By Amik Amri Rahmadhi, M.Pd
Introduction
Recount text is one of type of text that should be known by students of X grade in Indonesia. It tells about past events that are told based on the sequence of events. It sometimes tells about one’s experience such as nice, bad, unforgettable, and terrible experience. A biography of someone is also written in the form of recount.
As one of material that is taught in senior high school grade, recount text is discussed and presented by students. In listening, they will hear spoken monolog texts about famous people and someone’s past experience. In speaking, they tell about their past experience or famous people’s biography individually in front of their friends in the class. In reading, they read someone’ past experience or biography. In writing, they write their own recount text.
The main discussion in this short article is only about reading of recount text. It is especially about reading activity, assignment and reading portfolio. Here, the writer tries to develop student’s ability in reading by doing an extensive reading. In this activity, they are given an assignment to comprehend and master a recount text. The assignment is to choose someone’s biography freely about their idol, scientists, politician, heroes, and heroines, singers, actors, actress etc. Then they answer some questions given based on the text they have read.
As stated in the previous paragraph, it focuses on reading of recount text. The writer designs an assignment of reading activity of recount. There are three main purposes of doing this assignment. First, to habituate students in reading English texts. Second, to drill their reading skill and comprehension so that they become better in solving reading problems, and third, to gain some information about famous people’s biography.
Based on the above explanation, here the writer explains how to implement this assignment, reading portfolio of recount. This short article is written to share about an experience of teaching reading of recount text.
How to do the assignment
1. Ask students to find out an example of recount text, in this case is about someone’s biography (especially about famous people who was passed away). They may find it in their own handbook; student’s works sheet (LKS), websites, encyclopedia, journal etc.
2. Ask them to copy it if they find it in handbook and print it if they find it from internet.
3. Give them reading portfolio of recount sheet. (You may download here).
4. Ask them to answer all problems themselves given by a teacher for a week.
5. Ask them to submit their works in the next week. They should enclose the source of reading text they choose.
How to assess it/ Assessment
After submitting this assignment, a teacher should assess it. If there is mistake or unanswered problem, teacher should cross the number of that problems that shows wrong answer or unanswered question. Then, a teacher should note students who had done it or not.
Weaknesses
To assess students’ works, in this case, needs much time because of three reasons. First, teacher doesn’t have the real answer of problems given to students. So, teacher should know whether students had answered all problems or not. Second, teacher must check every student’s work. He/ she should examine one by one of those submitted paper. Third, teacher should give comments to students’ work. There is no real point students have but they will get some notes from their teacher such as excellent, good, fair, keep reading, your absorption in reading is very good and bad etc.
Other activity
After doing this activity, a teacher may ask them to present individually in front of the class. It relates with speaking assessment.
