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THE PORTRAYED OF STUDENTS’ ACHIEVEMENT IN
COMPREHENDING READING TEXTS ON NATIONAL
EXAMINATION TEST IN ACADEMIC YEAR
2010/2011 AND 2011/2012
(A Descriptive Analysis)
By
Mohammad Syafri
1110014000021
DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH EDUCATION
FACULTY OF TARBIYAH AND TEACHERS’ TRAINING
SYARIF HIDAYATULLAH STATE ISLAMIC UNIVERSITY
JAKARTA
2014
i
ABSTRACT
Mohamad Syafri (NIM: 1110014000021). The Portrayed of Students’
Achievement in Comprehending Reading Texts on National Examination Test in
Academic Year 2010/2011 and 2011/2012 (A Descriptive Analysis Study); Skripsi
of English Education Department at Faculty of Tarbiyah and Teachers Training of
State Islamic University Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta 2014.
Keywords: National Examination, Texts, Flesch’s Reading Ease Formula
This study was carried out to describe the comprehendible of texts in National
Examination for senior high school academic year 2010/2011 and 2011/2012 that
become the portrayed of achievement in students’ texts comprehension. The objects
of this study were English texts in National Examination academic year 2010/2011
and 2011/2012 with total 18 texts, 9 texts each.
The method of this study was Descriptive Analysis Method. It meant that this research
was conducted to describe a brief portrait about the comprehendible of National
Examination’s English texts from academic year 2010/2011 and 2011/2012. This
study was conducted in several steps: planning, data collecting, data analyzing by
statistical calculation, and evaluating. The data is taken from UN tests are calculated
by Flesch’s Reading Ease Formula.
The results of the study showed that there was a significant differences between the
texts in academic years 2010/2011 and 2011/2012. Based on the data analysis, the
texts from year 2010/2011 have higher score for the complexity than texts from year
2011/2012. The average score from year 2010/2011 was 60.71 and the average score
from year 2011/2012 is 39.3. In conclusion, the texts from academic year 2010/2011
is more comprehended than the texts from academic year 2011/2012.
ii
ABSTRAK
Mohamad Syafri (NIM: 1110014000021). The Portrayed of Students’
Achievement in Comprehending Reading Texts on National Examination Test in
Academic Year 2010/2011 and 2011/2012 (A Descriptive Analysis Study); Skripsi
Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris Fakultas Tarbiyah dan Ilmu Keguruan Universitas Islam
Negeri Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta, 2014.
Kata kunci: Ujian Nasional, Teks, Flesch’s Reading Ease Formula
Penelitian ini bertujuan menjelaskan potret tingkat kepemahaman pada teks-teks
bahasa Inggris pada Ujian Nasional Sekolah Menengah Atas atau yang sederajat
tahun ajaran 2010/2011 dan 2011/2012 untuk menjadi gambaran prestasi pemahaman
baca siswa. Dalam penelitian ini sampel yang diambil berupa 18 teks yang berasal
dari kedua tahun ajaran, 9 teks pada tiap tahun ajaran.
Metode yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini adalah Metode Analisis Deskriptif.
Metoda ini digunakan untuk memberikan gambaran tentang objek uji. Dalam hal ini
pengujian dilakukan untuk mengetahui tingkat keterfahaman pada teks-teks bahasa
Inggris Ujian Nasional tahun ajaran 2010/2011 dan 2011/2012 yang kemudian
digunakan sebagai gambaran tentang pencapaian siswa. Ada beberapa langkah yang
dilakukan dalam penelitian ini, antara lain: perencanaan, pengumpulan data,
pengujian data secara statistik dan evaluasi. Pengujian tingkat keterbacaan dilakukan
dengan menggunakan Flesch’s Reading Ease Formula.
Hasil dari penelitian ini menunjukkan bahwa terdapat perbedaan signifikan pada
tingkat keterfahaman teks-teks mata pelajaran bahasa Inggris di Ujian Nasional tahun
2010/2011 dan 2011/2012. Dari perhitungan yang dilakukan, maka ditemukan bahwa
rerata nilai tingkat keterfamahaman pada tahun 2010/2011 adalah 60.71 dan pada
tahun 2011/2012 adalah 39.3. Simpulan yang ditemukan bahwa teks-teks pada tahun
2010/2011 lebih mudah difahami dibanding teks tahun 2011/2012.
iii
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
In the name of Allah, the Beneficent and the Merciful
All praises be to Allah The One and Only God in the worlds, without His grace the
writer will never achieve anything in this world and hereafter. Peace and blessing
upon our prophet, the last messenger of Allah, Muhammad S.A.W., his families, his
companions and his followers.
In this occasion the writer would like to express his great thanks and honor to his
mother (Neneng A. Tarungku, S.Pi. ) and his father (Ir. Munir M. Saleh) also his little
brother (Zunaedi Salam), who always give support, motivation, love, and unstoppable
pray for the writer’s success. To my great teacher, Abi KH. Bahruddin, S.Ag., and his
wife, Umi Tuti Rosmaya, and all of their family.
The thousand thanks and acknowledgment are given to the writer’s advisors Mr.
Sunardi Kartowisastro, Dipl,Ed. and Mr. Dadan Nugraha, M.Pd. for endless effort in
guiding and giving advices to the writer until since the first page until the last.
His gratitude also goes to:
1. All lecturers and staffs in Department of English Education UIN Syarif
Hidayatullah Jakarta.
2. Drs. Syauki, M.Pd., the Head of English Education Department.
3. Mr. Zaharil Anasy, M.Hum., the Secretary of English Education Department.
4. The staff and officers of FITK library and UIN library, Katholik Atma Jaya
University library, who have given permission in using their books.
5. Dra. Nurlaena Rifai, MA, Ph.D., the Dean of Faculty of Tarbiyah and
Teachers’ Training.
iv
6. Aisyah Mulyani, Ilham Aditya Rahman, Wiwin Sutianah, Suhendra, Nur
Pratiwi, and all friends from class A ’10 for good and joyful moments.
7. All friends in Daar El Hikam Islamic Boarding for the useful experience that I
will not forget, Insya Allah.
8. Last but not the least, for all people who help me until this day that I cannot
mention their name one by one.
Nothing writer can do to repay all their help. Just pray and hope that Allah
will give the best for them too. Thank you very much for everything.
May Allah’s bless and grace always with you all.
Ciputat, 29 April 2014
The Writer
v
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ABSTRACT………………………………………………………………… i
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS...……………………………………………. iii
TABLE OF CONTENTS…...……………………………………………. iv
TABLE OF TABLES…………………….…………………………….... vii
TABLE OF APPENDICES…………………………………………….. viii
CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION………………………………………...1
A. Background……………………………………………. 1
B. Identification of the Problem…………………………... 5
C. Limitation of the Problem……………………………... 5
D. Formulation of the Problem…………………………… 5
E. Purposes of the Study……………………………......... 5
F. Significance of the Study……………………………... 6
CHAPTER II. THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK …………………… 7
A. Nature of UN ……………………………………..….. 7
B. Element of Comprehension .……………………....... 11
C. Definition of Texts…………………………………... 15
1. Letter ……………………………………….…. ... 17
2. Advertisement…………………………………… 18
3. News Item……………………………………….. 19
4. Narration ………………………………………... 20
5. Explanation…………………………… ………... 20
6. Exposition………………………………………. 21
7. Review………………………………................. 22
8. Discussion……………………………………… 23
9. Report………………………………………….. 24
10. Announcement………………………………... 25
D. The Relevant Previous Study….………………… . 26
vi
CHAPTER III. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY………………... 28
A. Method and Design………………………….…… 28
B. Data and Data Source...……………………….….. 28
C. Data Collecting Technique…………………….…. 30
D. Technique of Data Analysis ……………………... 30
E. Timetable...………………………………………. 31
CHAPTER IV. FINDING AND DISCUSSION……………………. 32
A. Data Description…………………………...……… 32
B. Data Analysis ………………………………...…… 35
CHAPTER V. CONCLUSION, IMPLICATIONS, AND
SUGGESTIONS…..………………………………… 40
A. Conclusion…………………………………………. 40
B. Implications………………………………………... 40
C. Suggestions……………………………………....... 41
REFERENCES ……………………………………………………… 42
APPENDICES… ……………………………………………………… 45
vii
LIST OF TABLES
Table 2.1 Reading Ease Score Level...……………………………………….. 15
Table 2.2 Reading Ease Score-Grade……………………………………….. 16
Table 3.1 Texts 2010/2011………………………………………………….. 28
Table 3.2 Texts 2011/2012…………………………………………………. 28
Table 3.3 Research Timetable...……………………………………………... 30
Table 4.1 Texts 2010/2011…………………………………………………. 32
Table 4.2 Texts 2011/2012………………………………………………… 33
Table 4.3 The Description of Texts 2010/2011…………….……………… 34
Table 4.4 The Description of Texts 2011/2012………….………………… 36
Table 4.5 The Description of Texts 2010/2011 and 2011/2012…...……….. 42
viii
LIST OF APPENDICES
Appendix 1. Soal Ujian Nasional 2010/2011……………………………… 52
Appendix 2. Soal Ujian Nasional 2011/2012………………………………. 57
1
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
A. Background of the Problem
In this era human’s need for a good, systematic, and stable form of education
is getting higher and unavoidable. Many countries in the world try to formulate the
best form of education in their country. Indonesia, as one of the developing countries,
is also working hard to fulfill the demand of people for a better education form. Start
from the curricula that try to be elaborated by the government with the Indonesia’s
condition up to the improvement of facility and quality of the teachers.
Indonesia as a country that uses modern education system has another task.
The task is to create a credible, measurable, and qualified result. There are many
things done by this country, one of them is doing evaluation our education system.
The way to evaluate the system is varied, for example in doing test. In this country
there are several tests we know with purpose to evaluate, such as mid-term test, final
test, and so on.
At the peak of the evaluation system, a national-scale test called UN or
National Examination is created and improved on its going. The test is done annually
in order to be used as the standard measurement tool by the government. UN is given
to every last grade in every level starting from elementary up to high school level.
Based on its function to become a standardized tool for education in Indonesia, UN is
aimed helping schools and students, especially those from outside of Java to be
acknowledged. In order to take the next education level, therefore they will have less
worry.
On the other hand UN also becomes the government tool to evaluate how
Indonesia’s education system works. UN results can be used to show whether the
government have managed Indonesia’s education properly or not. Simply can be said
that if students’ achievement is good then it means the government is successful.
2
National Examination or frequently called as UN is designed in high standard
and well-prepared. In order to take care UN, such as the system, test making, and so
on, the government give the authorization to BSNP( Badan Standar Nasional
Pendidikan/ National Standard Education Committee)1. As the function of UN is to
become a tool to standardize the level of education system in Indonesia then a high
standard that can be used nationally become necessary. UN, until this day, is still
considered as a valid and reliable test that can be used to measure the quality of
Indonesia’s students.
UN for high school level is designed with six subjects. The subjects are
divided into; three special subjects and three general subjects. The special subjects are
given based on the students’ class; Science, Social, Language, Religion, or
Vocational. The general subjects are given to all students without considering their
class, those three are: Bahasa Indonesia, Mathematic, and English.
The way of test distribution of UN has several changes for the several years,
for example the test distribution of UN 2012 consists five types of test and in 2013
the government done some improvement by creating twenty types of test2. The
condition of test-paper and LJUN(Lembar Jawaban Ujian Nasional/ National
Examination’s Answer Sheet) in 2013 is different with the years before, because in
2013 the government give addition tests’ barcode.
In order to create a credible and standardize test, BSNP chooses several
teachers with their own specialize. Those teacher will formulate the UN test item first.
Next the test that have been made by the teacher will be also checked by lecturer
from universities3. Then the distribution will be done with high standard before it
comes to the students.
1 Bambang Suryadi, Penyelenggaraan Ujian Nasional 2013, Buletin BSNP, Vol. III/ No. 1/
Maret 2013, p. 12. 2 Ibid., p. 13.
3 Ibid.
3
English, as one of the general subjects or in other word is tested to all students
without considering their class, is formed in 50 test items which are divided into 15
listening items and 35 reading items4.
For UN’s test takers, in this case students, have a good score becomes one of
their main goal. English also becomes one of their top priorities, because it is one of
the subjects that tested to all students. The problem is to get a good score is not an
easy thing to do. There are many things that could affect the result of students
achievement.
In its process, the result of this subject’s achievement level is quite dynamic.
In academic year 2009/2010 the average score for English is 7.69, in 2010/2011
increased to the level 8.05, and then in 2011/2012 the score decreased sharply into
7.40.5 Data above show that the gap of score between on UN in academic years
2010/2011 and that of 2011/2012 is bigger than other years. Those two years’ gap is
0.65.
Facing that fact, the researcher comes to some possibilities of why there was a
sharp decreasing for English subject’s score in UN academic year 2012. The
researcher assumes there are several factor that influence students’ achievement.
Internal factor is all factors that come from the students themselves. Students’
tension, anxiety, depression, and fear of getting bad score are believed to be the
factors that directly affect their achievement6. Students who have low depression or
anxiety level will probably get a good score, but on the other hand those with high
level depression or anxiety will usually get low score.
The external factor also plays important roles. The external factor itself could
be said as all factors that come from external condition. The environment, such as
4 Tim Studi Guru IPS, Persiapan Menghadapi Ujian Nasional SMA-IPS 2014, (Pustaka Setia,
Bandung Juli 2013), p. 35. 5 “Statistik Hasil Ujian Nasional Jenjang SMA/MA Negeri dan Swasta”, 2014
(http://118.98.234.22/sekretariat/hasilun/index.php/statistik_sma/). 6 Graham B. Blaine, Jr. (ed.), Emotional Problems of the Student, (New York: Appleton-
Century-Crofts, Inc., 1961), p. 76.
4
school, facility, and even quality of the test itself also becomes parts of that could
affect students’ teaching and learning condition7. All of the examples above could
affect the achievement of students. It could be said that the better the quality of the
external factors the better students’ achievement will be.
Improving the condition of internal factors and external factors is believed as
one way to improve their achievement. Students’ depression and anxiety for example
should be reduced into a lower level. On the other hand the improvement of facility
and the test themselves for examples becomes necessary.
Facing those facts, then it would be a good movement if there are some
improvements done to English subject in UN. One of the improvements could come
from improving the quality of the test, as one of the factors that is believed to affect
students’ achievement.It will not become an easy task, but not impossible either. On
the other hand the job will be easier with the data that have been collected from UN’s
result for the previous years. All the test items that had been used could become a
good reference to improve both the listening section and reading section tests.
Based on that condition the researcher thinks that using the old test items for a
comparison study will bring good effect on improving UN’s test material . The result
can be used in order to become one of the references in order to improve the quality
of English test in UN. To add number of references that can be used to improve the
quality of English test in UN the researcher conducts this comparative study between
UN English test in senior high school level academic year 2010/2011 and 2011/2012.
The years are chosen based on the result of achievement on those two academic years
and the consideration that both years are still representive to be used as the object in
this study.
To avoid a too broad scope in this research, the researcher will limit the study
only on the readability level of the texts in reading section of UN English subject.
From the description above, the researcher believes that this comparative research of
7 Kurt Singer, Membina Hasrat Belajar di Sekolah, (Bandung: CV Remadja Karya, 1973), p.
11.
5
readability level of UN English subject’s texts academic year 2010/2011 and
2011/2012 is important and need to be done. As by doing this research therefore we
can find the differences between those two tests’ texts readability. The data can be
used to give a simple portrait about achievement on comprehending reading texts on
English test in National Examination academic year 2010/2011.
B. Identification of the Problem
From the description above, there will be several problems that can be
identified:
- There is a sharp decrease of English subject’s scores in UN for academic year
2010/2011 and 2011/2012.
- The decreasing of test quality will decrease students’ achievement in UN.
C. Limitation of the Problem
In order to avoid misunderstanding in the study, the researcher will limit and
focus the study only on the problems related to brief portrait of students’ achievement
in comprehending reading texts in UN for senior high school in two academic years
2010/2011 and 2011/2012.
The limitation of the problem based on the assumption that reading section
scope is bigger, 35 items, than the listening section, 15 items. Therefore the
researcher believes the score for reading contributes more in students’ achievement.
Those two years are chosen based on the gap of score between those years.
Which happen within only one year.
D. Formulation of the Problem
After creating the limitation of the problem, the researcher would like to
formulate the research problem into: “How was the portrait of students achievement
in comprehending reading texts in the National Examination or UN academic year
2010/2011 and 2011/2012?”
6
E. Purpose of the Study
Based on the formulation of the problem, then this research was created in
order to describe the portrait of students’ achievement in comprehending reading
texts in UN test academic year 2010/2011 and 2011/2012.
F. Significance of the Study
This study is created in order to help any people interested in the study.
However, it is also specially designed to:
a. Give a new data about the condition of reading test, especially in giving
portrait of comprehending reading texts for English in UN academic year
2010/2011 and 2011/2012.
b. To help the government who has the authority to conduct UN in Indonesia.
The researcher hopes that the government, in this case ministry of education
of Indonesia, will create a better formulation of texts of English subject in UN
for Senior High School.
c. To encourage the English teachers in Indonesia, especially senior high school
teachers, as the one that directly related with students. By this study, the
researcher hopes that teachers could have more portraits about the condition
of students’ achievement in comprehending reading texts.
d. To let English students in Indonesia, especially senior high school students.
By this study, the researcher hopes that students will know what kind of
categories that can be said as a good text. The researcher also hopes that the
students in twelfth grade can use this study as one of their references for UN.
e. For researchers or educators who have interest in doing the research about
UN, especially in case of to improve the quality of UN. This research could be
used as the references. On the other hand the way of the researcher does this
comparison study could be also used by those interesting in comparative
study.
7
7
CHAPTER II
THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
A. Nature of UN
In modern education system, students‟ progress and achievement must be able to
be measured and improved. Based on that condition, modern education always does
what is known as evaluation. Literally, evaluation is the noun form of the word
evaluate. In Dictionary of Language Testing evaluation is describe as
The systematic gathering of information in order to make a decision. Within a
language education programme, evaluation may be carried out to provide
information about the programme to stakeholders, such as sponsors, managers,
teachers or parents, and to make decisions about the future of the programme.
Where the effectiveness of the instruction is under investigation, language test are
frequently as one component of the evaluation; typically pre- and post-testing, or
achievement testing would be carried out, with or without a control group of
subjects1
In educational world, experts have given some definitions about evaluation. There
are several definitions stated by experts, just like what is stated by Soenardi
Djiwandono that evaluation is an effort to make sure that the goals of teaching and
learning process that have been planned in a period of time are accomplished.2
In line with Soenardi‟s idea about evaluation is what is stated in th book Reading
to Learn in the Content Area, Richardson says that evaluation in education is how the
judgment about individual‟s performance made.3
In simple definition, evaluation is a process done by teacher, school, or
government in order to know whether the teaching and learning process has reached
what has been targeted before. The result of evaluation will be used to do some
1 Alan Davies, et al. Dictionary of Language Testing, (Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press, 2002), p. 56. 2 Soenardi Djiwandono, Tes Bahasa Pegangan Bagi Pengajar Bahasa, (Jakarat: PT Indeks:
2008), p. 1. 3 Judy S. Richardson, et. al. Reading to Learn in the Content Area, (Belmont: Wandsworth
Cengage Learning), p. 33.
8
improvements in a courses or even reconstructed of the system, depending on the
result itself.
There are several things that can be done in order to evaluate a teaching and
learning process, one of them is test. Posner in his book “Analyzing the Curriculum”,
defines that “A test is a set of questions with an accepted set of presumably correct
answers, designed to gather information about some individual characteristics like
achievement. Scoring a test usually requires the assignment of a score according to
the number of correct responses given, though more complex methods are used in
certain circumstances.“4
On its going, people create several types of tests with various purposes. Soenardi
Djiwandono, for example divided test into two main types based on the way of
creating the test:
- Teacher-made test, is the type of test that created by teacher. This kind of test
is used for small-scale.
- Standardized test, as the opposite of the teacher-made test this test is used for
a large-scale. This kind of test is created with high standard, good planning,
and has been checked by the pilot test. 5
Next, Hughes also divided tests into two main types:
- Progress Achievement Test, this kind of test is done during the teaching and
learning process. Simply this kind of test is done to continually do the
improvement during teaching and learning process.
- Final Achievement Test, just like its name this test is done at the end of the
courses. After all of the materials have been delivered. This test evaluate the
4 George J. Posner, Analyzing the Curriculum, (New York: The McGraw – Hill Companies,
Inc., 2004), p. 238. 5 Soenardi Djiwandono, op. cit., p. 73.
9
whole courses and to find out whether the targets have been accomplished or
not.6
In Indonesia education system itself, the use of test as one of the evaluation tools
is not a rare thing in this era, whether Progress achievement test or Final achievement
test. There are several kinds of tests used in Indonesia education system. From the
daily test, as an example of teacher-made test, up to National Examination or
frequently called as UN. UN is a standardized test with national scope created by the
government. UN is used as one of the government‟s tools to evaluate education
system in Indonesia.
Based on the definition of Hughes, then we can simply categorized UN as Final
achievement test. There are several reasons for why UN is categorized as Final
achievement test, those are:
- UN is done at the end of the teaching and learning process for every level.
Grade 6th
in elementary level, 9th
in junior high school level, and 12th
in senior
high school level.
- UN‟s test is the whole materials that have been taught to the students in each
level.
- UN is also used as one of the tools to evaluate the education condition in
Indonesia for a period.
It is also strengthened by the government‟s explanation about UN. The
government describes that UN‟s purposes is to measure the level of students‟
achievement from elementary up to senior high level in national scope. This
definition is explained in PP (Peraturan Pemerintah/ Government‟s Decree)
Republic of Indonesia No. 75 Year 2009 about National Examination.7
Explicitly the Republic of Indonesia government‟s decree No. 19 Year 2005 has
explained that UN is the responsibility of our government, because it is an evaluation
6 Arthur Hughes, Testing for Language Teachers, (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press,
2003), p. 13. 7 Salinan Peraturan Menteri Pendidikan Nasional Nomor 75 Tahun 2009 Tentang Ujian
Nasional SMP/MTs, SMPLB, SMA/MA,SMALB, dan SMK Tahun Pelajaran 2009/2010.
10
system for our nation‟s education. As the impact of it, therefore the whole way of
how UN is done belong to our government. UN itself is done with high standard and
qualified system. It can be seen from the variety of the tests, type of packages, and the
schedule of the tests. The entire high standard is a necessary thing, because the result
of UN is something that will be used by an individual for the next step. On the other
hand it also shows whether the government has accomplished their target or not.
For the allocation of time for UN is normally two hours or 120 minutes. In those
time students are required to finish one subject. In senior high school level with the
six subjects tested, students are provided with four days for UN. In each day normally
there are two subjects tested, depending on their study program.
In case of the subjects, there are differences for Senior high school level
compared with other level. In senior high school, the students are given six subjects.
Three subjects are given based on students‟ study program, like IPA(Natural
Science), IPS(Social Science), Bahasa Indonesia(Indonesia language), and others.
The three other subjects are tested to all students without seeing the students‟ study
program; the subjects are Mathematics, Bahasa Indonesia, and English.
Every subject has its own characteristics. English, as one of the subjects that is
given to all students, has 50 items. The 50 items are divided into two sections;
listening section and reading section. Listening section contains 15 items and the
other 35 items are reading section.
In listening section, students are given audio media in delivering the questions
and listening items. Students are given special time to work with their listening test.
Just like other listening test in other language test, such as TOEFL, students‟ time for
listening section will not be extended. Therefore, soon after the material of the audio
tape has been delivered, students will have to go on their reading section.
In reading section, with total 35 items, students are given several texts with some
questions related to the text. The number of test question will be various depending
on the text itself. Some texts could only have three questions while the other text
could have five or more number of questions.
11
B. Element of Comprehension
Comprehending reading text will make us connected with term readability of
written materials. As comprehension has a strong correlation with texts‟ content,
diction, coherence, and so on. As reading is an active activity between the author and
the reader. In reading activity, the reader will try to understand what is in the written
material made by the writer or the author.8 We can say that in reading there are two
elements, those are:
- Reader, as the one who convey meaning from a written material.
- Written material, as the media uses by the writer to express his or her idea.
In this case, the readability will become an important part, because the readability
level will affect the quality of written materials. Simply we could say that readability
of a text is one of the factors that determine whether a text is good or not. Some
experts try to define what readability is.
Nuttall explained that readability is a combination of difficulty level of structural
and lexical, such as vocabulary.9
Dalle and Chall explain readability as how the elements of written material affect
the level of success of the readers. In this term the level of success of the readers can
be seen by the level of understanding of the material, the reading speed level, and the
level of interesting. 10
From the definition above, we can say readability affects three elements in
reading activity. Those elements are:
- Reading understanding
- Reading speed
8 Deborah Daiek and Nancy Anter, Critical Reading for College and Beyond, (New York:
McGraw-Hill), p.5. 9 Christine Nuttall, Teaching Reading Skill in a Foreign Language, (Oxford: Heinemann
Educational Books Ltd.), p. 25. 10
William H Dubay, The Principle of Readability, (Long Beach: Impact Information, 2004),
p. 3.
12
- The level of readers‟ interest
In line with Dalle‟s definition, is what explained by Ahmad Slamet in his book
Evaluasi Keterbacaan Buku Teks Bahasa Sunda untuk Sekolah Dasar di Jawa Barat.
He defines readability into three:
a. Hand-writing
b. The level of easiness of reading which is based on the content of the text.
c. The level of easiness of reading materials which is based on the
language‟s understandable level11
Summing up all definitions above, the researcher says that readability is one of the
elements of a printed material that make it understandable, less confusing, and more
interesting. Based on all of the definitions then we can say we cannot leave the
readability in creating a reading text. As the impact of the importance of readability,
experts try to create a good standard to determine the level of readability in a text.
Wallace in her book explains that the difficulty level of readability of a text can be
seen from the function of the word and the sentence length, rather the content of the
text.12
In line with Gillet‟s description about readability level, Fairbairn and Winch say in
Reading, Writing and Reasoning: A Guide for Students that there are several elements
that need to be seen in order to know whether a text is good or not, those are:
- The familiarity of the word
- The commonness of the word
- The appropriate level of the word
- Number of the word
- The similarity between words13
11
Ahmad Slamet Hardjasujana et al. Evaluasi Keterbacaan Buku Teks Bahasa Sunda untuk
Sekolah Dasar di Jawa Barat, (Jakarta: Pusat Pembinaan dan Pengembangan Bahasa, 1999), p. 10. 12
Jean Wallace Gillet et al. Understanding Reading Problems, (Boston: Pearson Education,
Inc., 2012), p. 241.
13
With all standards that have been made by the experts then comes a question
about how to give a clear and acceptable formula. In term of readability there are
several formulas that can be used, but generally all the formula is created based on
the calculation of the text feature and text difficulty.
Chall and Dale say in their book, “A readability formula is an equation which
combines those text feature that best predict text difficulty. The equation is usually
developed by studying the relationship between text features (e.g., words, sentences)
and text difficulty (e.g., reading comprehension, reading rate, expert judgment of
difficulty).”14
There are several formulas that can be used to calculate the readability level, such
as: Fry test, Cloze Procedure, Flesch-Kinclaid, and Flesch Reading Ease. From all the
formulas that have been created to count the level of readability Flesch’s Reading
Ease formula becomes one of the most used formula among others and also believed
as the most tested and reliable formula.15
Flesch’s Reading Ease formula can
calculated manually uses the formula below:
Score= 206.853-(1.015 X ASL) – (84.6 X ASW)
Description:
ASL = Average Sentence Length
ASW = Average number of Syllables per Words
It also can automatically be counted by Ms. Word 2007or above. As the
formulating system has been integrated with Ms. Word 2007 and above. All of the
results then need to be matched with their level, whether it is very difficult or very
easy. Based on the Flesch‟s calculation the level is divided into seven level from very
difficult level with readability score zero to thirty until the very easy level with
13
Garvin J Fairbairn and Christopher Winch. Reading, Writing and Reasoning: A Guide for
Students, (Buckingham: SRHE and Open University Press, 1991), p. 84. 14
Jeanne S. Chall and Edgar Dale, Readability Revisited, (Massachusetts: Brookline Books,
1995), p. 79. 15
William, Op. Cit., p. 21.
14
readability score ninety until one hundred. The level of the readability is shown in the
table below.
Table 2.1
Reading Ease Score Level16
Reading Ease Score Style Description
0 to 30 Very Difficult
30 to 50 Difficult
50 to 60 Fairly Difficult
60 to 70 Standard
70 to 80 Fairly Easy
80 to 90 Easy
90 to 100 Very Easy
The Table 2.1 shows the range of score. In this case, the lower the score the harder
the level of the readability of texts will be. Contrary with that, if the score of the text
is high then it means the level of the readability is easier.
One thing needs to be noted from the table 2.1 is the meaning of difficult. The
table 2.1 shows the level of readability based on the Flesch-Reading Ease formula,
therefore the data above shows the readability from the text perspective. As Flesch-
Reading Ease formula focusing on the text condition rather than the readers‟
condition. Therefore what is meant as difficult is the condition of sentences in the
text, that contains more words, and the words use in the text that contain more
syllables.
16
Rudolf Flesch, The Art of Readable Writing, (New York: Haddon Craftsman), p. 149.
15
The Flesch, as the founder of Flesch-Reading Ease formula, also provided the
level of reading grade based on the reading ease score. The data shows in the Table
2.2 below.
Table 2.2
Reading Ease Score-Grade17
Reading Ease Score Estimated Reading Grade*
0 to 30 College Graduate
30 to 50 13th
to 16th
Grade
50 to 60 10th
to 12th
Grade
60 to 70 8th
to 9th
Grade
70 to 80 7th
Grade
80 to 90 6th
Grade
90 to 100 5th
Grade
*United States of America people‟s level in 1949
C. Definition of Texts
In reading activity, text is playing an important role. The reason of why text is
important in reading activity, because text as one of the written materials is becoming
the media of a writer to explain their idea. As stated by Daiek that two elements in
reading activity is the reader and the written materials.18
Text, as one of the important parts in reading activity, has been defined by lot of
experts. Literally based on Dictionary of Language Testing text is defined as
17
Ibid. 18
Daiek. Loc. Cit.
16
Any piece of written or spoken language, of variable length. It may be as short as a
single word (eg. „Help!‟), but is more often considered to consist of two or more
utterences or sentences joined together according to rules of cohesion and rhetorical
organisation, and may include an extended piece of spoken discourse or any number
of pages of writing.19
Siahaan and Shinoda in their book Generic Text Structure describe text as a
meaningful unit in a context.20
In line with Siahaan, Mark and Kathy Anderson describe text as a meaningful of
constructed words to communicate.21
Based on all definitions above then the researcher can conclude that in simple
definitions text is all written form that is constructed by systematic words order, has
meaning, and able to use to communicate, from the author to the reader. By that
definition there will be lots of texts appear in this world. The result of it, is the
categorization of text that made by experts.
One of the categorizations of text is what has been explained by Jeremy Harmer.
He explains that text in language teaching term can be divided into two types based
on its function: authentic and non-authentic. Authentic is a kind of text that is created
with no pedagogy purposes, such as: magazine, newspaper, advertisement, etc. Non-
authentic text is, on the other hand, all texts that are created for language teaching and
learning22
.
In writing there are several patterns of development of texts. According to John
Langman23
that traditionally writing has 4 patterns of development: Exposition,
Description, Argumentation, and Narration or in abbreviation as EDAN.
19
Davies, op. cit., p. 210. 20
Sanggam Siahaan and Kisno Shinoda. Generic Text Structure, (Yogyakarta: Graha Ilmu,
2008), p. 1. 21
Mark Anderson and Kathy Anderson. Text Types in English 2, (London: Macmillahn
Education Australia PTY Ltd, 2003), p. 1. 22
Jeremy Harmer. The Practice of English Language Teaching, (New York: Longman
Publishing, 1991) p. 185. 23
John Langman. English Skills with Readings, (New York: McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.,
2002), pg. 161.
17
In UN there are several patterns that use. Based on Standard Content (Kompetensi
Standar Isi) of UN the texts use in UN are24
:
- Letter or E-mail
- Advertisement
- News Item
- Narration
- Explanation
- Exposition
- Review
- Discussion
- Report
- Announcement
1. Letter
Based on Oxford dictionary, letter is defined as
A message that is written down or printed on paper and usually put in an
envelope and sent to somebody.25
In writing formal letter, such letter for requesting something, there are some elements
that the writer need to put in his or her letter, those are:
- The writer‟s address
- The date
- The name, title, and address of the receiver
- A greeting
- The body
- A closing26
24
Kompetisi Standar Isi 2012-2013, 2014, http://gusschool.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/kisi-
kisi-un-sma-ma-2012-2013.pdf. 25
A S Hornby, Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary of Current English, (New York: Oxford
University Press, 2003), p. 769.
18
The sample of letter is written below:
17 Text Road,
Texttwn NSW 2999
1 July 1999
Ms. H. Ealthy
Community Information Unit
NSW Department of Health
73 Miller Street
North Sydney NSW 2060
Dear Ms. Ealthy,
I am writing to request information on infectious diseases.
Would you please send me any brochures your department has on infectious diseases
and a list of the most common infectious diseases in Australia. I would also
appreciate any other factual information that can help me with my assignment on this
subject.
Yours Faithfully
Katrina Faros27
2. Advertisement
Advertisement is a persuasive text that is created in order to persuade people to do
something, usually to buy a product.
Here an example of advertisement:
“Life or death for them means a 10 km walk…”
“Every day kids like Evangeline walk up to 10kms to fetch water. It‟s a dirty,
dangerous water, infected with disease. She must drink to live. But to drink it means
certain illness and possibly death.”
26
Mark, op. cit., p. 106. 27
Ibid.
19
Give a child a future for $1 a day28
3. News Item
News item is defined as a text which contain information about a news or an
important thing, it could be a condition, event and so on. This kind of text use a clear
language.29
Here an example of News Item:
(Breaking News English) – Apple has overtaken Google to become the
most valuable brand in the world. This is according to the analyst Brandz,
who compile their annual Top 100 ranking of the world‟s most valuable
brands. Apple‟s brand is estimated to be worth more than $153 billion. The
tech company knocked Google off the number one position. Google had
occupied the top spot for the previous four years. Apple‟s new ranking
consolidates its position as the top-valued technology company on the stock
market. Apple‟s success is due to the popularity of its pioneering and market-
leading products. It released its iPad 2008 and the tablet become one of the
most popular gadgets on the planet.
The Brandz ranking covers companies across the world, making
everything from baby food to power plants, as well as financial services and
telecommunications. It calculates its brand value by analyzing several factors,
including the value of a company‟s balance sheet, the loyalty of customers,
and prospects for future growth. Apple has grown remarkably in the past
decade with a series of hugely iconic and popular products. Its brand value
has increased by 859 per cent since 2006. Peter Walsh, a director at Brandz,
said Apple‟s success was due to the desirability of its products. He said Apple
had succeeded in becoming a luxury goods brand, making its products more
desirable by increasing quality, reliability and price.30
4. Narration
Narration, is a kind of text that tells a story. The story itself has several purposes,
mostly to entertain the reader, but other than that a narration text could also contain
28
Mark Anderson and Kathy Anderson. Text Types in English 1, (South Yarra: Macmillan
Education Australia PTY Ltd., 2003), p. 153. 29
Bustanul Arifin, et. al. Menyimak, ( Jakarta: Universitas Terbuak, 2010), p. 516. 30
Tim Studi Guru SMA-IPS, Persiapan Menghadapi Ujian Nasional SMA-IPS 2014,
(Bandung: CV. Pustaka Setia, 2013), p.479.
20
something that makes audience think about an issue, teach them a lesson, or excite
their emotions.
The construct of narration is divided into five parts31
:
- Orientation
- Complication
- Sequence of events
- Resolution
- Coda(Optional)
The sample of Narration text is as written below:
The Bulls and the Lion
A lion had been watching three bulls feeding in an open field. He had tried to
attack them several times, but they kept together and helped each other to drive him
off.
The lion had little hope of eating them, for he was no match for three strong
bulls with their sharp horns and hoofs. But he could not keep away from that field, for
it is hard to resist watching a good meal, even when there is little chance of getting it.
Then one day the bulls had a fight when the hungry lion came to lick his
chops and watch them as he did each day, he found them in separate corners of the
field, as far away from one another as they could get it.
It was now an easy matter for the lion to attack the bulls at a time.32
5. Explanation
The explanation text is a text that is created in order to tell about a process of
something and why it happens. This text is focus to the steps rather than the
description of the things.
There are three parts in explanation text:
- General statement
- Body paragraph
31
Mark Anderson and Kathy Anderson. Text Types in English 3, (South Yarra: Macmillan
Education Australia PTY Ltd., 2003), p. 3. 32
Herman Benyamin, Advanced Learning English 2, (Bandung: Fácil., 2012), p. 65.
21
- Conclusion33
The sample of explanation text is written below:
What causes weather?
Weather is the physical condition of the atmosphere at a particular time. It
includes temperature, air pressure and water content.
Weather is produced when air moves from place to place. This moving air is
known as wind. Winds are caused by warm air rising and cooler air moving in
to replace it. Warm air is usually less dense(lighter) than cool air; therefore, it
creates low air pressure. Cool air is more dense(heavier) and creates high air
pressure.
Usually we have fine weather when the air pressure is high and clouds, rain or
snow when the air pressure drops.34
6. Exposition
Exposition is a kind of the text where the writer tries to explain and give
information about something. In this kind of text the information given by the author
is presented in one side, mostly supporting the idea of the author. Simply, the purpose
of exposition is to persuade the reader to support the author‟s idea.
The construct of exposition text is divided into three35
:
- Introduction, contain author‟s point of view.
- Argumentation
- Conclusion
The sample of the exposition text is as written below:
Drinking Coffee has Health Benefits
Drinking coffee may not harm people. Tea, coffee and soda are few
beverages which contain drug called caffeine. In its natural state, caffeine, a
silky crystalline substance, is a white or yellow powder, which is bitter tasting
and odorless. Why should I say that? I propose some arguments as follows:
33
Mark, op. cit., p. 82. 34
Ibid. 35
Mark, op. cit., p. 22.
22
First, according to an old legend, ever since the third century, monks
began using caffeine in order to help them stay awake during evening prayer
services. Now, almost seventeen centuries later, we still use caffeine for the
same purpose as well as other purposes.
Second, caffeine is absorbed through the stomach and small intestine
into the bloodstream, it takes anywhere from fifteen to forty-five minutes to
reach its peak levels. The blood flow through the kidney increases, which
triggers urination.
Third, some more therapeutic uses for caffeine are: to help analgesics
work more efficiently, to relieve depression to drug addicts, to kill skin
funguses, to improve the movement of sperm, and to keep people from having
seizures during electroconvulsive therapy.
Thus if we want to say that first, we may drink coffee, without feeling
scare of bad impact of the caffeine; second, don‟t drink too much; third, drink
coffee for therapeutic purposes, at last we needn‟t to addict to coffee.36
7. Review
Review based one Oxford Dictionary is described as:
A report in a newspaper or magazine in which somebody gives their opinion
of a book, play, film/movie.37
In order to give a clear image about review here an example of review:
2012 illm
2012 is Roland Emmerich‟s film which uses the Mayan calendar and
other end of-days prophecies for their doomsday scenario. It images the world
coming to an end 2012.
2012 film brings off a series of wonders. The movie hits its peak early
on. It starts when Cussack drives a limo through the streets of Los Angeles as
fireways and skycrappers crumble all round him from the shock of a 10.5 R.S.
earthquake. The preposterous flying sequence is equally thrilling. The climax
occurs aboard the giant ark, when an equipment malfunction threatens almost
the entire mission.
Unfortunately, the crucial sequence is not filmed or edited with the
necessary clarity. In 2012 film, Emmerich leaves us confused as to exactly
what is happening to whom. However, Emmerich 2012 deserves credit for
casting Cussack.
36
Herman, op.cit., p. 213. 37
Hornby, op. cit., p. 1141.
23
McCarthy has perhaps his best role ever as Peet‟s cocky. Danny
Glover lends dignity to the role of the president. Chiwetel Ejiofor, as the chief
scientist, brings a moving sense of anguish to a stock role. Platt has fun
playing the villain of the piece, and Woody Harrelson also chews the scenery
as a bugeyed radio prophet trying to warm his listeners about Armageddon.
All in one, 2012‟s cinematography, production design and visual
effects are awards-worthy. Music also propels the movie. It presents
American Idol runner-up. Adam Lambart, who provides a rousing anthem
over the end credits.38
8. Discussion
Discussion is a type of text where the writer tries to give opinions to the audience
about a topic. This kind of the text will show, the supportive idea or the contra, the
bad and good.
In writing discussion text, there are several elements necessary:
- Introduction
- Body paragraph, including evidences, opinions, and arguments.
- Conclusion, including the explanation of where the side of the
writer is.39
The sample of the explanation text is written below:
Television: The best invention of the twentieth century?
During the twentieth century the world has witnessed the invention of many amazing
things. Television is a great invention, but there are arguments for and against
whether it is the best invention of the twentieth century.
Television was invented in the 1920s and first came to Australia in 1956. It
has played an important role in communicating news. We can learn instantly about
what is happening in the world because of television. Also, television has provided
people with entertainment in their own homes. People in isolated areas can still feel
part of the world because of television. For these reasons I feel that television could
be considered the best invention of the twentieth century.
38
Tim Studi Guru SMA-IPS, Persiapan Menghadapi Ujian Nasional SMA-IPS 2014,
(Bandung: CV. Pustaka Setia, 2013), p.251. 39
Mark, op. cit., p. 118.
24
On the other hand, there are other inventions that could be considered to be
better than television. Some might argue that the computer should be awarded the
distinction of being the best invention because computers have made life easier.
Others might argue that medical inventions such as heart pacemakers are the best
inventions because they help to save lives.
It can be seen that there are reasons for and against television being
considered the best invention of the twentieth century. After looking at both sides I
still believe it is the best invention.40
9. Report
An information report is a kind of text when the writer gives information about a
subject. In information report there are several elements that usually be put:
- General opening
- Paragraphs about the subject
- Conclusion41
In order to give a brief understanding, the sample is written below:
The lost child
Attention shoppers, we have a lost child at the information desk on level 1.
She is wearing a red jumper with a picture of three pink teddy bears on the
front, and blue jeans with yellow patches on the knees.
She is approximately 100 centimeters tall; has long, brown hair tied in a pony
tail; and has a small scar on her left arm.
She was found outside the toy store on level 3.
Would the mother or father of this child please come to collect your daughter
from the information desk on level 1, thank you.42
10. Announcement
An announcement is a short written or spoken message that commonly found in a
meeting or radio or television. When an announcement purpose is to persuade someone to
40
Ibid, p. 119. 41
Mark, op.cit., p. 86. 42
Ibid., p. 88.
25
do something, therefore the announcement will be become an exposition. There are some
features in an announcement:
- Introduction
- Message
- Conclusion43
Here short example of announcement text:
Shoppers!
On the fourth floor today we have a lovely selection of umbrellas. These
umbrellas are the latest designs and come fashionable lime green, orange and
purple. Prices have been slashed by a whopping 30 percent so don‟t delay.
With winter just around the corner, come up to the fourth floor now and get
yourself a bargain on a great umbrella!44
D. The Relevant Previous Study
There are three studies found by the writer which have similarities to this study.
1. An Analysis of the Readability of the Essays of First Year Students of
Ghanaian Universities
This research was conducted by William Kodom Gyasi. The
researcher‟s purpose is to find out the readability of text of first year students
of Ghanaian Universities. In collecting the data, the samples were asked to
make an essay. Then the texts were analyzed by using Flesch-Kincaid
Reading Ease in Microsoft Word 2007 version and SPSS 1.6. The statistical
instruments used were One-way analysis ANOVA and t-test.The research
found that 55 % of the essays got 30-49 and 36% of the essays got 60-69.
43
Ibid, p. 141. 44
Ibid.
26
From the result the researcher concluded that most of the students could create
an essay on the fairly difficult level of readability.45
2. An Analysis of the Readability of Educational Material on the Consumer
Webpage of a Health Professional Organization: Considerations for Practice
This research was conducted by Nadia Falconer and friends. In doing
the research the researcher used 14 educational brochures on the APTA. All
brochures‟ readability level was checked by Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level,
Flesch Reading Ease, Fry Readability Formula, SMOG, and Checklist for
patient and consumer. The result found that most of the brochures‟ readability
were still inappropriate for the consumer and need to be improved.46
3. Readability of Language Textbooks Prescribed for Junior Secondary Schools
and Students Performance in Reading Comprehension in Bayelsa State,
Nigeria.
The researcher of this research is Bertola Perekeme. The total
population of this research was 1500 students and the sample was 620
students from ten secondary schools. In analyzing the data the researcher used
Fry Readability Formula and Cloze-Reading Test. The result from the
research found that from both instruments that the readability level of the texts
from the textbook was in the frustration level.47
Therefore, from the three previous studies the writer found that in order to find out
the readability level most of the writers above were using Flesch’s Reading Ease
45 William Kodom Gyasi., An Analysis of the Readability of the Essays of First Year Students
of Ghanaian Universities. Journal Language in India Volume 11 : 8 August 2011. 46
Nadia Falconer, et al., An Analysis of the Readability of Educational Material on the
Consumer Webpage of a Health Professional Organization: Considerations for Practice. Journal
IJAHSP Vol. 9 No. 3 ISSN 1540-580X. 47 Bertola Perekeme., Readability of Language Textbooks Prescribed for Junior Secondary
Schools and Students Performance in Reading Comprehension in Bayelsa State, Nigeria. British
Journal of Arts and Social Sciences Vol. 9 No. 1.
27
Formula. Their research also contributes to this research, such as the process of
analyzing the data.
Kodom Gyasi‟s research has a big contribution in this research. His research has
given an explanation about how to analyze readability level of texts. In his research
he also gives an image about Flesch-Kinclaid Reading Ease, the formula used by the
writer.
Not different with Gyasi‟s, Falconer‟s research about readability of educational
brochures of APTA has contributes to the writer, especially in the understanding of
techniques in analyzing readability. Falconer‟s also gives a good example about more
techniques that can be used.
Perekeme‟s research about readability has a good contribution to the writer. Even
though the techniques used by Perekeme is Fry Readability and Cloze-Reading test,
but his research has given an inspiration to the writer in how to improve the writer‟s
research.
28
CHAPTER III
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
A. Method and Design
Based on the purpose of the research this research use Descriptive Analysis
Method where the researcher tries to describe comparative data of readability level of
English text in UN academic year 2010/2011 and 2011/2012. On the other hand,
based on how the researcher collects the data, this research uses Document Analysis.
In order to get the data needed the researcher uses The Flesch’s Reading Ease
Formula where the researcher uses reading tests from UN as the objects. Besides, the
researcher also does library research from books, articles, journals, and some internet-
based data.
B. Data and Data Source
The researcher takes the data, in this case English texts, from UN test academic
years 2010/2011 and 2011/2012. Based on the test, the researcher found that in year
2010/2011 there are nine texts in its reading section and in year 2011/2012 there are
fourteen texts. It is concluded that there are twenty-three texts from both years.
After checking all the texts, the researcher found that the last text in year
2011/2012 cannot be used as the comparison data. The reason of why the 14th
text is
unable to be used is that the format of the text is filled in the blank text. Therefore,
the Flesch’s Reading Ease formula cannot be used on the text as the Flesch’s
Reading Ease formula only works to a complete text. As the conclusion, the
population data from those years are reduced to twenty-two texts.
29
Table 3.1
Texts 2010/2011
From the Table 3.1, there are several data known:
- The fewest words is from text 1 with 38 words
- The longest text is text 6 with 330 words
- Text 1 is text with the least sentences consist of 3 sentences
- Text 9 is text with the most sentences consist of 23 sentences
Texts Words Sentences
1 38 3
2 67 5
3 87 5
4 222 13
5 198 13
6 330 15
7 165 5
8 187 11
9 273 23
30
Table 3.2
Texts 2011/2012
From the Table 3.2, there are several data known:
- The fewest words is from text 3 with 61 words
- The longest text is text 4 with 277 words
- Text 1 is text with the least sentences consist of 4 sentences
- Text 4 is text with the most sentences consist of 14 sentences
C. Data Collecting Technique
In order to collect all the data needed, the researcher types all the data into
Microsoft Office Word 2007. The data were taken from book Persiapan Menghadapi
Ujian Nasional SMA-IPS 2014. The book is provided with four years test. Those tests
are from academic years: 2009/2010, 2010/2011, 2011/2012, and 2012/2013.
Based on the text in English test 2010/2011 and 2011/2012, the researcher found
that the fourteenth text from academic year 2011/2012 is unable to be used
Texts Words Sentences
1 65 4
2 104 6
3 61 5
4 277 14
5 158 6
6 183 8
7 169 8
8 250 13
9 222 13
31
D. Technique of Data Analysis
In analyzing the data there are several steps that the researcher has to do, those
are:
1. Choosing texts from UN academic year 2010/2011 and 2011/2012
2. Testing the texts use Flesch’s Reading Ease formula1 :
Score= 206.853-(1.015 X ASL) – (84.6 X ASW)
Description:
ASL = Average Sentence Length
ASW = Average number of Syllables per Words
Because the Flesch’s Reading Ease formula has been integrated with
Microsoft Office Word 2010, therefore the researcher uses the Microsoft
Office Word 2010 to test the level of text in term of the variety and condition
of text.
E. Timetable
The researcher formulates the timetable in order to make a better time
organization. Based from researcher calculation, the research will take time as follow:
Table 3.3
Research Timetable
Progress Time
Collecting UN texts from UN’s test academic year 2010/2011
and 2011/2012
1 day
Testing texts’ comprehendible level 4 days
Comparing the data result 2 Days
1 William H Dubay, The Principle of Readability, (California: Impact Information), p. 22.
32
CHAPTER IV
RESEARCH FINDING AND DISCUSSION
A. Data Description
In this chapter, the writer will explain about the process of getting the data up to
the way to get the result from data. This research, as written in the title of the chapter,
is a comparative research. Therefore, there will be two data compared by the
researcher in order to find out the differences between those data.
This research is created in order to find out the comparison of the level of
readability of English texts in National Examination or UN in academic year
2010/2011 and 2011/2012. The reasons of why the writer chooses those years have
been explained in chapter one. In analyzing the data the writer takes 18 examples
from both years, 9 texts per each.
Generally in this chapter the writer will explain:
a. The first part is the description of the data, the writer will explain about the
data taken from UN academic years 2010/2011 and 2011/2012, the condition
of the 18 texts that are used as the objects of the research.
b. The second part is the way of the data processing. In processing the data, the
writer uses the Flesch Reading Ease formula. This part will show the
readability of the data.
c. The last part is the result of the data and the comparison between the data.
33
Table 4.1
Texts 2010/2011
From Table 4.1 there are several information the writer wants to explain. In total
9 texts, the writer have chosen from English test in UN 2010/2011, the writer found :
- Text number 1 has the fewest word with 38 words
- Text number 6 has the most words with 330 words
- Text number 1 has the fewest sentences only 3 sentences
- Text number 9 has the most sentences, 23 sentences
- The average of the words from all texts is 174.1
- The average of the sentences is 10.3
Texts Words Sentences
1 38 3
2 67 5
3 87 5
4 222 13
5 198 13
6 330 15
7 165 5
8 187 11
9 273 23
Average 174.1 10.3
34
Table 4.2
Texts 2011/2012
Table 4.2 provides several information. In total 9 texts, the writer have chosen
from English test in UN 2011/2012, the writer found :
- Text number 3 has the fewest word with 61 words
- Text number 4 has the most words with 277 words
- Text number 1 has the fewest sentences only 4 sentences
- Text number 9 has the most sentences, 14 sentences
- The average of the words from all texts is 165.4
- The average of the sentences is 8.56
Texts Words Sentences
1 65 4
2 104 6
3 61 5
4 277 14
5 158 6
6 183 8
7 169 8
8 250 13
9 222 13
Average 165.4 8.56
35
B. Data Analysis
After getting all the data about the texts, the writer uses the Flesch’s Reading
Ease formula to analyze the data. The formula is used in order to find out the style
level of the texts and the description of the text. The Flesch’s Reading Ease formula
is written below:
Score= 206.853-(1.015 X ASL) – (84.6 X ASW)
Description:
ASL = Average Sentence Length
ASW = Average number of Syllables per Words
Because the formula has been integrated with Microsoft Office Word 2010, then
the writer analyze the text uses the help of Microsoft Office Word 2010. The formula
is applied to each texts from both years, which is meant by that formula the
researcher get 18 data about texts difficulty level. After analyzing the data the writer
found the result as written in the table below.
Table 4.3
The Description of Text 2010/2011
Texts Words Sentences
Text
Difficulties
Level
1 38 3 66.8
2 67 5 64.6
3 87 5 68.4
4 222 13 66.7
5 198 13 52
6 330 15 54.8
36
From Table above the writer found that:
- The table words is filled with the data of number of words in each texts. In
academic year 2010/2011, text number 6 has the most number of words, 330,
and text number 1 with the least number of words, 38.
- The table sentences is filled with the data of number of sentences in each
texts. Text number 9 has the most number of sentences, 23, and text number 1
has the least number of sentences, 3.
- Text with highest level of difficulty is text number 7. The score is 37.9 or in
difficult level.
- Text with lowest level of difficulty is text number 9. The score is 77.3 or in
fairly easy level.
- The average score of the for texts from academic year 2010/2011 is 60.71.
7 165 5 37.9
8 187 11 57.9
9 273 23 77.3
Average 174.1 10.3 60.71
37
Table 4.4
The Description of Text 2011/2012
From the Table 4.4 the writer found that:
- The table words is filled with the data of number of words in each texts. In
academic year 2011/2012, text number 4 has the most number of words, 277,
and text number 1 with the least number of words, 65.
- The table sentences is filled with the data of number of sentences in each
texts. Text number 4 has the most number of sentences, 14, and text number 1
has the least number of sentences, 4.
- Text with highest level of difficulty is text number 3. The score is 27.1 or in
very difficult level.
Texts
Words Sentences
Text
Difficulties
Level
1 65 4
64.6
2 104 6
46.6
3 61 5
27.1
4 277 14
35.2
5 158 6
32.4
6 183 8
27.8
7 169 8
41.7
8 250 13
43.1
9 222 13
35.2
Average 165.4 8.56
39.3
38
- Text with lowest level of difficulty is text number 1. The score is 64.6 or in
standard level.
- The average score for texts from academic year 2011/2012 is 39.3
Table 4.5
The Description of Texts 2010/2011 and 2011/2012
Texts Words Sentence Text Difficulties Level
2010/2011 2011/2012 2010/2011 2011/2012 2010/2011 2011/2012
1 38 65 3 4 66.8 64.6
2 67 104 5 6 64.6 46.6
3 87 61 5 5 68.4 27.1
4 222 277 13 14 66.7 35.2
5 198 158 13 6 52 32.4
6 330 183 15 8 54.8 27.8
7 165 169 5 8 37.9 41.7
8 187 250 11 13 57.9 43.1
9 273 222 23 13 77.3 35.2
Average 174.1 165.4 10.3 8.56 60.71 39.3
Table 4.5 above shows the comparison of readability level from National
Examination academic year 2010/2011 and 2011/2012. The table was served with the
comparison of words and sentences for each text. From Table 4.5 there are several
data about readability level from both academic years:
- Number of words for texts academic year 2010/2011 is higher than texts from
year 2011/2012. The difference is 8.7.
39
- Number of sentences for texts academic year 2010/2011 is higher than texts
from year 2011/2012. The difference is 1.74.
- The average of difficulty level from texts 2010/2011 is bigger, 60.71, than the
average of difficulty level from texts 2011/2012, 39.3. The difference is
21.41.
40
CHAPTER V
CONCLUSION, IMPLICATION AND SUGGESTIONS
A. Conclusion
Based on the data found that texts in academic year 2011/2012 has lower
readability score, 39.3, than the texts in academic year 2010/2011, 60.71.The
researcher also finds that between those two years, the texts in year 2011/2012 has a
harder level than texts in academic year 2010/2011 based on the Flesch Reading Ease
formula.
B. Implication
There are some effects could cause by the low level difficulties in a texts,
especially for texts use in National Examination. As explained in the first chapter that
this research takes English National Examination texts for senior high school level as
the object of the research. There are some implications from the research about the
condition of texts condition and difficulties level in National Examination between
academic year 2010/2011 and 2011/2012, those are:
1. The quality of the texts in English subject is getting lower, because the level
of the texts has been changed into harder level.
2. For the government the result of the research can be used to evaluate the
quality of National Examination.
3. For the teacher this research can make them know more about National
Examination, especially texts quality in English subject. Researcher hopes by
realizing the fact that the level of the test getting higher teacher will do more
improvement in their teaching method and materials. In addition the teacher
also will have more portraits about several thing that contribute on students’
41
achievement in comprehending reading text on English National Examination,
especially for academic year 2010/2011 and 2011/2012.
4. Students, as the one who have big role in National Examination, know that
the texts quality is getting higher every year by that students must improve
their quality as well.
C. Suggestions
As explains before that this research could implicates several things. As the
implications happen, the researcher will serve some things to do in facing the result
from the research. Those are:
1. For government, the selections of the texts in National Examination must be
better. As what the researcher found in several texts academic year 2011/2012
that the level of the texts is not suitable to be used for senior high school level.
Government must create texts with proper level with senior high school.
2. For teacher, the researcher suggest that they need to be more aware with the
changes of texts quality in National Examination, therefore they will have
more improvement in their teaching method.
3. For students, the quality of their learning also need to be improved. As can be
seen from the data serve that in academic year 2011/ 2012, where the
readability level of the texts is harder than the year before, the score of
students getting lower.
4. For people who interest in this kind of research, this research hope can be
used as one of their data.
42
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APPENDICES
