Are We Aware of What We Wear? The Awareness of Pre-Service Turkish Language Teachers About T-Shirt Catch-Phrases

Abstract

The present study, conducted with the phenomenology method, a qualitative research design, aimed to determine the awareness of pre-service Turkish language teachers about the catchphrases printed on t-shirts that individuals notice or do not notice in daily life or do not pay much attention even if when they notice them. The study sample included 39 volunteering pre-service teachers (19 males and 20 females), attending the department of Turkish language education during the 2018-2019 academic year. The sample was determined with the convenience sampling method. An interview form that included open-ended questions and a questionnaire that aimed to determine participant demographics were applied to the sample. Furthermore, t-shirt texts in several foreign languages were determined by the author and the pre-service teachers were asked whether they knew the Turkish translations of these texts and whether they preferred foreign language or Turkish texts. Descriptive analysis was conducted on the responses of the pre-service teachers. Since these responses were considered important, direct quotes were included in this paper. The study findings demonstrated that 69% of the pre-service Turkish language teachers did not care about the texts on the t-shirts they purchased and prioritized the model of the t-shirts. Since this was a non-negligible rate, it was suggested that the study would contribute to the literature and raise awareness.