Why Disadvantaged Primary School Students in Rural Areas Have Lower Reading Skills? A Critical Assessment

Inequalities between Türkiye’s geographical regions are significant. It is an important fact that students continuing their education in rural areas in eastern Türkiye face many challenges compared to their peers in urban centers. The geography of rural areas can hurt students in several ways, particularly in terms of reading skills. The low reading skills of students in rural areas have been a serious problem in eastern Türkiye for many years. National and international exam results also show that reading skills are lower in rural areas. In this study, the reasons for the low reading skills of primary school students in rural areas were critically examined through a literature review. The discussions include approaches such as the Matthew effect, spatial justice theory, and faucet theory. According to critical evaluations, the reasons for the low reading skills of disadvantaged primary school students in rural areas in eastern Türkiye are pretty diverse. The socioeconomic levels of families, inequalities in opportunities and resources, school closures, negative factors related to location and geography, linguistic differences, problems with teaching materials, temporary teaching arrangements, and low levels of parental involvement are at the forefront.