BIR 3993 CAPSTONE ACTION RESEARCH PROJECT

SEMESTER 1 2022/2023

AT06 A

ASSIGNMENT 2

ACTION RESEARCH PROPOSAL:

THE USE OF FAMILIAR TOPICS IN ENHANCING READING

COMPREHENSION AMONG UPPER SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS IN ESL

CLASSROOMS.

LECTURER’S NAME: PROFESOR MADYA DR. NOR AZMI BIN MOSTAFA

PREPARED BY: MUHAMMAD FADZLI BIN FAIZAL (D20191088008)

 TABLE OF CONTENTS

1.0 Introduction 1

1.1 Background of study 1-2

1.2 Problem Statement 3-4

1.3 Research Purpose 4

1.4 Research Objectives 4

1.5 Research Questions 5

1.6 Definition of Key Terms 5

2.0 Literature Review 6

2.1 Learning Theories Perspective in Familiar Topics 7-8

2.2 Related Studies 9-13

3.0 Research Design and Methodology 14

3.1 Research Design 15

3.2 Sampling 15

3.3 Instruments 16

3.4 Data Collection Procedures 16

3.5 Data Analysis Procedures 16

3.5.1 Thematic Analysis 17

3.5.2 Classroom Observation 17

3.5.3 Ethical Consideration 17

3.6 Summary 18
4.0 Research Findings 19

4.1 Discussion of Qualitative Findings 20

4.1.1 Classroom Observation Checklist 20-26

4.1.2 Open-Ended Questionnaire 26-36

4.2 Chapter Summary 36

5.0 Discussion, Conclusion, and Suggestion 37

5.1 Research Summary 38

5.2 Discussion and Conclusion 38-39

5.3 Implications 39-40

5.4 Suggestions 40-41

5.5 Conclusion 41

REFERENCE 42-44
 FIGURES LIST PAGE

Figure 1: Classroom Observation Checklist Form 21

Figure 2: The Outcome of the Classroom Observation Checklist 22

Figure 3: Second Outcome of the observation Checklist 23

Figure 4: Third Outcome of the Observation Checklist 23

Figure 5: Fourth Outcome of the observation Checklist 24

Figure 6: Fifth Outcome of the observation Checklist 24

Figure 7: Sixth Outcome of the observation Checklist 24

Figure 8: Seventh Outcome of the observation Checklist 25

Figure 9: Eighth Outcome of the observation Checklist 25

Figure 10: Nineth Outcome of the observation Checklist 26

Figure 11: Tenth Outcome of the observation Checklist 26

Figure 12: First Question in the Google Form 27

Figure 13: Second Question in the Google Form 28

Figure 14: Third Question in the Google Form 29

Figure 15: Fourth Question in the Google Form 30

Figure 16: Fifth Question in the Google Form 31

Figure 17: Sixth Question in the Google Form 32

Figure 18: Seventh Question in the Google Form 33

Figure 19: Eighth Question in the Google Form 34

Figure 20: Nineth Question in the Google Form 35

 TABLE LIST PAGE

Table 1: The Gender of the Participants 27

 CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

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1.0 Introduction

This chapter provides background information for the study, including details about the study.

The study's problem statement is then explained. In addition, the definition of key terms,

research objectives, and research questions have also been explained in this chapter.

1.1 Background of the Study

There are many pedagogical approaches that have been invented by many people in

the world, especially teachers. Every teacher wants the most effective ways to deliver

the lesson to their learners. However, the issues that arise from the learners and the

teachers are also the obstacles that every teacher faces during delivering the lesson

that determines the effectiveness of the lesson conducted. Therefore, every teacher

needs to analyze their own issues and come up with a suitable approach to teaching

the lesson for a better understanding for the learners and achieves a great outcome

based on the teaching and learning session.

Examples of the techniques and methods that can enhance students’ understanding in

ESL classrooms are visual audio, HOTS, game-based learning, and the use of familiar

topics in enhancing learners’ input. Based on the issue that the researcher face, the

most common thing that happened is that the choice of topics that the researcher

teaches my students does not easily capture the students especially when the

researcher taught them reading comprehension skills.

The researcher will analyse the use of familiar topics in enhancing reading

comprehension skills because the researcher found out the teaching and learning

session are easier to capture the students’ interest when the researcher uses the familiar

topic during the lesson. Students tend to be more understanding of the vocabulary and

terms based on the topic that they already learned from the previous lesson. The

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students are able to answer more questions based on the familiar topic that has been

discussed during the lesson. The targeted students involved 23 Form 4 students. The

lesson was conducted in 4 Stem Biology class.

1.2 Problem Statement

The choice of topic is an important aspect of students’ engagement in the classroom.

As a teacher,we need to know our students’ knowledge before we choose a topic for

conducting the lesson. Familiar topics and unfamiliar topics play a major role in

teaching the English language to determine their participation during the class. This

is because the unfamiliar topic will make the students lose interest quickly because

they cannot relate the situation or story to their experience.

The students that the researcher taught are having difficulty understanding the topic

as the researcher needs to explain it to them several times. When the researcher

chooses an unfamiliar topic for them to read during the class, most of the researcher’s

students asked him a lot of questions based on the reading text that they have read.

They do not understand many terms and words if the topic that the researcher chose

is not based on their knowledge. They cannot share their knowledge about the topic

when the researcher asked some of them about the text because they do not know

about the unfamiliar topic given. The opinion that they gave about the topic is also

irrelevant because they cannot interpret the ideas because of the lack of knowledge

they have. They will become uninterested in the topic and lose focus during the

session. The study was conducted to investigate the use of familiar topics in

improving students’ understanding of reading comprehension among form 4 students

in an ESL classroom. Students do not have a vast knowledge of a certain topic which

makes teaching and learning sessions more difficult for the researcher.

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Many studies have been conducted to explore the use of familiar topics and how it

works in enhancing students’ reading comprehension skills. Some studies mentioned

that learners’ knowledge is the main factor in this issue arises. However, few studies

have proven that familiar topics help students to understand more than unfamiliar

topics. According to Freebody & Anderson (1981), background knowledge is crucial

for reading comprehension. This shows that in order for the students to understand

better, they need to be familiar with the topic first. Sometimes the topic is irrelevant

to the learners of form 4 need to know such as free running sports, space experience,

and how to raise a child. The results showed that content familiarity and language

ability had significant effects on the students' comprehension performance. They

indicated that content familiarity facilitated reading comprehension, and that language

ability had a significant effect on the comprehension performance of students at

different levels (Shumaimeri, 2006). In line with this problem statement, this study

will be further researched to explore more on the use of familiar topics in enhancing

reading comprehension among upper secondary school students.

1.3 Research Purpose

The purpose of the study is to decide whether the use of familiar topics can improve

students’ understanding of reading comprehension among form 4 students in an ESL

classroom.

1.4 Research Objectives

i) This study aims to investigate the use of familiar topics in enhancing

reading comprehension among upper secondary school students.

ii) This study aims to investigate the students’ views on using familiar

topics in reading comprehension.

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1.5 Research Questions

i) How do familiar topics enhance reading comprehension among upper

secondary school students?

ii) What are students’ views on using familiar topics in reading

comprehension?

1.6 Definition of Key Terms

a) Familiar Topic

A familiar topic is a topic that is chosen by the teacher that is easily

recognized by the learners. The topic of choice must be known by all the

students in the class. The knowledge about the topic must be sufficient for

the familiar topic. Due to that reason, the students can give their opinions

and experience. If the topic is unrelated to the student’s experience and

knowledge it is called an unfamiliar topic.

b) Reading Comprehension

Reading comprehension is the capability to digest and comprehend text

after reading it. It depends on word reading. The significance of the words

and sentences is being understood by the students. Usually, there will be

questions given based on the text after they read to test their understanding

of the topic.

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 CHAPTER 2

LITERATURE REVIEW

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2.0 Literature Review

This chapter explains the theory that supports this study and discusses the use of

familiar topics in enhancing reading comprehension in upper secondary school students.

2.1 Learning Theories Perspective in Familiar Topic

The familiar topic has been used by teachers for years now. It has been proved that it plays a

major role in keeping students on the right track. It has made English learning more effective,

and simple and achieves all the objectives that the teacher requires because it provides a more

understandable lesson, student engagement, and positive feedback from the students. The

familiar topic is easy to captures learners’ attention and participation as they can give their

opinions and elaborate on what they understand about the topic as the knowledge is there in

their arsenal.

Besides, according to Maria Novary Ngabut (2015), the fundamental of reading requires two

different learning theories that can be applied which are cognitivism. These learning theories

have become a big influence in enhancing English learning and teaching method. The crucial

learning theories related to the use of familiar topics would be constructivism and cognitivism.

i) Constructivism in Familiar Topic for Reading Comprehension

Constructivism is a crucial learning philosophy that educators apply to aid students in

learning. Constructivism is founded on the notion that people actively create their own

knowledge and that reality is shaped by your experiences as a learner. In essence,

students build on their prior knowledge by adding new information to it. As a teacher,

it is imperative to comprehend constructivism because it affects how all your students

learn. The constructivist learning theory informs teachers and instructors that each

day, students bring their unique experiences to the classroom. Their prior experiences

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and knowledge have an impact on how well they can learn. According to Mcleod

(2019), This teaching method is able to help learners integrate new information into

existing knowledge and allow them to make proper amendments to their existing

intellectual framework. This shows that the learners need to have the knowledge of

the topic to apply to the reading text to achieve a better result in reading

comprehension.

ii) Cognitivism Theory in Familiar Topic for Reading Comprehension

The learning theory known as cognitivism concentrates on how the mind organizes,

stores, and retrieves knowledge. Reading has traditionally been regarded as a mental

cognition process. It uses the mind as a computer-like information processor. As a

result, cognitivism views learning as an internal mental process that extends beyond

observable behavior. According to this theory, students actively participate in the

information-processing process. Developmental aspects include knowledge, memory,

thinking, and problem-solving. According to Maria Novary Ngabut (2015),

comprehending a text is an interactive process between the reader’s background

knowledge and the text. Efficient comprehension then requires the ability to relate the

textual materials to one’s own knowledge. Comprehending words, sentences, and

entire texts involves more than just relying on one’s linguistic knowledge. This proves

that the learner needs to have the background knowledge to answer the comprehension

questions better based on the text that they understand.

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2.2 Related Studies

The early focus is on “The Effect of Topic Familiarity on EFL Reading Comprehension” by

Alaa’ Abdul Imam & Rana Abdul Settar Abid (2011). This study investigates that text

comprehension is a demanding cognitive skill that requires the student to make meaning from

the text by using all the skills at his or her disposal, including prior knowledge of the subject

matter and the text itself. Understanding a text effectively depends on the reader's ability to

recognize words accurately, their understanding of grammar, their ability to

analyze relationships between various textual components, and their past knowledge. It is also

mentioned that based on schema theory, text-only provides listeners or readers on how to

extract or construct meaning from their own previously acquired knowledge, known as the

reader's background knowledge. The previously learned knowledge structures are known as

schemata (Alaa’ Abdul Imam & Rana Abdul Settar Abid, 2011). The inability of readers to

exert control over the level of difficulty in the language contributes to their inability to activate

the proper schema. It’s been assumed that readers are unable to make use of background

information because they have not yet achieved what has been termed the threshold level

required for its usage. This threshold level seems necessary for readers to be able to make use

of background knowledge. According to the threshold hypothesis, readers of a second

language (L2) need to know or reach a certain level of knowledge in the target language before

they can effectively use their background knowledge, reading strategies, and skills from their

first language (L1) to help them comprehend the text. It should come as no surprise that the

requirements for pupils to reach this level do not consist of a predetermined set of linguistic

skills. It has been proposed that the threshold level ought to be determined for each topic given

to the learners.

The next resource for the literature review is “Topic Familiarity and Vocabulary

Knowledge: Implication for Instructions” by Annisa Humaira Norman (2019). This research

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is to investigate the impact of topic familiarity and vocabulary knowledge on reading

comprehension and focuses on instructional approaches that enhance vocabulary knowledge.

According to Annisa Norman (2019), Learners may encounter familiar, less familiar, and

unfamiliar terms while reading. So, when we encounter unfamiliar words we cannot relate to

what the text is about and skip until we found the word that we are familiar with. “When we

see a word, we do not recognize, we skip it, especially if it is not crucial to the comprehension

of the text. Skipping words reduces the information gained through reading to the point that

it cannot be accessed by the conscious mind. This is because skipping causes the related data

to be kept in short-term memory (Stahl Hirsh, 2003). In order to make the learner understand

the text, we need to give them a text that they are familiar with so that they are able to connect

or convey the information based on their stored knowledge even though there are some words

that they could not interpret.

The third literature review is about “The Effect of Content Familiarity and

Language Ability On Reading Comprehension Performance Of Low And High-Ability Saudi

Tertiary Students Studying English As A Foreign Language” by Shummaimeri. The research

emphasizes the impacts of material familiarity and language ability defined by the

comprehension performance of low- and high-ability Saudi students of English as a second

language are examined. According to Shummaimeri (2006), readers may be able to overcome

their lack of sufficiently developed linguistic knowledge if they are provided with the

appropriate schema. A review of reading research, on the other hand, focuses on the following

results that contrast with those found in the previous research. It appeared that providing

readers with certain levels of proficiency with background information was helpful in some

cases. This can conclude that the more learner familiar with the text, success rate of students

who can answer the comprehension questions increases.

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 The next study is about “The Effects of Background Knowledge, Interest and

Topic Familiarity on Reading” by Ali Osman and Mehmet Ali (2005). This study is focused

about to assess how previous information, familiarity with the subject, and interest affect

reading ability. According to the study by Ali Osman and Mehmet Ali (2005), the percentage

of using familiar topics in reading passages is higher than the one using the unfamiliar passage

for both males and females. The gap in the success rate between familiar topics and unfamiliar

ones is very high which is 60% for males and 64.7% for females on the unfamiliar topic whilst

the percentage for familiar topics jumped to 98.5% for males and 95% for females on the

familiar topic. This shows that the familiar topic plays a major role in enhancing reading

comprehension than the unfamiliar one.

The fifth related study based on the research that the researcher conduct is “The

Relationship Between Reading Text with Familiar and Unfamiliar Topics and Students’

Comprehension” by Besse Hardianti. The aim of the study that she conducted is to determine

the relationship between familiar and unfamiliar topics and students' reading comprehension,

as well as how text familiarity and unfamiliarity impacted students' reading comprehension

of that descriptive text as a complex cognitive process. The choice of topic plays a major role

in students’ ability to successfully read the text and decode the information from the text. The

most important skill that a learner needs to learn in the English language is the reading skill

because this is the most basic knowledge that every ESL learner needs to master before they

are able to master other skills. According to H. Besse (2017), the study confirmed that topic

familiarity can lead to language learning.

Besides that, there is another study regarding the same issue which is “The Effect

of Familiarity with Academic Topics on Learner’s Reading Proficiency as Measured By

IELTS” by Flora Etaf Soltani and Narjes Malaee. This study seeks to answer questions about

the relationship between content schemata and reading comprehension in ESP readers at two

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levels of reading proficiency, as well as how long it takes good and poor readers to complete

reading comprehension tests. The readers' comprehension performance appeared to have been

significantly impacted by both language proficiency and content familiarity. While the low-

ability students' reading comprehension appeared to have been aided by prior knowledge of

the subject matter, as evidenced by their performance, higher language proficiency may have

aided the high-ability students' performance on the challenging passage.

The next article is “The Effect of Subject Familiarity on Comprehension and Eye

Movements during Reading” by Leana Copeland and Tom Gedeon. This study discovered

that they could identify answer-seeking behaviours and a measure of their actual familiarity

with the text content using eye gaze. We found that readers' self-reported familiarity with the

subject of documents affects their reading behaviours but not their overall comprehension

score. The participants with no prior knowledge of the topic took their time to thoroughly

reread the second display of the text and double-check their answers, they performed better.

Contrarily, participants who were more familiar with the topic seemed to exhibit the opposite

effect, whereby taking their time and reading more carefully was a sign that they were less

confident in their ability to respond to the question.

The next study is “Reading Comprehension, What We Know: A Review of

Research 1995 to 2011” by Steve Mckee. This study investigates how to enhance reading

comprehension. According to Steve Mckee (2012), Reading comprehension can be defined

as the ability to understand a text, analyze the information, and interpret correctly what the

writer is stating. Based on the study conducted, “Expository texts are more difficult to process

than narrative texts, according to numerous studies, possibly due to the more complex

relationships between text units or the more diverse content” Feng (2011). It shows that

unfamiliar topic makes the reading texts become harder to comprehend by the students and

will affect their score in the reading comprehension part.

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 In addition, a study by Abdul Aziz Al Shahrani about “Role of Topic Familiarity

and Gender Differences in Reading Comprehension”. In terms of topic familiarity, this study

will look at how males and females perform differently when reading. Additionally, it will

look into how familiarity with the subject affects participants in various same-sex groups'

levels of comprehension. Based on the study also proved that reading comprehension is not

solely influenced by background, which can take the form of familiarity with the subject as

in this study, according to the literature. Other elements that can have a big impact on reading

performance include cognitive experience, interest, reading purpose, linguistic experience,

sociocultural elements, and reading speed (Collins and Cheek, 1993).

The last article that can relate to the use of familiar topics in enhancing reading

comprehension among upper secondary school students is “Evaluation of Teaching Methods

to Improve Reading Performance of English Language Learners” by Joyce M. Robinson. This

study mentioned the discussion of the learning theories of behaviorism and constructivism,

which are connected to the two reading methods, phonics-based instruction and whole-

language learning, respectively. Based on the research that has been conducted, there are

constructivism theory has been implemented to strengthen my point in proving that familiar

topics can enhance reading comprehension. According to Goodman (1986), The teaching

methods used in whole-language classrooms are predicated on the idea that reading is a

natural component of language acquisition. The same as speaking, reading doesn't need to be

explicitly taught; rather, it just needs exposure to a variety of rich reading opportunities.

Teachers emphasize whole-word immersion, indirect learning, and a rejection of any phonics

instruction method of teaching reading strategies. For learners to learn indirectly to familiarize

themselves with the topic, students need to be guided minimally by the teacher to capture the

content of the topic that is given.

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 CHAPTER 3

RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY

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3.0 Methodology

This chapter contains the data collection procedure, instruments, sampling, research design,

and data analysis procedures.

3.1 Research Design

The researcher used a qualitative method approach in this study. According to A.Patrik &

C.Ugo (2019), Qualitative research focuses on a variety of methodologies and takes an

interpretive, naturalistic approach to its subject. This indicates that qualitative researchers

investigate phenomena in their natural environments while attempting to interpret phenomena

in terms of the meanings that individuals assign to them. In qualitative research, a variety of

empirical materials are used and collected, including case studies, personal experiences,

introspective, life stories, interviews, and observational, historical, interactive, and visual

texts.

3.2 Sampling

Sampling is a process where the researcher finds a suitable audience or respondent based on

the research that the researcher conducted. According to Pooja Bhardwaj (2019), Sampling is

the process of choosing a sample from an individual or from a large population for a particular

type of research purpose. As a result, to choose the intended participants for this study, the

researcher used purposive sampling. 23 students from a national school in Merlimau, Melaka

who are enrolled in upper-secondary education are the researcher's target respondents.

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3.3 Instruments

It is crucial to identify the research tool for this study. Qualitative research comprises the

following methods: logic, ethnography, discourse analysis, case study, open-ended interview,

participant observation, counseling, therapy, grounded theory, biography, comparative

method, introspection, casuistry, focus group, literary criticism, meditation practice, historical

research, etc (Cibangu, 2012). The instruments used for this study are an observation

checklist, and an open-ended questionnaire to collect the data.

3.4 Data Collection Procedures

The researchers began by watching a video-recorded lecture in a classroom where the students

were using the approach for teaching and learning. The researcher starts observing the video-

recorded lesson and data provided by the students after gathering information from the lecture

video. The researcher will then evaluate the lesson by classroom observation checklist. Then,

using an open-ended questionnaire to the classroom students as respondents. The researcher

conducted an online platform through a Google Form questionnaire that will be distributed to

them to get the data.

3.5 Data Analysis Procedures

As previously mentioned, the qualitative method will be used to analyze the data for this

study. Thematic analysis will also be used to extract data in addition to content analysis, which

will be the primary analysis method used in this study.

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3.5.1 Thematic Analysis

The thematic analysis involves an active reflective process in which the researcher's

personal experience is vital to extracting meaning from the data. This analysis

procedure is used to observe the data based on the video recording transcription. The

researcher used thematic analysis to interpret experiences, ideas, or behaviors

throughout the data based on the recorded teaching and learning session with 23 upper-

secondary students.

3.5.2 Classroom Observation

A classroom observation checklist is a procedure that the researcher used to observe

the environment of the teaching and learning in the classroom from different criteria.

The classroom observation checklist consists of 10 criteria that the researcher builds

based on the video recording of the lesson. Based on the checklist there are three

columns consisting of criterion, yes or no, and the observation evidence through the

video recording. The researcher needs to observe the video based on the criteria and

decide whether to tick yes or no. Then, the researcher will have to fill the observation

form with the evidence and proof of why the researcher decided to tick either the yes

or no column.

3.5.3 Ethical Consideration

For the Ethical consideration, there are two elements that we choose which are

informed consent and confidentiality. For the informed consent, we will provide the

respondents with a form that explains the study's objective, advantages, risks, and

financing before agreeing and declining while all information provided by respondents

will be removed, allowing them to exercise their right to privacy for confidentiality.

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Consent of Participants

Before the interview session, the researcher briefed the participants about the

researcher's objective and research problem in order to secure their consent and

ensure that they were aware of the study's goals and expected findings.

Confidentiality

Participant confidentiality was completely understood by the researcher. Except for

their names and gender, the responses and information provided by the participants

will remain private, secret to the researcher only, and inaccessible to anybody. The

researcher guarantees that neither research reports nor any published materials

contain any information that could be used to identify participants. Participants are

always referred to as anonymous in the research articles.

3.6 Summary

The researcher used a qualitative method in conducting this study. Two instruments

used in this study are Classroom Observation Checklist and the Open-Ended

Questionnaire. The classroom observation is observed through the video recording of

the teaching and the open-ended questionnaire will be blasted to the upper secondary

school students in Malacca. The researcher will then observe the video to find the

evidence and answered both of the research questions.

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 CHAPTER 4

RESEARCH FINDINGS

19
4.0 Introduction

This chapter reports the results of the research findings which are obtained using two different

instruments. the observation checklists and open-ended questionnaire. It also includes a

discussion of qualitative findings. This data highlights the detail of the use of familiar topics

in enhancing reading comprehension among upper-secondary students.

4.1 Discussion of Qualitative Findings

This study involved 10 upper secondary students in school at Malacca as respondents for

qualitative data collection via an open-ended questionnaire through Google Forms that will

be observed through the recording of the teaching and learning session in a classroom. The

researcher also included an observation checklist based on the video recording session during

the lesson conducted. The following is a detailed explanation of the findings:

4.1.1 Classroom Observation Checklist

To answer research question number one, the researcher uses an observation checklist to find

out the use of familiar topics in enhancing reading comprehension among upper secondary

school students. In the observation checklist, there are ten main points related to the use of

familiar topics for the students to be observed during the lesson conducted.

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 Figure 1: Classroom Observation Checklist Form

Figure 1 shows the observation checklist that the research uses to evaluate and analyse the

use of familiar topics in enhancing reading comprehension among upper secondary school

students.

Based on the Classroom Observation Checklist video recording of the teaching, the researcher

found out that from the ten aspects that have been observed, there are seven items that the

teacher and the students did based on the observation statement and there are three statements

that cannot be found or reach the expectation throughout the video teaching recording.

The classroom Observation Checklist also has the observation sheet to prove the evidence

that all the criteria are supported based on the explanation from the researcher gained based

on the video. The column of the explanation is important to determine the use of familiar

topics that can enhance student reading comprehension.

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 Figure 2: The Outcome of the Classroom Observation Checklist

Based on figure 2, which is the outcome of the Classroom Observation Checklist the first

criteria are “The teacher makes students interact with the topic they are familiar with”. The

researcher has agreed that the teacher in the video uses the topic to interact with their students.

This can be shown when the teacher gives the students handout about Horror Film Cliché in

the first stage which is set induction. For the justification, before the lesson is conducted the

teacher gives their students a piece of handouts that they need to match the definition with the

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vocabulary. There are eight questions that the teacher provided to the students to interact with

the students with topics they are familiar with.

Figure 3: Second Outcome of the Observation Checklist

Next, the criteria that the researcher focused on is “Students get the main idea of the lesson

when using a familiar topic”. The researcher also agreed and ticked the column yes in the

observation checklist. The explanation that the researcher found throughout the video is that

students can summaries what they understand through the topic. From the video, the

researcher saw the teacher pick one of their students to explain what they understand about a

lesson on that day and the student can answer the questions by saying that “horror film is a

movie about scary things for example about killers and ghosts”.

Figure 4: Third Outcome of the Observation Checklist

For the third criterion, the researcher also agreed by ticking the column yes on the “Students

can answer comprehension questions based on the familiar topic”. This is supported by

students’ ability to answer all the questions correctly based on the handouts given. For

justification, all the comprehension questions that have been done by the students from the

video are effective because most of the students are able to answer the comprehension

questions.

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 Figure 5: Fourth Outcome of the Observation Checklist

The criteria that the researcher also ticked the column yes is “The familiar topic during the

lesson gives students information about the content of the lesson. The explanation of the

researcher is that all the students understand the instructions and the information about the

“Horror Film”. This is because we can see that the teacher explained the instructions only

once, but the students already knew what they were doing when they were given a familiar

topic which is the topic that they have been briefly taught.

Figure 6: Fifth Outcome of the Observation Checklist

The next criteria are “the use of familiar topic helps students to get the moral values of the

lesson”. The researcher cannot find any moral values that have been implemented through the

lesson about horror films. The lesson does not give the students any moral values because the

teacher only focused on explaining the reading passage and also the instruction to answer the

reading comprehension questions.

Figure 7: Sixth Outcome of the Observation Checklist

For the sixth criterion, the researcher has ticked yes on “the use of familiar topics makes the

students give their opinion based on their experience. This is explained by the researcher that

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the students are able to share their experiences based on the topic. The justification can be

found in the post-lesson in which the teacher needs their students to come in front of the class

and give their own opinion about the scariest experience they ever face. The students can

come up with their own experiences that relate to the topic of horror.

Figure 8: Seventh Outcome of the Observation Checklist

Furthermore, the criteria that the researcher focused on is that “The use of familiar topics

makes the students participate actively in the class”. This is explained by the researcher that

most of the students actively participate by volunteering themselves to answer the questions

in front of the class. Based on the video, there are students volunteering to share their own

experiences with the class.

Figure 9: Eighth Outcome of the Observation Checklist

The next criterion that the researcher also ticked is “The use of familiar topics makes the

lesson more understandable for the students. The explanation that the researcher found

throughout the video is the students know what to do with the task given. Throughout the

video, the researcher found that every time the teacher from the video gives the handouts to

the students, they quickly answered the questions given before giving the instruction from

their teacher. This shows that the students already understand the topic and are ready to answer

all the comprehension questions.

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 Figure 10: Nineth Outcome of the Observation Checklist

For the next criterion which is “Students raise their hands to answer a question or volunteer,”

the researcher did not find out whether the students in the classroom raised their hands to ask

questions or volunteer in giving opinions. This is explained by the researcher that there are

no students raised their hands during the lesson conducted. Most of the students stay silent

and do their own work. The teacher must pick randomly to ask the students some questions.

Figure 11: Tenth Outcome of the Observation Checklist

The last criterion based on the classroom observation checklist is “Students attempt to answer

the reading comprehension questions thoroughly and well. This is proved by the researcher

that the students can answer the comprehension questions when they are asked to write the

correct answer on the whiteboard. Based on the video, we can see that most of the questions

that were given by the teacher were answered correctly by the students. This shows that the

students understand the familiar topic well.

4.1.2 Open-Ended Questionnaire

To answer question number two, the researcher has done an Open-Ended Questionnaire

consisting of nine questions to the upper secondary students based on the topic of the research.

The thematic analysis has been carried out to find the data based on the Open-Ended

26
Questionnaire through the Google Form. The researcher obtained 10 responses from 23

students from students.

Gender Number of Participants

Male 4

Female 6

Total 10

Table 1: The gender of the participants

Table 1 shows the gender of the participants in answering the Open-Ended Questionnaire

through Google Forms. All ten responses are from upper secondary students in a school in

Malacca. Four of them are male and six of the are female. The researcher has chosen them

because wanted to know their view on using familiar words can enhance their reading

comprehension or otherwise.

Figure 12: First Question in the Google Form

For the first question of the open-ended questionnaire. The question was “What do you

understand about a familiar topic?”. Figure 11 shows that there were similarities between the

answers given based on what they understood about the familiar topic. As the researcher

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focused deeper into the answers from the respondents, the researcher found out that there are

synonym words that have been used based on the questionnaire that can be acquired as a code

which is a “well-known topic”. Based on the code found, the researcher derived that the theme

for this question is Familiar topic is a well-known topic. From the theme, the research can

agree that almost all the respondents agree that most of them understand the familiar topic is

a well-known topic.

Figure 13: Second Question in the Google Form

For the second question of the open-ended questionnaire, based on the answer that was given

by the respondents “What is the most thing that you like about today’s lesson?” they

responded with “engaging”, “Fun” and “Interactive” as we can see through figure 13. When

the researcher analyses deeper into the meaning of the words. There are similarities between

the words that can be transferred into the codes for instance “engaging”, “fun” and

“interactive”. Next, to find the themes for this question, The research attempts to merge the

codes and identifies commonalities and components. The researcher came up with a theme

which is the lesson on that day is effective among the students. After reviewing the themes,

the researcher shows that the answers based on the respondents found out that the use of

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familiar topics on the comprehension skill can make students more interested in learning the

lesson.

Figure 14: Third Question in the Google Form

For the third question in the Google Form, the researcher asked about students’ opinions on

what they think the familiar topic can help them in enhancing their reading comprehension

skills. Based on the answers from the respondents, the researcher found that there are variable

answers from the questionnaire. However, the coding that the researcher decided on based on

the answers provided is “understanding the topic, the difficulty of the questions”, and

“knowledge of the topic is already known”. The researcher came out with two themes which

are familiar topics that can help students to understand reading comprehension more

because the topic is familiar and Familiar topics did not help them in enhancing their

reading comprehension skills. For the first theme, the proof can be seen in the answer of the

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respondents which are “yes because I understand the topic”, and “absolutely, because I tend

to understand the questions more if the topic is familiar”. For the second theme, the validity

can be seen through the answer from the respondents which are “in my opinion, I think the

familiar topic will not help me in enhancing my reading comprehension skill because it

depends on the difficulty of the comprehension questions” and “since the level of complexity

of the comprehension questions depends on the topic, in my perspective, familiar topics won't

help me improve my reading comprehension skills”. So, there are two themes that can be

identified by the researcher in this question. It shows that the familiar topic does help them in

enhancing reading comprehension because most of the respondents understand the content of

the topic to answer the comprehension questions. Only a few respondents disagree with the

questions because they believe that the difficulty of the questions plays a major role in

enhancing their reading comprehension skills.

Figure 15: Fourth Question in the Google Form

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For the fourth question in the Google form, the researcher asked about what they can

understand better by using familiar topics in a learning process and give their justification for

it. The code that the researcher found out based on the question given is “background

knowledge and understanding of the information of a familiar topic”. These codes can be

grouped into a theme which is background knowledge that helps respondents understand

the information of a familiar topic in a learning process.

Figure 16: Fifth Question in the Google Form

Furthermore, the researcher comes out with the students’ opinions about reading

comprehension are easier to answer when the familiar topic is been taught and gives their

justification. The researcher found out that are various types of answers given by the

respondents. Some of the answers are “yes because I already have the knowledge”, “Yes,

since I already know that topic”, “Yes because I understand the comprehension questions

better and am able to answer them” and many more. To find the themes of the analysis, the

researcher comes out with coding that can be found through the respondents’ answers. The

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codes that the researcher found are “students agree” by saying yes to the answers and “knew

the content of the topic”. So, the researcher decided that the theme for this question is most

of the students agreed that comprehension questions are easier to answer when the

familiar topic is been taught and a minority of the students agree that the complexity

level of the questions determines the difficulty of the comprehension questions.

Figure 17: Sixth Question in the Google Form

The researcher moved to the sixth question of the open-ended questionnaire which is why you

think the familiar topic can help them in enhancing their reading comprehension skill. Based

on figure 17, the answers that have been given by the respondents are variable. For example,

“because most of the terms in the passage are easier to understand”, “because the words used

in the passage”, “because the majority of the passage’s words are simpler to understand”, and

“yes, due to the fact that majority of the questions can be answered using our common

knowledge”. From the data above, the researcher has analyzed some of the words that can be

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derived to be a code for the questions. The code that can be analysed from the questions is

“easy to understand”, “the user of the terms” and “not beyond their knowledge”. This coding

has similarities with each other. Due to that reason, all the coding will be under one theme

which is a familiar topic that can help the students easy to understand with the use of

terms that is not beyond their knowledge for comprehension skills. This proves that the

questions are aligned with the focus study of the research.

Figure 18: Seventh Question in the Google Form

Next, the questions that the researcher asked the students through the open-ended

questionnaire were “do you think that familiar topic can help you understand the reading

passage?”. Based on figure 18, the majority of the students answered “yes” which proves a

familiar topic helps them to understand the reading passage. The code that the researcher

found that relates to the answers given by the respondents is “familiarity with most of the

words use”, “reading passage is understandable” and “have knowledge about it already”. The

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researcher can conclude that the theme of this question is a familiar topic that can help the

students to understand the reading passage because of the familiarity with most of the

words use making the reading passage understandable because they have the knowledge

about it already. This theme is aligned with the study focus that has been conducted.

Figure 19: Eighth Question in the Google Form

Figure 19 shows the next questions that the researcher asked the students “do you agree that

your background knowledge affects your understanding of the topics?”. All of the responses

from the respondent agree that background knowledge affects their understanding of the

topics for different kinds of reasons. Some of the reasons are that “some of us have limited

knowledge of certain topics”, “there is a certain topic that I tend to know before learning the

topic”, and “because the more I listen or read the more knowledge I have on the certain topic”.

This shows that the respondents have their own opinion on why they think background

knowledge affects their understanding of the topic. The code that can be derived from the

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answers provided is “exposure to the knowledge” and “proficiency level of the students”.

Based on the code that has been derived from the question, the theme that can be summarized

from the data is that background knowledge has effects on the students’ understanding of

a certain topic based on their exposure to knowledge and proficiency level. This answered

the study focus on this research.

Figure 20: Nineth Question in the Google Form

The last question that the researcher asked the students in the open-ended questionnaire is “in

your opinion, do you prefer to learn a familiar topic or an unfamiliar topic during the lesson?

Explain”. Based on the last questions on the Google Form, there are variable answers that

could be found from the respondents but there are also similarities among the respondents

based on the contexts. Even though there is a variable of answers, the majority of the

respondents agreed that they prefer the familiar topic to learn and the minority of them prefer

to learn an unfamiliar topic with a different kind of opinion. The codes that the researcher has

35
analysed throughout the answers are “like to read something that they understand”,

“confidence in answering”, and “relate to their knowledge” the first theme which is a familiar

topic is preferable during the lesson. The code “like to learn something new” and “expand

knowledge” is under the second theme which is unfamiliar topic is preferable during the

lesson. To conclude, the researcher makes sure that this theme is aligned with the focus of the

research which is most of the students prefer to learn familiar topics during the lesson

because they like to read something that they understand makes the confident in

answering topics that are related with their knowledge whilst a minority of them like

unfamiliar words to learn something new as well expanding their knowledge. This proves

that familiar topics are preferable by the students in the teaching and learning process to

unfamiliar topics.

4.2 Chapter Summary

The researcher analysed the data collection using two instruments, classroom observation

checklist and open-ended questionnaire. The qualitative data collected enable to answer both

research questions in this study.

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 CHAPTER 5

DISCUSSION, CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTIONS

37
5.0 Introduction

This chapter discusses the insight that was presented in the research. This chapter also

includes highlights of the summary that can be concluded from the knowledge and responses

that have been collected from the respondents of the upper secondary school students.

Furthermore, the implications and suggestions of the study also being discussed in this

chapter.

5.1 Research Summary

In summary, this research was carried out to study the use of familiar topics in enhancing

reading comprehension among upper-secondary students. The data obtained through the

research instruments were analyzed in deeper and in detail in data analysis. Based on the

construct of analysis, the study concludes that the use of familiar topics able to enhance

reading comprehension among upper secondary school students.

5.2 Discussion and Conclusion

The aim of this research is to investigate the use of familiar topics in enhancing reading

comprehension among upper secondary school students. The researcher also investigated the

students’ views on using familiar topics in reading comprehension. There are a total of two

objectives and research questions that this study wants to focus on to determine whether the

study is a success or failure.

The first research question of the study is how familiar topics enhance reading comprehension

among upper secondary school students. The researcher found out that familiar topics can

enhance students’ reading comprehension. This can be proved based on the classroom

observation checklist. The researcher analyses the video recording lesson. From the ten

criteria that the researcher observed there are seven criteria that are aligned with the study

focus. Based on the student’s behaviors during the video recording, most students tend to act

38
more actively during the class when the topic that they are familiar with is being introduced.

Not to mention that students were able to answer the comprehension questions extremely well

during the class and did not hesitate to give their own experiences about the topic in front of

the class.

Regarding the second research, the question is related to the student’s views on using familiar

topics in reading comprehension. Based on the open-ended questionnaire, all the students’

answers have been gathered and analyses by the researcher to find out the answers based on

the students’ opinions. Through the analysis through the Google Form, the researcher found

out that most of the students confirmed that it is easier for them to answer reading

comprehension questions when a familiar topic is being taught during the lesson. The students

also knew that familiar topic is a well-known topic. Students also confirmed that the lesson

using the familiar topic is more engaging and fun to learn than using unfamiliar topics. The

data also shows that the background knowledge of the students helps to understand the

information of a familiar topic in a learning process. The use of terms for the familiar topic

can help the students easy to understand something that does note beyond their knowledge for

comprehension skill. The majority of the students also give positive feedback where they

preferably learn using the familiar topic so they can understand the context and the meaning

of the reading passage as well as the comprehension questions. However, there are minorities

of students who prefer to learn unfamiliar topics because they like to learn something new.

Overall, all the students agree that familiar topics help them to understand more and help them

to enhance their reading comprehension skills.

5.3 Implications

The researcher was able to allocate that topic plays a main role in enhancing reading

comprehension among upper-secondary students. Even though this research found that

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familiar topics help students to improve their comprehension skills, teachers play a major role

in delivering the lesson to make the topic more understandable and more engaging for the

students. This research has benefits for both parties which are the teacher and students to

know that the familiar topic is one of the factors to determine students’ success in reading

skills. The teacher needs to take advantage and give students more topics that have been

localized so that the students can be familiar with the topic. The students can take advantage

by fully understanding the context of the lesson and fully optimizing their capabilities in

learning English knowledge.

However, this study is only focused on the video recording of a lesson and opinions through

the students’ views. The results that the researcher obtained from the video recording may

vary because the researcher only depended on one lesson recording. The results may be

different if the recording of the lesson is many to refer to. For the views of the students, this

study narrowed the focus to upper-secondary students in a school. Due to that reason, students

from lower secondary might have different views on this and other schools might have

different opinions on the use of familiar topics that can enhance reading comprehension

among them.

5.4 Suggestions

The researcher suggests that this research needs to be analyses deeper as they need to apply

this to other schools and maybe university students in the use of familiar topics in enhancing

their reading comprehension. This study can also be inspected through different kinds of skills

such as listening, speaking, and writing if the use of a familiar topic has the same outcomes

as this one. Future research can target how familiar topics can improve students’ engagement

in the class and whether the topic of the lesson affects students’ participation during learning.

Future research can improve the method and have more respondents to become evidence for

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the data analysis. For example, the data can be specified more on the student’s background,

the student’s proficiency, and interview the teacher that conducted the classroom. This can

strengthen the evidence of the study and make the outcomes clearer for future research. Future

research also can study obstacles that teachers face when choosing the topic for their students

and which topic is familiar to their students. Each student has a different knowledge

background that will decide their ability to understand the topics. Future research needs to

find out the solutions to solve this issue.

5.5 Conclusion

The aim of this research is to study the use of familiar topics in enhancing reading

comprehension among upper secondary school students. Based on the methods used in

conducting this study, the researcher can conclude that both objectives are achieved in this

study. The data researcher collected is a classroom observation checklist and an open-ended

questionnaire. This study examines the use of familiar topics in enhancing reading

comprehension among upper secondary school students and student’s views on using familiar

topics in reading comprehension. The researcher can confirm that this study can help teachers

or future teachers how to teach their students in answering reading comprehension

successfully using the familiar topic. It also can help the pre-service teacher to understand

that topics play an important role in deciding students comprehend in certain topic that will

be taught.

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APPENDICES

Appendix 1: Video Recording Lesson

Appendix 2: Classroom Observation Checklist Form

45
Appendix 3: Outcome of the Classroom Observation Checklist

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Appendix 4: Open-Ended Questionnaire Form Via Google Form

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Appendix 4: Name of the Respondents

NAME GENDER

ADILA BINTI NORAZRI FEMALE

AIN NAJIHAH BINTI ZOLKEPLI FEMALE

CHIA JIN YI MALE

MUHAMMAD FIRDAUS BIN AZMI MALE

NOOR IKHLAS FIRDAUS BIN NOORSALLEHUDIN MALE

NUR ALIAH SOFEA BINTI AZRIZAN FEMALE

NURIN YUSRINA BINTI AZAMAN FEMALE

PUTRI NUR BALQISH BINTI JONI EFENDI FEMALE

PRISCILLA A/P VISWASANATHAN FEMALE

THAM YU XIANG MALE

48