This study mainly aims to determine the effect of the layered curriculum on the 6th grade students’ learning styles in science lesson. The study group consists of students in the 6/A and 6/D at Fevzi Cakmak Secondary School in the city center of Siirt-Turkey in the academic year of 2015-2016. “Learning Styles Inventory” developed by Kolb and translated into Turkish by Askar and Akkoyunlu, diaries of students and semi-structured interview form developed by researchers and examination of the documents were used as data collection tools. As for data analysis, percent (%) and chi-square techniques were used to determine the learning styles of students, but in the analysis of students’ opinions the descriptive analysis was used. During the study, students were also asked to express their experiences and considerations about learning activities via a diary. The thoughts and feelings reflected in the diaries of students were directly quoted in findings. As a result of the analysis, in pre-test results of the students in the experimental group exposed to the layered curriculum, a significant difference was found in terms of gender; however, no significant difference was found in their post-test results.

Child maltreatment is a serious problem, worldwide. Children and young people who have experienced maltreatment face multiple physical and mental health challenges which hinder their success at school and these adverse experiences makes them more challenging to teach than their non-maltreated peers. Increasingly, teachers are considered as an important part of the wider the child protection workforce as they are well-placed to intervene and prevent further harm. To fulfil this role effectively, teachers require requisite training beginning in initial teacher education programs. This paper is a protocol for a systematic scoping review that asks: “What is known about preservice/initial teacher education for child protection?”  Systematic scoping reviews are worthwhile and necessary in fields where research is diverse and needing of synthesis to identify strengths in the body of evidence and identify gaps to set new research directions. We will draw on Askey and O’Malley’s six-stage scoping review methodology to assess the scope, range, and nature of research activity on this topic. We will add an innovative seventh stage involving a commitment to disseminating and applying knowledge generated from the review. The research question has been established, and key terms defined (Stage 1). The search strategy has been devised, and searches have been run (Stage 2). Round 1 screening of titles and abstracts is completed and full text screening is currently in progress (Stage 3). To our knowledge this is the first attempt to systematically map the empirical literature on child protection in pre-service teacher education. When completed, this systematic scoping review will offer a comprehensive, transparent, and replicable way to assess the full scope of empirical research on this important topic of utmost educational relevance.

This research was conducted to investigate the predictive role of homophobia and unconditional self-acceptance on respect of differences in psychological counselor candidates. Participants were 239 psychological counselor candidates. The Respect of Differences Scale, the Homophobia Scale, and the Unconditional Self-Acceptance Scale were used to collect the data. Path analysis was used to determine the influences of variables on respect of differences. The independent sample t-test and one-way ANOVA were used to determine differences between participants in terms of gender and grade. The results of the analysis indicated that homophobia and unconditional self-acceptance are predictors of respect of differences, and place of living and traditionally have an indirect effect on respect of differences. In addition, female participants reported a higher level of respect of differences than male participants. Similarly, first year college students reported a higher level of respect of differences than fourth year college students.

In general, teacher educators are considered to be educational specialists whose main task is to communicate content-based concepts to prospective teachers. However, unfortunately, most studies on teacher professional development overlook this specific language-oriented aspect of content-based teaching. Therefore, we address the aforementioned research gap and argue that teacher educators’ evaluation of their language-oriented performance in educational communication enhances the quality of their content-based teaching. Accordingly, we examine how the language-oriented performance of teacher educators is evaluated by both individual teacher educators (sample size N=3) and their students (N=32) in a small-scale intervention study. The findings of the study reveal that there is a relationship between the order of application of five language focus areas (i.e., language awareness, active listening, formalizing interaction, language support, and language and learning development, as noticed by the students), and teacher educators’ ability to apply these areas in accordance with their objectives related to content-based teaching.

The purpose of this study was to investigate a predictive power of prospective teachers’ self-efficacy sources on their teaching self-efficacy and attitude towards the teaching profession. Design of the study was the correlational research. The study was conducted on 315 prospective teachers studying pedagogical formation education in a 2017-18 academic year. Instruments were “Prospective Teachers’ Self-Efficacy Sources Scale”, “Teaching Self-Efficacy Scale” and “Attitude Scale of Teaching Profession”. Pearson Product Moment Correlation Coefficient and PATH analysis methods were used to analyze the data. Results indicated that emotional states, mastery experience, and verbal persuasion were significant predictors of prospective teachers’ teaching self-efficacy and attitudes towards teaching profession. 

The aim of the study is to examine the pre-service teachers’ problem solving skills and curiosity levels according to different variables and to determine whether there is a relationship between them. The research was designed as a descriptive study in the survey model. The sample of the study consists of 1st and 4th grade pre-service teachers in the departments of German, Science, English, Mathematics, Music, Pre-school, Painting, English, Mathematics, Turkish Language Teaching at a university in Turkey. “Curiosity Scale” adapted into Turkish by Demirel and Diker Coskun, “Problem Solving Inventory” adapted into Turkish by Sahin, Sahin and Heppner  and “Personal Information Form” prepared by the researcher were used as data collection tools. In the analysis of the data obtained, SPSS-Windows 22.00 package program was used and descriptive statistics and parametric tests were applied in accordance with the sub-problems of the study. In addition, a correlation analysis was conducted to determine whether there was a relationship between pre-service teachers’ problem solving skills and curiosity levels. Based on the findings, suggestions about the problem solving skills and curiosity levels of the prospective teachers were presented.

The current study investigated the opinions of secondary school students taking the science course from different science teachers about the science course and science teachers. The current study was conducted with the participation of 32 students instructed by different science teachers and attending different secondary schools in the fall term of 2018-2019 academic year. The data of the current study were collected by means of semi-structured interviews. In the analysis of the data, the descriptive analysis technique was used. The findings of the current study have revealed that high majority of the students love their science classes and science teachers, that in science classes, lecturing, question-answer and note-taking are methods widely employed, that if there is a smart board in the class, then Okulistik or EBA computer program is on, that the assignments given are from the textbook, that the most frequently adopted behavior by the teachers in the face of any discipline problem is warning and that informal learning environments are not used much. Moreover, it was found that projects are rarely assigned to students and the projects assigned are given as homework. A great majority of the students expect their teachers to be entertaining, they want their lessons to be instructed through games and experiments, and they do not want to write a lot in their classes.

In this study, it was aimed to investigate the relationship between the art interests and critical thinking dispositions of the students who study fine arts education in the faculty of education. The sample of the research consisted of 236 fine arts education students including 123 from the department of painting teaching and 113 from the department of music education. In the research, relational survey method was used. It was found in the research that the art interests of the students were at the level that can be considered as good. In addition, it was noticed that the average scores of critical thinking dispositions of the students were at moderate level. One of the findings obtained from the study was that there was no significant difference between the scores of art interest and critical thinking according to gender. Another finding was that art interests of the students in the music department were significantly higher compared with the scores of the students in the department of art education. In addition, a positive moderate level of relationship was found between the art interest and critical thinking, analyticity, inquisitiveness sub-dimensions; significantly low positive relationship with self-confidence, systematicity, searching truth and cognitive maturity sub-dimensions.

Contemporary educational reforms, both in the fields of science and mathematics, highlight the importance of pre-service teachers’ preparation with regard to several meaningful standards. However, teachers’ own self-confidence in science and mathematics teaching are likely to influence their efforts. Framed within a growing body of research focusing on pre-service teachers’ efficacy beliefs in science and mathematics teaching, the present study attempts to investigate Greek pre-service primary teachers’ efficacy beliefs in science and mathematics teaching; and further examine whether there is a relationship between the two. Participants comprised 171 pre-service primary teachers, who were in their second (n = 55), third (n = 64) or fourth year (n = 52) of study and the majority were female (n = 148). Pre-service teachers were asked to complete a questionnaire consisting of the Science Teaching Efficacy Belief Instrument - Form B (STEBI-B) and the Mathematics Teaching Efficacy Belief Instrument (MTEBI). Principal component analyses and reliability analyses were performed for both instruments to examine their adaptation into Greek. According to the results, preservice teachers had medium to high scores in the personal efficacy and outcome expectancy scales, for both science and mathematics teaching. Minor differences in pre-service teachers’ scores were detected according to their year of study. Furthermore, pre-service teachers’ efficacy beliefs in science were strongly correlated with their efficacy beliefs in mathematics. In general, although pre-service teachers appeared to be confident and well-prepared to teach science and mathematics in classrooms, more effort is required to put the international education reform standards into practice.

In this study, it is aimed to examine the relationship between prospective teachers' occupational anxiety and technological pedagogical content knowledge. Correlational model was used in this study. The participants consisted of 481 prospective teachers studying at Sakarya University Faculty of Education in the spring term of 2018-2019 academic year. Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge Scale (TPACKS) and Occupational Anxiety Scale (OAS) were used as data collection instruments. As a result of canonical correlation analysis, it was determined that technological pedagogical content knowledge affects occupational anxiety by 62%.

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effects of Instructional Technologies and Material Design (ITMD) course on pre-service mathematics teachers’ attitudes, efficacy beliefs about using concrete materials, and their opinions regarding the material preparation process. A total of 73 pre-service teachers were participated in this study. The scale developed by Bakkaloglu was used to determine efficacy beliefs of pre-service teachers about using concrete materials, and the attitudes scale developed by Cetin, Bagceci, Kinay and Simsek was used to determine the attitudes towards ITMD course. A written form was also used to reveal the opinions of pre-service teachers regarding the material preparation process. The qualitative data collected from 16 pre-service teachers was analyzed with the MAXQDA. Using content analysis, codes and themes were created separately by the researchers and analyzed through several iterations. As a result of this study, positive changes were found in the attitudes and efficacy beliefs of pre-service teachers. The results obtained from the opinions of the pre-service teachers support this positive change. In other words, it is possible to argue that the attitudes of pre-service teachers towards the material development process changed positively with the positive change in the efficacy beliefs about preparing materials after taking the ITMD course.

This research aims to reveal the first-year experiences of social studies teachers who have just started their profession in the public sector. Also, it aims to reveal what awaits teachers in the school environment and the current experiences of teachers at the beginning of the profession. Case study design, one of the qualitative research designs, was used in the study. The study group of the research consists of 34 social studies teachers working in secondary schools affiliated to the Ministry of National Education (Turkey) in the districts of Ankara. Participants were selected on an equal basis from all districts of Ankara province. Purposeful sampling, one of the non-random sampling methods was used in determining participants. In addition, criterion sampling was also used in the purposeful sampling phase. The obtained data were subjected to the content and descriptive analysis. As a result of the research, following the latest changes and developments and developing their basic knowledge and skills seems important for teachers who started their profession in the public sector. The multidisciplinary of the social studies branch, attractivity, and the fact that there are no alternatives comes to the fore in teachers' decision-making process to become social studies teachers. In addition, teachers participating in the research suggested to new teachers that they should master their fields, maintain their personal development, get to know the target group, and maintain strong communication in school.

In the current study, the problems posed by pre-service primary school teachers within the context of semi-structured problem formation were analyzed according to their type, cognitive structure, and content knowledge. A total of 134 pre-service primary school teachers attending a state university in Turkey participated in the current study designed in line with the case study design. The pre-service teachers were presented with a table and they were asked to establish a problem suitable for the elementary level using the data given in the table. The data were collected through the established problem statements and written explanations of the participants. The collected data were analyzed by using both content and descriptive analyses. The findings have revealed that the pre-service teachers less preferred real-life problems than routine type of problems and the problems at the level of reasoning than the problems at the levels of knowing and applying. Moreover, nearly half of the pre-service teachers erroneously expressed the grade level for which they established their problem. The results have shown that the pre-service teachers do not adequately use real-life problems and problems at the level of reasoning and that there are deficiencies in their mathematical content knowledge depending on their knowledge of the curriculum.

This study examines the effects of the SCAMPER technique-based educational activities in the simple machines unit of a science lesson on students' academic achievement, motivation and attitude. The study examines the effects of the simple machines unit activities in the science lesson through a paired quasi-experimental design, which is one of the quantitative research methods. The sample group of the research consists of 33 eighth-grade students studying in a middle school in the Ortaköy district of the Aksaray province in 2018–2019. The research uses simple random sampling method. The experimental group was given SCAMPER-based activities in the simple machines unit for 4 hours a week with a total of 16 hours, and lessons were conducted with the control group in line with the curriculum. To collect data within the framework of the research, the 'attitude scale towards science lesson', scale for 'students' motivation towards science learning' and 'simple machines unit achievement test' were used. As a result, when compared to the control group, there was a significant difference in the academic achievement and motivation of the experimental group who performed SCAMPER-based activities in the simple machines unit of the science lesson. There was no significant difference between the attitude scores of the experimental and control group as a result of the study.

The purpose of the current study is to determine pre-service teachers’ perception of individual entrepreneurship and opinions about their critical thinking tendency. As the data collection tools, the Individual Entrepreneurship Perception Scale and the Marmara Creative Thinking Tendencies Scale were used in the current study. The participants of the study are 469 freshman, sophomore, junior and senior students attending the Departments of Pre-school Teacher Education and Primary School Teacher Education. In the analysis of the collected data, frequencies, percentages, independent samples t-test, Mann Whitney U test and correlation analysis were employed. The findings obtained from the analyses have revealed that the pre-service teachers’ individual entrepreneurship perceptions and creative thinking tendencies vary significantly depending on the variables of gender and whether they took a course/seminar on entrepreneurship. The pre-service teachers’ individual entrepreneurship perceptions and creative thinking tendencies were found to be not varying significantly depending on the department attended. The pre-service teachers’ personal entrepreneurship perceptions and creative thinking tendencies were found to be above medium. A highly positive and significant correlation was found between the pre-service teachers’ individual entrepreneurship perception and creative thinking tendency total scores. The pre-service teachers can be encouraged to take the course “Economics and Entrepreneurship” and to participate in certificate programs on entrepreneurship.

Child Friendly School (CFS) is a democratic environment based on children's rights, where all students are accepted, teaching-learning processes are organized according to children's interest needs, health, safety and protective measures are taken for children and gender-based discrimination is not provided. Preschool education institutions, which are considered to be very effective on the future of the child and the society, should be child friendly in this way. The aim of this study is to identify the teaching-learning environment of independent kindergartens in the context of a child-friendly. The data of the study was obtained from the independent kindergarten in different socioeconomic environments with “CFS Diagnostic Form”. According to the results, it was seen that in terms of effectiveness, the physical areas and materials of the schools were sufficient, but the places and qualifications that increase the effectiveness of teaching were insufficient; in terms of inclusiveness, all children attend school without discrimination in terms of inclusiveness, but female students have low access to school; in terms of democratic participation, means are used to ensure communication with the environment, in terms of healthy, safe and protective environment, physical requirements are fulfilled, necessary measures are taken, but ventilation and out-of-school safety measures are not sufficient and in terms of gender sensitivity, there is no discrimination based on gender. It has been concluded that the independent kindergartens are largely child-friendly, despite some inadequacies.

The aim of this study was to investigate the digital literacy skills and metaphorical perceptions of teacher candidates. The mixed approach has been used in the analysis. The quantitative dimension of the study consists of the "Digital Literacy Scale" scores collected from the teacher candidates, and the qualitative component is made up of the metaphors they have developed about the definition of digital literacy. The study was carried out with 297 prospective teachers who are pursuing their education at the Faculty of Education in Turkey. When the results of the study were analyzed, it was found that there was no significant difference between the digital literacy scores of the teacher candidates and the departments in which they were trained, but there was a significant difference in the grade and device ownership variables. The definitions were reached as a result of the study of the metaphors that were grouped under the headings "vitality," "integrity," "guidance," "complexity", and "eternity."

Many educators hold beliefs that including students, at least to some degree, has academic and social benefits, however, they struggle with fundamental pedagogy. With a global shift from a segregated lens to that of an inclusive lens, special education teachers who once held positive beliefs towards segregated special education are now faced with a new reality of teaching students with disabilities in inclusive classroom settings. This paper highlights the experiences of ten educators who transitioned from teaching in a self-contained class to an inclusive class. Focus group and interview themes indicated that all had experienced a shift in their pedagogy- their overall beliefs and teaching methods- after they taught students with disabilities in inclusive classrooms. Despite their special education training, these educators were challenged by their own beliefs and expectations, the attitudes of others, and systematic barriers within the education system. Highlights of their change process include the positive performance of students with disabilities, the growth and development of the other students, and their overall pedagogical self-reflection. As a result, a framework, the Inclusive Educators’ Continuum of Change, was developed to highlight the change process and connect this research to the literature on inclusion and teacher change. This diagram can provide teacher educators a framework for discussing pedagogical change. Implications for professional development and teacher training for inclusive practice, as well as maximizing the educator skills in Professional Learning Communities (PLC) and mentorship opportunities will be highlighted.

This study aims to find out the attitude levels of the fourth grade primary school students towards science and to examine these attitudes according to some variables. The study is designed in descriptive survey model to reveal the present situation.  The data were collected through Attitude towards Science Scale, a three-point Likert scale developed by the researchers. A total of 562 students participated in the study. The findings of the study demonstrate that the students' attitudes towards science, which are based on two dimensions including scientific discovery and scientific curiosity, are positive. The students' attitudes towards science do not differ statistically according to their gender. However, their attitudes towards science show statistically significant differences according to whether the students follow a scientific magazine or not, whether they study at a public or private school, whether their mothers are a teacher or not and the educational level of their parents. It is believed that the results will contribute to raising generations with positive attitudes towards science.

The purpose of the current study is to evaluate the undergraduate programs implemented in different Foreign Language Departments on the basis of the pre-service teachers’ opinions by using the “Context-Input-Process-Product (CIPP)” model. The current research was conducted on 40 pre-service teachers from the German, Arabic, French, and English Language Teaching Departments of the Gazi Education Faculty of Gazi University in the city of Ankara in Turkey in 2017-2018 academic year. The study was designed according to the qualitative research model. In this regard, the study employed the phenomenological method. As the data collection tool, a semi-structured interview form developed by the researchers was used. In the analysis of the collected data, the descriptive analysis method was used. In the study, the context, input, process and product dimensions of foreign language teacher training programs were evaluated on the basis of student opinions. According to the results, the participants found the program sufficient in terms of reading, writing and listening skills but inadequate in terms of speaking skill. It seems that the participating students think that the foreign language teaching programs generally meet their needs but do not adequately meet their need for developing their speaking skill. It can be suggested that the class hours devoted to the development of the speaking skill should be increased. Arrangements such as using computer-based programs and increasing speaking lessons can be made for students to improve their speaking skill.