Examination of the Effect of Using Web 2.0 Tools in Environmental Education on Preschool Children's Attitudes Towards the Environment

Abstract

In this study, it was aimed to examine the effects of using Web 2.0 tools in environmental education on the attitudes of preschool children towards the environment. The research used a combination of quantitative and qualitative data. Quantitative data were collected through the “Attitudes Toward the Environment Scale: Children's Attitudes Toward the Environment Scale-Preschool Version (CATES-PV)”, and the qualitative data were collected through the "Interview Form" created by the researcher. A total of 38 children, 18 of them in the experimental group and 20 of them in the control group, aged between 60-72 month old attending a public day care center, participated in the study group of the research. One of the parents (mother or father) of the experimental group, which is the group where qualitative data were collected, participated in the research with 18 participants. Attitude towards the environment constitute dependent variable in the research. Independent variable is environments with and without Web 2.0 tools are used. In this research, two-factor ANOVA analysis for repeated measurements used for independent samples of the quantitative data obtained, descriptive analysis was applied to qualitative data. As a result of the research, a significant difference was determined between the average scores of children's attitudes towards the environment after the experimental procedure in the environment where Web 2.0 tools were used in environmental education. It was determined that the changes in the mean scores of attitudes towards the environment of the two groups before the experimental procedure were significantly higher in favor of the group in the environment where Web 2.0 tools were used in environmental education. In this study, it was concluded that the environment in which Web 2.0 tools are used in environmental education is effective in developing children's attitudes towards the environment. According to the qualitative findings, the parents in the experimental group stated that these tools made learning interesting, memorable and facilitating, provided continuity and permanence in learning, and were effective in developing correct attitudes.