The purpose of this study is to examine the relationships among fourth-grade elementary school students’ reading comprehension levels, fluent reading skills, and reading motivation through Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). The study sample consisted of 239 students (117 males and 122 females) attending various elementary schools in Gaziantep during the fall semester of the 2023–2024 academic year. A relational screening model was employed in this study. Data were collected using the Narrative Text Comprehension Test (NTCT), Informative Text Comprehension Test (ITCT), the Reading Motivation Scale (RMS), a reading fluency passage, and a teacher evaluation form. The analysis results indicated moderate positive correlations between fluent reading and reading comprehension, as well as between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation; however, the relationship between reading comprehension and extrinsic motivation was weaker. While intrinsic motivation had a significant effect on both fluent reading and reading comprehension, extrinsic motivation influenced only fluent reading. The direct effect of fluent reading on reading comprehension was positive and significant.When examining the mediating role of motivation, it was observed that reading motivation had a significant effect on both skills. Reading comprehension explained 18% of the variance in reading motivation, while fluent reading accounted for 11%; conversely, reading motivation explained 34.7% of the variance in fluent reading. In conclusion, intrinsic motivation enhances reading performance, fluent reading supports reading comprehension, and reading motivation serves an important mediating function in this process.
Sağlık et al. (Fri,) studied this question.