CHAPTER II

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

This chapter covers the definition of reading, reading comprehension, concept of

cooperative learning, definitions of STAD (student team achievement divisions), teaching

reading using STAD, definitions of descriptive text and previous studies.

2.1 Definition of Reading

Reading is one of four skills that student have to learn and it is important for

them. It was supported by Grabe (2009) who says that reading is an activity that is taken by

many person for advanced education opportunities. He states that reading is important part of

education which is faced by students. Students use reading skill to engaged in advanced

studies, get a good job, gain access to new information or knowledge or communicate with

other or be entertained.

Another opinion was stated by Hermida (2009), reading is the tacit acceptance on

information contain in the text. In additional meaning by Zare and Othman (2013), “reading

is a cognitive activity in which the reader takes part in a conversation with the author trough

the text” (p.188). Reading is some theory activities that the writer takes a part in written form

or text by conversation in the text.

An additional idea from Al-Zu’bi and Kitishat (2013) who say that “reading is the

ability to get understanding from written text therefore reading comprehension was seen an

active process that engaged the reader” (p.102). It indicates that reading is one skill that is

used to know the aim of the text. Reading was seen as the construction of the meaning of the

written text through an interaction between the reader and the text. Grabe (2009). “Reading is
centrally comprehending process. They read to understand what the writer intended to

convey in writing, though we also do more” (p.14).

In conclusion, reading is not only an activity of reading but also understanding

and knowing the purpose of the information that the writer includes in the text. Reading is

also the important skill that students’ need for every aspect beside for education such as

getting a good and communicating with other. As the result, reading is an active and complex

process that involves understanding the text and developing meaning.

2.2 Definition of Reading Comprehension

Reading comprehension is necessary for leaners to understand and get the

information from the text. Furthermore, reading comprehension is reading activity the reader

try to get meaning from the written text. It is supported by Grabe (2009) who states that

“reading comprehension is the ability to identify the main ideas on the text, integrate them

into a text model of reading and develop an appropriate situation model of reader

interpretation” (p.198).

Additional definition of reading comprehension is stated by Yusuf, Natsir and

Hanum (2015) who argue that reading comprehension is skill that reader has effort to

understand the text in order to improve and expand their knowledge and information from the

message in the written text. Therefore, reading comprehension skill can be determined as a

process of constructing a mental representation of textual information.

Furthermore, reading comprehension needs interaction between the reader and the

text. In addition, Zarei (2012) said that reading comprehension can be interpretation of the

meaning of the written form through an interaction between the reader and the text, and

learning how to resume from the written form.

 Based on those opinions the researcher concludes that reading comprehension is

important for students that is uses for understanding a written text. Reading comprehension is

a process in grasping information and meaning from written language including words,

sentence, and main idea. It requires students to master comprehension skill to achieve in

order to be successful readers.

2.3 The Concept of Cooperative Leaning

Cooperative leaning is a method that students share their idea with their friend to

understand a material. According to Khan (2011), cooperative leaning is a method, which is

used by educator or teacher who help student to interact with other friend to develop their

social skill. It will be more effective to improve their understanding about the material. Then

they do a task of material with other students cooperatively. It helps students to improve their

teamwork ability. Khan (2011) claims that in cooperative learning, learners do not work

alone but work in pair in order to increase their knowledge with other learners.

Cooperative learning is also a method that focus on student centered (pupil

centered). Another opinion was from Endeshaw (2015:230) who says that “cooperative

learning is a feasible and practical teaching method that puts student-centered teaching

method into action”. Students are asked to solve their problem with one another. In addition,

he stated that cooperative leaning makes interactive relationship between students who have

authentic reason to know other problem by listening to one another giving question.

In this method, teacher has role as a facilitator and a resource to help them when

they find some difficulties in doing their task. Usually, students in one class will be divided

into several groups to make easier doing the discussion time. Endeshaw (2015) further says
that cooperative learning is as instructional method in education for students who has

different level of knowledge if they perform work together in small group.

Cooperative leaning is one method teaching which is has instructed the student to

care and share with another one. Endeshaw (2015) explains that cooperative learning is

powerful teaching instruction that can influence the students’ motivation and responsibility

by good situation of caring and sharing in classroom. In addition, Ajaja and Eravwoke

(2010:14) argue that “in cooperative learning groups, students gradually take responsibility

for each other’s learning”.

Cooperative learning also makes students have same opportunities to show their

knowledge and information. In cooperative learning, students are free to practice what they

want in order students get their goal or the target language that they hope. Further from

Endshaw (2015) he states that cooperative learning (CL) produce much more occasion for

student in order to practice their target language that traditional teaching method in whole-

class instruction.

Based on point of view, the researcher concludes that cooperative learning

method is type of teaching learning which focuses on students. Students make some group in

order to focus more actively than teacher, moreover, teacher has role as a facilitator and

resource to help them when they find some difficulties in doing their task. Additionally,

cooperative leaning method can improve students’ achievement and ability through the

activeness in teamwork.
2.4 Definition of STAD (Student Team Achievement Division)

Cooperative learning method has some techniques those are Jigsaw, TGT (Team-

Game Tournament), STAD (Student Team Achievement Division), TPS (Think Pair Share)

and CIRC (Cooperative Integrated Reading and Composition). STAD is one technique that in

group each member has different level of knowledge. In this group, students who have high

level of knowledge help students who have low level of knowledge. According to Slavin

(2005) STAD is one of the simple cooperative learning and most of straight forward of the

cooperative learning approaches.

Another opinion is Tiantong and Teemuangsai (2013), “STAD stands for students

team achievement, it is a collaborative learning strategy in which small groups of learners

with different level of ability work together to accomplish a shared reading goal” (p.86). It

means that, on STAD technique, the small team who consist different level, gender, and

techniques the name is heterogeneous. The destination of this group is students are expected

to help each other until members of small group understand and know the material because in

STAD the overall team score is summed up from the group members score. It also supported

by Yusuf, Natsir and Hanum (2015), “ STAD is one of the CL techniques which assign

students into small heterogeneous teams in which each consist of four to five members from

different skill, gender, and ethnicity” (p.102).

Overall, from the two statements above, researcher concludes that STAD

technique has positive effect for students. Moreover, STAD technique makes all level of

students become group and makes member in group respect each other. Alijanian (2012) says

that STAD is one of the most significant technique of cooperative leaning approaches, which

it has influenced to bring the group working to positive effect in multiple grades and subject.
2.4.1 The Components of STAD

According to Slavin (2005), STAD has been used to develop diverse subject such

as mathematics, art of language, social studies and science. The components are class

presentation, teams, quiz, and individual improvements score team recognition.

a. Class presentation

In this component as usual teacher gives material or topic that will be learned. However,

students have to realize the teacher explanation because it will be help them to do the

worksheet that will be assigned in the next component.

b. Teams

Students are divided to four or five heterogeneous group which consist of different

ability, gender and ethnicity. This component is important because it prepares students to do

the quiz. All teammates discuss about the material given. This step is very useful in order

students who have high ability help the low level ability students. Finally, students should

ensure that all teammates understand the topic before doing the quiz.

c. Quiz

After teacher explains the topic, and the students discuss with their teammates, students

will do quiz individually. Students should not do in team or help each other. So, students

have responsibility to understand material and work on the quiz attentively.

d. Individual improvement score

This components focus on acknowledging to achieve the intended goal to get better score.

All students can contribute and improve their team score by doing quiz accurately. However,

each student has a base score deriving from their previous score.
e. Team recognition

Team get reward or certificate if the team’ average score satisfy the criteria. Teacher may

have a role for creating how to reward successful team. Score on the team could be used to

determine their rank in the class. As a result, students realize the value of working

cooperatively and helping their teammates to understand the topic.

Thus, the researcher implemented the components of STAD suitable for teaching reading

comprehension and help students to comprehend the text. This technique does not only focus

and helping students difficulties to comprehend the text but also persuade and stimulate the

students to be active and help each other in learning process.

2.4.2 The Procedure of Using STAD

According to Zarei (2012) there are four steps to use STAD technique in class.

First, teacher explains the subject that will be discussed by students. Second, teacher divides

students to small group consist of four or five members. Then students worked in their teams

to make sure that all members of group understand and master the subject. Third, teacher

gives quiz which is related with the subject, and students do it individually without helping

one another. The scores are compared to their previous test scores. Finally, team recognition

stage is useful to determine the students average score whether the students pass the criteria

of success. This stage is also useful to know the individual student’s improvement score

before or after joining team.

In addition Slavin (2005) states that learning process using STAD has regular

cycle instruction, those are:

1. Teaching (teacher gives explanation about the material topic)

Teacher begin with presentation or explains the topic that will be learned. Here,

the presentation are not only about the topic but also consist of opening, improvement

and simple instruction such as group activities and quiz.

2. Team study (student mastered the material and helped their teammates)

Each student in team has responsible to master the topic that has been explained

by the teacher previously. Every student on team study has responsible to make sure that

all members already know the topic. Discussion activities on team study do not stop until

all teammate understand the topic. The students ask help to their teammate before they

ask to the teacher. Students in teammates may talk with another by soft voice. Here,

teacher controls and monitors the students’ discussion.

3. Quiz (students are doing the quiz individual)

After student already discuss on team study, teacher gives quiz in order to know

the result of team study. Students do it individually. In this case, students have to show

up their understanding of the topic after they discuss in team. Teacher make sure that

students’ score and teams’ score will be calculated.

4. Team recognition (team score is calculated based in progress score)

The main point of this is to try to figure out the improvement of students’ score as

individual, team score and awarding to the best team. Teacher may give reward or

certificate to the best team based on the improvement teams’ score. Teams’ score is

collected from the students’ individual score after the quiz. Teacher may calculate the

result of the quiz directly after the quiz.

2.4.3 The Advantages and Disadvantages of STAD

As any technique in any cooperative learning, STAD also has the advantages and

disadvantages of the technique. According Cruickshank (2006:283) as cited in Nur’aeni

(2006:19) stating that the advantages are: 1. Persuade the learner to work together for both

the common and individual good. 2. To makes student feel better about themselves and to be

more accepting information and knowledge from the other friends. 3. Students will get an

equal opportunity to learn. 4. Students who had lower abilities were help by the students had

higher ability. 5. Students will be active in teaching and learning process.

In contrast, the disadvantages of STAD are: 1. Teacher needs much time to

organize the team study or group. 2. The class conditions’ become noise because most of

students active in team study or group. 3. Wasting the instructional time. Teacher has to give

the clear instruction because students concern with their group and ignore the teacher

instructions’. 4. It needs more time for the teacher to implement STAD well because at the

first time students need to adapt with their teammate.

2.5 Teaching Reading Using STAD

According to Nur’aeni (2011) teaching reading using STAD involves six steps:

step 1 teacher introduces the STAD technique together with the concept, procedure,

advantages and disadvantages. Teacher explains what they do in team. Currently, student

have to know the rule in team and students have responsibility to make sure the teammate

have learn the topic and students do not stop discussion until teammate mastered the topic.

Step 2 is class presentations. The teacher presents covers opening, development and guided-
practice components of the topic. In the opening section, teacher tells the topic that will be

learned by students. Then in the development section, teacher should actively practice the

concept or skill using many examples and frequently assess the students’ comprehension by

asking them many questions. In the guided-practice section, teacher should call one of the

students so that they prepare themselves to answers.

The third step of teaching reading using STAD is team studies. Teacher asks

students to discuss in their team that has been assigned before. During the discussion, teacher

should help the students if they had difficulties. The team member have to be responsible to

master the topic and help their teammates. Step 4 is monitoring the team. Teacher ensures the

students activity in team study, when they talk and help each other. Therefore, teacher has to

observe, listen and intervene when it necessary. Step 5 is test or quiz. Teacher distributed the

worksheets that students have to complete, and students must do it individually. Step 6 is

scoring the quiz. Teacher asks to students to discuss the result in them class or teacher may

collect the score by themselves.

2.6 Descriptive Text

There are many kinds of text that students have to be started in Junior High

school. One of them is descriptive text. According to Enderson (1998:26) started that

“Descriptive text describes particular person, a place, or things”. It means that it is designed

specifically about a person, things, or a place. In additions, they stated, “its perposes is to tell

about the subject by describing its feature without including personal opinion.” For them own

thin, they consider descriptive text’s objective is to write the real particularly of a thing

without argument privately.

 In addition, according to Pardiyono (2007:33) said that “Descriptive text gives

description from other words, this text can tell an object that is still alive and not. Moreover,

clauses added that description gives a significant point of view because it transforms our

feeling and extends our experience. Here is the essential’s aspect of description is telling

about something or someone particularly which bring the reader’s perception change and

spread the reader’s knowledge widely. In this notion, Wishon and Burks (1980:128) stated

that description provides sense of options, for instance, smell, sound, fell, look and things. In

descriptive text, it illustrates that there are sense can be written in the text.

Furthermore, they stated, “Descriptive text helps the teacher, through his/her

imagination, to visualize a scene or a person, or to understand a sensation or an emotion. It is

this important to make readers know and understand the real sense that is being described in

descriptive text.

To sum up, descriptive text is a text which can tell the characteristic of something

or someone living or nonliving for purpose that reader could interpret it well

2.7 Previous Studies

There are some previous studies related to this study. First, Nur’aeni (2011)

conducted the research about reading ability in junior high school in Tanggerang Selatan.

The design used was Classroom Action Research (CAR). In this research, the researcher

concluded that STAD technique could improve students’ motivation, interest and

achievement. It was shown by the result of students’ average score. Their average score

improved from 66,62 to 72,8. Based in the result of the research, it showed that STAD

technique is appropriate technique to improve students’ achievement.

 The second study is form Laelasari (2013) who conducted a study Classroom

Action Research about reading comprehension. This research was conducted in senior high

school where the subject of reading was spoof text. The result shows STAD can improve

students’ cognitive skill. It was proven from students’ improvement to comprehend and

analyze the text. As the result, students understand the aim of the text. Besides that, students

interest in teaching and learning process and improve their motivation to learn learning.

Third Fithrijah (2010) also used a study Classroom Action Research to know

about reading comprehension achievement in junior high school at Pucuk Lamongan. The

researcher concluded that by using STAD technique is able to improve several students’

reading comprehension abilities such as ability in finding main idea, finding specific

information, identifying textual reference and understanding the word meaning of report text.

It was proven by their average score which increased from 47, 4 into 60,8 in cycle 1 and 72,5

in cycle 3. It can be noted that used of STAD can gate the criteria of success in which 82% of

students have gained >70 in their reading comprehension achievement.

Based on the reading previous studies, it was known that using STAD technique

gave significant improvement to students’ reading skill more over the activeness of students

in teaching learning activity. Thus, it also gives the researcher an idea to conduct a similar

research on the teaching English using STAD technique to improve reading comprehension

by STAD technique with different reading text which is descriptive text and different level of

students at Second Grade of Mts Sunan Ampel Pakuniran Probolinggo.