Sarıçoban G. (2018). Views of elementary education students at tertiary level about the methods and techniques used in Atatürk’s principles and revolution course. International Online Journal of Education and Teaching (IOJET), 5(4), 934-941. http://iojet.org/index.php/IOJET/article/view/482/303 Received: 01.07.2018 Received in revised form: 13.08.2018 Accepted: 01.09.2018 VIEWS OF ELEMENTARY EDUCATION STUDENTS AT TERTIARY LEVEL ABOUT THE METHODS AND TECHNIQUES USED IN ATATÜRK’S PRINCIPLES AND REVOLUTION COURSE Research Article Gülay Sarıçoban Hacettepe University gulaysaricoban@gmail.com Gülay Sarıçoban is an instructor at Institute of Ataturk’s Principles and History of Turkish Revolution. She has published in various national and international journals and presented in various conferences. Copyright by Informascope. Material published and so copyrighted may not be published elsewhere without the written permission of IOJET. mailto:gulaysaricoban@gmail.com https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9309-8363 Sarıçoban 934 VIEWS OF ELEMENTARY EDUCATION STUDENTS AT TERTIARY LEVEL ABOUT THE METHODS AND TECHNIQUES USED IN ATATÜRK’S PRINCIPLES AND REVOLUTION COURSE Gülay Sarıçoban gulaysaricoban@gmail.com Abstract This study examines elementary education department students’ view about the methods and techniques generally preferred by their instructors in teaching The History of Atatürk’s Principles and Revolution I and II courses. For the purpose of the study, the questionnaire (r=.90), investigating the methodological and technical skills of instructors, developed by Çelikkaya and Kuş (2009) has been administered to 1st (n=105) and 4th (n=123) year elementary education students in the faculty of education at a public university. Descriptive statistics has been used to analyze the data about the views of the elementary education students who participated in the study about The History of Atatürk’s Principles and Revolution I and II courses in terms of use of methods and techniques used by the instructors. Relying on the findings obtained at the end of the study, the participants reported generally negative views about their instructors’ methods and techniques in The History of Atatürk’s Principles and Revolution course, however, they draw attention to the points such as use of technological aids, students’ presentations, feedback, opportunity projects, opportunity for students asking and answering questions both by the instructor and their peers, forming group works, and letting discussions in the classroom about the topics under discussions. Keywords: Teachers’ perceptions and experiences, teaching, learning, history of Atatürk’s principles and revolution, tertiary education 1. Introduction The ideal realization of methodological and technical knowledge in the classroom context in any field of study is the result of knowledge transfer through a sound teaching and learning activities. Therefore, “an effective pedagogy includes the content elements and the strategy for presenting that content; how the elements are assembled to construct a scaffold for learning based on the principles of cognitive psychology, and finally how to evaluate whether that process is working as intended and leading to increased learning” (https://www.csusm.edu/ids/course-design-and-instruction/teaching-methods-and-techniques/ index.html). It has been a fact that during lectures especially in our case the instructors usually teach, while students take note down or listen without taking any notes down. Thus, students are usually passive participants of these courses at the tertiary level. However, some instructors try to change this classroom climate in such a way that requires students’ presentations in order to make them active participants of the courses and discuss the topics under discussion. Similarly, in today’s classroom settings instructional technologies are believed to transform teaching and learning in most powerful contexts via "learner-centered" or "active learning" that are considered the core of social constructivist theory by Vygotsky (1978) in which students assume responsibility and perform tasks through role plays. They engage, apply, synthesize and understand. It has become an unavoidable fact that this active learning style makes students active participants of classroom learning. mailto:gulaysaricoban@gmail.com International Online Journal of Education and Teaching (IOJET) 2018, 5(4), 934-941. 935 Active learning is all about meaningful learning activities in which students are required to apply the core concepts and engage with the course content. In that sense collaborative learning, cooperative learning or problem-based learning are the most favored ones by instructors. Cooperative learning is a teaching strategy classroom teachers use to help their students process information more quickly by having them work in small groups to accomplish a common goal. Each member that is in the group is responsible for learning the information given, and also for helping their fellow group members learn the information as well (Cox, 2017). Collaborative learning is based on the view that knowledge is a social construct in which the learner or student is the primary focus of instruction. The interaction and "doing" are of primary importance through group works. Solutions to real-world problems should be incorporated into learning. That is, collaborative techniques include Team Based Learning (TBL) and structured inquiry (Cox, 2017). Problem-Based Learning (PBL) presents open-ended problems with no one “right" answer for the students. However, the problems should relate to their real life challenges, in other word, these problems should be context specific. As to the roles of students, they should act as active investigators and problem-solvers in small collaborative groups (Reigeluth & Squire, 1998; Shepardson, 1999; Stage et al, 1998) and more importantly they should direct their own learning. They should be given a specific problem from their real life experiences and set free to find their own solution. At this vein, the instructors should act as facilitators, guides, and create an environment of inquiry in such a way that students should apply knowledge to new situations to come up with meaningful solutions. Solely, students develop their critical thinking skills, thus become creative, which will increase their motivation and develop positive attitudes towards learning a foreign language by solving their own problems in that language. Under the highlights of the above realities, this current study has an ultimate aim to investigate the following questions; 1. What are the views of the elementary education students who participated in the study about The History of Atatürk’s Principles and Revolution course in terms of the use of methods and techniques used by the instructors? 2. What are the most favored methods and techniques in The History of Atatürk’s Principles and Revolution course? 3. Is there a statistically significant difference between the participants’ views about the methods and techniques used in The History of Atatürk’s Principles and Revolution course in terms of; a. Gender, b. Age, and c. Years of study. 2. Method 2.1. Research Design The present study is a descriptive study and employs a survey research design. Sarıçoban 936 2.2. The Participants In the current study the participants are those undergraduate students who study in the department of elementary education at a public university in Turkey. A total of 228 tertiary level undergraduate students has participated in this study. 193 out of 228 are females and the rest 35 are males. They range in age between 17 and 21-and over. 91 of them range in age from 17 to 20, which is the first group and 137 of them are 21 and over. Of the 228 participants, 105 of them are first year students who have been offered The History of Atatürk’s Principles and Revolution I and the rest 123 are fourth year students who have taken The History of Atatürk’s Principles and Revolution II. 2.3. The Questionnaire The ultimate aim of this study is to scrutinize elementary education department students’ view about the methods and techniques generally preferred by their instructors in teaching The History of Atatürk’s Principles and Revolution course. In addition to this, the current study also specifically investigates the instructors’ knowledge of methodology, their practical skills of using methods, knowledge and use of technology, and awareness levels of interest and needs through a descriptive method. To do so, a questionnaire (r=.90), investigating the methodological and technical skills of instructors, developed by Çelikkaya and Kuş (2009) has been administered to 1st and 4th year elementary education students in the faculty of education at a public university. The reliability level of the current study is r=.91. It consists of instructors’ perceptions and experiences on teaching history at tertiary level in Turkey in terms of teaching methods and techniques. The questionnaire with a 5-point Likert type consists of 29 items about the following methods and techniques utilized by the lecturers of this course. These are; 1. Lecturing (Items 8, 9) 2. Question-answer (Items 7, 11, 17, 19) 3. Field trip (Item 3) 4. Project work (Item 4) 5. Debates/discussions (Items 5, 22, 27, 28) 6. Demonstration (23) 7. Case study (14) 8. Drama/role play (Items 1, 13, 24) 9. Problem solving (Items 20) 10. Group work (Items 10, 11. Brain storming (Item 25) 12. Individual work (Item 16) 13. Using Realia/real (source) people (Items 6, 15) 14. Concept mapping (Item 29) 15. Use of technology (Items 12) 16. Note taking (Item 2) 17. Summary (Item 26) 18. Critical Thinking Skills (Item 21) 19. Using visual aids (Item 18) 3. Data Analysis and Discussion In this part the first three research questions that have been formulated in line with the ultimate purpose of the current study are highlighted together as in the following. International Online Journal of Education and Teaching (IOJET) 2018, 5(4), 934-941. 937 1. What are the views of the elementary education students who participated in the study about The History of Atatürk’s Principles and Revolution course in terms of the use of methods and techniques used by the instructors? 2. What are the most favored methods and techniques in The History of Atatürk’s Principles and Revolution course? Descriptive statistics has been used to analyze the data about the views of the elementary education students who participated in the study about The History of Atatürk’s Principles and Revolution I and II courses in terms of the use of methods and techniques used by the instructors. As to the views of the elementary education students about their lecturers offering these courses, it is seen in Table 1 that the participants seem not to have reported positive views about the issue in general (M=2,59). However, for some specific points they seem to have favorable attitudes. For instance they have reported favorable attitudes towards the use of technological aids (M=3,99) by their lecturers, students presentations and instructor feedback for the missing points about their presentations (M=3,77), providing students with projects and opportunity to present them in the classroom (M=3,70), giving opportunities to students to ask questions to the instructor and their peers and get answers (M=3,65), form study groups (group work) with two or more students (M=3,51), and provide group discussions (M=3,50). Table 1. Students’ views about the methods and techniques used in the History of Atatürk’s Principles and Revolution Course N Minimum Maximum Mean SD 1. Uses games in his/her teaching 228 1 5 1.62 1.110 2. Has students take notes down 228 1 5 2.12 1.096 3. Organizes field trips 228 1 5 1.43 .909 4. Provides students with projects and gives them the opportunity to present them 228 1 5 3.70 1.213 5. Forms discussion groups 228 1 5 3.50 1.113 6. Invites experts to the classroom for some specific topics 228 1 5 1.44 .861 7. Has question-answer drills 228 1 5 3.25 1.171 8.Lectures and students only listen 228 1 5 2.39 1.181 9.Assign students with presentations and gives feedback for the missing points 228 1 5 3.77 1.107 10. Forms small groups for collaborative study 228 1 5 3.34 1.394 11. Asks questions to develop students’ critical thinking skills 228 1 5 2.71 1.169 12. Makes use of technological aids such as computers, projectors, video, cd, and etc. 228 1 5 3.99 1.103 13. Allows students to role play a case in the classroom 228 1 5 1.68 1.086 14. Narrate the historical events like a story 228 1 5 2.18 1.170 15. Has students prepare and make their own materials such as maps, globes, etc. 228 1 5 1.76 1.113 16. Gives homework for individual study 228 1 5 3.14 1.278 17. Uses test questions to clarify the topics under discussion 228 1 5 1.71 1.093 18. Uses visual materials such as maps, graphics, tables, etc. 228 1 5 2.50 1.292 19. Gives opportunities to students ask questions to both himself/herself and their peers. 228 1 5 3.65 1.160 20. Brings a real life problem into the classroom and asks students to solve it in the classroom. 228 1 5 2.48 1.278 Sarıçoban 938 21. Gives students the opportunity to produce new ideas about a topic and express their opinions about it. 228 1 5 3.22 1.309 22. Forms a small group and lets this group share their ideas with others. 228 1 5 3.29 1.378 23. Gives students the opportunity to act out (dramatization) in front of the class. 228 1 5 1.88 1.221 24. Asks students act out some important characters and narrate the events as if they were those characters. 228 1 5 1.66 1.052 25. Assigns students a topic and asks them to state their own opinions on it in a short time (10-15mins). 228 1 5 2.38 1.269 26. Has students summarize the topic 228 1 5 1.83 1.195 27. Improves students’ knowledge through discussions. 228 1 5 2.89 1.313 28. Forms study groups of two or more students. 228 1 5 3.51 1.352 29. Lectures through mind mapping. 228 1 5 2.06 1.215 TOTAL 228 2.59 In addition to the above findings the researcher felt the need for further analysis. In that sense she has decided to check the mean scores in-between 3.00 and 3.49 which can still be considered that the participants have almost mild favorable attitudes towards such items as forming small groups for collaborative study (M=3,34), forming a small group and letting this group share their ideas with others (M=3,29), establishing a question-answer session for their students to give them the opportunity to pose questions for clarifications (M=3,25), giving students the opportunity to produce new ideas about a topic and express their opinions about it (M=3,22), and giving homework for individual study (M=3,14). 3. Is there a statistically significant difference between the participants’ views about the methods and techniques used in The History of Atatürk’s Principles and Revolution courses in terms of gender, age, and years of study. Independent sample t-test has been run in order to see if there is a statistically significant difference between the participants’ views about the methods and techniques used in The History of Atatürk’s Principles and Revolution course in terms of age, gender, and year of study. A careful analysis of Table 2, Table 3, and Table 4 below report no statistically significant difference between the participants’ views about the methods and techniques used in The History of Atatürk’s Principles and Revolution course in terms of age, gender, and year of study. Therefore, it can be said that gender does not play an important role in that issue. Both male and female instructors’ choice and use of methods and techniques do not differ to a great extent. International Online Journal of Education and Teaching (IOJET) 2018, 5(4), 934-941. 939 Table 2. Independent samples test for gender Levene's Test for Equality of Variances t-test for Equality of Means F Sig. t df Sig. (2- tailed) Mean Difference Std. Error Difference 95% Confidence Interval of the Difference Lower Upper Variable Mean Equal variances assumed 1.289 .257 -.146 226 .884 -.017 .118 -.249 .215 Equal variances not assumed -.161 51.622 .873 -.017 .107 -.232 .198 Table 3. Independent samples test for Age Levene's Test for Equality of Variances t-test for Equality of Means F Sig. t df Sig. (2- tailed) Mean Difference Std. Error Difference 95% Confidence Interval of the Difference L Lower Upper Variable Mean Equal variances assumed .563 .454 -.805 226 .422 -.070 .086 -.240 .101 Equal variances not assumed -.812 198.618 .418 -.070 .086 -.239 .099 Table 4. Independent samples test for year of study Levene's Test for Equality of Variances t-test for Equality of Means F Sig. t df Sig. (2- tailed) Mean Difference Std. Error Difference 95% Confidence Interval of the Difference Lower Upper Variable Mean Equal variances assumed 2.965 .088 -.693 102 .490 -.160 .231 -.619 .299 Equal variances not assumed -.531 7.636 .611 -.160 .302 -.862 .542 4. Conclusion and Recommendations The ultimate purpose of the current study is to scrutinize the elementary education department students’ view about the methods and techniques generally favored by the lecturers of The History of Atatürk’s Principles and Revolution II and II courses in their departmental studies. For this aim, a questionnaire, developed by Çelikkaya and Kuş (2009), that investigates the methodological and technical skills of these lecturers has been Sarıçoban 940 administered to 1st and 4th year elementary education students in the faculty of education at a public university. It consists of instructors’ perceptions and experiences on teaching history at tertiary level in Turkey in terms of teaching methods and techniques. Relying on the findings obtained at the end of the study, the participants have reported generally negative views about their instructors’ methods and techniques in The History of Atatürk’s Principles and Revolution course, however, they favor the use of technological aids, students’ presentations, feedback, opportunity for projects, opportunity for students to ask and answer questions both by their lecturers and their peers. They form study groups and let discussions in the classroom about the topics under discussions. Last but not least they have also indicated that their lecturers form small groups for collaborative studies and let them share their ideas with others, establish a question-answer session for their students to give them the opportunity to pose questions for clarifications, giving students the opportunity to produce new ideas about a topic and express their opinions about it, and give homework for individual studies. It is recommended that the lecturers offering these courses at the tertiary level should bring a real life problem into the classroom and ask students to solve or share their own ideas about it in the classroom. They should invite subject area experts to the classroom for some specific topics, narrate the historical events like a story for retention (not have the students memorize the events), and have students summarize the topic at the end of each lesson. As a result, students should be encouraged to act in collaborative groups for testing ideas against alternative views and the use of alternative and primary sources for information as is stated by Shepardson (1999); Sage and Torp (1997); Domin, (1999); and DeVires and Zan, (1995) for constructivist model of learning. International Online Journal of Education and Teaching (IOJET) 2018, 5(4), 934-941. 941 References Cox, J. (2017). Cooperative learning tips and techniques. Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/cooperative-learning-tips-and-techniques-2081730 Çelikkaya, T. & Kuş, Z. (2009). Methods and techniques utilized by social sciences teachers. Uludağ University Journal of Faculty of Education, 22(2), 2009, 741-758 Instructional Development Services. Retrieved from https://www.csusm.edu/ids/course- design-and-instruction/teaching-methods-and-techniques / index.html DeVires, R., & Zan, B. (1995). Creating a constructivist classroom atmosphere. Young Children, 51(11), 4-13. 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