A STUDY ON THE VARIABLES PREDICTING READING COMPREHENSION

The correlational survey design was used in this study in order to determine whether the attitude towards reading, text type and text subject, reading speed, correct reading, lack of prior knowledge and the amount of change in the surface structure of the text predict students' literal and deep reading comprehension skills. The study group of the research study is 180 students selected from amongst grade 4 students attending public primary schools in Esenler and Zeytinburnu districts of Istanbul province in the fall semester of the 2019-2020 academic year. According to the results of the regression analysis conducted in the study, the relative importance order of the variables that predict not being able to make deep meaning (meaning in depth of text) are the inability to make literal meaning, attitude towards reading, change in the superficial structure, attitude towards the subject, correct reading, attitude towards the narrative text, reading speed and pre-learning. Together, these factors explain 42% of not being able make deep meaning. The order of relative importance of the variables predicting the inability to construct literal meaning is make deep meaning, change in the superficial structure, attitude towards reading, correct reading, pre-learning, attitude towards the narrative text, attitude towards the subject and reading speed. Together, these factors explain 33% of not being able to make literal meaning.