The effect of using podcast in teaching Turkish as a foreign language on fluent reading skill

Foreign language teaching is gaining increasing importance every day. In foreign language teaching, the goal is to enable learners to acquire the four basic language skills. Among these, reading skills hold a special significance in the teaching process. This is because reading is a fundamental tool for understanding the structures of the language, expanding vocabulary, and comprehending language use. Reading skills show learners the usage of new words and phrases and exemplify the grammatical structures of the language. Additionally, reading skills contribute to the development of listening, speaking, and writing skills, as reading texts help in understanding both spoken and written language. In foreign language teaching, reading skills are developed and enhanced through texts. However, acquiring a skill requires more than just textbooks and texts. Particularly for practical skills like reading, various resources, tools, methods, and techniques are needed, and learners should be provided with opportunities to utilize these resources. The use of different sources, tools, methods, and techniques in developing reading skills is believed to improve learners' fluent reading ability in a foreign language. Fluent reading is the ability to read a text quickly and understand it accurately. Research is being conducted to improve fluent reading, and various recommendations are presented for developing learners' fluent reading skills. One of these recommendations is the use of podcasts to enhance fluent reading skills. While there is research on the use of podcasts to develop fluent reading skills in native Turkish education, there is no study on this topic in teaching Turkish as a foreign language. However, learners of Turkish as a foreign language face challenges in fluent reading due to learning the structure of a different language and encountering various sounds. Therefore, there is a greater need to develop fluent reading skills in teaching Turkish as a foreign language. With this need in mind, the study aims to determine the effect of using podcasts on learners' fluent reading skills in teaching Turkish as a foreign language, based on the research question: "What is the effect of using podcasts on fluent reading in teaching Turkish as a foreign language?" In this context, the study investigates the effect of podcast use on learners' accurate reading, reading speed, and prosodic reading. The study was conducted using a single-subject experimental design. The experimental group consisted of 2 learners at the B2 level who were learning Turkish as a foreign language and struggling with fluent reading. Data collection tools included a personal information form, texts, the researcher's podcasts, and learners' reading recordings. The data collection process lasted a total of 25 hours over 7 weeks. The data analysis utilized accurate reading formula, reading speed formula, and prosodic reading scale. The results of the study determined that the use of podcasts improved the accurate reading, reading speed, and prosodic reading of learners learning Turkish as a foreign language. Podcast use had the most positive effect on learners' prosodic reading skills. To assess the persistence of the improvement in fluent reading skills, a final reading session was conducted with the learners 4 weeks after the podcast-based reading activities. The results showed that the use of podcasts had a lasting effect on learners' fluent reading skills.