INVESTIGATION OF READING FLUENCY AND READING COMPREHENSION LEVELS OF FOURTH-GRADE SYRIAN PRIMARY SCHOOL STUDENTS

Abstract

This study aimed to examine the fluency and comprehension levels of fourth-grade Syrian students in a public school in Konya. The research design employed a relational survey approach, with a sample size of 47 students. The study analyzed the students' reading fluency components, which included accurate reading, reading speed (automaticity), and prosody, across three text types: narrative, informative, and poetic. Additionally, the students' reading comprehension abilities were assessed across these three text types. The students' reading performances were videotaped and their responses to reading comprehension questions were audio-recorded. Upon analysis of the data, it was revealed that the Syrian students' accurate reading percentages was generally at the level of free and improvable reading. The lowest percentage being in poetic text. The majority of the students' reading speeds were below 100 words per minute in all three text types. Their prosodic scores were mostly at the worrying reading level in narrative text and improvable reading level in informative and poetic text types. The students' reading comprehension scores were low, with the highest scores in narrative text and the lowest in informative text. The study found a low positive correlation between reading comprehension and accurate reading and a high positive correlation between reading comprehension and reading speed and prosody. Therefore, the students' low reading speed and prosody skills were found to be the causes of their low reading comprehension levels.