Abstract:

In Turkish language classes, one of the most fundamental resources used at every grade level for acquiring and developing language skills is Turkish language textbooks. the reading activities included in Turkish language textbooks play a significant role in the development and improvement of reading culture. Through the texts and activities in the books, students are encouraged to improve their reading skills and transform them into a reading culture. This situation, which allows students to embark on a lifelong reading journey, also contributes to the widespread dissemination of reading culture in society. The primary aim of this study is to examine the reading activities present in Turkish textbooks for secondary school students, within the context of promoting a reading culture. This research draws on four Turkish textbooks designed for grades 5, 6, 7 and 8, data related to reading activities in Turkish textbooks were collected through document analysis and the obtained data were analyzed by descriptive analysis. As a result of the examinations conducted in the study, reading activities included in Turkish language textbooks cover the stages of reading culture at every grade level. However, this distribution is observed to be somewhat imbalanced, with a heavier emphasis on basic literacy skills. When the quality of reading activities was examined, it can be observed that the activities do not reflect higher- level thinking skills, rather, they predominantly remain at lower- level thinking skills. Additionally, the study highlights that reading activities are uniform and lack variety. Considering these results, it is suggested that the reading activities included in Turkish textbooks should be prepared in a way that will contribute to the process of acquiring a reading culture and support the high-level thinking skills of the students.

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