Analysing studies conducted on responsibility education in Turkey: A meta-synthesis study

Abstract

The aim of this study was to analyse studies conducted on the topic of responsibility education in Turkey up to the present. The research method was structured in two stages. In the first stage, the trends in all studies conducted with regard to responsibility education were determined with descriptive content analysis, and in the second stage, the findings in the studies were synthesised by reinterpretation with meta-synthesis. Criteria for inclusion of studies in the research were that: (1) research related to responsibility education was carried out, (2) the method used was clearly stated, (3) they were articles published in refereed scientific journals or masters/doctoral theses, and (4) the research sample was within the borders of Turkey. Review was carried out with the keyword “sorumluluk” (“responsibility”) on the DergiPark, Google Scholar and Higher Education Council Thesis databases. These studies were analysed using a “Research Information Form” prepared by the researchers. As a result of the analysis, the findings can be summarised as follows: the great majority of the conducted studies are scientific articles and recent studies. They vary in terms of methods used. A large majority are studies in which teachers’ opinions are examined. The studies were grouped into four categories depending on their aims in relation to responsibility education, namely, “studies examining opinions”, “studies in which activities and practices are used in lessons”, “studies on curriculum development”, and “studies examining course books”.