The impact of a digital speed reading platform on the reading skills of second grade primary school students

Reading and reading comprehension skills directly influence students' performance across all subject areas. However, due to various factors within the educational systems implemented in our country, students often exhibit insufficient levels of proficiency in these fundamental skills. Speed reading techniques have been shown to enhance reading comprehension abilities. Considering this, the aim of the present study is to investigate the effects of a digital speed-reading platform on the reading skills of second grade primary school students and to examine the views of both students and their parents. This study employs an explanatory sequential mixed methods design. In the quantitative phase, a quasi-experimental design was utilized, while the qualitative phase was conducted using a case study approach. The sample was selected through a convenience sampling method and consisted of 42 second grade students enrolled in the 2024–2025 academic year. The experimental group included 23 students and control group included 19 students. To assess the impact of the digital speed-reading platform on students' reading skills, the study employed metrics such as the number of words read per minute, word recognition progression, comprehension rate, and error count. In addition, semi-structured interview forms were used to gather data on student and parent perspectives. During the qualitative phase, six open-ended questions developed by the researchers were posed to six parents and six students. The collected qualitative data were analyzed using content analysis. The findings of the study indicate that the digital speed-readingplatform made a significant and positive contribution to the reading skills of second grade students when compared to traditional methods.