The Study of Preschool Teachers’ and Principals’ Opinions on Turkish Education System

Abstract

The present study was conducted to find out preschool teachers’ and principals’ opinions on the problems of the Turkish education system as well as their opinions on potential solutions. The sample of the study was preschool teachers’ and principals’ from Alanya, a district of the province of Antalya, Turkey. In the study group, there were 89 female participants that were determined via convenience sampling method. Qualitative research method and content analysis technique were used to analyze the data. When the findings are examined in line with the sub-goals, it was seen that the opinions gathered under four categories: “education system”, “teachers’ rights”, “family” and “other”. The problems expressed in this direction were the quality of the education system, continuously changing programs and applications, inequality of opportunities, test-focused system, crowded classes, and lack of funds supporting education and teaching in the form of double-schedule education. It is recommended that continuity of this study should be ensured via quantitative and mixed methods, and all stakeholders’ opinions should be taken into consideration.

Keywords

• Turkish
• Education System
• Pre School
• Turkey

References

1. Açıkgenç, A. (2009). Towards a new educational philosophy in the face of globalization, International Congress on Philosophy of Education- Philosophical Dimension of Educational Problems in the Globalization Process, Eğitim Bir Sen Publications, 44, 79-97.
2. Aral, N., Kandır, A. & Can Yaşar, M. (2000). Staff in preschool education institutions (pp. 41-48). In Preschool education 1. Istanbul: Ya-Pa Publishing.
3. Benson, K. (2019, September 29). Electronics - Setting the Stage for Behavioral Problems and Addiction in Our Youth. Retrieved from https://www.rehabsamerica.org/blog/electronicssetting-the-stage-for-behavioral-problems-and-addiction-in-our-youth-189.
4. Boydak Özan, M. & Yaraş, Z. (2017). Investigation as a comparison of Turkish education system. The Journal of Academic Social Science Studies, Number: 57, p. 263-280.
5. Corrigan, D., Dillon, J., & Gunstone, R. (2007). The re-emergence of values in science education (Eds.). Rotterdam, the Netherlands: Sense Publishers.
6. Cresswell, J. W. (2007). Qualitative inquiry & research design (2nd Ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
7. Dadvand, P., Nieuwenhuijsen, M. J., Esnaola, M., et al. (2015). Green spaces and cognitive development in primary school children. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1503402112 Uslu & Çeliköz Hafizi, A., & Papa, M. (2012). Improving the Quality of Education by Strengthening the Cooperation between Schools and Families. Problems of education in the 21st century, Volume 42, pp. 38-49.
8. Hattie, J., & Marsh, H.W. (2002). The relation between research productivity and teaching effectiveness: Complementary, antagonistic, or independent constructs? The Journal of Higher Education, 73(5), 603-641.

9. Islam, M. R., & Faruque, C. J. (2016). Features of qualitative research. In book: Qualitative Research: Tools and Techniques. Editors: M. Rezaul Islam and Cathleen Jo Faruque. Publisher: Farwood Publishing, USA.
10. Kartal, S. (2013). Points to be changed in our Education System According to the Opinions of the Teacher Candidates, Uşak University Journal of Social Sciences, Special Issue, 248-262.
11. Kecmanovic, J. (2019, December 19). 6 ways to protect your mental health from social media’s dangers. Retrieved from https://theconversation.com/6-ways-to-protect-your-mentalhealth- from-social-medias-dangers-117651.
12. Krippendorff K. (1980). Content Analysis: An Introduction to its Methodology. Sage Publications, Newbury Park.
13. Kyngas, H., & Vanhanen, L. (1999). Content Analysis (Finnish). Hoitotiede. 11: 3-12.
14. Kösterelioglu, İ. & Bayar, A. (2014). A current assessment regarding the problems of the Turkish education system. The Journal of Academic Social Science Studies, 25(1), 177-187.
15. Lazar, A., & Slostad, F. (2010). How to overcome obstacles to parent-teacher partnerships. The Clearing House: A Journal of Educational Strategies, Issues and Ideas, 72(4), 206-210.
16. MEB. (1993). Kindergarten and practice class regulations. Ankara: National Education Press.
17. MEB. (2002). Regulation of preschool education institutions. Istanbul: Ya-Pa Publishing.
18. MEB. (2012). 12 years of compulsory education: questions-answers. Ankara: MEB Publications.
19. MEB. (2019). 2023 Education Vision. http://2023vizyonu.meb.gov.tr/
20. MEB. (2019). Minister. Previous Ministers. http://www.meb.gov.tr/meb/
21. Merriam, S. B. (2013). Qualitative research: A guide for design and application (Translation from 3rd Edition, Translation Editor: S. Turan). Ankara: Nobel Publications.
22. Miles, M. B., & Huberman, A. B. (1994). Qualitative data analysis (2nd Ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA:Sage Publications Inc.
23. Norton, G. W. (1997). Not there yet: prospects and problems for “education through occupations”. Journal of Vocational Education Research, 22(2), 77-94.
24. Özdoğan Özbal, E., & Gökçe, E. (2018). An Examination of Teacher Employment Policies in Turkey and Different Countries. Journal of Education and Future, Issue: 14, 169-180. International Journal of Modern Education Studies Patton, M. Q. (2002). Qualitative research and evaluation methods (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
25. Pearson, A. (2020, April 28). Problems with large class sizes in elementary schools. Retrieved from https://classroom.synonym.com/teacher-challenges-classroom-7943567.html
26. Pınar, Ş. (2016). Today's Turkish education system and student profile (Kırıkkale sample). (Unpublished Master's thesis). Kırıkkale University, Institute of Social Sciences, Department of Sociology, Kırıkkale.
27. Rhalmi, M. (2020, April 28). Teaching large classes: problems and suggested techniques. Retrieved from https://www.myenglishpages.com/blog/teaching-large-classes-problemsand-suggested-techniques/
28. Sağ, R., Savaş, B., & Sezer, R. (2009). Characteristics, problems and needs of combined classroom teachers in Burdur. Journal of İnönü University Education Faculty, 10 (1), 37-56.
29. Sandelowski M. (1993) Theory unmasked: the uses and guises of theory in qualitative research. Research in Nursing & Health, 16, 213–218.
30. Şener, G. (2018) A current overview of education problems in Turkey. Journal of National Education, 47 (218), 187-200.
31. Taşdemir, M. (2015). Problems that teacher candidates perceive on the Turkish spindle education system. Turkish Studies, 10(7), 881-898.
32. TED. (2007). pre-school and primary education system in Turkey, the main problems and solutions. Ankara, Turkish Education Association Publications. Retrieved from http://portal.ted.org.tr/yayinlar/Turkiyede_Okul_Oncesi.pdf
33. Uslu, B. (2019). The study of preschool teachers’ and principals’ views on the problems of preschool education system. 20-21-22 April- ULEAD Annual Congress- oral presentation, 10th International Conference on Research in Education- ICRE, Alanya, Turkey.
34. Uygun, S. (2013). Turkish Education System problems: traditional and current. Ankara: Nobel Publications.
35. Yalçın, F. A. & Yalçın, M. (2018). Preschool Teachers’ Views of Preschool Educational Problems: Ağrı City Sample. Elementary Education Online, 17(1), 367-383.
36. Yeşil, R., & Şahan, E. (2015). Perceptions of teacher candidates regarding cause and solution ways of the most important problem in Turkish Education System. Journal of Kırşehir Education Faculty, 16(3), 123-143.
37. Yıldırım, A., & Şimşek, H. (2011). Qualitative research methods in social sciences. Ankara: Seçkin Publications.
38. Yılmaz, K., & Altınkurt, Y. (2011). Pre-service teachers' views on the Problems of the Turkish Education System. International Journal of Human Sciences, 8(1), 942-973.