Prospective Classroom Teachers Research Articles

Examining the Problem-Posing Skills of Prospective Classroom Teachers

Examining the Problem-Posing Skills of Prospective Classroom Teachers

EXAMİNİNG THE COMPOSİTİON WRİTİNG SKİLLS OF CLASSROOM TEACHER CANDİDATES

Classroom teachers should be able to pick up the pen and find something to write at any time, anywhere, regardless of the subject. What is expected from the classroom teacher is that it is gaining writing skills, being able to express feelings and thoughts in writing and conveying tüm completely. The aim of this research is to show how accurately and effectively prospective classroom teachers who continue their higher education can apply the composition writing skills they learned in the Turkish Language Teaching course. For this purpose, the student's compositions were evaluated by two different researches in three parts as "format, language and expression, spelling and punctuation" within the scope of Prof. Dr. Cemal Yıldız's "Written Expression Evaluation Form". In this respect, the research is suitable for the case study design, one of the qualitative research methods. The population of the research consists of 58 classroom teacher candidates studying in the second year of a state university in the Eastern Anatolia region. An easily accessible sample was used in the research.

Pre-service primary school teachers' metaphor perceptions of digital literacy

With the inclusion of information and communication technologies in almost every aspect of life, a digital world has begun to emerge. In the current age, children can access all kinds of information in the digital environment, use and share this information and produce new information. In this process, the digital literacy perceptions of classroom teachers and prospective classroom teachers, who guide and role model their students, are of great importance. The study aims to reveal the perceptions of prospective classroom teachers about digital literacy through metaphors. For this purpose, phenomenology design, one of the qualitative research designs was used. The study group of the research consisted of 45 pre-service teachers studying in the department of classroom teaching. As a data collection tool, the "Digital literacy is like .... Because ..." form was used. Content analysis technique was used to analyze the data obtained from pre-service teachers. According to the findings, a total of 34 metaphors were produced in the study group. It was found that pre-service classroom teachers had positive thoughts about digital literacy. As a result, the pre-service teachers created a total of 34 metaphors in the categories of infinity, object, movement, need and guide from their perceptions of digital literacy and that these metaphors consisted of expressions with positive meanings.

Prospective Classroom Teachers' Reasons for Choosing the Teaching Profession and Their Preferences for Their Work Lives

This research examined the factors that affect the decision of prospective classroom teachers to choose teaching as a profession and their preferences regarding work-life. A case study design, one of the qualitative research methods, was employed in this study The participants consisted of 20 prospective classroom teachers who took the teaching practice course in the 2021-2022 academic year at a state university. A semi-structured interview form was used in data collection and the data was analyzed through content analysis. Findings revealed that prospective classroom teachers' preference for the profession is influenced by their love for the profession, working conditions, love and interest shown by their former teachers, and communication with children. Their preferences are also influenced by their discovery that they can teach children something, their desire to contribute to the development of future generations by serving people in the basic education stage, their families’ supportive behaviors, and their experiences of the profession in their university years. In terms of their preferences for their work lives, most of the teacher candidates expressed a desire to become classroom teachers and work in this field, while it was found that some teacher candidates experienced dilemmas regarding their work lives due to studying or working in different fields. This research emphasizes the need to improve working conditions for teachers and develop teacher training programs that focus on teacher candidates' affective aspects.

Preschool and Classroom Teacher Candidates' Attitudes towards Visual Arts Lesson According to Their Personality Traits

Bu araştırmanın amacı, okul öncesi ve sınıf öğretmeni adaylarının kişilik özellikleri ile görsel sanatlar dersine yönelik tutumları arasında herhangi bir ilişki olup olmadığını belirlemektir. Örneklem grubu, Karadeniz Teknik Üniversitesi okul öncesi ve sınıf öğretmenliği öğrencilerinden oluşmaktadır. Araştırmada veri toplamak amacıyla, araştırmacılar tarafından oluşturulan “Kişisel Bilgi Formu”, araştırmacılar tarafından geliştirilen “Görsel Sanatlar Dersi Tutum Ölçeği” (GSDTÖ) ve Bacanlı, İlhan ve Aslan(2009) tarafından geliştirilen “Sıfatlara Dayalı Kişilik Testi” (SDKT) kullanılmıştır. Araştırmada niceliksel araştırma yöntemlerinden biri olan Nedensel Karşılaştırma Yöntemi kullanılmıştır. Ölçeklerin psikometrik işleminde açımlayıcı faktör analizi kullanılmıştır ve elde edilen veriler üzerinde karşılaştırmalı istatistik ve korelasyon tekniklerinden yararlanılmıştır. Araştırmada okul öncesi öğretmeni adaylarının, kişilik boyutlarından “deneyime açıklık” ve “yumuşak başlılık” puanları arttıkça görsel sanatlar dersine yönelik tutumlarında da olumlu yönde artış olduğu saptanmıştır. Buna karşılık sınıf öğretmeni adaylarının, “dışadönüklük”, “deneyime açıklık”, “yumuşak başlılık” ve “sorumluluk” kişilik puanları arttıkça görsel sanatlar dersine yönelik tutumlarında da olumlu yönde artış olduğu saptanmıştır. Bölüm değişkeni dikkate alındığında, sınıf öğretmeni adaylarının görsel sanatlar dersine karşı tutumlarının, okul öncesi öğretmeni adaylarının tutumlarına göre daha olumlu olduğu tespit edilmiştir. Cinsiyet değişkeni dikkate alındığında, okul öncesi öğretmeni adaylarının görsel sanatlar dersine yönelik tutumlarında anlamlı bir farklılık tespit edilmemiştir. Buna karşılık sınıf öğretmeni adaylarından kadın öğrencilerin puanlarının erkek öğrencilerin puanlarından daha yüksek olduğu tespit edilmiştir.

Development of the project activities of future primary school teachers based on a collaborative environment

The aim of this study is to determine the views of future primary school teachers on the development of project activities based on a collaborative environment. Permanent teaching is provided by providing diversity in learning with new generation learning techniques. For this purpose, the project activities listed in the education faculties of the universities were analysed. Primary school teacher candidates' opinions on whether education is provided in a cooperative learning environment in project activities are very important. Depending on the results of this research, it will be clear whether the prospective classroom teachers will use these techniques in their future professional lives. For this purpose, a qualitative research method was used with the participation of 72 university students in the spring term of 2021–2022 in order to determine the opinions of the students of the classroom teaching department studying at the university about the collaborative environment. Project-based teaching and two universities with education faculties were included in the research. The research study group consists of senior students studying at the education faculty of the university. As a result of the survey, the opinions of future classroom teachers about the probe activities and the collaborative environment were taken. Semi-structured interview questions prepared by the researchers were asked of the students. It was revealed that, in the last year, teacher candidates studying in the department of primary school teaching were effective in project-based learning and supported the collaborative approach. In the same way, it was suggested that the project activities of the teacher candidates should be increased.
 
 Keywords: Teacher training, classroom teaching, project-based teaching, collaboration, education

Pre-Service Primary Teachers’ Opinions about the Course of Practice Teaching through Distance Education

Due to the coronavirus pandemic affecting the world, face-to-face higher education practices were suspended in most countries, and teaching processes continued with distance education methods. This method has prevented university students from taking theoretical and practical courses face-to-face. In this regard, the teaching practice course, which is the fundamental course for professional preparation in education faculties, was conducted at a distance, in which its effectiveness becomes questionable. Hence, this research aims at determining the prospective classroom teachers' views about the process of conducting the teaching practice course at a distance. This research employs case study design by involving 37 pre-service primary teachers attending the education faculty of a state university. In addition, the data collection were done using a semi-structured interview form developed by the researchers, which was then analyzed using content analysis. The results conclusion showed that the pre-service teachers expressed opinions about the theoretical and practical dimensions, expectations, level of content, and suggestions for the development of the course.

Sınıf Öğretmeni Adaylarının Eleştirel Düşünme Becerilerinin Belirlenmesi

In this study, it is aimed to determine the critical thinking skills of prospective classroom teachers. Average scores of prospective classroom teachers' critical thinking skills and sub-dimensions are compared according to gender and grade variables. In the study, the scanning model, which is one of the quantitative research approaches, is grounded on and the Critical Thinking Appraisal Test is used as a data collection tool. The study was carried out in the fall semester of the 2019-2020 academic year and 671 prospective classroom teachers participated in the study. Average scores of prospective classroom teachers' critical thinking skills are calculated as 0.63 in the study, and this value shows that the prospective classroom teachers have an intermediate level of critical thinking skill. Additionally, the average sub-dimension scores of critical thinking skills are also calculated, and it is concluded that while the prospective classroom teachers are at a high level with a large effect in interpreting and performing deductions, they are at low-end level with a large effect in inference. It is determined that the critical thinking skill average scores of female prospective classroom teachers are higher than those of male teacher candidates with a small effect, and the rank average scores of sub-dimensions of Awareness of Assumptions and Interpretation of female candidates are higher than those of male teacher candidates with a small effect. It is observed that the rank average scores of critical thinking skills of the prospective classroom teachers who are in second grade are the highest, while the rank average scores of critical thinking skills of the prospective classroom teachers who are in fourth grade are the lowest. It is found that critical thinking skill levels decrease with a large effect for prospective classroom teachers in third and fourth grades. If undergraduate education of prospective classroom teachers is far from memorization, experiencing different activities that can be used in their prospective professional lives, either will provide development as a profession and will increase their critical thinking tendencies by enhancing critical thinking skills.

An Investigation of Prospective Teachers' Use of the Turkish Language in Social Media

Purpose: Not only in daily conversations, official correspondence, and educational settings but also on social media platforms, the correct usage of language by prospective teachers has become a necessity of the age. Twitter, which is used by many people to express their feelings, opinions, etc., is used actively by prospective teachers as well. The present study aimed to investigate the grammatical errors in prospective classroom teachers’ tweets. Method: The study employed the case study method, one of the qualitative research methods. The data were analyzed through the document analysis method. A total of three hundred tweets posted by 30 prospective teachers were analyzed. Descriptive analysis was used to analyze the data. The grammatical errors to look for in the tweets were determined based on the learning outcomes related to grammar rules specified in the Turkish Language Curriculum designed for primary schools (2019). Findings: Considering the overall results, the vast majority of tweets contained grammatical errors. It was also determined that the grammatical errors were similar in terms of their types. Punctuation errors, inverted sentences, spelling errors, and capitalization errors were some common grammatical errors. On the other hand, misspelled numbers, incorrect abbreviations, and the use of 'reinforced words' (words with a prefix to add emphasis) were rare grammatical errors. When the results were analyzed according to genders, it was found that males' tweets contained more grammatical errors than those of females. In both genders, punctuation errors, inverted sentences, misspellings, and incorrect capitalization were common grammatical errors. On the other hand, misspelled numbers, incorrect abbreviations, and the use of 'reinforced words' (words with a prefix to add emphasis) were rare grammatical errors. In conclusion, it can be said that a majority of tweets posted by prospective teachers contained grammatical errors and these grammatical errors were similar in terms of their types. Implications for Research and Practice: Also, similar studies can be carried out on the use of written language on other social media platforms such as YouTube, WhatsApp, Instagram, and Facebook, which also have millions of users.

English

Today, it is important how much individuals acquire knowledge and use this theoretical knowledge in their daily life. A qualified training program is expected to train individuals who can solve problems. The prospective classroom teachers, who are expected to train individuals who can solve problems, should also have knowledge about the problem-solving process and applying it to the problem situations that they face in their own lives. This situation is thought to have a positive effect on the academic achievement of the students who will be trained. The study was conducted at the beginning of 2019-2020 academic year with 52 third grade prospective classroom teachers. Semi-structured interview form prepared by the researchers were used to examine the knowledge and usage levels of the prospective classroom teachers about problem-solving strategies. This study concluded that prospective classroom teachers could informally use some problem-solving strategies, even if they were not trained. However, the prospective classroom teachers failed to perform as expected.   Key words: Problem-solving in mathematics, problem-solving strategies, prospective classroom teachers, teacher training.

The Reflections of Differentiated Science Education For Gifted Students on Prospective Classroom Teachers

This study was designed to delve into the impact of differentiated science education for gifted students on prospective classroom teachers in terms of some variables. A concurrent embedded research design from mixed research methodologies was employed in this study. The participants were 69 sophomore students studying in the Department of Primary Education in the Faculty of Education in Amasya University during 2018-2019 academic year. The data collection instruments were the Science Teaching Efficacy Belief Scale, the Academic Self-Efficacy Scale, the Competence Scale for Science Teaching, the Outdoor Science Activities Performing Scale, and a structured interview form. For the qualitative data, a deductive approach was employed, and themes and codes were used to show the findings. Based on the results, there is evidence to suggest that differentiated science education applications develop prospective teachers’ science teaching efficacy beliefs, their competences for learning science, their academic self-efficacies, and their outdoor science activity performing beliefs. The findings also show most of the participants hold the belief that their educational background contributes to their professional and personal developments as well as science teaching skills, and helps them gain awareness of such concepts as giftedness, outdoor learning, and differentiated teaching. Several recommendations for making differentiated education prevalent for prospective teachers are provided.

Tarihimizi Anlıyoruz: Sosyal Bilgiler Derslerinde Yerel Tarih ve Sözlü Tarih

The main aim of this study was to elicit the views of prospective classroom teachers (PCT) about their work on local history and oral history after the education given in the social studies course and to determine the quality of their related work. The study group consisted of 63 PTCs attending the third grade at the Department of Classroom Education of a public university in Istanbul, Turkey. In this study, which has the characteristics of action research, document analysis as a qualitative research patterns and an open-ended survey were used as data collection tools. In the study, the PCTs received education on the use of local history and oral history in social studies courses. Then, they were asked to present their work on local history and oral history in a classroom setting. The results obtained show that the education they had been given was effective in the PCTs’ learning of how to use these methods in the social studies course. The PCTs successfully utilized local history and oral history in the social studies course and were able to present their related work. In addition, when the results related to the views of the PCTs were examined, it was determined that they had positive thoughts and gains, which is consistent with the literature.

Algorithmic Thinking in Primary Education

Use of algorithmic thinking in education has received significant attention as it is grounded on thinking and performing the necessary action in line with a clearly defined purpose. The current study aimed to probe prospective classroom teachers’ views on algorithmic thinking skills and use of these skills in education. The research data were collected from 36 undergraduate students attending a state university in Turkey through an interview form developed by the researcher. Their responses to the interview questions were examined through content analysis and converted into themes and codes. The participants reported that teachers with well-developed algorithmic thinking skills tend to teach gradually, to follow a process that facilitates learning, to encourage students to be well-planned and neat and to help them develop/ improve their algorithmic thinking skills. They also suggested the use of such techniques as discovery learning, problem-solving, induction, brain-storming, concept mapping, games, discussion, fishbone and case study that require students’ active involvement in the learning process in order to improve their algorithmic thinking skills. The study discusses further findings in detail and concludes with practical implications developed in the light the findings reported here and the existing literature.

Sınıf Öğretmeni Adaylarının Müziksel Bilgilerinin, Blokflüt Çalma ve Müziksel Okuma Düzeyleri ile Karşılaştırılması

It is directly related to the fact that the prospective classroom teachers have the necessary equipment in music lessons. In this study, it is aimed to compare the basic knowledge of music teacher and music reading skill levels of class teacher candidates studying at Ege University Faculty of Education Class Education Department by identifying block flute playing and musical reading skill levels. In the study, 37-item achievement test developed by Afacan (2010) was used to measure the level of knowledge of prospective classroom teachers for musical information in songs in educational music repertoire. The KR-20 reliability coefficient of the developed achievement test was 0.81. The study was carried out with 50 prospective classroom teachers who took music education course. A total of 28 prospective teachers with the highest and lowest scores in the achievement test were evaluated using the graded scoring key prepared by the researchers. As a result of the research, it was determined that prospective classroom teachers were inadequate according to the achievement test which measured basic music knowledge of school songs and it was found that block flute playing and musical reading levels were moderate and weak.

Social Sciences Education Practices: Cognitive Perceptions of Prospective Classroom Teachers

There are many factors that affect the perceptions of students enrolled in the classroom teaching programs of education faculties concerning the concept of social studies teaching. The most important of these factors are the instructors they observed in the faculty and their previous educational lives. In this context, this study aimed to determine the characteristics of “an ideal social studies instruction” according to the cognitive structures of prospective teachers and to model an ideal social studies instructor according to these qualities. This research was designed as a case study, which is one of the qualitative research designs. The study group was selected by criterion sampling and consisted of 121 prospective teachers in their final year at two state universities located in the Marmara region of Turkey. A word association test, an open-ended questionnaire, and student drawings were used as data collection tools. When the results of the study were examined, the concepts of history, society, culture, people, and geography came to the forefront in the participants’ cognitive perceptions toward social studies. It was determined that the characteristics they attributed to an ideal social studies instructor were gathered under the standard of professional responsibility and informed action. The student drawings revealed that the instructor figures were mostly well-groomed and smiling, they were usually shown in museums and historical buildings. Lastly, as future social studies instructors, the prospective teachers felt adequate in terms of the professional responsibility and informed action standard, and inadequate concerning the content knowledge standard.

The effect of argumentation-based teaching performed for environment-energy issues on critical thinking of prospective classroom teachers

The aim of this research is to investigate the of argumentation-based teaching carried out for environment-energy subjects on critical thinking of prospective classroom teachers. The research was conducted in accordance with the quantitative research method and pre-post-test semi experimental design with experimental-control group was used. Environmental education lessons were taught for ten weeks in the experimental and control groups based on argumentation and traditional teaching, respectively. After the argumentation-based teaching process, when prospective classroom teachers pre-test scores obtained from the critical thinking skill test are statistically controlled a significant difference, was found in favor of the post-test critical thinking skill mean scores of the experimental group (p <0,05), and the of the application was middle effect (ή2: 0,11). The critical thinking levels of the experimental group prospective classroom teachers were found to be higher than those of the control group.

Investigation of the Effects of Out-of-School Learning Environments on the Attitudes and Opinions of Prospective Classroom Teachers about Renewable Energy Sources

The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of energy resources activities on attitudes and views of prospective classroom teachers about renewable energy resources within the context of out-of school learning environments. In the study, quasi-experimental design without pre-test post-test control group was used. The research was conducted in the spring term of 2017-2018 academic year with an in-depth study plan for a total of 14 weeks with 12 prospective classroom teachers within the scope of Community Service Practices course. Out-of-school learning activities are held in Solar Park House and Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant Information Center which is Turkey's first nuclear power plant, located in Mersin. In the research, Attitude Scale for Renewable Energy Resources developed by Gunes, Alat and Gozum (2013) was used. Also, the interview form, which consists of open-ended questions developed by the researcher and the diaries kept by the prospective teachers within the scope of the course were examined by qualitative analysis method. As a result of the research, it was found that there was a significant difference between the pre-test and post-test scores of the prospective classroom teachers regarding the renewable energy resources in favor of the post-test scores.

Environmental Literacy among Prospective Classroom Teachers in Jordan

This study aims to determine the level of environmental literacy among Prospective teachers by considering its three aspects (knowledge, attitudes, and behavior), the relation between these aspects, and the impact of the academic year level on environmental literacy. It also intends to explore the sources that students draw on to develop environmental literacy. The study sample consists of 112 female students enrolled at the University of Petra, Amman, Jordan, in the Department of Education Science. A questionnaire was created by the researcher to collect data composed of five parts and a total of 62 items to measure environmental literacy and to identify the sources that students depend on to obtain environmental Literacy. The results of the study showed that prospective teachers had positive attitudes toward the environment as the percentile grade was 77%. However, environmental knowledge was lower than the acceptable level as the percentile performance on the test reached 50.7%; also the level of environmental behavior was less than the acceptable level as it reached 65%. The results also showed that there are statistically significant differences in environmental attitudes among prospective teachers according to their academic level which was favorable to 4th-year students. The study also showed that there was a positive and significant correlation reached (0.437) between students’ environmental attitudes and their behavior. https://doi.org/10.26803/ijlter.18.12.16

Determination of the Empathy Levels of Prospective Classroom Teachers: An Example of the Life Skills Teaching Course

Abstract Introduction: The concept of empathy has been described in many ways by researchers. According to some, it is the basic cognitive function or ability of being aware of others’ thoughts and feelings. Empathy refers to being able to respond to emotions, sharing the feelings of individuals, and reflecting them as if in a mirror. It also helps to establish good relationships with people, to understand them, and share their feelings. The use of empathy in the classroom, especially in life skills courses help students to make connections between school and everyday life. Methods: This study aimed to investigate how an empathy-based education programme implemented in the life skills teaching course affected the empathy skills of prospective classroom teachers in Turkey. For this purpose, using a mixed-methods research design, the participant prospective classroom teachers received empathy-based education programme 12 class hours. The data collection tools used in the study were the Empathy Quotient Scale, document analysis and open-ended questionnaire. The study was conducted with 64 prospective classroom teachers attending at Istanbul University, Turkey. The dependent t-test was employed to analyze the quantitative data and content analysis for qualitative data. Results: As a result, it was seen that the qualitative data supported the quantitative data. According to the quantitative data, after receiving empathy-based education programme, the students developed the skills of empathy. According to the qualitative data, it was determined that prospective teachers understood the importance of empathy and put themselves in the place of others. In addition, the prospective teachers considered that empathy would have several positive contributions to their future primary school students. It is thought that the results obtained from this study will guide teaching practices involving empathy-based activities. Discussion: According to the findings obtained from the quantitative data, the empathy-based education programme provided for the prospective teachers caused a significant increase in their empathy levels. Similarly, in a study who applied a critical thinking programme and empathic tendency scale to prospective teachers, reported a positive correlation between critical thinking and empathic tendency at a low-level significance. According to the findings obtained from the qualitative data, the topics chosen for the preparation of empathy-based activities were mostly from the life skills subjects of the first grade of primary school, followed by second and third grades. This may be because the prospective teachers considered it appropriate to perform empathy-based activities with children from the earliest age. Furthermore, a higher number of participants chose to prepare written empathy-based activities, followed by drawing and photography, which might be attributed to their belief that they could better express themselves through writing, rather than drawing or taking/showing pictures. Limitations: The study group covered in the third year of the classroom teaching programme in the selected university only. Although the empathy-based education programme prepared by the researcher was implemented with the prospective teachers as part of the life skills teaching course in 10 class hours. Conclusions: In conclusion, empathy is considered to be very important especially in the education of children of young age. As revealed by the review of literature, empathy skills also affect many positive elements. For this reason and considering that the available research in the literature is based either on quantitative or on qualitative data, more mixed-design studies are needed to investigate the effects of similar empathy-based education programmes integrated into life skills and social studies courses. In addition, it is as important to conduct empathy-based activities in other courses of the primary and middle school as in life skills and social studies courses. It is also suggested that empathy-based education should also be provided for teacher candidates enrolled in science teaching programmes, as well as those in social studies.

Examination of Prospective Teachers’ Perceptions of Homeland: A Phenomenological Study

Homeland can be described as the territory in which people who are bound to each other with several ties and have common values. Homeland is one of the most valuable heritages which has been left to us from former generations, and will be left to future generations. There are great responsibilities on us, families, education and especially our teachers as an important element of education to protect and transfer it to future generations. The reason is that patriotism begins in the family and continues in educational environments. An examination of the renewed primary and secondary education programs in terms of general objectives and contents revealed that there is a conscious effort for children to gain such values as consciousness of and love for the homeland, and patriotism in especially social sciences and geography classes. Therefore, perceptions of homeland of prospective teachers who will raise future generations are important. The purpose of this research is to study perceptions of prospective teachers regarding the concept of homeland. The population of the study consists of 157 prospective classroom teachers, 98 of whom are females and 59 males, who were being educated in three different departments (social studies, Turkish and classroom teaching) in the Fall semester of 2017-2018 Academic Year. Phenomenology, a qualitative research method, has been employed in the research. The views and thoughts of the target population regarding the concept of active citizenship have been collected by use of an interview form which consists of a single sentence. The data collected were analyzed by the technique of content analysis. According to the findings of the research, the prospective social studies teachers came up with 28, prospective classroom teachers came up with 27 and prospective Turkish teachers came up with 28 valid metaphors about the concept of homeland, which makes a total of 83 different metaphors. In addition, the participants’ most preferred metaphors about the concept were the metaphors of mother, home, family, house and earth.