Özel Yetenekli Çocuklar ve Açık Hava Eğitimi: Kısa Süreli Açık Hava Eğitiminin Özel Yetenekli Öğrencilerin (Doğa) Algılamalarına Etkisi

Abstract

Bu makale Türkiye’deki özel yetenekli öğrencilerle yapılan disiplinlerarası bir doğa eğitimi etkinliğinin araştırma bulgularını sunmaktadır. Araştırmanın teorik çerçevesini açık hava etkinliklerinin özel yetenekli öğrenciler üzerindeki bilişsel ve sosyal etkisi oluşturmaktadır. Çalışmaya Türkiye’nin 15 ilinden 12-14 yaş arası 30 özel yetenekli öğrenci katılmıştır. Erciyes Dağında yedi gün konaklamalı olarak yapılan çalışmada açık havada deneysel öğrenme fırsatları sunan bilim, sanat ve sosyal aktiviteler içeren disiplinlerarası 28 farklı etkinlik yapılmıştır. Çalışmada nicel ve nitel yöntemlerin birlikte kullanıldığı karma yöntem tercih edilmiştir. Çalışma verilerinin toplanmasında, öğrenci görüşmeleri, bilişsel haritalama, ön test ve son test, resim çizme ve hikaye yazma gibi farklı teknikler kullanılmıştır. Veri analizinde, deneysel yöntem ve içerik analizinden yararlanılmıştır. Araştırma sonucunda, özel yetenekli öğrencilerin etkinliklerde öğrendikleri yeni kavram ve fikirleri çizimlerinde, hikâyelerinde başarıyla kullandıkları ve uygulamaya yönelik çevre bilgilerinde artış olduğu görülmüştür. Öğrenciler yapılan etkinliklerden keyif aldıklarını, açık hava uygulamalarının, araştırma ve öğrenme isteklerini artırdığını, kendilerini rahat ve sakin hissetmelerinde yardımcı olduğunu, yeni arkadaşlar edindiklerini, kolay öğrenebildiklerini ve eğitime katılmaktan mutlu olduklarını söylemişlerdir. Araştırma bulgularına göre, açık hava etkinliklerinin öğrenciler üzerindeki bilişsel ve sosyal olumlu etkileri düşünüldüğünde özel yetenekli öğrenci eğitimlerinde daha fazla açık hava etkinliğine yer verilmesi önerilmektedir.

Keywords

• Kısa süreli açık hava eğitimi
• Özel Yetenekli Çocuklar
• Doğa Algısı
• Bilişsel Haritalama

GIFTED CHILDREN AND OUTDOOR EDUCATION: HOW A SHORT-TERM OUTDOOR EDUCATION INFLUENCED THE KNOWLEDGE AND THE NATURE PERCEPTION OF GIFTED STUDENTS

Abstract

Outdoor education has many beneficial effects on children’s learning and cognitive abilities and their connectedness to nature. This study aims to evaluate the impact of short-term outdoor education on the nature perception and knowledge of gifted students. Thirty gifted students were enrolled in a 7-day outdoor education activity. The camp included science, art, and social activities organized based on specific features of Mt. Erciyes. Three different methods were used for assessment of outcomes. The knowledge test was applied to measure students’ newly acquired knowledge. Cognitive mapping was used to assess changes in students’ perceptions. Finally, the drawings and stories of students were evaluated to understand how students incorporated knowledge into their daily experiences and especially into their art. Our results show that outdoor education provided many benefits to the gifted students. They developed positive relationships with their environment, gained knowledge and their perceptions of the Mt. Erciyes ecosystem has changed.

Keywords

• Short-term outdoor education
• gifted students
• nature perception
• cognitive mapping

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