TEACHING READING BY COMBINING TEXT STRUCTURE WITH THIEVES STRATEGY FOR JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS. Oleh: Yanti Putri *)

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1 TEACHING READING BY COMBINING TEXT STRUCTURE WITH THIEVES STRATEGY FOR JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS Oleh: Yanti Putri *) **) Handayani SB Staff Pengajar Program Studi Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris STKIP PGRI Sumatera Barat. ABSTRAK Penulisan jurnal ini bertujuan untuk membahas pengajaran membaca teks deskriptive dengan strategi baru yaitu menggabungkan antara Text Structure With THIEVES strategi pada sekolah menengah pertama. Dalam strategi ini siswa akan lebih mudah menemukan informasi dari teks, dalam strategi ini siswa diberikan kesempatan untuk menemukan informasi sebelum mereka membaca dan lebih mengerti structure dari text sehingga mereka lebih akttif dan termotivasi dalam pembelajaran bahasa inggris khususnya dalam reading. Penulis juga berharap strategi ini dapat memberikan kontribusi bagi guru dalam mengajarkan reading dan bisa meningkatkan minat siswa dalam membaca. Key words: Text Structure With THIEVES (Title, Heading, Introduction, Every first Sentance, Visual, Ending and Sammary) *) Penulis **) Pembimbing INTRODUCTION Based on the writer s experience of teaching reading comprehension at eight grade of Junior High School, the students are still difficult in comprehending the reading texts. It is caused three factors: Firstly, students are difficult to find the ideas from the text. Secondly, they are difficult to understand the information of the text. And finally, they have low background knowledge related to the text that is being discussed. Therefore, the students are reluctant to continue reading the text. In addition, in teaching reading process the teacher does not teach the material as good in reading comprehension. The teacher always only asks the students to read the text aloud in class and rare to explain what the meaning of the text. They only read and get the meaning of the text from their teacher. Therefore, it can be concluded that this strategy is not appropriate to be applied in the classroom. There are some strategies can be used in teaching reading, such as skimming, scanning, elaboration, then combine think aloud and think dot strategy. Skimming is to read something quickly in order to find a particular point of the main points. Scanning is took a every part of something carefully, especially by looking for a particular thing or person. The elaboration strategy is a strategy organization of

2 teaching content of macro level and describes the way of content organization by following the step from general to specific information. Combining text structure and THIEVES strategy, text structure will help students to understand how to use features within a text to facilitate understanding and recall of information. While THIEVES strategy (title, heading, introduction, every first sentence, visual, ending and summary) is has been developed for previewing textbooks. Furthermore, in order to motivate the student in learning reading, the teacher should be able to find an interesting strategy. Therefore, the students will be enjoyable in reading. In this paper the writer tries to combine of two strategies in teaching reading, they are by Combining Text Structure and THIEVES strategy for Junior High School. The combining both of this strategy will be interesting for students, Text Structure will help the students in modifying variety of content areas, and THIEVES will help the students in determining what the important information of the text. REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE Nature of Text Structure Strategy As stated above, the students are difficult to comprehend reading text since the strategy used by the teacher in teaching reading is complicated to be understand. Therefore, a simple strategy has to be applied by the teacher. According to Readence, Bean, and Baldwin in Sejnost and Thiese (2010:14), Text Structure strategy has a simple procedure to help students recognize, identify, and exploit the structure of the text as a way to better understand and remember the reading of expository text. Without the appropriate teacher emphasis, some students will understand of text structure related to reading comprehension. Furthermore, Tierney and Readance in Brunner (2011:89) say that using the text structure strategy helps students understand how to use the features in the text to facilitate understanding and remembering information. Students can actually remember information if that information is understandable, students also tend to use what teacher have in mind by remembering the information of interest. Meanwhile, Zwiers (2010:86) states that this strategy even a quick glance at the title and headings of a text often can tell a reader how the author constructed the text. Especially in the areas discussed in the text from descriptive this easy way to discuss any problems or issues to be conveyed by the student to the teacher. Procedure of Text Structure Strategy.

3 Most learning strategies are represented by acronyms in which the learners represent the various steps in the process to apply in the classroom. According to Sejnost and Thiese (2010:14) there are steps to recognize expository text structure : first, model this strategy for students by working through an assigned text reading that illustrates a particular text structure and explaining why it is a certain type and how that type is organized. Next, provide students with a practice session so they can utilize the signal word and graphic organizers for each text structure pattern. This second step allows you to gradually shift the responsibility of learning about text structures from yourself to the students. Finally, when students have become proficient at identifying specific text structure patterns, they should produce example of the various structures on their own. In conclusion, text structure strategy is a simple procedure to help students recognize, identify, and utilize in teaching reading comprehending the text. In addition, Brunner (2012:170) there are four steps in the process teaching reading by using text structure : The first steps is at the beginning of the lesson, tell students that authors use the structure of a text to facilitate understanding. Explain that if they don t understand the significance of these features or how to use them advantageously, they may have difficulty, monitoring, and understanding written material. The second step is, ask students to divide notebook paper into three equal vertical columns. Tell them to write Text Structure at the top of the column on the left, and Example at the top of the middle column. Tell them to write How This Helps at the top of the column on the right of the paper. The third steps, asking students to complete the organize by locating the specific support, giving an example of the support, and explaining how the support helps with comprehension. Sample supports include, but are not limited to, the following : Chapter title (look at the title, and think about what will be included in the chapter. Think about what is already known about the topic). Headings (what are the heading topic? Think of ways to turn the heading into a question). Subheadings (what are the subheading? Think of ways to turn the subheading after into heading). Photos (think about what color an image created). Bold print (think about how to write a sentence based on experience). Italics (are the print equivalent of underlining and typewriter user s underlined words). Diagrams (think about what is a symbolic representation of information of the text). Graphic organizers ( how to provide a visual aid to facilitate learning an instruction). Author

4 questions ( find the question in the margins at the end of each section and at the end of the chapter). Key vocabulary ( look for important vocabulary word, and define them in the context of the chapter content). Finally, after students have had experience with the graphic organizer for text structure, it may only be necessary to have them discuss the features of an upcoming chapter as a whole-class experience. Nature of THIEVES Strategy Strategy is one of important elements for the teacher in order to get success in learning process. There is a strategy that can be used by the teacher in teaching reading such as THIEVES, this strategy will give contribution for students in learning process. As stated by McAndrews (2008:151) the strategy to provide background knowledge and organizational structure for expository texts by surveying parts of a textbook or other nonfiction text. This definition emphasize that THIEVES makes the reading that much easier. Students will find that, after reading the main body of the text, they will be easy to find the most important information that they need about text, because they know how to be a THIEVES. Moreover, Manz in Gear (2008:91) says that it has been developed for previewing textbooks. Teachers have used it with intermediate students to help them set the stage for reading a new chapter in a textbook or for previewing an article or selected portion of a text. It works well for certain type of texts, but not for all. Teachers have been talking about determining importance and trying to find the main idea of a piece of text. Sometimes there is a lot of information on a page and not all of it is important. Then, According to Manz (2002:2) THIEVES is a pre-reading strategy that sets the purpose for reading using easily remembered acronym. Students learn how to steal information from the title, headings, introduction, every first sentence, visual/vocabulary, ending and summary. That the strategies used by the teacher in teaching reading not only simple in procedure but also can help the students to activated there the background knowledge in other to comprehend reading text. THIEVES is one strategy to activate the background knowledge Procedure of THIEVES Strategy There are many strategies which can be applied in teaching reading process. According to McAndrews (2008:151) before reading an expository text, the students preview each element in the acronym and then write or think about each of the questions. These procedures are represented by acronyms in which the

5 learners represent the various procedures to apply in the classroom. In addition, Zwiers (2010:87) states that there are three steps of THIEVES in learn: Firstly, tell the students something such as we now get to become can steal from the text before we actually read it. Secondly, model how to go through each of the items in acronym THIEVES. Use in overhead to write down the information. Students can use the reproducible THIEVES practice with boxes for each letter and can give students a THIEVES bookmark to fill in as they read. Finally, after going through steps 1 and 2 students can use the THIEVES strategy in reading process. Moreover, Brunner (2012:175) explans that there are three steps of THIEVES in learning process: the first step is tell students to preview the chapter prior to reading it. Next, explain the THIEVES acronym. Title (look at the title, and think about what will be included in the chapter. Think about what is already known about the topic). Heading (look at the heading. What are the heading topic? Think of ways to turn the heading into a question). Introduction (read the introductory paragraph and think of what is most important. Anticipate what will be included in the chapter). Every First Sentence (read every first sentence for each paragraph). Visual and Vocabulary (look at photograph, maps, and other graphics. What do they illustrate? Look for important vocabulary words, and define them in the context of the chapter content). End of Chapter Questions (find the question in the margins at the end of each section and at the end of the chapter. Keep these questions in mind while reading the text). Summary (read the chapter summary). Recall what was read). Finally, facilitate student learning by modeling how to use this strategy until such time as they are comfortable with the steps in the process. In conclusion, THIEVES strategy is very important to students in reading comprehension. There are three procedures in THIEVES, it will be enough reluctant for the teacher to apply in teaching reading in order to get information and knowledge from the text. DISCUSSION Teaching Reading by Combining Text Structure and THIEVES Strategy. The result of combination from Text Structure and THIEVES Strategy will be applied into several steps to recognize strategies: the teacher gives the text for the students (descriptive text), the teacher asks the students to identifiy and what is the purpose of the text, the teacher explain that if they don t understand the significance of this futures or how to use them advantageously, they may have difficull focusing, monitoring, understanding

6 written material, the teachers asks the students to look for the information of the text by the THIEVES and Text Structure strategy; firstlly, title (asks students think about what is the title or topic will be learning), (the students to think what the structures of descriptive text are by using text structure strategy is) Secondly, heading (the teacher asks the students to introduce what being discussed in what the first paragraph in the text), (the students think about content about based on the first sentence in each paragraph), (asks the students to find the pattern of structure). Thirdly, inroduction (the teacher asks students to read for every inroduction paragraph and think what is the most important point of its structure is). Fourdly, every first sentence (the teacher asks students to read by using text structure strategies). Fifthly, visual and vocabulary (the teacher asks the students to illustrate what the meaning of the content of the text is and for what is it), (the students to find the important vocabulary word). Sixtly, ending (tell students to identify or conclude about the text description by created the own questions is), (the teacher asks the students could take the point by providing some questions is), (the teacher asks the students what description text is), (the teacher asks the students what the purpose of the text is). Finally, summary (the teacher asks students to summaries or concludes the text descriptive and recall what the content from they read). Pre-teaching reading activities Pre-teaching is very important to begin the lesson. It aims to make the students full concentration and more ready to begin the lesson as well as to introduce a new topic. Whilst-teaching reading activities In this section, the activity of teaching reading while a teacher is giving new lesson of new material in learning process. a. Exploration In exploration part, teacher uses strategy equally mix having the same aim used in elaboration to confirmation. b. Elaboration Teacher uses Text Structure with THIEVES Strategy in elaboration part in its application has some procedures. c. Confirmation. The teacher reads once again some expressions from the text, gives suggestion and ask the students to give response. The teacher reviews about the material. The teacher asks students problem about material.

7 The teacher asks the students related to the material Post-Teaching Reading Activity Post teaching activity is the last activity in teaching learning process. In the section, before class is over teacher gives conclusion about topic and the last teacher gives evaluate the students. Teacher closes the meeting. CONCLUSION The combines both Text Structure and THIEVES Strategy. Those strategies are applied in whilst teaching especially in Elaboration Part. By using Text Structure Strategy will help the students in modifying varieties of content area. Meanwhile, by using the THIEVES strategy will helpful for trying to determine what is the important in a piece of informational text. After that, these strategies will complete each other. In Text Structure Strategy, the teacher will give the text to the students with its structures and in the THIEVES strategy, the teacher will ask the students to find some information of the text by looking at the Title, Heading, Introduction, Every first sentence, Visual and Vocabulary, Ending and Summary of the text. Therefore, the students can get easy the information of the text. Therefore, those strategies are suitable for the teacher in teaching reading. REFERENCES Brunner, Judy Tilton Now I Get It!. New York: roman & Littlefield publishers. Inc. Brunner, Judy Tilton Now I Get It!. New York: roman & Littlefield publishers. Inc. Gear, Adrienne Nonfiction Reading Power. Portland: Stenhouse Publisher. McAndrews, Stephanie L Diagnostic Literacy Assessments and Instructional Strategies. Chicago: The International Reading Association, Inc. Manz, S.L A Strategy for Preening Textbooks: Teaching Readers to Became Thieves. The Reading Teacher, SS Retrived for at December 9 th n_images/lesson112/manz.pdf. Zwiers Habits in grades Building Reading Comprehension New York: The International Reading Association. Inc. Zainil Actional Functional Model (AFM). Padang: Universitas Negri Padang.