Readability of texts in textbooks for teaching Turkish to foreigners: Maarif Turkish example

The primary aim of teaching Turkish as a foreign language is to develop learners' proficiency in the four basic language skills: listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Among these, reading is one of the core linguistic competence areas and directly contributes to learners' linguistic and cognitive development. Reading skills are typically acquired through texts, which constitute essential instructional materials within textbooks. Therefore, textbooks and the texts they contain are among the main resources for fostering reading skills. The quality of the textbooks used in the teaching process, along with the nature of the texts included in them, has a direct impact on the success of language instruction. In order to effectively develop learners' reading skills and prevent the emergence of negative attitudes toward reading, it is crucial that the texts used in instruction are appropriate for the learners' proficiency levels. Various criteria are employed to assess this appropriateness, and readability is one of the key indicators in this context. Readability refers to the degree to which a text can be understood easily or with difficulty, and it plays a decisive role in the selection and evaluation of texts suitable for learners' levels. This study aims to analyze the readability levels of reading texts in textbooks used in teaching Turkish as a foreign language. In line with this objective, the readability levels of reading texts in the Maarif Türkçe (2024) textbooks were determined. The study adopted a qualitative research design, specifically the case study method. Six textbooks designed for high school and adult learners were examined, covering the levels A1, A2, B1, B1+, B2, and C1. Document analysis was used as the data collection method, and the readability levels of the texts in the books were measured using the Çetinkaya-Uzun (2010) readability formula. Based on the findings, the readability levels of the texts in the A1, A2, B1, B1+, and B2 textbooks were classified as "educational reading." However, the texts in the C1 level textbook were categorized under the "challenging reading" level. As a result, it was observed that as the language level of the textbooks increased, their readability scores decreased, making the texts progressively harder to comprehend. The findings indicate that the readability levels of the texts included in textbooks should be carefully evaluated to ensure alignment with learners' language proficiency. Texts that do not correspond to the learners' levels may negatively affect the development of reading skills and reduce learners' motivation toward reading activities. Keywords: Teaching Turkish as a Foreign Language, Reading Skills, Reading Texts, Readability Levels.