IMPROVING READING ABILITY THROUGH TEAM-GAME TOURNAMENT TECHNIQUE FOR THE TENTH GRADE STUDENTS OF SMA N 1 JATINOM

Abstract

This study was aimed at improving the reading ability of the tenth grade students of SMA N 1 Jatinom through the team-game tournament (TGT) technique. The study was action research comprising two cycles conducted in SMA N 1 Jatinom. The subjects were 36 tenth-grade students of Science 4. There were two types of data, i.e. qualitative data and quantitative data. The qualitative data were derived from field notes obtained from observations and interviews with the students and the English teacher. Meanwhile, the quantitative data were in the forms of students’ reading comprehension scores obtained from reading comprehension tests (a pre-test and a post test). To ensure validity and reliability of the data, the researcher employed five criteria of validity, i.e. democratic validity, outcome validity, process validity,catalytic validity and dialogic validity as well as time triangulation and investigatortriangulation for qualitative data.Then, for the quantitative data, the researcher employed content validity and internal consistency through KR-20. Finally, the qualitative data were analyzed by reducing data, displaying data, as well as drawing and verifying conclusions meanwhile the quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics through SPSS 19.00.The research findings showed that the students’ reading ability significantly improved through the TGT technique. The implementation of this technqiue made significant improvements of the students’ reading ability in the aspects of vocabulary mastery, finding main idea, identifying the detail information of the text and also students’ involvement during the reading lesson. The findings were supported by the improvement on students’ mean score, i.e from 61.86 in the pre-test to 76,71 in the post-test. Moreover, by using the TGT technique, the students were more motivated and interested in reading the texts.

Keywords: reading ability, TGT technique