What Kind of Person Should an Education System Raise? A Survey of Teachers’ Views in Turkey

Soner Doğan

doi:10.22555/joeed.v7i2.18

Abstract

This study aims to find answers to the question: What kind of person should the Turkish education system raise? To evaluate the participants’ responses thoroughly, the phenomenology method has been used. The study group includes 185 teachers and school administrators working in Sivas city centre. To reach out to more participants, the data have been obtained by a survey developed by the researcher. Four categories, academic, social, individual, and ethical, have been identified as a result of data analysed with content analysis. The data have been presented according to the variables of school type and positions. According to the findings, it has been found out that teachers’ order of preference about the kind of person to be raised is individual, academic, ethical, and social characteristics;administrators’ order of preference is academic, individual, ethical, and social characteristics. Sentences have been formed about the kind of a person to be raised by the variables of school types and positions in the study. In this regard, considering participants’ priorities, common phrases have been brought out to be ‘having critical thinking, ethical, national and moral values, and love of country and nation’.

Highlights

Each society adopts an effective system that can help them to raise individuals aligned with their cultural, political, economic, and social dynamics
This study argues that humans and their characteristics should be concentrated in structuring education systems
Depending on the research findings, the opinions of the participants have been arranged into four categories, which are academic characteristics, social characteristics, ethical characteristics, and individual characteristics in terms of each school type

Summary

Introduction

Each society adopts an effective system that can help them to raise individuals aligned with their cultural, political, economic, and social dynamics. In this sense, the question of ‘what kind of person should and education system raise’ becomes important. The question of ‘what kind of person should and education system raise’ becomes important This question is noteworthy as Levent (2018) stated that experts such as psychologists, anthropologists, biologists, physiologists all deal with individuals as their subjects, and they characterize and describe humans from various aspects. Economic, political, and technological developments in the 21st century, the expectations about the qualifications of individuals have changed. These changes affect education systems, and there emerges the necessity of making changes while equipping individuals with information, skills, and qualifications (Cansoy, 2018). Okpala et al (2001) suggested that educational reforms should focus on how educational sources can improve students’ academic skills

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Discussion

Conclusion