South African Journal of Education, Volume 41, Number 1, February 2021 3
they cannot recognise the words they read quickly
and automatically. After so much effort, the
students do not have enough attention and
cognitive energy to realise what they read.
Therefore, it is almost impossible for students to
make sense of what they read. However, it is
observed that when students develop their word
recognition skills and acquire fluency in reading,
reading comprehension improves. In other words,
fluent reading helps students understand what they
are reading.
Conceptual Framework
Efforts to diagnose students with SLD have
increased in recent years in Turkey (MEB, 2017).
However, there are still some difficulties in the
assessment tools. The diagnosis of disabilities is a
common problem in South Africa because experts
do not agree on the symptoms of such disability
(Donohue & Bornman, 2014). One of the most
important challenges with regard to students with
SLD in Turkey is encountered in evaluation and
diagnosis. The limited number of assessment tools
that can be used to identify students with SLD is
one of the most important concerns in this area in
Turkey (Görgün, 2018). When an accurate and
timely diagnosis cannot be made for students with
SLD, problems may arise. First of all, the lack of
early identification of students with SLD may
block early intervention opportunities for these
students. However, many studies emphasise the
importance of early intervention in the SLD area
(Lyon, Fletcher, Shaywitz, Shaywitz, Torgesen,
Wood, Schulte & Olson, 2001). In addition, the
inability to identify the right students due to
misdiagnosis may result in limited educational
resources being spent on students who do not need
them, and those who do need additional support
may be deprived of such educational support
(Brueggemann Taylor, 2014).
For the reasons mentioned above, there is a
great need for assessment tools to be developed in
the diagnosis of students with SLD in Turkey. In
