Collaborative Learning as A Strategy to Improve the English Reading Comprehension of Indonesian Learners in The Agribusiness Department at Muhammadiyah University of Parepare

Abstract

This research sheds some light on collaborative learning to increase the agribusiness students' reading ability at the Muhammadiyah University of Parepare. It tries to find answers to two questions. First, to what extent does the collaborative learning strategy improve the students reading comprehension in the ESP course at UMPAR? Second, what are the students' perceptions of collaborative learning strategies in teaching reading comprehension at UMPAR? To answer these questions, the researcher adopted a Quasi-Experimental design by using the experimental and control group. The data were collected through a reading test and a questionnaire. The research findings indicated that using a collaborative learning strategy improved the students' reading comprehension at agribusiness students at UMPAR. The t-test result of the Pre-test was -1.25 and 2.50 in the Post-test. The Post-test result was more significant than the t-table (2.50>2.023). It indicated that H0 was rejected and H1 was accepted. The results of the study also revealed that a collaborative learning strategy improves the students' ability in teaching Reading Comprehension.