PUBLIC PERSONNEL SELECTION EXAMINATION USED IN TEACHER APPOINTMENTS IN TURKEY: THROUGH THE EYES OF PRIMARY SCHOOL PROSPECTIVE TEACHERS

Abstract

In recent years, some factors such as the number of graduates from the faculties of education is more than that of the positions declared by Ministry of National Education (MoNE); appointment in some branches is limited; candidates should get high scores from the Public Personnel Selection Examination (PPSE, it is known “KPSS” in Turkish) to be appointed, cause increasing prospective teachers’ anxieties and make the PPSE as a hyper important exam. The aim of this study is to examine primary school prospective teachers’ perspectives of the PPSE. The research group involved 108 prospective teachers in the last year of the department of primary school education at a public university in the north of Turkey. There were 78 females and 30 males. Data for this study was collected via a questionnaire in which the items were measured using a five-point Likert-type scale. An exploratory factor analysis was used to convert the numerous variables into limited number of meaningful and independent factors. At the end of this analysis, seven factors were determined. The data collected for the research were analysed with the help of a quantitative software. The arithmetic mean values of the items were calculated and used in the comments. The significant results of the study revealed that the anxiety about not being able to be appointed as a teacher was an important psychological pressure on the prospective teachers. In this context, the lower rate of appointment to a teaching post, the idea of failure in the PPSE, the high sense of responsibility towards their family negatively affected them in the preparation process to the PPSE. Article visualizations: