Concept of Reading Ability

The Concept of Reading Ability

Ability defined as the capacity of the individuals to perform various tasks in a specific job. Ability for basically mean that you have the potential to do something. Ability is the skill or power to do something in other words talent. Reading is a process of understanding written language (Rumelhart, 1985). Reading is a process, it starts from viewing the linguistics surface representation and ends with certain ideas or meaning about messages intended by the writer. Thus, reading is the combination of perceptual process and cognitive process. Reading ability is skill of communication between the reader and the writer to get knowledge and information. According to Brown (2001:298) reading ability will be developed best in association with writing, listening, and speaking activities. Even in those courses that may be labeled reading your goals will be best achieved by capitalizing on the interrelationship of skills, especially the reading – writing connection.

Reading is more than merely referring to the activity of pronouncing the printed material or following each line of written page. It involves various and mixed activities. People have their own purposes why they read. It is also more than recognizing words within a sentence; it includes whole ability of thinking process to evaluate the information. The following are some definitions of reading proposed by some experts:

1. Aebersold and Field (1997: 15) say that reading is what happens when people look at a text and assign meaning to the written symbols in that text, further, the text and the reader are the two physical entities necessary for the reading process to begin. So, there is an interaction between the text and the reader that constitute actual reading. While, Davies (1995:1) says that reading is a private activity. It is a mental or cognitive process, which involves a reader in trying to follow and respond to a message from a writer, who is in distant space and time. Due to this privacy, the process of reading and responding to a writer is not directly observable.
2. Grellet (1998:7) defines reading as an active skill that constantly involves guessing, predicting, checking, and asking oneself questions. Wallace (1992: 4) adds that reading is interpreting which means reacting to a written text as a piece of communication.

Based on the definitions above, it can be concluded that reading is an active and communicative process. It is also an interactive process that goes on between the reader and the text, resulting in comprehension. It is a means of communication between the reader and the writer. The process involves the reader, the text, the interaction between reader and text. The text presents letters, words, sentences, and paragraphs that encode meaning. The reader uses knowledge, skills, and strategies to determine the meaning.

Hornby (1987: 2) defines “ability as (1) capacity or power (to do) something physical or mental; (2) cleverness; intelligence; (3) special natural power to do something well; tallent. Meanwhile, in Longman dictionary, ability is defined as the mental skill or physical power to do something”. He uses ability refers to a broader set of factors which - given similar motivation and opportunities – make some people better at learning than others.

Level of Reading Ability

According to Gillet and Temple (2004:134 – 137) level of reading ability:

1. The Independent Level
   This level of difficulty the student can read text easily, without help. Comprehension of what is read id generally excellent, and silent reading at this level is rapid because almost all the words are recognized and understood at sight. The student has to stop rarely and analyze a new word. Oral reading is generally fluent, and occasional divergences from the written text rarely interfere with comprehension.
2. The Instructional Level
   This level the material isn’t really easy but is still comfortable. In here, the student is challenged and will benefit most from instruction. Comprehension is good, but help is needed to understand some concepts. The silent reading rate is fairly rapid, although usually slower than at the independent level. Some word analysis is necessary but the majority of the words are recognized at sight. Oral reading is fairly smooth and accurate, and oral divergences from the written text usually make sense in the context and don’t cause a loss of meaning.
3. The Frustration Level
   This level the material is too difficult in vocabulary or concepts to be read successfully. Comprehension is poor, with major ideas forgotten or misunderstood. Both oral and silent reading is usually slow and labored, with frequent stops to analyze unknown words. Oral reading divergences are frequent and often cause the reader to lose the sense of what was read. Because of this difficulty, it is frustrating for students to attempt read such material for sustained periods of time, and their efforts often fail.This level is to be avoided in instruction.