Research Article

Examination of teachers' views on the development of pre-school children's thinking skills

Volume: 13 Number: 3 September 30, 2025

Examination of teachers' views on the development of pre-school children's thinking skills

Abstract

In this study, it was aimed to reveal the views of preschool teachers on the development of children's thinking skills in preschool education and the use of philosophy with children approach in the development of children's thinking skills. In this study in which qualitative research method was used, data were collected through focus group interviews. The study group was determined using the maximum diversity sampling technique, which is one of the purposeful sampling methods. The participants of the study consisted of 40 teachers working in preschool education institutions in Antakya central district and Yayladağı district of Hatay province. Focus group interviews were conducted with 8 groups consisting of 4-10 people. In the study, a semi-structured interview form developed by the researcher with expert opinion and pilot study was used to determine the views of preschool teachers. According to the findings, teachers stated that the current preschool education program is not sufficient to develop children's thinking skills, that they need a different education to develop children's thinking skills, that children use their thinking skills mostly in storytelling/reading/creating activities, scamper activities, games and science/nature/experiment activities, and that philosophy activities with children can be effective in developing children's thinking skills. In addition, suggestions such as supporting pre-service and in-service trainings on thinking skills and philosophy education with children, conducting family participation activities with the cooperation of the family and the teacher during the education process, and organizing the preschool education program to develop thinking skills have emerged.

Keywords

Ethical Statement

It is declared that scientific and ethical principles were followed during the preparation of this study and that all the sources utilized have been cited in the references. The author(s) acknowledge that they did not receive any external funding to support this research. The author(s) declare that there is no conflict of interest.

References

  1. Akbaba, A., & Kaya, B. (2015). Okul öncesi öğrencilerinin düşünme becerilerinin gelişmesine yönelik öğretmen görüşleri. (Teachers' views on the development of thinking skills of preschool students). Elektronic Sosyal Bilimler Dergisi, 14(55), 148-160.
  2. Akbıyık, C., & Kalkan-Ay, G. (2014). Okul öncesi yönetici ve öğretmenlerin düşünme becerilerinin öğretimine yönelik algıları: Bir durum çalışması. (Preschool administrators‘ and teachers’ perceptions towards teaching thinking skills: A case study). Hacettepe Üniversitesi Eğitim Fakültesi Dergisi, 29(1), 1-18.
  3. Akkocaoğlu Çayır, N. (2015). Çocuklar İçin Felsefe Eğitimi Üzerine Nitel Bir Araştırma. ( A Qualitative Research on Philosophy Education for Children). Doctoral Thesis, Hacettepe University: Ankara.
  4. Alkın Şahin, S. ve Tunca, N. (2013). Düşünme becerileri ve düşünmeyi destekleyen sınıf ortamı/öğretmen davranışları. (Thinking skills and classroom environment/teacher behaviours that support thinking). G. Ekici ve M. Güven (Ed.), Öğrenme-öğretme yaklaşımları ve uygulama örnekleri in (s. 392-426). Ankara: Pegem.
  5. Bochenski, J.M. (1996). Felsefece düşünmenin yolları. (Ways of thinking philosophically). (Trans. K. Dinçer). Ankara: Bilim ve Sanat.
  6. Çelebi, A., Malkoç, C., Malkoç, H., Aydın, H., & Malkoç P. (2022). Çocuklar için Felsefe ile İlgili Kavramsal Çerçevenin Değerlendirilmesi. (Evaluating the Conceptual Framework of Philosophy for Children). Journal of Social, Humanities and Administrative Sciences. 8(54): 896-906.
  7. Doğan Altun, Z., & Ekici Vural, D. (2017). Okul öncesi dönemde düşünme becerileri: Öğretmen görüşleri. (Thinking skills in preschool period: Teachers' views). Dokuz Eylül Üniversitesi Buca Eğitim Fakültesi Dergisi, (44), 214-224.
  8. Fisher, R. (2008). Teaching Thinking: Philosophical Enquiry in the Classroom. Bloomsbury Publishing.

Details

Primary Language

English

Subjects

Curriculum Development in Education, Child Development Education

Journal Section

Research Article

Early Pub Date

August 31, 2025

Publication Date

September 30, 2025

Submission Date

March 26, 2025

Acceptance Date

May 15, 2025

Published in Issue

Year 2025 Volume: 13 Number: 3

APA
Sağkaya, H. C., & Filiz, S. (2025). Examination of teachers’ views on the development of pre-school children’s thinking skills. Journal for the Education of Gifted Young Scientists, 13(3), 131-146. https://doi.org/10.17478/jegys.1665756
AMA
1.Sağkaya HC, Filiz S. Examination of teachers’ views on the development of pre-school children’s thinking skills. JEGYS. 2025;13(3):131-146. doi:10.17478/jegys.1665756
Chicago
Sağkaya, Hatice Ceylan, and Sevil Filiz. 2025. “Examination of Teachers’ Views on the Development of Pre-School Children’s Thinking Skills”. Journal for the Education of Gifted Young Scientists 13 (3): 131-46. https://doi.org/10.17478/jegys.1665756.
EndNote
Sağkaya HC, Filiz S (September 1, 2025) Examination of teachers’ views on the development of pre-school children’s thinking skills. Journal for the Education of Gifted Young Scientists 13 3 131–146.
IEEE
[1]H. C. Sağkaya and S. Filiz, “Examination of teachers’ views on the development of pre-school children’s thinking skills”, JEGYS, vol. 13, no. 3, pp. 131–146, Sept. 2025, doi: 10.17478/jegys.1665756.
ISNAD
Sağkaya, Hatice Ceylan - Filiz, Sevil. “Examination of Teachers’ Views on the Development of Pre-School Children’s Thinking Skills”. Journal for the Education of Gifted Young Scientists 13/3 (September 1, 2025): 131-146. https://doi.org/10.17478/jegys.1665756.
JAMA
1.Sağkaya HC, Filiz S. Examination of teachers’ views on the development of pre-school children’s thinking skills. JEGYS. 2025;13:131–146.
MLA
Sağkaya, Hatice Ceylan, and Sevil Filiz. “Examination of Teachers’ Views on the Development of Pre-School Children’s Thinking Skills”. Journal for the Education of Gifted Young Scientists, vol. 13, no. 3, Sept. 2025, pp. 131-46, doi:10.17478/jegys.1665756.
Vancouver
1.Hatice Ceylan Sağkaya, Sevil Filiz. Examination of teachers’ views on the development of pre-school children’s thinking skills. JEGYS. 2025 Sep. 1;13(3):131-46. doi:10.17478/jegys.1665756