Determination of Pre-service Teachers’ Awareness of Plants

Year 2017, Volume: 7 Issue: 2, 84 - 93, 09.07.2017

Emine Çil Durmuş Yanmaz

Abstract

Human beings do not usually recognize plants although they exist widely in their environment. This condition has been described as plant blindness in literature. The main purpose of this study is to examine pre-service elementary teachers’ awareness of plants. Moreover, the study examined from which sources student-teachers gained knowledge about plants. This study was designed as a survey model. The data of the study were obtained from the questionnaire consisting of two open-ended questions. The study group of this research consisted of 308 student-teachers. The participants receive teacher training at a state university located in Turkey’s Aegean coast. Frequencies and percentages were calculated for the data analysis. The results of this study revealed that pre-service elementary teachers have got symptoms of plant blindness. The source of knowledge for plants is not usually formal science education. In addition to this, the results of this study suggest that student-teachers have a tendency to form aliveness concept with animistic and anthropocentric perspectives. In the light of these results, it is highlighted that there is a need to support pre-service elementary teachers’ awareness of plants to prevent young children’s plant blindness

Keywords

plant blindness, plant awareness, plants

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