Barberà & Holgado García, 2024). From this perspective,
reading involves constructing increasingly elaborate
mental representations by integrating the text's explicit
meanings and the reader’s prior knowledge.
comprehensive, coherent representation of the text’s
content (García et al., 2021).
Additionally, Gutiérrez (2016) emphasises the importance
of dialogic reading, pointing out that although research on
RC frequently concentrates on the reader–text relationship
as an individual process, it is also a collective one. In this
sense, dialogue around the text allows strategies to be
shared and reading learning to be enhanced. Therefore,
guidance and mutual support in social and cultural contexts
can foster cooperation, promote awareness of one’s own
knowledge, beliefs, and processes, and significantly
contribute to improving RC and consequently, reading
competence (Blasco-Serrano et al., 2023; Flores et al.,
2024).
RC is defined as the simultaneous process of extracting and
constructing meaning, which takes time and effort, and
depends on cognitive functions linked to contextual
variables (Sánchez Castro & Pascual Sevillano, 2022).
Similarly, Gutiérrez Fresneda & Planelles Iváñez (2022)
argue that the sub-processes of word recognition and
meaning construction require fluency to operate with
maximum efficiency. This fluency automates decoding and
frees up attentional resources. It also involves a prosody
characterised by rigorous modulation of stresses and
pauses, which optimises syntactic and semantic
segmentation of the text.
With this in mind, reading is understood as a cross-
curricular process that draws on a range of skills and, at the
same time, plays a decisive role in academic performance
and subsequent learning. It also promotes the development
of verbal intelligence, expression and reading autonomy,
essential skills in personal, educational and professional
contexts (Cabero Almenara et al., 2018). Palma Campos
(2023) states that one way to foster these skills is through
literature, particularly when using texts that connect with
pupils’ interests.
Therefore, RC is configured as a dynamic process of
interaction between textual information and the mental
operations that enable the generation of coherent and deep
models of content (Ares Ferreirós et al., 2024). This
process operates via two pathways: a bottom-up pathway
that proceeds from recognising basic elements (such as
letters and words) to constructing overall meaning, and a
top-down pathway in which readers formulate hypotheses
about the meaning of the text, adjusting them as they read
and drawing on prior knowledge and available linguistic
cues (Llamazares Prieto, 2015). These two pathways
complement each other and depend on a balance between
automation and conscious control.
From this perspective, it is not merely a matter of
understanding reading as an act involving cognitive,
metacognitive,
voluntary
and
affective-emotional
components, but of establishing, through reading and
literary education, a learning pathway that fosters its
progressive development (Olivares et al., 2023). A
fundamental aspect is the consideration of diverse text
types, since, as Pérez Domínguez et al. (2016) explain,
reading is a “genre-dependent” process of constructing and
integrating meaning. The genre, format and structure of the
text significantly influence the act of reading.
Consequently, the teaching of specific reading strategies—
Furthermore, RC is influenced by executive functions such
as working memory, sustained attention, inhibitory control,
and mental flexibility. This highlights the importance of
developing these skills from an early age (Reina-Reina et
al., 2023). In addition, the metacognitive dimension is
important, which is defined as the reader’s ability to
monitor and regulate their own comprehension process
(Gutiérrez Martínez & Ruiz de Zarobe, 2017). According
to Anaya Nieto (2005), this control involves self-regulatory
actions through which readers maintain fluidity, detect
difficulties, and apply strategies to resolve them.
such
as
planning,
monitoring
and
assessing
comprehension, alongside the organisation, selection and
integration of information—takes on particular importance
(Gutiérrez Fresneda, 2022; Cueli et al., 2020). Several
studies analysed have also highlighted that systematic
training in these strategies not only improves
comprehension but also acts as a preventive measure
against future reading difficulties (Ares Ferreirós, 2021).
Gutiérrez-Braojos et al. (2014) note that reading strategies
Moreover, reading comprehension does not occur in
isolation; at various points, the reader integrates
information from different sources. This necessitates
making inferences, linking ideas, and constructing a
Fajkišová, D., Ballester Roca, J., & Méndez Cabrera, J. (2026). A Systematic Review of Classroom Interventions Focused on Reading
Comprehension in Primary Education in Spain. Investigaciones Sobre Lectura, 21(1), 157–192.
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