International Online Journal of Education and Teaching

CELEBRATING STUDENTS’ DIVERSITIES THROUGH UNDERSTANDING STUDENTS’ CHARACTERISTICS

Desi Antri Astuti — 2019-10-05

Dealing with different students’ characteristics cannot be avoided by the teacher in everyday teaching. It is well-known that teaching English to young learners is different from teaching an adult. Therefore, teachers are required to understand the characteristics of the students in order to know the students’ needs so that learning goals can be achieved effectively. Research under the case study design had been done at a private school in Surakarta which used interview and observation to collect the data from 2 English teachers in that school. This research aims at investigating the teachers’ beliefs on understanding characteristics of students and exploring how those beliefs are reflected in the teaching-learning practices. The result shows the two participants believe that understanding the characteristics of students is important for teachers because it can help them to develop their teaching-learning strategy and achieve learning objectives effectively. This research also reveals the way the participants reflect their beliefs in teaching-learning practices.

Keywords: beliefs, students’ characteristics, young learners, teaching English

A CORPUS ANALYSIS OF ARGUMENTATIVE STRUCTURES IN ESP WRITING

Loredana Bercuci — 2019-10-05

One of the challenges in ESP classrooms is teaching writing genres, especially to students who come from fields that are taught in L1. This is presumably “not only because different languages seem to have different ways of organizing ideas and structuring arguments but because students’ prior writing experiences in the home, school or elsewhere do not prepare them for the literacy expectations of their university or professional workplace” (Hyland, 2013, p. 95). In our study, we analyze 36 argumentative essays written by students of Political Science and International Relations in an English for Social Sciences course taught at the West University of Timisoara in Romania. The essays are written in English and the students’ L1 is Romanian. The aim of the study is to find out to what extent argumentative structures in English are influenced by Romanian academic writing genre norms. For our analysis, we use corpus linguistics methods, looking at frequencies and phraseology patterns as well as prominent rhetoric features related to argumentation. We argue that translations of Romanian structures feature prominently when descriptive moves (description, definition, enumeration) are employed.

UNDERSTANDING LANGUAGE TEACHER AUTONOMY: A CRITICAL REALIST PERSPECTIVE ON EFL SETTINGS IN TURKEY

Betul Khalil — 2019-10-05

This study examined the understandings and exercise of teacher autonomy and aimed to uncover the deep structure that might shape these in the EFL context in Turkey. The study relied on a range of data sources including documents, a questionnaire, observations and interviews with Turkish teachers of English, headteachers and educational administrators. Our findings highlight a complex interplay between structure and agency that underpins the emergence of teacher autonomy. We conclude that we need to extend our understanding of language teacher autonomy and identify the underlying mechanisms that shape the development and exercise of teacher autonomy within a particular context.

STUDENT TEACHERS’ PERCEPTIONS OF REFLECTIVE PRACTICE

Meruyert Seitova — 2019-10-05

The present study aims at engaging ELT student teachers in reflective teaching practice through the use of reflective diary during their school internship and finding out their perceptions about this reflective teaching practice that they were engaged in. The data were collected through the qualitative research instrument. After the student teachers were involved in reflective practice through the reflective tool, they were asked to keep reflective diaries during the twelve weeks school internship to learn their perceptions of reflective practice. The data obtained from the qualitative data were analyzed through thematic analysis. The results of the study put forward that the student teachers benefited much from the current study and were pleased with having participated in this reflective teaching practice by means of reflective diary. Engaging in reflective practice was found as an important opportunity for gaining awareness about teaching skills and practices, increasing self-evaluation and professional growth. The student teachers also stated that reflective diary use fostered the growth of reflective practice by encouraging them to engage in examining what was being done in the classroom. This process persuaded the individual to look for strengths and weaknesses and thus actively seek improvement in recognized areas. Though the growth of reflection and reflective practice, the student teachers used personal experiences and connection with classroom theory to grow and develop as professionals

Keywords: Reflective teaching, reflective diary, self-evaluation, professional development.

MEASURING SPOKEN VOCABULARY LOAD ON MEDICAL ENGLISH STUDENTS: A LEARNER CORPUS EVALUATION

Muhammad Rudy — 2019-10-05

English for Specific Purposes (ESP) teaching urges the students to have a deep understanding of specific vocabularies. Specifically, in medical English class, spoken diagnosis explanation involves specific vocabularies. This corpus study was aimed to reflect the students’ achievement of spoken vocabulary during speaking practice on explaining the diagnosis. Computer software was utilized to calculate frequency and range of words. The students’ vocabularies were compared with listening tapescript corpora from a medical English textbook to evaluate vocabulary pattern. Additionally, the students' spoken corpora were contrasted with 2000 high-frequency words and other three word lists to assess word distribution. This study revealed that medical students used few specialized vocabularies in order to deliver their explicable message to the patient. The analysis of students’ vocabulary can be used as a reference to contemplate the success of language instruction and future betterment, particularly spoken diagnosis explanation at medical English program.

CONTENT ANALYSES ON THE USE OF TECHNOLOGY IN DYSLEXIA: THE ARTICLES IN THE WEB OF SCIENCE DATA BASE

Idris Adamu — 2019-10-05

Articles published in web of Science between 2014 and 2019 (March) were screened in this research. This is because of its respectable position in the field of technology and peer-reviewed secured structure of this database. From a total of 56 articles within the scope of the screening 46 articles were included in the study. Through this research, new trends on technology usage in dyslexia activities in recent years will be determined and a new way will be shown for researchers. "Technology in dyslexia" keywords used during researching process and all the articles with "technology in dyslexia" keywords were included in this study. As a result of this research, it is determined that the most studies in the field of technology in dyslexia were published in 2018 in USA, UK, Spain, and Pakistan. Particularly children students were selected as the sample group of the researches. It is emerged that, questionnaires research was used maximum as a research instrument. Quantitative data collection tools were used most as a means of data collection medicals area as the research fields through traditional teaching method. It was emerged that assistive technology is the most widely used field in technology in dyslexia. It is seen that optometric neuropsychological assessments, digital tools and adaptive mobile learning as devices were used in the most researches. Lecture-based method is seen to be used as the teaching method in the present study.

Keywords: Technology, Dyslexia, Assistive Technology and Web of Science.

PSYCHOLOGICAL WELL-BEING OF PROSPECTIVE TEACHERS: THE CASE OF PEDAGOGICAL FORMATION STUDENTS

Oğuzhan Atabek — 2019-10-05

In addition to the undergraduate programs provided by faculties of education, in Turkey, Pedagogical Formation Education Certificate Programs are also provided by these faculties. Graduates of such programs are positioned as teachers in Turkey, the same as the graduates of faculties of education. Individual differences of teachers are of great importance in terms of closeness and determination toward students. In addition to personality, psychological features are also closely related to their professional competence and success, quality of education in general, and –maybe more importantly- the safety of the students. In this study, it was aimed to provide insight about the individual differences of students who attend pedagogical formation training by investigating the psychological status of those students through the analysis of the relationship between depression, anxiety, stress, coping by humor levels, humor types and their type of personality. It was observed that 40.2% of participants were in mild depression while 25.9% of them were in moderate to severe levels. Associations were investigated by point bi-serial correlation technique and it was found that those participants with Type A personality had higher levels of depression, stress, anxiety, and self-defeating humor style.

WHAT DO PRE-SERVICE PHYSICS TEACHERS THINK OF STUDY SHEETS?

Işıl Aykutlu — 2019-10-05

In this study, the aim is to take the views of pre-service teachers on study sheets and evaluate these views. Problem question of the study was determined to be "What are the views of pre-service physics teachers on study sheets?" In this study, which was realized in accordance with the aims of qualitative research, a case study model was utilized. The study group consists of 12 pre-service teachers who are seniors at the department of physics education at a state university during the spring semester. In the study, data were gathered via opinion forms and semi-constructed interviews. The obtained data were analyzed through content analysis. At the end of the study, the following themes came to the fore: “Appropriateness of study sheets for teaching,” “The effect of study sheets on learning,” “and “The applicability of the study sheets." It was determined that concerning study sheets, pre-service teachers think that study sheets can decrease misconceptions, enable meaningful learning, increase interest and attitude, determine the level of readiness, and can be used to relate topics with daily life. Moreover, pre-service teachers indicated that preparing study sheets and applying them takes too much time. At this point, it can be suggested that pre-service teachers make use of computer-aided study sheets to save time.

Keywords: Study sheet, pre-service physics teacher, teaching material.

DEVELOPING A FRAMEWORK FOR THE INTEGRATION OF 21ST CENTURY LEARNING AND INNOVATION SKILLS INTO PRE-SERVICE ELT TEACHERS’ PRACTICUM

Hasan Bedir — 2019-10-05

Research has shown that teacher education programs are ineffective in preparing teachers for 21st century skills so there exists a need for professional development to improve teachers’ knowledge and practices which improve student learning outcomes. Teachers’ Professional Development (PD) has been intriguing researchers in the 21st first century more than the previous century since the skills students need to learn in preparation for further education are more sophisticated in this century. This paper aimed to develop a framework to integrate 21st century learning and innovation skills (4Cs) into pre-service ELT teacher education curriculum framework for 21st century learning and skills. The framework was developed through a full evaluation of the related research and analysis of a 12-week teaching practicum data. It was intended to be a guide for those who are developing professional development programs for 21st century skills. The developmental process revealed positive casual relations between the framework developed and the probability of having positive and significant results. Regarding the focus of the framework, we also observed more positive outcomes for the intervention of 21st century skills, mainly learning and innovation skills due to the active participation of the pre-service teachers.

THE OPINIONS AND SUGGESTIONS OF THE INSTRUCTORS REGARDING THE PROBLEMS FACED DURING UNDERGRADUATE INDIVIDUAL VOICE EDUCATION COURSES

Sevan Nart — 2019-10-05

In Turkey, Music Education Sections (MES) under the Fine Arts Education Departments of the Universities are one of the leading institutions that provide higher professional music education. Individual Voice Education (IVE) course, which is included in the undergraduate curriculum of these institutions, has a very important place and function in music teacher education. The aim of this research is to discover and examine the problems faced by those IVE course instructors working at higher education institutions providing professional music education. The research group was formed from 10 instructors randomly selected from the full-time staff that teaches IVE courses at the MES of the Turkish Universities. A personal information questionnaire and an interview form prepared by the researcher was applied to the participants. In the interview form, 5 open-ended questions were asked to identify the opinions and suggestions of the instructors regarding the problems they face during the IVE courses. The obtained data were analyzed by descriptive analysis and processed according to the predetermined thematic framework. Based on the findings, the problems that the individual voice instructors face during the courses were identified and suggestions regarding these problems were presented.

THE CASE FOR EXAMINATION OF DIFFERENT METHODS USED IN LIFE SCIENCES AND SOCIAL STUDIES COURSES

Nur Ütkür — 2019-10-05

In this study aimed to identify preservice gifted education teachers’ opinions on the instruction of life sciences and social studies courses and examine the activities, they developed regarding the several methods and techniques related to the courses. In this study, which has qualitative research features, an open-ended questionnaire was used as a data collection tool. It has been determined that the majority of preservice teachers prefer to use the constructivist approach in life sciences and social studies courses in terms of the obtained data. In addition, preservice teachers have stated drama, case study, and empathy among the methods and techniques that can be used in life sciences and social studies courses. It has been determined that preservice teachers also state various types of activities that can be used in the classroom for these methods and techniques. These types of activities include impersonations, activities which involve examples from everyday life and activities based on human relations.

Keywords: life sciences and social studies course, gifted education preservice teachers, methods and techniques.

EXAMINING THE ATTITUDE CHANGE OF PRE-SERVICE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL TEACHERS TOWARDS A COURSE OF MATHEMATICS EDUCATION WITHIN THE FRAMEWORK OF THEORY OF DIDACTICAL SITUATIONS

Mustafa Gök — 2019-10-05

This study investigated whether the training program given within the framework of the Theory of Didactical Situations (TDS) within a mathematics education course could change the pre-service elementary teachers’ attitudes towards a mathematics education course in an 11-week teaching process. In the study, the mixed method was used. The participants were 86 pre-service elementary teachers (52 female and 34 male). In the study, the quantitative research data were collected using the Attitude Scale for Mathematics Education Courses (ASMEC), and the qualitative data were collected using semi-structured interviews. For the analysis of the quantitative data, paired samples t-test was applied, and for the analysis of the qualitative data, content analysis was conducted. The results revealed that the training program given in line with TDS created a statistically significant difference between the pre-test and post-test scores of the pre-service elementary school teachers with respect to their attitudes towards courses of mathematics education (t(85)=-2.22, p=.029) and that there was no statistically significant difference in terms of gender, though (t(84)=.987, p=.327 and t(84)=1.108, p=.258). It was found that the training program given in accordance with TDS had a positive influence on changing and developing the attitudes of the pre-service elementary teachers towards mathematics education courses.

THE EFFECT OF INTELLIGENCE AND ACADEMIC SUCESS ON SELF-PERCEPTIONS OF PRIMARY SCHOOL STUDENTS

Müge Yüksel — 2019-10-05

The main aim of this study is to examine the relationship between intelligence levels, self-perception and academic achievement of fourth grade primary school students. The study was carried out with 36 students in a state school in Istanbul. In the study; demographic form containing the achievement scores of Turkish and Mathematics courses and personal information of the students, Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised-WISC-R and Piers-Harris Children’s Self Concept Scale were applied. As a result of the findings, it can be said that the gender variable in the 4th grade students of elementary school is not related to the self-perception and academic achievement. In addition, it was found that intelligence score was related to mathematics scores at a high level, related to Turkish scores at a low level. However, there was no significant relationship between intelligence scores and self-concept. It was also shown that the achievement of Turkish and mathematics lessons predicted the information subtest that represents long-term memory in the verbal section of WISC-R and the achievement of the mathematics course predicted digit symbol subtest (psychomotor coordination and speed) in the performance section of WISC-R. In the study, there was not found any effect of intelligence and academic success on children's self-concepts.

PROJECT SCHOOLS AS A SCHOOL-BASED MANAGEMENT MODEL

Mert Baştaş — 2019-10-05

Education is a very expensive investment with high opportunity costs. Efforts for attaining schools with intended quality top the agenda of world nations’ education plans and programs. Turkish Ministry of National Education has also made several reforms to increase the quality of education. The latest reform made in the field of educational management model has been the project schools developed with various innovations. Including school principals into the teachers’ selection process can be regarded as the new aspect of school-based management. Sharing authority to choose teachers with school principals is a brand new approach for the Turkish National Education system. This study aims to detect reflections of project schools’ structural and managerial features in practice and depends on the qualitative method, including observation and interviewing techniques. The research sample comprises 15 Imam Hatip High Schools located in Istanbul in 2018-2019 Education Year and 23 teachers working in these schools. “Semi-structured Interview Questionnaire” was utilized for scaling. According to research results, we conclude that teachers in project schools are satisfied with the new education model. There seems to be a total increase in teachers’ efficiency in addition to higher teacher performances, due to the teams built under the leadership of school principals.

Keywords: Project School, School-Based Management, Leadership, Teamwork

USE OF FILM SCRIPTS AND THEIR TRANSLATIONS IN TEACHING ENGLISH AS A FOREIGN LANGUAGE

Buğra Zengin — 2019-10-05

Although millions of EFL learners benefit from watching subtitled/captioned movies and TV shows in non-instructional settings, one almost untouched area is the development of strategies in benefiting from film scipts and their translated versions as well as audio language-subtitle combinations. This paper reports research subseqent to the researcher/teacher’s guided work on the use of film scripts and their translated versions to notice and list chunks as well as technical and creative use of language in these scripts with their immediate contexts comparing the original scripts and those translated in Turkish and do creative dialogue/anecdote writing focusing on appropriacy and variety in language use despite some students’ self-reported lack of focus on the jargons and formal language. The research was conducted with 1-5 Likert type questionnaires and closed-ended yes/no questions. The participants, the students of the research/teacher of the present paper, are the undergraduate students taking advanced language skills course as part of the curriculum of their major, the English language and literature. The results demonstrated that the film scripts can be used to convert the input provided by the film scripts to intake and uptake, and provide good examples regarding the application of own language use in ELT.

THE PERCEPTION OF SCIENCE TEACHERS ON SOCIO-SCIENTIFIC ISSUES AND TEACHING THEM

Nurhan Öztürk — 2019-10-05

The present research aimed to analyse the perception of science teachers on socio-scientific issues and teaching them. The study group of the research consists of 22 science teachers (14 females, 8 males) working in 7 secondary schools in Sinop, who were determined according to the convenience sampling method. The case study as one of the qualitative research designs was adopted. The data source of the research consists of a questionnaire on teaching socio-scientific issues. The data of the research were obtained through focus group discussions and observation notes. The data obtained from the research were analysed according to the content analysis technique. As a result of the research, it was found out that most of the science teachers had not heard of the concept of SSI (socio-scientific issues) before. It was seen that teachers who did not have knowledge about SSI generally defined it as scientific issues that concern society and had difficulty in giving examples. It was determined that most of the teachers did not know to which learning area in the science curriculum SSI belonged. Teachers who stated that they mostly use the direct instruction, case study and discussion methods in the teaching of SSI in science course emphasised that the SSI teaching process makes positive contributions to the development of student skills like critical thinking, decision making and communication.

Key words: Socio-scientific issues, teaching socio-scientific subjects, science teacher, science curriculum

CONTRIBUTION OF THE ELP USE ON LEARNING TURKISH AS A FOREIGN LANGUAGE

Burcu Ak Şentürk — 2019-10-05

The study explored the contribution of the European Language Portfolio (ELP) on students' attitudes towards learning Turkish. The study was carried out with 30 foreign students studying at Bartın University the Language Education and Instruction Application and Research Center in the 2018-2019 academic year. The data collection instrument used in this study was semi-structured interviews which were administered to thirty students and an attitude survey designed on a five-point Likert scale with 43 items.

The analysis of the interviews indicated that the ELP can boost self-assessment and as a consequence, the students support having more positive attitudes towards learning Turkish. Additionally, it was declared that the students felt positive towards the ELP. And also according to the results of the questionnaires, they had positive attitudes towards learning Turkish since the purpose of their learning is to survive in Turkey and to pursue their education and career.

Furthermore, the findings of the study indicated the students admitted that the ELP was a tool for self-assessment; however since the students were learning Turkish, they sometimes had some problems comprehending the sentences which later turned into an advantage giving them a chance to practice their Turkish.

A COMPREHENSIVE EVALUATION OF PRACTICUM EXPERIENCE: FROM THE VIEWPOINT OF PRESERVICE EFL TEACHERS

Gülten Koşar — 2019-10-05

Practicum is regarded to be a pivotal component of initial teacher education program and such a considerable significance taken on by practicum necessitates more research regardless of the abundance of research on it. This case study explores a) how eight preservice EFL teachers (PEFLTs) evaluated the overall effectiveness of the practicum they took in the last term of the English language teacher education program they were enrolled in, b) the impact of keeping diaries and filling out self-evaluation forms on their professional learning, c) to what extent the courses offered at the program supported them in real teaching, and d) what they would change in the structure of practicum if they had the chance to do so. The results yielded by the inductive analysis of the data drawn from focus group interviews, the data from diaries and self-evaluation forms showed that PEFLTs deemed practicum experience crucial for both their professional learning and putting subject knowledge into practice while stating a set of negative experiences they had in practicum. The findings also reported that reflecting on practicum experiences helped them enhance their professional learning. Besides, the courses taken at university were not recognized as adequate to prepare PEFLTs for real teaching.

VALIDITY AND RELIABILITY STUDY OF THE SCALE TO BE USED IN AUDITING TURKISH LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE TEACHERS

Emine Yağcı — 2019-10-05

The objective of this study is to develop a scale related to the auditing criteria of Turkish language and literature teachers. The study group consisted of 120 Turkish language and literature teachers who were working in Northern Cyprus. Exploratory (EFA) and confirmatory (CFA) factor analysis were performed to determine the construct validity of the scale. As a result of the EFA, a two-factor structure emerged, namely field knowledge competences and proficiency in professions. The variance rate explained by two factors was 54.00%. This structure was confirmed by DFA; A 5-point Likert-type scale with 2 factors and 27 items was developed. The goodness of fit indexes calculated by CFA are as follows: 762 / SD = 2.011, GFI = .903, RMSEA = .076, CFI = .901, NFI = .849. An examination of the reliability analysis results of the score showed that the Cronbach’s Alpha internal consistency coefficient of the scale was 0.94. The Spearman-Brown Coefficient and the Guttman Split-Half Coefficient were both found to be 0.79. When the item-total correlation coefficients were examined, it was determined that the correlation coefficients of the scale items with the total ranged between 0.48 and 0.70. Resultantly, it is thought that the scale related to the criteria of the Turkish Language and Literature Teachers' Audit Criteria developed in this research will resolve a significant deficiency in the literature.

VIEWPOINTS AND SELF-EFFICACY OF TEACHERS PARTICIPATED IN PROJECT TRAINING TOWARDS PROJECT-BASED LEARNING

Semra Mirici — 2019-10-05

This research focuses on how teachers’ self-efficacy changes as a result of a project consultancy training and their views on project-based learning. The study group of the research consists of 47 teachers working in Ministry of National Education who participated in “2237 coded Project Consultancy Trainer Training” program organized in 2019 in cooperation with The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK) and Ministry of Education. In this research, mixed method was used in which qualitative and quantitative data were used together. In the quantitative stage of the research a semi-experimental design without a control group; in the qualitative stage, a case study was adopted. As the data collection tool, “Self-efficacy scale related to project based teaching” developed by Mutlu and Yildiz Fidan (2018) and “Teacher view form related to project based teaching” developed by the researchers were used. As a result of the study, it was concluded that there was a statistically significant increase between the pre-test and post-test scores. In addition, it was determined that there was no significant difference according to the variables of gender, branch and making project status. From the teachers' views on project-based teaching, the most difficult stage of the project was “finding a project subject”; and it was understood that “writing reports” was the stage that they thought they could easily do while they were doing the project. However, it was found that the views of teachers such as “my deficiencies were completed” and “my self-confidence / motivation increased” were formed as a result of the training.