STUDENTS’ UNDERLINING HABIT: IS THERE A CORRELATION WITH READING COMPREHENSION?

This study investigated the frequency of students’ habit of underlining text and the correlation between the habit and their reading comprehension. Quantitative research was carried out with specific purposes on 73 first-semester students at department of English Language Education (PBI) of Ar-Raniry University (UIN). Based on the Likert scale, the data analysis of the questionnaire showed 72.9% of students had a good underlining habit, followed by the percentage of comprehension test was 65.8%. Moreover, the Pearson formula resulted from the correlation coefficient was 0.699 that indicated both variables had a high correlation.

combine their reading and comprehension skills to grasp multiple words or sentences created by the author (Harvey, 2012). In addition, the way of making meaning through the involvement of previous knowledge stores in readers' minds, previous experience, and the view of the readers about the text belonging to the comprehension process. Briefly, a complex activity carried out by reading comprehension is related to some skills which produce an understanding of the written text as the outcomes (Strømsø et al., 2008).

Definition of underlining
Underlining is mentioned as a common step in metacognitive activity. This activity requires the awareness of students to understand their reading text. By questioning and monitoring themself about what they need in the text, students used their metacognitive to solve their problems. The definition of underlining is derived from Rupp et al. (2006) who define underlining as an underscore and emphasize readers' intention. In more detail, the use of underlining is specified as a horizontal line that crosses below the writing or understandable as a line that place underneath the piece of text that indicates it should be viewed. There are several purposes of underlining such as, simultaneously guide the reader to read and select what is important from the written text and minimize the consumption of extra time while reading a text.

The correlation between underlining habit and reading comprehension
Based on the experience of the researcher, underlining was used spontaneously by the PBI students of UIN Ar-Raniry while reading a text or books. The activity of preparing stationary stuff (including pen, pencil, or highlighter) before reading unintentionally turned into a habit that was repeatedly performed by the students. This fact supported Gardner (2015), who said that the repetition of one activity is categorized as a habit. Moreover, to encourage the process of reading, concentration is one of the crucial requirements that readers have to upgrade for their entire daily life. Readers have to concentrate on the written text when doing the reading. To support the concentration and gather the ideas from the passage, Louwerse (2017) offers some beneficial inputs from underlining, they are; selecting, organizing, and recalling the keyword from the passage. Consistently keeping the concentration, this strategy supports the readers to minimize the use of extra time to consider the topic of the text, to clasp the view of the author, and to be meaningful for the reader to look over at the underlined text. Furthermore, the requirement of implementing underlining is improving critical thinking that enhancing students' comprehension.

Research Method
The research design of this study was quantitative methods under correlational design. The main purpose of a correlational study is to establish a relationship between two or more variables. Unfortunately, 10 out of the population failed to follow this research by the reason of illness. Therefore, the researcher chose 73 first-semester students of PBI UIN Ar-Raniry, who applied underlining as their habit while reading and suggested to practice underlining by their lecturer, as the sample of the research. The questionnaire and test were used as a technique to collect data. The Likert scale and Pearson's Product-Moment method were implemented to establish a connection between two or more variables in this research. Then, to find out the result of Pearson's correlation coefficient, the formula is stated as follow: To arrange the students' scores, the researcher adopts the classifications' track to classify students' habit of underlining, as follows: Source: (Rahmawati, 2015) Based on the classification above indicated that 19 students have excellent underlining habits, 51 students have a good underlining habit, 2 students have a fair underlining habit and none of the students has a poor underlining habit. The average score of students' Likert scale questionnaire is 65.50 and rounded to 66.
In calculating the average score of underlining habits, the researcher used the mean formula. By acquiring the questionnaire mean score, the researcher summarized that the students' underlining habit was good. Moreover, to find the percentage of each response, the researcher presented the calculation data of the questionnaire. By referring to response (Table I) the data are written as below: After calculating the frequency and the percentage of each response, the researcher continues to multiply the total frequency with the score of each option in the questionnaire. Look at the table below. After calculating the recapitulation of data above, the researcher included the data into the formula below: = ×100%: TO (Total Option) P= 4788 x 100%: 5 1314 P= 3.6438356164 x 20% P= 72.9 % The result showed that the percentage of students' underlining was 72.9%. Therefore, the researcher concluded that the students' underlining habit in the first-semester student at PBI UIN Ar-Raniry was more than 70%.

The test results
The researcher prepared 5 texts with 10 questions to collect the data from the participants. Within the following table presented students' reading comprehension test. The maximum score is 90 and the minimum is 40. The average score is rounded to 65 from 64.93. As well as measuring the questionnaire percentage score, the mean formula was also applied to find the percentage of the test. The researcher presented the formula below:

= ×100%
The data was distributed into students' average score classification which was derived from Rahmawati (2015). The data = 11 ×100% = 15.1% 73 = 48 ×100% = 65.8% 73 = 13 ×100% = 17.8% 73 = 1 ×100% = 1.4% 73 From the calculation above, the highest percentage is 65.8%, which is indicated as good (refer to Table  2). As a result, the students had a good qualification in their reading comprehension. The collected data below is presented to highlight both scores gained from the variables of the research.

The finding of the correlation study of variable X and Y variable
Measuring the result between students' underlining habit and their reading comprehension, the researcher applied the correlation formula to evaluate both instruments' data that have been collected, below:

Discussion
There were two aims of study in this research, the first one is to investigate the underlining habit of the first-semester student of PBI UIN Ar-Raniry, and the second is to find out whether there is a relation between doing underlining as the students' habit and the reading comprehension skill.
In the first research question, the researcher applied the questionnaire to examine students' underlining habits. Based on the classification score, it is confirmed that the underlining habit of the firstsemester student at PBI UIN Ar-Raniry was good based on the average score which falls between 66, the conclusion is determined from the calculation result of the students' total score who answered the questionnaire. The percentage of students' underlining habits is 72.6% (more than 70%).
The first part of the questionnaire described that 35.62% of participants often heard or learned about underlining, 46.58% of students also often learned or practiced underlining while reading. Meanwhile, 35.62% of students sometimes practiced underlining in a week, also 35.62% of students whose lecturer sometimes asked to practice underlining, and 39.73% of students seldom suggested to their friend about underlining.
In the second part of the questionnaires, almost half of students (43.84%) agreed that underlining is one of their favorite activities while reading texts or books. 39.73% of students also added that the activity of underlining is more interesting than other readings' strategies, which is supported by 52.05% of students who mention that doing underlining while reading makes the reading material easier. As presented by Kobayashi (2007), underlining skill allows the student to focus on their reading material. This opinion is strengthened by 49.32% of students who were inclined that applying underlining directly easier for them to focus on the text.
Research by Caverly et al. (2000) indicated that underlining is a strategy to select and highlight the important point which convenient for the reader to review the passage. Evidently, more than 50% of students mentioned that underlining facilitated them to select the important keyword in the passage, identified the main idea, and found the supporting details of the passage, it reacted by 61.64% of students who agreed that the use of underlining increase their understanding without rereading the passage. Then, 36.99 % of students claimed that underlining is an easy activity that is unintentionally done while reading a text. Relevant literature by Taraban et al. (2000) states that the students are likely to underline their reading material while reading.
By referring to the objectives and benefits of underlining, 42.46% of students answered that underlining never direct them to understand the passage, and 36.99% of students never doing underlining because of boring. Yet, 43.84% of students whose lecturers never highly suggested practicing underlining while reading affected 52.05% of students who sometimes practiced underlining in their leisure time. According to Sheeran (2002), the best way to evaluate the habits is by measuring the frequency of doing the activity. In short, from the average score and the percentage of students' questionnaire, the researcher concludes those students' underlining habits while reading was good and the frequency of students doing underlining is more than 70%. As well as the average score of both underlining habit and students' reading comprehension, which simply differ about 1 score. This presented both variables of the research had a strong relationship that affected each other.
The second research question is to examine the correlation of students' underlining habits toward students' reading comprehension by conduction a test on PBI students of UIN Ar-Raniry. To answer the question, the researcher finds the result of the correlational product-moment by Pearson, which aimed at finding the relationship between two or more variables. The result of the correlation coefficient (r) is 0.669 and was classified as a high correlation with the percentage is 65.8% and indicated that the students had a good qualification in their reading comprehension. This result is relevant to Singh (2017), who researched the effect of underlining during reading, it confirms that underlining influences students' understanding of the passage. He also adds that the more he remembers something the more he underlines the passage.

Conclusions
By referring to the result and discussion, it was found that 73 of students at PBI of UIN Ar-Raniry, had a good underlining habit with an average score was 66. This habit was influenced by the students' frequency of doing underlining among 72.9%. Besides, the habit of underlining was also developed by students who straightly underlined their reading text. The students were also already familiar with the underlining technique and mentioned underlining as their favorite strategy while reading books or texts. The student believed that the use of underlining facilitated them to highlight the main idea and support detail over rereading the passage. By getting the keyword of the text, the students agreed that underlining helped them in focusing their minds and enhanced their understanding of the text.
Further, the researcher examined students' reading comprehension through a test to check the correlational possibility between underlining habits and reading comprehension skills among the student. The average result of the test was 65 with the highest percentage was 65.8% and indicated as a good classification. After collecting both results of the test then inserting them into the Pearson formula, the researcher found that the correlational coefficient was 0.669, which is classified as a high correlation. Along with the hypothesis result, there was a high correlation potential between students' underlining habits and reading comprehension skills maintaining in the text.