Abstract
The study was conducted to determine problem-solving skills of preschool age children on environment as well as factors affecting this skill. For this purpose, quantitative and qualitative research methods were used together in the study and the research was designed in the screening model. This study is a descriptive type research since it questions the present status. The study group consisted of 168 children studying a preschool in the Province of Malatya. The random-sampling method was used to select the participating children. The Introductory Information Form and the Scale for Problem Solving in Environmental Education (SPSEE) developed by Ulutaş and Sağlam (2016) were used for research data collection. A semi-structured interview form developed by the researcher was used to perform the interviews with parents. As a result of the SPSEE analysis, 15 children with the lowest scores among the participating children were identified and interviews were performed with their parents in order to obtain in-depth information in this regard. Content analysis was used to analyze qualitative data, and one-way ANOVA was used for quantitative data analysis. As a result of the study, the results of both analyses were found to overlap.
Highlights
The environment is all the biological, geographical and social factors that affect the individual and society directly or indirectly at a particular time and that determine the material and spiritual development and the living conditions of the individual (Cansaran and Yıldırım, 2014)
The themes that emerged in the content analysis after the interviews with the parents of the 15 children who got the lowest score in the Scale for Problem Solving in Environmental Education were "attitudes and behaviors of children towards protection of plants and animals," "attitudes and behaviors of children to water, air, soil and noise pollution," and "the attitudes and behaviors of children towards recycling and recovering/creating."
Three themes that emerged in the content analysis after the interviews with the parents of the 15 children who got the lowest score in the Scale for Problem Solving in Environmental Education were "attitudes and behaviors of children towards protection of plants and animals," "attitudes and behaviors of children on the water, air, soil and noise pollution," and "the attitudes and behaviors of children towards recycling and recovering/creating." It can be said that qualitative and quantitative research results are consistent with each other
Summary
The environment is all the biological, geographical and social factors that affect the individual and society directly or indirectly at a particular time and that determine the material and spiritual development and the living conditions of the individual (Cansaran and Yıldırım, 2014). Considering the studies on environmental education (Uzun and Sağlam, 2006, Yalçınkaya and Çelikbaş, 2013, Taşkın and Şahin, 2008, Musser and Diamond, 1999, Chepesiuk, 2007, Bonnett and Williams, 1998, Seçgin, Yalvaç and Cetin, 2010, Robertson, 2008, Wilson, 1996, Shume, 2016, Akçay, 2006, Ballantyne), it is seen that the issues addressed include the environmental knowledge, environmental attitudes, environmental awareness, effect of environment and child interaction on social and emotional development of the child, importance of family involvement in environmental education, environmental problems and the interest on solving these problems, and inclusion of environmental education in preschool curriculum in Turkey. ‐ number of siblings ‐ maternal education status ‐ paternal education status. 2‐ What are the opinions of the parents about preschool children's problem‐solving skills?
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