| dc.description.abstract | Academic reading can be defined as reading for academic or educational
purpose which differs from non-academic reading since it is more complex and
multi-level (Sengupta, 2002). Dealing with academic reading force the learners to
have good skills in reading since academic reading is not easy to do, especially for
L2 learners who need to read using their second language such as English.
Academic reading tends to use specific rules such as complicated structures and
even the use of specific words or terms. This is the reason why many learners,
especially L2 learners, often face several difficulties during reading academic
texts.
This research investigates the academic reading difficulties faced by
Indonesian learners of English, especially senior students of English Departement
academic year 2015/2016. It employed mixed method strategy as the strategy of
this research by combining quantitave and qualitative methods. In addition, this
study used several previous research findings (Elwer, 2014; Sultana, 2016; Al
Seyabi and Tuzlukova, 2015; Alghail and Mahfoodh, 2016; Shen, 2013;
Wutthisingchai, 2011; Medjahdi, 2015; Abdelaal & Sase, 2014; Ullah & Fatemah
2013; Savic, 2016; Birhan, 2017) that were collected and classified to disclose the
academic reading difficulties faced by the senior college readers of English.
The results showed that the participants faced several difficulties during
reading academic texts. Those difficulties are one of the aspects that has the
highest score at each four-points asked in the questionnaire. Those difficulties are
having poor vocabulary of specific terms, comprehension difficulties which focus
on the reading repetition, difficulties related to concept and topic that focus on the
use of title, and having lack of teachers’ motivation. From those findings, the
results showed that unlike the previous researches that point out vocabulary as the
most difficult aspect, this research reveal that in term of academic reading, the
students find comprehension is the most difficult aspect. The results also showed
that having academic reading difficulties affected the participants having
comprehension difficulties considering that the academic reading difficulties they
faced lead them having poor comprehension. For the worse impact, having
academic reading difficulties does not only affect the participants’ understanding,
but also can affect the reading interest of the participants. | en_US |
