A Needs Analysis on the Development of English Teaching Program for the School of Foreign Languages During the COVID-19 Distance Education Process: Reading Skills

With the emergence of Covid-19, the implementation of distance education has become mandatory in various fields of education, including language teaching. However, the needs of students and instructors in online education may differ from face-to-face instruction. Therefore, this study aims to identify the needs of language learners and instructors related to reading skills in distance education and to present insights facilitating comprehension and program development. To achieve this goal, a qualitative research method, specifically the case study method, was adopted in this study, which involved interviews with 13 students and 4 instructors. Data were collected through semi -structured interviews and online class records, and data consistency was ensured through NVIVO-12 content analysis. The findings indicate that students can better comprehend texts related to their interests; vocabulary knowledge directly influences understanding details and identifying main ideas; issues such as the learning environment or lack of motivation can arise in distance education; and strategies for finding unknown words and main ideas may be limited or non -strategic. In this context, it can be suggested that the strategies used by students in distance education for reading skills need to be improved.