MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING
VINH UNIVERSITY

ĐẶNG THỊ THANH THÙY

A STUDY ON USING GRAPHIC ORGANIZERS TO IMPROVE READING
COMPREHENSION SKILLS FOR SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS

MASTER’S THESIS IN EDUCATION

Nghệ An, 2017

1


MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING
VINH UNIVERSITY

ĐẶNG THỊ THANH THÙY

A STUDY ON USING GRAPHIC ORGANIZERS TO IMPROVE READING
COMPREHENSION SKILLS FOR SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS

Major: Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL)

Code: 60.14.01.11

MASTER’S THESIS IN EDUCATION

SUPERVISOR: Dr. Nguyen Thi Kim Anh

Nghệ An

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This thesis could not have been completed without the help, encouragement and
support of a number of people who all deserve my sincere gratitude and appreciation.
First and foremost, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my supervisor
Dr. Nguyen Thi Kim Anh for her invaluable guidance, helpful suggestions,
encouragement in writing this paper.
I would like to thank all the teachers in the English group of Ben Thuy
secondary School, for their help in answering surveys, direct interviews, their
suggestions to this research, and their willingness to share their relevant problems
with me.
I also wish to give my thanks to students at Ben Thuy secondary school who
have actively participated in doing the surveys and responding to my interviews.
I would like to send my thanks to my lecturers, my friends and my classmates
for their sincere comments and criticism
In the end, I would like to show my big gratitude to my beloved people, my
parents, who have constantly inspired and encouraged me to overcome difficulties
to complete this study.
Finally, a special word of thanks goes to my readers for their interest and
comments on this study.

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ABSTRACT


The aim of carrying out this study were twofold: (1) using graphic organizers
helps to increase students’ reading comprehension (2) the graphic organizers help to
improve students’ motivation to learn reading skills.
This research was conducted at the seventh grade of Ben Thuy secondary school
in Vinh city. The study involved 60 students in two classes of seventh grade. The
instrument used were tests (pretest and posttest) and questionnaires.
Based on the findings, it is recommended that the teachers need to use graphic
organizers to teach reading skills. This study believes that using graphic organizers
can help students to concentrate on specific information and answer the questions
more detailed. In addition, the teachers should use various graphic organizers to
motivate students and encourage students to read. More importantly, these strategies
were extremely beneficial to classroom instruction. The thesis also provides
implications for English language teaching.

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Contents
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ........................................................................................ i
ABSTRACT ............................................................................................................... ii
CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION ...............................................................................1
1.1. Rationale ..............................................................................................................1
1.2. Aims of the Study.................................................................................................3
1.3. Research questions ...............................................................................................3
1.4. Scope of the study ................................................................................................4
1.5. Methods of the study ............................................................................................4
1.6. Organization of the study .....................................................................................4
CHAPTER 2. LITERATURE REVIEW ....................................................................5
2.1. Reading and reading comprehension ...................................................................5
2.1.1. Reading .............................................................................................................5

2.1.1.1. Definition of reading ......................................................................................5
2.1.1.2. The role of reading in learning .......................................................................7
2.1.1.3. The reading process........................................................................................8
2.1.2. Definition of reading comprehension ...............................................................9
2.1.2.1. Reading Comprehension Process .................................................................11
2.1.2.1.1. The schema theory ....................................................................................13
2.1.2.1.2. Bottom - up and Top - down processing ...................................................14
2.1.2.1.3. Interactive processing................................................................................13
2.1.2.2. Factors affecting the learning of reading comprehension ............................13
2.1.2.3. Reading purposes and motivation ................................................................22
2.1.2.4. Approaches to Teach Reading .....................................................................16
2.1.2.4.1. Grammar - Translation approach ..............................................................17
2.1.2.4.2. Communicative Language Teaching Approach ........................................18
2.1.2.4.3. Content-Based ...........................................................................................20
2.1.2.4.4. Task-based approach .................................................................................19
2.1.2.5. Techniques to teach reading .........................................................................21
2.1.2.5.1. In Pre-reading ............................................................................................22
2.1.2.5.2. In While-reading .......................................................................................23

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2.1.2.5.3. In Post-reading ..........................................................................................24
2.2. Graphic organizers .............................................................................................23
2.2.1. Definitions of graphic organizers ....................................................................23
2.4.2. Roles of graphic organizers .............................................................................24
2.2.3. Types of graphic organizers employed in the research ...................................24
2.2.3.1. Mind maps ...................................................................................................27
2.2.3.2. The KWL .....................................................................................................25
2.2.3.3. Venn diagram ...............................................................................................29

2.2.3.4. The "5 W's" ..................................................................................................29
CHAPTER 3. METHODOLOGY ............................................................................28
3.1. An overview of Ben Thuy secondary school ....................................................28
3.2. Learners and learning requirements ...................................................................28
3.3. Teachers and teaching methods .........................................................................28
3.4. Materials .............................................................................................................28
3.5. Procedures ..........................................................................................................29
3.6. Tools for Data collection ....................................................................................30
3.6.1. The questionnaires ..........................................................................................30
3.6.2. Tests ................................................................................................................30
3.7. Data analysis ......................................................................................................41
CHAPTER 4. FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION.......................................................42
4.1. Findings ..............................................................................................................42
4.1.1. Students’ attitude towards the importance of learning reading comprehension
at school.....................................................................................................................42
4.1.2. Student’s reading habits .................................................................................43
4.1.3. Student’s difficulties when learning reading skill .........................................43
4.1.4. Students’ opinions about teaching and learning reading ...............................44
4.1.5. The frequency of using strategies designed by teachers .................................44
4.1.6. General English test results .............................................................................45
4.1.7. Pre-test and post- test score ........................Error! Bookmark not defined.46
4.1.7.1. Pre-test results ..............................................................................................46
4.1.7.2. Post-test results.............................................................................................47

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4.2. Summary and discussion of the main findings ..................................................48
CHAPTER 5. CONCLUSION AND IMPLICATION .............................................52
5.1. Conclusion ..........................................................................................................52

5. 2. Implications for more effective reading lessons ...............................................53
5.3. Limitations .........................................................................................................54
5.4. Suggestions for further research.........................................................................54
REFERENCES ..........................................................................................................55
APPENDIX A ...........................................................................................................57
APPENDIX B ...........................................................................................................59
APPENDIX C ...........................................................................................................61
APPENDIX D ...........................................................................................................67

v

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CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
1.1. Rationale
Nowadays, English has become an international communicative language. It is
widely used in many parts of the world. Therefore, learning English has been
considered a very important duty of many students. One of the most important skills
in learning English as well as other language is reading skill. Reading skill not only
helps students get more information and widen their mind but also enables them
develop language skills such as speaking, listening, writing.
Reading comprehension is one of the most important skills for understanding the
content that is actually being read. Reading is something that you can do on your own
and that greatly broadens your vocabulary, thus helping you in speaking (and in
listening and writing). Reading is therefore a highly valuable skill and activity, and it
is recommended that English learners try to read as much as possible in English.
Having good reading comprehension skill is also necessary for passing academic
achievement tests and for being able to read effectively for one's career.

On the other hand, having poor reading comprehension skills can make it difficult
for readers to understand the texts they read, identify themes in stories, associate what
they read with prior knowledge and grasp the main idea of a text.
Many teachers find that their teaching style does not match the learning style of
some of their students. The good step is that using graphic organizers to prepare and
present lessons can have a powerful effect on the students. While the lesson
presentation follows the natural teaching style, students can create a graphic
organizers that matches their learning style. Instead of trying to fit a mould, they can
take notes that feel natural, are easily remembered and suited to their individual style.
This makes the best teacher in the world.
Many teachers and lecturers are already adapting graphic organizers to create
powerful classroom presentations, innovative handouts, and an unforgettable
experience for their students. Others are using advanced graphic organizers to tackle
larger classroom projects like innovative long range educational planning or weekly
lesson management that really meets the needs of individual students.
It is undeniable that the English language has gained more and more significance

1


in every aspect of society in general and in education in particular. Realizing the
importance of English in education, many policies and renovations have been
promulgated in teaching and learning English during the recent years. In an attempt to
innovate Vietnamese education to meet the demand of the society in the process of
integration and development, the Vietnamese Ministry of Education and Training has
reformed English textbooks concentrating on the four skills: speaking, listening,
reading and writing for secondary school students since the school year 2006-2007,
With this reform, both teachers and students have certain advantages and
disadvantages in mastering the four skills in the process of teaching and learning
English.

Of the four skills, reading, in general, is considered the most difficult not only
students but teachers to master. In reading section in the textbook “English 7”,
students are asked to perform tasks of various kinds such as make out the main ideas,
understand the main topic, sentence, paragraph, etc. However, it seems that some of
the reading tasks in the new textbooks have not supported students’ language
acquisition appropriately. Besides, teachers also face certain difficulties in teaching
reading skills.
For many years, teaching reading comprehension was based on a concept of
reading as the application of a set of isolated skills such as identifying words, finding
main ideas, identifying cause and effect relationships, comparing and contrasting, and
sequencing. Teaching reading comprehension was viewed as a mastery of these skills.
My students think that it is very difficult to learn reading skill. I think one of the most
powerful tools can be used to improve our reading comprehension is graphic
organizers. Using graphic organizers that show the relationships between concepts
visually and using group reading and tutoring can also help students develop their
reading comprehension skills.

When I have graduated university, I applied for a job at Ben Thuy secondary
school. I teach English subject as a second language. There are four skills each lesson
but my favorite skill is teaching reading because from the text, students can be easy to
use words, structures, sentence to communicate with many people. There is some
difficulty in the reading text, They do not understand how to answer the questions. So

2


this is a problem that I should worry and find out the way to help them. I think that
whenever reading, they also understand all the information. Some of them may not
have had enough time to read, they read very quickly but little result. I think it
depends on the level of reading. They have not used right skill. It made them get little

information.
Being a teacher of English at secondary school for eleven years, there searcher has
understood the reality of teaching reading in English. The researcher realizes that the
secondary school students in general and 7th form students in particular do not acquire
reading skill efficiently. They seem to follow these requirements of reading tasks in
each lesson in order without achieving the objectives of the lesson through completing
the main tasks with appropriate skills. Because of the practicality in teaching English
reading, this study was carried out, entitling “A study on using graphic organizers to
improve reading comprehension skills for secondary school students”. The
purpose of the study is to find out if graphic organizers can help students read more
effectively. The study is intended to investigate types of activities teachers use in their
reading classes and the efficiency of these activities as well. In addition, it also seeks to
find out to what certain extent these activities have influence on students’ study
achievements. Finally, through the study, some suggestions are offered so that teachers
can use graphic organizers for doing tasks in the textbook appropriately to improve
students” reading skill. Hopefully that the results of this study would be shared with
any colleagues who had the same problem or anyone who is interested in this study.
1.2. Aims of the Study
The study aimed to help students develop reading comprehension. We find out the
value of the students” comprehension reading level in the Text. There were some
benefits of teaching comprehension by using graphic organizers. Graphic organizers
provide an effective study technique when applied to written materials the value of
level reading comprehension of students with the text. (If there is any). Improving the
motivation how the reading sections in the textbook “English 7” have been taught at
secondary schools with particular reference to use graphic organizers.
1.3. Research questions
The study aimed to seek the answers to the following questions:
- Will the graphic organizers help to increase student’s reading comprehension?

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- Will the graphic organizers help to improve students’ motivation to learn reading
skill?
1.4. Scope of the study
This study was carried out at Ben Thuy secondary school in Vinh City. The
research focuses on how graphic organizers affect these students’ reading
comprehension in reading lessons. From the findings of the research suggested
activities will be given to improve teaching English reading to 7th graders students
1.5. Methods of the study
The main methods are questionnaires, pre and post tests
1.6. Organization of the study
The thesis consists of five chapters:
Chapter 1: Introduction includes rationale of the study, the aims, scope, methods,
and organization of the study.
Chapter 2: Literature Review
In this chapter, all the theoretical issues related to the topic of the study are
presented. It is concerned with the issues relevant to the topic of the research: reading
and reading comprehension, approaches and techniques to teach reading
Chapter 3: Methodology
This chapter presents the background information of the subjects of the study, the
instrument used to collect the data, the procedure of data collection and the procedure
of data analysis.
Chapter 4: Findings and Discussions
This chapter aimed at describing data analysis in detail and a thorough discussion
of the findings of the study. Some explanations and interpretations of the findings are
also presented in this chapter.
Chapter 5: Conclusion
This part summarizes the main points based on the results of the study. This part
will also introduce some suggested solutions to improve the English self-study of

students. Further research is also recommended in this chapter.

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CHAPTER 2
LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1. Reading and reading comprehension
2.1.1. Reading
2.1.1.1. Definition of reading
So far, the term reading has been defined quite differently according to its
various aspects such as criteria, features and functions. For many learners, reading is
a very essential skill, particularly in English as a second language. Concerning the
role of reading, Carrell (1988, p.1) states that “Without solid reading proficiency,
second language learners can not perform at levels they must in order to succeed”.
Reading plays such a significant part in the success of second language learning and
it is essential to understand what reading really is.
Reading is the process of looking at a series of written symbols and getting
meaning from them. When we read, we use our eyes to receive written symbols
(letters, punctuation marks and spaces) and we use our brain to convert them into
words, sentences and paragraphs that communicate something to us.
Reading 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. The reading
process requires continuous practices, development, and retirement.
Reading is an interactive process that goes on between the reader and the text,
resulting in comprehension. The text presents letters, words, sentences, paragraphs
that encode meaning. The reader uses knowledge, skills, and strategies to determine
what that meaning is.

As a skill, reading is clearly one of the most important instances around the world,
we may argue that reading is the most important foreign language skill, particularly in
cases where students have to read English material for their own specialist subject but
may never actually have to speak the language; Such cases are
often referred to as ‘English as a library language’. Even though we are looking at
each language skill independently in these chapters, there is clearly an overlap
between reading and writing, in that a ‘text’ has to be written down before we can

5


read it. In many societies, literature is still seen as the prime example of writing and
therefore one of the first things a student is asked to do is to read. In classroom terms,
one of the reasons for this is partly practical: it is often thought to be easier to
supply a written text to be read than a spoken one to be understood. Much of the
current thinking on reading tends to focus primarily on the purpose of the activity;
even if reading is done for pleasure it is still purposeful.
Goodman (1988, p.135) declared that “reading is a psycholinguistics process by
which the reader, language user reconstructs, as best as he can, a message which has
been encoded by a writer as a graphic display”. From his point of view, readers not
only get more knowledge or skill but also understand the content of the text.
According to William, (1990, p.2) “reading is a process whereby one looks at and
understands what has been written”. In his opinion, in the reading process, there are
two activities taking place at the same time: looking and understanding. Therefore,
readers have to “encode” meanings of a word decided by the context in which it is
shown.
Also, Harmer (1989, p.153) shares his ideas “reading is an exercise dominated by
the eyes and the brain. The eyes receive messages and the brain then has to work out
the significance of these messages”. Readers encounter a lot of difficulties in dealing
with proverbs and idioms, synonyms metaphor, metonymy and other types of

transference of meaning also cause great difficulty for readers. Reading is an active
skill, involving guessing and predicting. It is common that there are new words, new
structures and ideas in a reading text for every language learner. If he/she does not
have a good guessing ability and cannot make full use of grammatical, logical and
cultural clues, he/she will read the text with less understanding than he/she might
expect, and he/she will feel frustrated at the text, and will not want to keep on
reading. However, teaching reading comprehension is the problem that teachers
should interested because the students at high school learn English as the second
language and they are poor in knowledge, poor environment and they team English
sometimes without materials.
Reading is a receptive skill with many sub skills just as those involved in listening.
Reading is also very important in real life. People always read for pleasure or for
work. Language learners can learn to use different reading styles. Some read and

6


understand a text very quickly while others read slowly and fail to understand what
they read.
Hence, clearly, ideas of reading have been diverse in exploiting words and
expressions but they all focus on two actions: studying with eyes and comprehending
with brains of which the latter is more significant. The most obvious thing in the
latter is that the readers not only look at and understand the meaning of what is
written but also read authors’ thinking.
2.1.1.2. The role of reading in learning
Reading plays an inevitably important role in comprehending a text and using
the foreign language appropriately and fluently. “A person’s future opportunities for
success and prosperity will be even more entwined with skill reading abilities. It is
therefore an important societal responsibility to offer every person the opportunity to
become a skilled reader, and in many cases, this means becoming a skilled L2

reader” (Grabe, 2009, p. 6).
It is possible for us to claim that reading has a very important role to play in
language learning as it can bring benefits to learners. William (1984, p. 13) suggests
three advantages of reading to learners: First, learners can have further practice in the
language that they have learnt. This means that learners will have many opportunities
to gain further knowledge of the target language. Second, learners can practice
language in order to reuse it in other skills such as speaking and writing. Learners
cannot understand anything if they cannot read. Third, learners can learn how to get
benefit from the texts to extract the information they need. The more comprehension
learners conceive, the more major intelligence they receive.
Reading has a large number of major benefits that help learners study language
faster and more successfully. Reading is one of the most essential skills for language
learners. When learners’ reading skill improve, their listening, speaking, and writing
also advance. There are some specific reasons why learners are encouraged to
practice reading. In the first place, the constant repetition of words and patterns in
reading helps you learn and remember vocabulary and grammar structures. Reading
plays an important part in providing vocabulary and structure types. Learners can
understand the usage of structures better when they catch the meaning of sentences.
Secondly, reading is something readers can do their own. Learners can spend as much

7


time as they wish on reading by themselves. Language learners are able to practice
reading skill whenever they want. The skill does not extremely depend on others.
2.1.1.3. The reading process
Reading is a complex cognitive process of decoding symbols in order to
construct or derive 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. The reading process requires continuous
practice and development.
Readers use a variety of reading strategies to assist with decoding (to translate
symbols into sounds or visual representations of speech) and comprehension. Readers
may use morpheme, semantics, and syntax context clues to identify the meaning of
unknown words. Readers integrate the words they have read into their existing
framework of knowledge or schema (schemata theory). Other types of reading are not
speech based writing systems, such as music notation or pictograms. Currently most
reading is either of the printed word from ink or toner on paper, such as in a book,
magazine, newspaper, leaflet, or notebook, or of electronic displays, such as computer
displays, television, mobile phones or e-readers.
The process of recording information to be read later is writing. In the case of
computer and microfiche storage there is the separate step of displaying the written
text. For humans, reading is usually faster and easier than writing. Reading is
typically an individual activity, although on occasion a person will read out loud for
the benefit of other listeners. Reading aloud for one's own use, for better
comprehension, is a form of intrapersonal communication. Other methods of teaching
and learning to read have developed, and become somewhat controversial. Reading is
an intensive process in which the eye quickly moves to assimilate text. Very little is
actually seen accurately. It is necessary to understand visual perception and eyes
movement in order to understand the reading process. There are several types and
methods of reading, with differing rates that can be attained for each, for different
kinds of material and purposes: Rates of reading include reading for memorization
(fewer than 100 words per minute [wpm]); reading for learning (100 -200wpm);

8


reading for comprehension (200 - 400 wpm); and skimming (4007700 wpm).

Reading for comprehension is the essence of the daily reading of most people.
Skimming is for superficially processing large quantities of text at a low level of
comprehension (below 50%). Advice for choosing the appropriate reading-rate
includes reading flexibly, slowing when concepts are closely presented and when the
material is new, and increasing when the material is familiar and of thin concept.
Speed reading courses and books often encourage the reader to continually accelerate;
comprehension tests lead the reader to believe his or her comprehension is
continually improving; yet, competence-in-reading requires knowing that skimming
is dangerous, as a default habit. Reading speed requires a long time to reach adult
levels.
2.1.2. Definition of reading comprehension
Reading comprehension is the act of understanding what you are reading.
Reading comprehension is an intentional, active, interactive process that occurs
before, during and after a person reads a particular piece of writing.
Reading Comprehension is the ability to understand what we read- where words
have contexts have meaning, Reading comprehension skills allow us to read
proficiently, learn effectively, problem, solve, strategize, conceptualize, and succeed
in life. Without reading comprehension skills, many students are left behind. Reading
comprehension is the heart and gold of reading, since the purpose of all reading is to
gather meaning from the printed page. If a student says words in a passage without
gathering their meaning, one would hesitate to call that reading.
In order to comprehend written texts, the reader needs to have some basic
knowledge, strategies and awareness. These include: the ability to decode print
accurately and fluently, knowledge about language, including vocabulary and syntax,
and strategies for applying that knowledge, knowledge and experiences of the world,
including life experiences, content knowledge, background knowledge and
knowledge about texts, an awareness of their own processes and strategies as they
approach reading.
Relevant processes and strategies include motivation and engagement,
comprehension strategies, monitoring strategies and “fix-up” strategies.


9


In addition, Silberstein (1994, p.10) elaborated that comprehension is an active
process and the reader must interact and be engaged with the text for it to work well.
It is also a strategic process which can be taught. As comprehension takes place,
words are decoded and associated with their meaning in the reader’s memory and
phrases and sentences are processed rapidly or fluently enough so that the meanings
derived from one world, phrase, or sentence are not lost before the next is processed.
Yet, reading comprehension can be described as understanding a text that is read, or
the process of constructing meaning from a text.
Grellet (1981, p.3) has considered reading comprehension or “understanding a
written text means extracting the required information from it as efficiently as
possible”. Reading comprehension is explained as 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.
Reading comprehension is very important because it may be tested by a passage
which is to be translated into good English, or by question based on the content of a
passage. In this case, the passage is not translated, the questions being asked in the
foreign language and the student answering in English.
At this level, the reader is able to go beyond the words on the page and infer other
details for example, to realize that the main character is angry from what he says and
what he does. Being able to operate at the inferential level means that the reader is
using information effectively to deduce cause and effect, and to anticipate what may

come next. At a more demanding level (critical reading), the reader is able to appraise
what he or she is reading for example, detecting good writing style from the author,
recognizing when some statements in the text are biased or incorrect, appreciating the
writer’s viewpoint, comparing and contrasting information with other facts they have
read elsewhere, and reflecting upon the importance or otherwise of the opinions
presented. Weak readers who are still struggling with word recognition have

10


enormous difficulty progressing beyond a literal level of comprehension because
most of their cognitive effort is taken up in unlocking the print.
In brief, reading becomes meaningless without comprehension since only reading
comprehension can appreciate how much readers get the text.
2.1.2.1. Reading Comprehension Process
The nature of reading comprehension process – how people learn to process
textual information – has been researched by cognitive and behavioral scientists for
many decades. So far reading has sometimes been characterized as “passive” or
“receptive”.
2.1.2.1.1. The Schema Theory
An important source of understanding about the nature of the knowledge that
informs comprehension is schema theory. Schema theory is concerned with how
knowledge is represented and organized in long-term memory (as sets of information,
or schemas) and then brought to mind as new information comes in. The theory
suggests that individuals relate all new information to what they already know or
have experienced. In the context of reading, schema theory emphasizes the critical
role of the reader’s prior knowledge in comprehension.
A schema is a cognitive framework or concept that helps organize and interpret
information. Schemas can be useful because they allow us to take shortcuts in
interpreting the vast amount of information that is available in our environment.

However, these mental frameworks also cause us to exclude pertinent information to
focus instead only on things that confirm our pre-existing beliefs and ideas. Schemas
can contribute to stereotypes and make it difficult to retain new information that does
not conform to our established ideas about the world.
Researchers have identified different kinds of schema that are particularly
significant for reading. Content schemas concern knowledge about the world, ranging
from

the

very

personal

and

every

day

to

broad

and

specialized

knowledge. Textual schemas concern knowledge that readers (and writers) have about
the forms and organization of written texts, from word-level information to complex

information about structure and register.
Schemas are activated when a reader sees and starts to read a text. The textual
schema will enable the reader to recall and interpret the text in the light of what they

11


already know about texts, for example, about text types or genres, vocabulary,
different kinds of sentences, tone and register. These schemas may also enable the
reader to make predictions about the kind of text will be by referring to their stored
knowledge of text types. Content schemas will be activated as the reader engages
with the words and any pictures in the text, from the title onwards. For example, as a
reader starts an article about rugby, they will bring to mind everything they already
know about rugby. If the reader knows very little about rugby, the article may be
difficult to comprehend. The more relevant prior knowledge the reader has, the more
they will comprehend when they read a text that connects with their existing content
schema.
Readers from diverse cultural and language backgrounds will have diverse
schemas, but for all learners, the more knowledge that is stored, the more that can be
interpreted, understood and added to the store. The implication is that accessing the
learner’s textual schema and building new language knowledge is the key to
increasing expertise in English. Likewise, accessing the learner’s content knowledge
and helping them to relate it to new contexts will help them comprehend texts in
English.
2.1.2.1.2. Bottom – up and Top-down processing
There are two approaches to understanding the process of perception. These are
the top-down processing and the bottom up processing. Top-down and bottomup are both strategies of information processing and knowledge ordering, used in a
variety of fields including software, humanistic and scientific theories , and
management and organization. In practice, they can be seen as a style of thinking,
teaching, or leadership.

Top-down processing is defined as the development of pattern recognition through
the use of contextual information. For instance, you are presented with a paragraph
written with difficult handwriting. It is easier to understand what the writer wants to
convey if you read the whole paragraph rather than reading the words in separate
terms. The brain may be able to perceive and understand the gist of the paragraph due
to the context supplied by the surrounding words.
In the bottom-up processing approach, perception starts at the sensory input, the
stimulus. Thus, perception can be described as data-driven. For example, there is a

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flower at the center of a person's field. The sight of the flower and all the information
about the stimulus are carried from the retina to the visual cortex in the brain. The
signal travels in one direction.
In short, there are two ways that readers can use to deal with a text: using the
bottom – up processing to get detailed understanding of the text and using the topdown to understand main ideas about the text. Readers may use one of the two ways
to comprehend texts, however, readers usually need both of them to deal with
difficult texts. As a result, this leads to interactive processing.
2.1.2.1.3. Interactive processing
A successful reader should combine top – down and bottom – up processing,
which is called interactive reading:
“In practice, a reader continually shifts from one focus to another, now adopting
a top– down approach to predict probable meaning, then moving to the bottom – up
approach to check whether that is really what the writer says” (Nuttal, 1996, p. 17).
According to Hayes (1996, p.7), “in interactive models, different processes are
thought to be responsible for providing information that is shared with other
processes. The information obtained from each type of processing is combined to
determine the most appropriate interpretation of the printed pages”.
In short, the popularity of interactive processes shows that interactive processing

can maximize the strengths and minimizes the weaknesses of the bottom – up and top
– down processing.
2.1.2.2. Factors affecting the learning of reading comprehension
The comprehension goals of the intermediate grades address these abilities
as well as those required for independent study: skimming, using reference
materials, outlining, summarizing, altering reading rate and focus as the purpose
of reading changes, use of headings, note taking, and so on. For many spreading
comprehension is a major problem. There are mainly three causes for poor reading
comprehension.
Firstly, the person has a language problem. Language plays a vital role in
reading. One cannot read a book in a language unless one knows that particular
language. If a child’s knowledge of English is poor, then his reading will also be
poor, and naturally also his reading comprehension.

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Secondly, if the foundational skills of reading have not been atomized. If the
skill on the primary task is automatized, it will not be disrupted by concurrent
processing on the secondary task because automatic processing does not take up
antinational resources. If, on the contrary, the skill is not automatized, it will be
disrupted by concurrent processing of a second skill because two skills are then
competing for limited intentional resources. This also applies to the act of reading.
The person, in whom the foundational skills of reading have not yet become
automatic, will read haltingly and with great difficulty. The poor reader is forced to
apply all his concentration to word recognition, and therefore has no concentration
left’ to decode the written word, and as a result he will not be able to read with
comprehension.
Lastly, threaded is unable to decode the written word. The decoding of the
written word is a very important aspect of the reading act. Without being able to

decode the written word, reading comprehension is impossible. This explains why
some children can read without understanding what they are reading. Many students
do not realize how important it is to be able to fully comprehend what you read.
Being able to completely and accurately comprehend what you read is essential to
your ability to learn, perform well on tests and ultimately succeed in school and in a
career. Anyone who desires to acquire effective study techniques would do well to
improve his reading comprehension skills. Developing reading comprehension
techniques is one of the two basic ways of improving reading skill, the other being
developing reading speed. However, rapid reading is valueless unless what is read is
understood.
Experiences are another factor that greatly impact reading comprehension. If
you have many life experiences that you can draw upon from your memory bank, you
may be more apt to follow along with a given reading selection, A story that does not
make sense to you because you have not lived that sort of experience before will not
be able to hold your interest. Comprehending reading requires that you delve deep
into the characters and plot, and allow your imagination to soar, transcending time
and boundaries, the creative aspect of your brain needs to be engaged in order to fully
understand different concepts and abstract reasoning. A mastery of vocabulary is an
essential factor that affects reading comprehension. If you possess an expansive

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vocabulary, you are more likely to understand textual writing, and you will be less
likely to become frustrated. Knowledge of words is imperative to reading
comprehension, and this can make a written piece come alive for some people. If the
writing is too difficult to understand, a person is more likely to put it down or lose
interest. Soon, you have lost all understanding of the piece, and therefore your
reading comprehension has been compromised. Making connections is an essential
factor that affects reading comprehension. While you read, you should be able to

make connections to yourself, your surroundings, or your environment. The more that
you are able to connect a written work to something personal, the more apt you are to
fully understand. Making connections can truly allow you to establish and grasp a
compelling hold on the written work, and the more you understand, the more
insatiable your thirst for reading will become.
2.1.2.3. Reading purposes and motivation
The problem addressed in this study is that many high school teachers are unaware
of, or mistaken about, specific strategies and practices that actually motivate their
students to read, and that What motivates one group of students may not motivate
another. Content-area teachers are often unaware that although they may not have
been trained in teaching reading strategy and may feel as though teaching reading is
not their job, it is an expectation that could largely be met by the implementation of
motivational strategies. When teachers do not employ motivational strategies, they
miss an opportunity to engage students in reading, ultimately contributing to the
decreasing rates of literacy in schools . The outcome, which is student performance or
perception in a classroom setting, can be affected by the valence and consequence,
both of which the teacher has the power to highlight or alter depending on the
preferences of his or her group of students. The study is significant because although
research has been conducted to determine what motivates students to read, the vast
majority of the literature focuses on elementary- and middle- grade students. In
addition, a disparity in teacher and student perceptions demonstrates a real problem
that must be addressed in order to inform instructors in their delivery and practice
regarding motivational strategies to read.

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2.1.2.4. Approaches to Teach Reading
2.1.2.4.1. Grammar-Translation Approach
The Grammar Translation Method is a method which was originally used to teach

dead languages, which explains why it focuses mainly on the written form at the
expense of the oral form. It was designed according to the faculty psychology
approach which was very popular during the 18th and 19th century. It contended that
“mental discipline was essential for strengthening the powers of the mind”. The way
to do this was through learning classical literature of the Greeks and Romans.
The main principles on which the Grammar Translation Approach are based are the
following:
Firstly, translation interprets the words and phrases of the foreign languages in
the best possible manner.
Secondly, the phraseology and the idiom of the target language can best be
assimilated in the process of interpretation.
Thirdly, the structures of the foreign languages are best learned when compared
and contrast with those of mother tongue.
Grammar-translation approach has some advantages. Firstly, translation is the
easiest and shortest way of explaining meaning of words and phrases. Secondly,
learners have no difficulties to understand the lesson as it is carried out in the mother
tongue. Thirdly, it is a labor-saving method as the teacher carries out everything in
the mother tongue.
However, there are some drawbacks. Firstly, what the method is good at is
“teaching about the language”, not “teaching the language”. Secondly, speaking or
any kind of spontaneous creative output was missing from the curriculum. Thirdly,
students lacked an active role in the classroom. Fourthly, very little attention is paid
to communication and content. Finally, translation is sometimes misleading.
2.1.2.4.2. Communicative Language Teaching Approach
Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) which is an approach to the teaching
of second and foreign languages, emphasizes interaction as both the means and the
ultimate goal of learning a language.
Most present-day practitioners would probably like to think that their classes are
"communicative" in the widest sense of the word. Their lessons probably contain


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activities where learners communicate and where tasks are completed by means of
interaction with other learners. To this end there will probably be considerable if not
extensive use of pair, group and mingling activities, with the emphasis on completing
the task successfully through communication with others rather than on the accurate
use of form. During these activities the teacher’s role will be to facilitate and then to
monitor, usually without interruption, and then to provide feedback on the success or
otherwise of the communication and, possibly, on the linguistic performance of the
learners in the form of post-activity error correction. In terms of the organization of
the lesson, the classic present, practice and perform model, where careful input of a
particular structure is typically followed by controlled, less controlled and freer
practice is likely to have been replaced by a more task-based approach, possibly on
the lines of test, teach, test, where the learners are given a communicative task which
is monitored by the teacher and then their language use while performing the task is
fine-tuned by the teacher in a lesson stage which focuses on error correction or a
particular form that is causing difficulties. This is typically followed by a further taskbased stage, where the initial task is repeated or a similar task is performed, ideally
with a greater degree of linguistic accuracy than during the first attempt.
There are some advantages of communication Language Teaching.
Firstly, the interaction between students and teachers. Communicative teaching
is becoming increasingly clear feature is the change in the way as the internship,
students develop the subject, initiative and become increasingly important. Teacherstudents relationship is an interactive, harmonious relationship, rather than the
traditional education, the kind of master- servant relationship.
Secondly, Communicative teaching is good way to impart the basic knowledge
and ability to skillfully combine the development. The communicative teaching
emphasizes the learner’s cognitive ability and operational capabilities, which allow
the students themselves to think about and express their views, thus trained in real life
the ability to use language to communicate.
Thirdly, Communicative teaching students to participate in, sometimes

accompanied by scenes or simulated scenarios, so that students more close to life, the
students became the main character, naturally they were interested in the English
language, to learn English as a pleasure.

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Communicative Approach is a new teaching methods to meet the demands of
the times, its emphasis on interpersonal skills, better than the traditional method to
stimulate students interest in learning, stimulate students to communicate their
enthusiasm, it is than trying to teach the entire language is more formal system of
traditional law quick, but also save time and effort, but it also has its downside.
First of all, using communicative approach to grammar teaching, grammar,
learning systematic and progressive to a certain extent, be affected. Psycholinguistic
experiments show that, regardless of language acquisition of children, or adults in
second language acquisition, their awareness of grammar acquisition and
understanding of the project is carried out according to a certain order.
Communicative grammar teaching practice is often used features an outline of ideas
to focus on teaching how to make the students in a specific context, in order to
achieve specific communicative functions, such as: inquiry, instruction, order, refused
the request and so on, the correct who graciously to use these linguistic forms. In this
system, the syntax of the systematic and progressive to a certain degree of neglect,
and

sometimes

give

people


with

disorderly

feeling.

Secondly, the communicative approach to grammar teaching, grammar items
account for a large proportion of the output, that is a lot of time for students to
communicate in conversation to understand the consolidation.
2.1.2.4.3. Content-Based
Content-based approach has some advantages. Firstly, it can make learning a
language more interesting and motivating. Students can use the language to fulfill a
real purpose, which can make students both more independent and confident. In
addition, Students can also develop a much wider knowledge of the world through
content- based which can feed back into improving and supporting their general
educational needs.
Content based is very popular among EAP (English for Academic Purposes)
teachers as it helps students to develop valuable study skills such as note taking,
summarizing and extracting key information from texts.
Taking information from different sources, re-evaluating and restructuring that
information can help students to develop very valuable thinking skills that can then
be transferred to other subjects.

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