Theses - M.A. in Curriculum and Instruction
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Item Open Access A case study on primary school students' perceptions about their use of language learning and reading strategies and strategy training(Bilkent University, 2011) Wilkes, Jane CrawfordThis study looks at the language learning and reading comprehension strategies of students in 3rd – 8 th grades. The study takes place at Bilkent Laboratory and International School, which is a bilingual school in Ankara, Turkey that combines curricula from the Primary Years Program (PYP), International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE), the International Bachelorette (IB), and the Turkish Ministry of Education. The first part of the study consisted of administering two surveys- the Strategy Inventory of Language Learning (SILL) and the Survey of Reading Strategies (SORS). The surveys were administered to students in 3rd – 8 th grades, along with a short demographic survey to provide language profiles for the students. The second part of the study involves the implementation of a Strategy Training Program (STP) designed by the researcher. The STP was designed around a list of language learning and reading comprehension strategies compiled by the researcher based on research and teaching experience. There were seven participants selected from the fourth and fifth grades at BLIS. Data was collected from student notebooks, the researcher‟s journal, interviews, and the surveys administered before and after the training program.Item Open Access An analysis of student perceptions and teacher intentions of blended learning in Computer and Instructional Technology Teacher Education Program(Bilkent University, 2011) Azgur, Mehmet SerhatOne of the key concerns of teacher education is to facilitate the development of the teaching talents of pre-service teachers with scaling technologies and pedagogy of the 21st Century. Teacher educators also need to enhance pre-service teachers’ curriculum by modeling good teaching methods. This study explored another side of blended learning methods and tried to uncover students’ perceptions of what their instructors are practicing. Social relations that are created by blended learning methods are also explored. Instructors of Computer and Instructional Technology Teacher Education Department (CTE) and their respective students were participants in the study to investigate the departmental use of blended learning methods. Total of 44 students and 12 teachers participated in the study. Only students of preparatory school and freshmen are not included because of their lack of sufficient number of courses where blended v learning methods are used. Data collection tools in the research included interviews and questionnaires aimed to assess students’ perception of blended learning methods together with the interviews and questionnaires of the instructors of the CTE Department in order to understand what blended learning methods were practiced. The data collected from both interviews and questionnaires were analyzed using qualitative and quantitative techniques. The findings revealed that although 4th and 5th year students are aware of the different applications of blended learning and the intentions of teachers who used this approach, we cannot generalize and say the same for all CTE students. Yet another finding is that participants thought that Learning Management Systems (LMS) improve the student-to-student and teacher-to-student relations in instructional settings. Additionally, the majority of the students think that computer literacy affects the success of blended learning applications unlike the beliefs of instructors.Item Open Access A non-formal learning program for the contribution of creative problem solving skills : a case study(Bilkent University, 2012) Olgun, ElifThe purpose of this study is to examine the contribution of a non-formal learning program to the creative problem solving skills of elementary and middle school students, using a mixed method case study. This research was conducted over 14 weeks during the first semester of the 2011 – 2012 school year at a private school in Ankara, Turkey. The participants of the study consisted of 25 elementary and middle school students who had chosen the creative problem solving activity as their extracurricular activity and 50 team managers, who were also schoolteachers. A focus group consisting of six of the middle school students as observed over a period of 14 weeks to determine if the program contributed to the creative problem solving skills of the students. They were also interviewed during two of the activity sessions to get their perceptions of the program to their skills and to determine to what extent they were aware of their progress. The 50 team managers completed questionnaires on their views on the contribution of the program on the students’ skills. As quantitative support to the observations and perceptions from students and team managers, 11 tasks requiring problem solving and creative problem solving skills were given to all the elementary and middle school participants of the program, in a pre- and post-application. The results show that both students and team managers feel that the students participate in the program because it is fun, improves their problem solving skills and they are aware of their increase in skill. Team managers generally feel that students need to participate in the program for two years to observe an increase in these skills. Quantitative data supported these impressions and showed a small increase in creative problem solving skills over the 14 weeks. This increase is greater for problem solving than for creative problem solving. In conclusion, it can thus be said that the non-formal learning program does contribute to students’ problem solving skills.Item Open Access Engaging 6th grade students with mathematics by using multiple intelligence theory(Bilkent University, 2012) Yılmaz, BegümMathematics is a source of fear for many students and many struggle while learning mathematics. Most believe that they do not have the ability to learn mathematics and this perception decreases their motivation. The relationship between teaching and learning mathematics has been improved by integrating various approaches into the mathematics lessons. By 2000s, multiple intelligence theory was taken into consideration as one such approach in Turkey. This study aimed to explore whether there was a correlation between 6th grade students’ multiple intelligence types and their preferences of components of math lessons addressing multiple intelligence theory. The study was completed with fourteen 6th grade students with ages ranging from 11- 13 years at Ankara Bilkent Laboratory and International School, Turkey. In the first session of the study, students’ multiple intelligence types were identified by administering a multiple intelligence survey. Then several mathematics lesson activities based on multiple intelligence theory were implemented during 2 math lessons in block schedule to discover students’ preferences of learning mathematics. In the next session students were expected to describe how their learning was affected by classroom activities based on the multiple intelligence theory. Students reflected on which activities they liked and which activities were most effective by rating the activities in the given reflection forms. Students’ reflections and their personal intelligence types were correlated. It was found that bodily-kinesthetic intelligence was rated to be the most dominant intelligence among the participating 6th grade students. However, lesson activities addressing linguistic and mathematical-logical intelligences correlated highest with students’ mathematical learning.Item Open Access Comparative analysis of biology textbooks with regard to cellular respiration and photosynthesis(Bilkent University, 2012) İnanç Gök, TuğbaThe topics of cellular respiration and photosynthesis in the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP) and Ministry of National Education (MEB) biology textbooks were analysed and compared with regard to content, presentation and learning strategies by using content analysis as a research method. Interviews were conducted with five practising biology teachers. Both textbooks follow a general to specific (deductive) order in the topics and have similar features in terms of readability and typography. The assessment strategies of neither textbooks focus on measuring higher order cognitive levels. The differences between the two textbooks are prominent in the content, presence and absence of major themes, number of student-centred activities, real life connections and use of technology. The MEB textbook had more comprehensive content but with many details which were not appropriate for the students‘ level. While the IBDP textbook included all major themes in the two topics, the MEB textbook lacked some important ones. The MEB textbook is richer in terms of student-centred activities, experiments and real life connections. The IBDP textbook is richer in terms of technology. The findings of the content analysis were supported by the ideas of the practising teachers.Item Open Access Theory of knowledge and the Turkish national curriculum : the dynamics of a new relationship(Bilkent University, 2012) Harris, GlynThis is an exploratory research study focusing on the International Baccalaureate’s Theory of Knowledge (TOK) programme in Turkish schools, all of whom deliver the Turkish National Curriculum. In the study 26 staff and students from four private schools in Ankara, Turkey, completed surveys and interviews. The results show that although the TOK course provides many opportunities to address issues with student and teacher autonomy, and to fulfil newly reformed aims of The National Ministry of Education (MEB), difficulties with MEB course load and lack of collaboration mean that TOK is perceived and implemented as a periphery course. The study also reveals issues of communication within the schools, particularly in respects to the MEB curriculum reforms, and developments concerning the IB programme in Turkey.Item Open Access Examining the qualities of the homeroom teacher(Bilkent University, 2012) Williams, SimonThe purpose ofthis case study was to examine the characteristics ofthe student/homeroom teacher relationship at the Turkish Private School (TPS) in Ankara, Turkey. The research questions focussed on examining the qualities ofthe student/homeroom teacher relationship at TPS and the role that homeroom teachers played in an evolving pastoral care programme. The participants consisted of 142 predominantly Turkish students enrolled in grades six through eight in the 2010 — 2011 academic year and 151 predominantly Turkish students during the 2011 — 2012 academic year. Sixteen ofthe students in these grades were from a different cultural background. Homeroom teachers were predominantly international, mostly from a North American background, although there were a significant number of Turkish homeroom teachers. The questionnaire used to gather data consisted of 36 closed ended questions designed to illicit a response and specify the level of agreement or disagreement on a symmetric agree or disagree scale. The questionnaire used was adapted from 'A measure to assess student-instructor relationships' (Creasey, Jarvis, & Knapcik, 2009). The questionnaire was administered in May 2011, September 2011 and January 2012. Examination ofthe overall data suggests that the pastoral care programme at TPS is an effective one, with most students feeling connected to their homeroom teachers. Levels of anxiety were generally low. Homeroom teachers at TPS felt connected to their students and were working closely with their students to reduce stress and anxiety, however, the trend in the data seems to suggest a decrease in connectedness and an increase in anxiety over the academic year. The findings ofthis research suggest that the pastoral care programme at TPS could undergo a number of changes, to live up to its fiill potential.Item Open Access A comparative analysis of quadratics in mathematics textbooks from Turkey, Singapore, and the international baccalaureate diploma programme(Bilkent University, 2012) Sağlam, ReyhanThe purpose of this study was to analyze and compare the chapters on quadratics in three mathematics textbooks selected from Turkey, Singapore, and the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP) in terms of content, organization, and presentation style through content analysis. The analysis of mathematical content showed that the Turkish textbook covers a greater number of learning outcomes targeted for quadratics in the three mathematics syllabi, in a more detailed way compared to the other two textbooks. The organization of mathematical knowledge reflects an inductive approach in the Turkish textbook from quadratic equations to functions, whereas the Singaporean and IBDP-SL (Standard Level) textbooks present mathematical concepts in a deductive way from quadratic functions to equations. Regarding presentation style, the Turkish and IBDP-SL textbooks are rich in studentcentered activities compared to the Singaporean textbook. While the IBDP-SL textbook gives opportunities to students to make investigations and reach generalizations, the Turkish textbook presents mathematical concepts in a readymade way. The IBDP-SL textbook is also the one which uses real-life connections and technology the most. In addition, the IBDP-SL textbook uses problems with moderate complexity more frequently than the other two textbooks where the problems with low complexity are dominant. This study revealed that each mathematics textbook has different priorities, and the approaches in the three textbooks were interpreted in the light of reader-oriented theory (Weinberg & Wiesner, 2011) and Rezat’s (2006) model of textbook use.Item Open Access Application of the Rasch rating scale model with mathematics anxiety rating scale-short version (MARS-SV)(Bilkent University, 2012) Kurum, HilalThis study aimed to explore the relationship between students’ mathematics anxiety and their mathematics achievement by applying the Rasch Rating Scale Model to investigate whether mathematics anxiety is debilitative or facilitative for their mathematics achievements. For data analysis, the study employed the Rasch Rating Scale Model on an instrument called Mathematics Anxiety Rating Scale (MARS-SV) and examined the differences between the students’ MARS-SV mean scores and the applied Rasch measures. The study was carried out with 79 ninth grade students from different classes in a private high school, Ankara. In the first phase, these students’ school exam marks were obtained. MARS-SV was administrated to the 79 students and then descriptive analyses applied to MARS-SV data. The correlation between the students’ mean scores on the MARS-SV and school exam marks was computed. In the second phase, the Rasch Rating Scale Model was applied to the MARS-SV raw scores to give Rasch measures for mathematics anxiety. The correlation between these Rasch measures and the students’ mathematics school exam marks was computed. Also a descriptive analysis was applied to the Rasch measures.It was found that there were moderate negative correlations between students’ mathematics exam marks and the two types of anxiety measured by the student mean scores (r = -0.40) and the Rasch measures (r = -0.45). The finding indicated that the mathematics anxiety was debilitative for students. In conclusion, the Rasch analysis provided the more reliable measure of student anxiety, which approaches more to the normal distribution. In addition, it provides a practical conversion table from a raw score of anxiety to its counterpart Rasch measure.Item Open Access Integration of science into mathematics in high school curriculum : a delphi study(Bilkent University, 2012) Aktan, TuğbaThe focus of this study is to examine opinions about the implementation of the curriculum integration of mathematics and science (CIMAS). For this purpose, the study aims to explore possible mathematics topics for CIMAS and reach a consensus about advantages, disadvantages, and limitations of implementation of CIMAS. To achieve the consensus, a Delphi study was conducted with experts with regard to curriculum integration. The experts were university academics and school teachers in Ankara. The research produced a number of key findings: almost each unit in mathematics can be integrated with science; physics seems more feasible for integration with mathematics; CIMAS is perceived to increase student motivation and positive attitudes toward mathematics, to provide meaningful learning anda more effective teaching environment for school teachers. Although CIMAS is not seen to have disadvantages that hinder learning and teaching, the integration has limitations related to curriculum, teachers, and facilities that are obstacles to effective implementation. The main conclusions drawn from this study were that the integration of mathematics and science curriculum is expected to provide advantages and satisfy the psychological, pedagogical, and sociological needs of students. The findings could be valuable for curriculum developers, teachers, and teacher educators.Item Open Access Seventh grade students' conceptual and procedural understanding of fractions : comparison between succesful and less successful students(Bilkent University, 2012) Örmeci, ŞakireThe aim of the study was to find the correlation between conceptual knowledge (CK) and procedural knowledge (PK) and the difficulties that less successful students have regarding fractions. The study was conducted with a mixed-methods approach using explanatory design which consisted of two phases. In the first phase of the study, a conceptual and procedural knowledge test (CPKT) was administered to 33 seventh grade students. In the second phase, interviews were conducted with two successful students (ST33 and ST24) and two less successful students (ST01 and ST03). The results of the CPKT showed a strong positive correlation between students’ conceptual knowledge (CK) and procedural knowledge (PK), r = 0.66 (p < .01). In addition, it was found that students’ school mathematics grade (mathematics GPA: grade point average) at the end of the sixth year was strongly related to both conceptual and procedural knowledge. In the second phase, the interview results showed that while successful students had combined conceptual and procedural knowledge, less successful students had orphaned procedural knowledge. It was concluded that students can benefit from having both conceptual and procedural knowledge in order to develop a good knowledge base in mathematics.Item Open Access The impact of popular audio-visual media on the scientific knowledge of adolescents(Bilkent University, 2012) Mumtaz, KhadijahStudents learn and assimilate scientific information from a variety of informal sources, including television and movies. Since such forms of media often stretch the truth or present fiction as fact, it is possible that young adults develop a warped understanding of scientific information which may hinder (or aid) formal science education in a classroom setting. This study aimed to determine how science learned from informal audio visual sources affects knowledge gained in the classroom. Further, it attempted to discern whether gender or age was a variable. The study was mixed methods in nature; a case study examined how grade 6-8 students from a private, international school in Turkey acquired scientific knowledge from a movie and a television show that contained concepts not related to the school's science curriculum. Additionally, grade 6-10 students, on rotation, watched a movie/television show in class that contained scientific information relating to the curriculum. Data from discussions and responses to key questions relating to the scientific content before and after the viewing of the movie/television show were used for analysis. This study found that students acquire knowledge from movies and television shows but are unable to relate this knowledge to information acquired in a classroom. However, the nature and extent of the information that students acquire from movies/television shows depends on age, gender and the scientific content itself.Item Open Access Environmental awareness and concerns of pre-service teachers in a private non-profit university(Bilkent University, 2012) Tekin, EzelThe purpose of this study is to investigate the environmental awareness and concerns of pre-service teachers in the Graduate School of Education in a private non-profit university Ankara in terms of some demographic factors such as gender, subject area, and length of time in a private non-profit university, Ankara. The Revised New Ecological Paradigm (R-NEP) scale and ten interview questions are used in the present study. The findings revealed that one hundred pre-service teachers have moderate environmental awareness and concerns. The internal consistency of the scale was 0.67. There were significant difference between the pre-service teachers’ environmental awareness and concerns with respect to their subject area, and length of time at the university except gender. Also, some suggestions about environmental education are given in this study.Item Open Access Motivation of students towards mathematics in trade vocational high schools in Ankara : an exploratory study(Bilkent University, 2012) Ergün, DilayThe primary aim of the study is to explore the factors that affect motivation of students towards mathematics in trade vocational high schools in Ankara as perceived by their mathematics teachers. The teachers’ opinions about the common types of motivation (intrinsic or extrinsic) among students, the role and place of the goal orientation theory on students’ motivation towards mathematics lessons was investigated. This study was conducted with an exploratory mixed-methods design which included two phases. Trade vocational high schools which consisted of Accounting and Financing department were the sample of this study. In the first phase, in a trade vocational high school in Çankaya, Turkey, a focus group interview was conducted with seven mathematics teachers. Afterwards, findings from the interview were analyzed by content analysis and a survey was developed based on these findings. In the second phase of the study, data were collected by surveying 31 mathematics teachers from six trade vocational high schools in Ankara, Turkey. The results showed that external incentives are more efficient than internal incentives (curiosity or interest) for trade vocational high school students. The most effective factor was found to be that students were studying mathematics in order to obtain a high school diploma. The second most effective factor was that students valued getting rewards from their teachers. The goal orientation theory ranked below extrinsic motivation, indicating that students are less motivated by a desire of having skills for a professional life. Results showed that students did not have sufficient confidence in their mathematical ability to be successful in lessons or to want a professional life. Furthermore, the teachers stated that the curriculum as a whole does not satisfy students’ professional needs, as it is not suitable for students’ mathematics knowledge level.Item Open Access 6th grade students' perceptions of blogs in an English class(Bilkent University, 2012) Kattsir, ElanThis study uses mixed-methods research to investigate how a grade 6 English class in Turkey responds to the use of blogs. It explored students' perceptions of and attitudes towards using a class, community, and student blogs, both overall as well as in relation to their application to learning, writing, and the social aspects of a utilizing blogging. Additionally, key features of blogs and the teacher’s insights into the challenges and strengths of blogging as a teaching strategy were examined. The participants were 38 grade six Turkish-national students at a private, Englishlanguage-medium school in Ankara, Turkey, who utilized blogging as part of their learning activities during a 10-week period in 2011. Prior to, during, and after the blogging activity, surveys, semi-structured focus groups and semi-structured interviews were conducted. Analysis of the data revealed that students had very favorable attitudes towards and perceptions of blogging as an educational practice. Students were nearly unanimous in their general favorability towards blogs, though community blogs were less favored.Item Open Access A comparison of selected elementary curricula in regard to an action based environmental curriculum for elementary schools in Turkey(Bilkent University, 2012) Dinçer, ZeynepAn action based curriculum aims to enhance the formation and development of the human personality by teaching ecological values, knowledge, attitudes, and skills with respect to environmental issues, their understanding, and commitment to be involved in environmental action. In this thesis, five curricula from selected various countries were analyzed, explored, and compared in order to investigate whether they contained certain objectives, environmental terminology and activities that lead students to take environmental action. Four curricula, Ontario, Canada; England, Britain; Turkey; and International Baccalaureate Primary Years programme (IBPYP), were analyzed and compared to the Environmental Education Curriculum for Middle School from the United Nations Environmental Programme in order to be able to determine best practices that encourage and teach environmental action. Educators from elementary education and officers from non-governmental environmental organizations were interviewed to determine their opinions on environmental education within Turkey and the basic elements of an action-based curriculum. Curriculum analysis results and the transcription of interviews were used to prepare recommendations for an action-based environmental curriculum that enables students to acquire environmental knowledge, skills and activities that would lead them to action in finding and implementing solutions to environmental problems.Item Open Access Real world connections in high school mathematics curriculum and teaching(Bilkent University, 2012-05) Karakoç, GökhanThe effectiveness of real world connections (RWC) in teaching is well accepted in the mathematics education community, however, little research has attended how and why to use RWC in mathematics. Additionally, there is a perception that the use of these connections is utilized less than its potential in the Turkish high school mathematics curriculum. Many would argue that development of students’ basic mathematical skills and the use of these skills in solving real life problems appear to be among the primary purposes of mathematics education. It can be inferred that teaching mathematics in a real world context may have a valuable place for achieving these purposes of education. This study described the feasibility of the use of RWCs in mathematics lessons as perceived by the teachers and academics (experts, n=24). In other words, experts’ opinions about advantages, disadvantages and examples of RWCs suggested by the experts were reported, using the Delphi method in two rounds. In the first round, an open-ended questionnaire to explore the subject was sent to the participants and their answers were used to create a second round Likert scale to reach a consensus. Experts suggested that the use of RWCs in mathematics lessons improves students’ motivation and interest in mathematics, helps students gain a positive attitude to mathematics, raises awareness of occupational fields where mathematics is used, helps development of conceptual learning, and mathematical process skills. The results of this study can be of interest to curriculum developers, teachers and teacher educators.Item Open Access Uluslararası bakalorya ve MEB Türk edebiyatı dersi kesişiminde bir roman analizi : kültürel açıdan İnce Memed(Bilkent University, 2013) Çarşanlı, DilaraThe purpose of this study is to explore how culture and cultural items are covered in the masterpieces which are studied in International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP) Turkish lessons and to show how aims and objectives of IBDP Turkish and Ministry of National Education (MoNE) Turkish Literature lessons are examined. For this purpose, a novel chosen from IBDP Turkish prescribed book list was examined in the light of The New Historicism with content analysis and coding methods through determined cultural items. Consequently, cultural aims and objectives of the lessons were found supporting each other. It is concluded that cultural items determined in the masterpieces which are examined in the lessons can be analyzed through the aims and the objectives of the lesson and also these items could be transferred in a national and international concept similar to the schema developed at the end of the study.Item Open Access A survey of mathematical knowledge and skills in high schools needed for professions in social sciences(Bilkent University, 2013) Özalp, GülümserThe purpose of this study is to identify the mathematics topics and skills that are important in high school mathematics curriculum for higher education in social science departments such as law, psychology and history, based on scores assigned by staff from university and industry. A survey including five-point Likert type items was used in the present study. Analyses were conducted with respect to departments and institutions. There was a convergence of the perceived importance selected mathematical knowledge and skills for preparation of social science education at university. However, 9th grade mathematics topics are enough to teach all students who prefer to study in a social science in this regard. Also there was no difference among institutions. Some suggestions about high school mathematics curriculum are made in the present study.Item Open Access How special are teachers of specialized schools? : a quantitative investigation of Turkish mathematics teachers' self-confidence levels in the technology domain(Bilkent University, 2013) Çatma, ZehraThe purpose of the current study was to investigate whether specialized high school mathematics teachers, who were selected to educate selected students, were mentally ready to integrate Fatih project technologies into their teaching. The sample consisted of 40 teachers, who voluntarily participated the study and working at randomly-selected specialized and general high schools in Ankara, Turkey. Data collection instrument consisted of 31 items, which were theoretically grouped under four measures of self-confidence in the technology domain. An independent t-test revealed that there was no statistically significant difference between specialized and general high school teachers’ self-confidence levels. Results were discussed in terms of previously conducted research on the teacher selection system in Turkey, professional development of teachers, and their knowledge for teaching. It was concluded that the technological pedagogical content knowledge ought to be an essential competency to be sought when selecting specialized school teachers, who educate the future innovators of Turkey.