An Exploration of Socio-cognitive Aspects in Reading Course book for 10th Graders: Teachers’ Perspectives

Abstract

Socio-cognitive theory claims that scaffolding serves as a teaching tool in the cognitive development of the students. Applied in a reading course book, scaffolding might take different types intended to scaffold students’ reading competence. However, it is hard to find a reading course book applying appropriate types of scaffolding enhancing students’ comprehension. This study, therefore, aimed at analyzing the types of scaffolding applied in a selected reading course book. To investigate the issue, document analysis, guided written reflection, and in-depth interview were used as data collection techniques, in this explorative case study. An interactive model technique was used to analyze the data. Seven English teachers of Islamic Senior High School in Indonesia took part in this study. The research findings showed that the reading course book has applied scaffolding types in its components, namely objective, topic, instructional prompts, practical consideration, vocabulary, text and context, task and activity, grammar, and material presentation. They were classified as means and goals scaffoldings. However, the application of those types was not as they supposed to be. The teachers and researchers, therefore, are recommended to develop a reading course book deploying scaffolding types as an artifact mediating language learning. Keyword: exploration, reading comprehension, course book, socio-cognitive, teachers’ perspective