CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

Background

Nowadays, English is very important for our lives. This language is used throughout

the world in science, knowledge and technology as well as education, business,

transactions, and other activities in the world. In the past, Indonesian students began

learning English in junior high schools (SLTP) as compulsory subjects. The process

continues to high school (SLTA). In fact, English is also taught in some elementary

schools as local content lessons and even in some kindergartens, students are

introduced to some English vocabulary.

There are many languages used in international communication. One of them is

English. Indonesians learn English to communicate in two forms, oral and written.

Indonesian considers English as a foreign language. So, Indonesians find it difficult to

accept. If someone wants to learn English well, he must know four skills. They listen,

speak, read and write. In addition, he must master the language components, such as

phonology, grammar, vocabulary, and pronunciation to support the four skills

because those skills are very important.

In this century, English seems to be one of the main languages used in international

communication. Even people who are native speakers of English often know words

like; banks, chocolate, computers, hospitals, hamburgers, hot dogs, hotels, pianos,

radios, restaurants, taxis, telephones, televisions, and universities.

Mastering the language means practicing four English skills very well. As an

example; someone wants to explain how and why rain occurs. The problem is how he

gets knowledge, or how he reaches understanding. The answer is of course through

reading and listening.

"Reading is very important for teachers to build reading skills for their students.

Many specialists define reading as the process of connecting readers and

communication with ideas. Reading is just one of the many ways humans run their

basic business to "understand the world" (Eskey, 1986) ".

English has become an international language. Indonesians tend to spend more time

learning English because English is a foreign language in Indonesia. Indonesians

learn English to communicate in two forms, they are oral and written.

Vocabulary, which consists of knowledge about meaning as the main component of a

language, must be taught along with reading, structure and conversation. So, ideally

the vocabulary must be part of the reading course because someone needs to master

the vocabulary to understand the passage.

There are four skills needed when people learn English, they listen, speak, read and

write. In addition, if someone learns English; he must master the components of

language, such as: phonological grammar, vocabulary, and pronunciation to support

the four skills because the four skills are very important.

It is a fact that vocabulary is a component of language. No language exists without

words. They are the means by which people are used exchange their thoughts. The
more words we learn, the more ideas we have to have. So, we can communicate ideas

more effectively. It is not easy to teach vocabulary, especially new vocabulary for

junior high school students because teaching requires explanation for each section.

However, at other times a teacher must see that the meaning and use of words must

also be given a lot of attention.

It can be concluded that reading skills or reading skills are very important in English

teaching programs in Indonesia as the main tool to obtain knowledge and information

from the fields of science and technology. In addition, to improve reading skills,

students must master language components such as; phonology, grammar, and

pronunciation.

Reading is one of the four main skills in learning English besides listening, speaking

and writing. Ideally, students should be able to master a variety of skills for reading

purposes. The fact that middle school students are still poor in mastering those skills.

Based on the description above, in this thesis the author wants to know how well the

seventh grade students of SMPN 15 Banjarmasin master language skills, especially

the ability to read comprehension and its components, especially vocabulary mastery.

Research Question

The basic issues that the writer wants to address in this proposal are:

A. What is expanded is the vocabulary mastery of seventh grade students of

SMPN 15 Banjarmasin
 B. How far is the reading comprehension of the seventh grade students of SMPN

15 Banjarmasin

C. Is there a significant correlation between students' vocabulary mastery and

their reading comprehension?

The Objectives

The Objectives of the Study are:

A. to know the vocabulary mastery of students from seventh grade students of

SMPN 15 Banjarmasin

B. to find out students reading comprehension about seventh grade students of

SMPN 15 Banjarmasin

C. to find out if there is a significant correlation between students' vocabulary

mastery and their reading comprehension.

Significance

This research will provide some useful information about vocabulary achievement

and reading comprehension achievement. This study will also present a description

and correlation between vocabulary mastery and reading comprehension skills among

seventh grade students of SMPN 15 Banjarmasin

Hopefully the results of this study will be useful for students, teachers, and all

readers. The results will be used for the following:

A. For writers

By conducting research, the writer hopes that he can learn and get more information

to identify problems in mastering vocabulary and reading comprehension. In addition,

the writer will gain experience and new knowledge for the future of his life.

B. For students

By studying reading comprehension, students can take some information to identify

their problems in mastering vocabulary and reading comprehension. In addition, they

can also improve their abilities in vocabulary and reading comprehension.

C. For teachers

This research is expected to provide information to students about vocabulary and

reading comprehension, where the teachers will help their students when facing

several problems in mastering both of them. English teachers can use the results of

research as feedback on teaching reading activities so that the objectives of the

English teaching program (especially reading goals) can be achieved.

D. For the readers

It is expected that by reading the final project, the reader will not experience

difficulties in understanding the mastery of vocabulary and reading comprehension.

Hypothesis

According to Arikunto (2010: 113), a hypothesis is a temporary answer to a research

problem. The research hypothesis consists of two hypotheses: the null hypothesis

(Ho) and the alternative hypothesis (Ha). The hypothesis is stated below:

Ho: There is a negative correlation between vocabulary and reading comprehension

Ha: There is a positive correlation between vocabulary and reading comprehension

Assumption

This research is divided into 3 chapters, each of which explains different topics. The

first chapter is Introduction. In the chapter the general background of the study,

reason for choosing the topic, statements of the research problem, objectives of the

study, significant of the study, clarification on term, and out line of the final project

are discussed.

Next, the second chapter presents the review of literature which contains theories

underlying the writing of this study. They are: vocabulary as one of the language

components, the mastery of vocabulary, reading as one of the language skill and the

benefits of mastering vocabulary and reading comprehension.

The last chapter is Method of Investigation. It discussed of the research design,

variable, source of data, the choice of population and sample, the instrument,

procedure of collecting data item analysis and method of analysis.

Definition of Key Terms

This research has clarified the main terms as follows:

A. Correlation study

Correlation means relationship, and this study is similar to the correlation of research

considered in which the relationship between the two variables in this study,

vocabulary and reading comprehension.

B. Mastery of students in vocabulary

(i) Mastery

Mastery is complete control or the state of having control over something superiority

in competition, winning superior skills, or through knowledge (Hornby, 1974: 153).

(ii) Vocabulary

Vocabulary is words as a unit that is part of a grammar pattern. In that sense, a word

can be an element that can stand alone as speech, it cannot be divided into two or

more parts of similarity that are characterized (Lado, 1977: 182).

C. Students' ability in reading comprehension

Students are people over 12 years of age who study in junior high school. Ability

means the strength or skills needed to do something. The ability of students in reading

comprehension means the strength of people over the age of 12, who study in junior

high school in understanding the message of reading material.

 REFERENCES

Harris, P. D. (1969). Testing English as a second language. New Delhi: Tata

McGPAW-Hill Publishing Company. LTD.
Nunan, D. (2003). Practical English Language Teaching. England: Mc Grawhill
Publishing.