds. This happens

due to incoming infromation that tends to replace the old information that

had been retained in short term memory. While the text is still in short term

memory some initial analysis of the language code may begin and

encopding process gradually convert the text to meaningful

representations. During this process, attention may be directed selectively

to aspect of the tasks or the context that will be useful in comprehension.

(O’Malley & Chamot, 1999).

In parsing, words and phrases are used to construct meaningful

mental representation of the text . Individuals first decode individual words

by matching the aural or visual pattern of the word with its representation

in the declarative knowledge stored in long term memory (Gagne, 1985).

The result of decodning is lexical access, or a matching between words in

short term memory and a type of dictionary in long-term memory that

enables to identify the meaning of individual words. There are existence of

variations in the amount of information retained in long term memory, the

way in which information in long term memory is organized (Rabinowitz

& Chi, 1987).

 42

The third process is what they call as utilization where a learner

relates a mental representation of the meaning of the text to declarative

knowledge in long term memory. This propcess is referred to as

elaboration in other description of the reading process (Gagne, 1985). In

this process, declarative knowledge is stored in long term memory in

terms of either propositions or schemata. Utilization is the key to

comprehension process. In any message, according to this expert, there

may be an interplay between information that already stored and

information that is entirely new. Anderson (1985), refers to this as a

distinction between suppositions, ideas that writer or speaker presume we

already know and assertion, information the speaker or writer consider

either new or warranting emphasis. There are linguistic devices for

conveying that information which is supposed or asserted (O’Malley &

Chamot, 1999).

e. Comprehension in Reading

The theoretic views of comprehension in reading have been widely

acknowledged in the literature of reading to account for as bottom-up and

top down process. Johnston (1981), states that reading comprehension

involves conscious and unconscious use of various strategies. Carrell

(1998), reminded that new views of the nature of the reading process have

revitalized both theory and practice in second language reading. According

to this view, reading is an interaction of both top-down and bottom up

processes. These processes utilize background knowledge that can be

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termed as concept-driven. The interaction between top-down and bottom-

up process may be examined from the perspectives of theory, research

and instruction. Overall, the new insight of reading process has

emphasized the role of schema or background knowledge in the process

of reading comprehension. The study employs top-down process as the

theoretical framework that views the schema as element to be central of

inferring meaning from the text. The view is relevant to the existing study

that takes adult learners whose background knowledge is already

sufficient to derive meaning from the text by employing strategies for

understanding written texts.

The top down model is influenced by schema theory, which

emphasizes the importance of the reader’s background knowledge in the

reading process (Carrell, 1998). According to this theory, to comprehend

the text, readers make use of both the text and their background

knowledge. Therefore, interaction of the background knowledge and the

text is important for effective and efficient reading. According to some

experts, a number of processes repeatedly occur in readers’ mind while

reading. The schema or background knowledge under top-down process

makes sufficient account for comprehension of the text. With the help of

such strategies and with the use of pre-reading information readers will be

able to make some predictions about the text. The process of

comprehension begins at the sentence level where readers identify the

meaning and grammatical category of a word and text details. While the
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sentence provides information for further process, readers will check

whether the information fits again by employing both top-down and bottom

up process to make prediction about the text

The theoretical framework of the reading comprehension model is

presented in the following diagram based on top-down process. The

theoretical framework of comprehension in reading developed for this

study is what the so-called a schema-theoretic view that incorporates both

knowledge and input governed system. Goodman (1973) and Smith

(1971) addressed this view as the ‘psycholinguistic model of reading’. This

term is what Goodman also calls as ‘psycholinguistic guessing game’. The

very essential notion of this model is that the reader reconstructs a

message, which a writer has encoded as a graphic display (Goodman,

1972). The model is viewed as an act of the reconstruction of meaning as

being an on-going process of sampling from the input text involving

prediction. The better the reader is able to make correct prediction the less

confirming via the text necessary and the less visual perceptual

information the reader requires (Goodman, 1972) cited in Patricia et al.

(1998). This view is widely taken as an important reference in the field of

second language reading research.

Coady (1979), further elaborated this psycholinguistic view to

reading who claimed that the model of the EFL/ESL reader’s background

knowledge interacts with conceptual abilities. He incorporates conceptual

abilities with processing strategies that involve various components of

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reading ability including general language processing skills. Coady’s

framework of reading has provided essential reference to the present

study with EFL background because he is the one that integrates the

emphasis of background knowledge with EFL situation. The following is

Coady’s (1979) model of the reading process.

C. CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK

Figure 2. The theoretical framework of this research

D. OPERATIONAL DEFINITION

1. Schema theory is combination between prior knowledge, existing

information and experience in our mind, like abstract schema, in

interpreting new knowledge and information.

2. Students’ perception is students’ opinions about topic familiar in

reading text toward the students comprehension.

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3. Topic familiar is something has known well, closely with as.

4. Topic unfamiliar is something has not known with as even we never

find something that.

5. Students’ reading comprehension is the ability to understand the

meaning of the text and capable to get implicit of information in the

text.