Educational Process: International Journal

Number Vol 3, 2014

7-18
Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Social Networks and their Usage by High School Students

Authors: Chich-Jen Shieh, Murat Demirkol

Abstract

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Number of views: 494

Social networks are virtual environments created by humans through software and programs. Today, social networks have expanded and become more commonplace.Individuals identify themselves through these internet networks and use their communication methods to enable them to get in touch with people from the same or different cultures. It is known that social networks have advantages as well as some disadvantages. The main purpose of this study is to determine why, how, and how frequently students use online social communication networks, and to identify the effects of these social networks on their education and social lives according to the opinions of high school students. In this study, one of each of the three high education institutions in a city center were randomly selected and the opinions of 63 students studying at different grades of these schools were collected. According to the results of this study, a significant percentage of participants regularly benefit from social network websites. The majority of opinions indicate that the participants use social network websites with the aim of communication and education.

19 – 34
Impact of Argumentation in the Chemistry Laboratory on Conceptual Comprehension of Turkish Students

Authors: Ali Riza Sekerci, Nurtac Canpolat

Abstract

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Number of views: 505

Aim of this research is to evaluate the impact of argumentation in the chemistry laboratory on conceptual comprehension of students. This research follows a triangulation design, categorized under mixed-method design variations, which include both qualitative and quantitative research designs. The research is conducted with 91 first grade university students studying in two different classes of the Department of Science Education, Kazım Karabekir Education Faculty at the Ataturk University, located in eastern Turkey. One class was randomly designated as the experimental group, with another as the control group. Research data was collected via a General Chemistry Laboratory Concept Test (GCLCT) containing 33 items, a test containing ten open-ended items, a semi-structured interview form, and a written feedback form, all designed by the researchers. Data from the GCLCT were analyzed through predictive statistics method, while data from the open-ended questions, semi-structured interview and written feedback form were analyzed through the descriptive analysis method. It is concluded from this research, that there is statistically significant difference between the GCLC post-test averages of the experimental and control groups. It was found that when compared to the control group, the proportion of experimental group students who answered the GCLC post-test items correctly is higher. In addition to this, the proportion of students who demonstrated misconceptions were higher in the control group students compared to the experimental group. It is concluded by this research, that argumentation provides more effective results in terms of comprehension of fundamental chemistry concepts, when compared to a traditional approach.

35-51
The Relationship between Teachers’ Teacher Leadership Roles and Organizational Commitment Levels

Authors: Ibrahim Colak, Yahya Altinkurt, Kursad Yilmaz

Abstract

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Number of views: 472

The purpose of this research is to determine the relationship between teacher leadership roles and organizational commitment levels of primary, secondary, and high school teachers. This study was designed in survey model. The sample of the study consisted of 280 teachers working in Mugla, Turkey. Participants were selected using disproportionate cluster sampling technique. Data was collected through application of the Teacher Leadership Scale and Teacher Organizational Commitment Scale. Descriptive statistics, t-test, ANOVA, and Pearson correlation coefficients were used to analyse the data. Based on the findings, teachers’ level of performing leadership roles was lower than they consider such roles to be necessary. Teachers consider that the professional improvement dimension of teacher leadership was the most necessary, and should be performed accordingly. This is followed by collaboration among colleagues, and institutional improvement. Teachers also consider that they demonstrate moderate level of commitment. There are significant relationships between teachers’ teacher leadership roles and organizational commitment levels.

52 – 64
Comparison of the Effects of Gender Variable on Attitudes Towards the Teaching Profession by Random and Fixed Effects Model: Meta-Analysis

Authors: Milan Kubiatko, R. Serkan Arik

Abstract

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Number of views: 470

Attitude is a dual-poled essence: possessing positive thoughts on a course or subject, liking a course or exhibiting positive affective nature in relation with it, or having negative thoughts on a course or subject, disliking it or exhibiting negative affective features in relation with it (Bloom, 1979). Attitudes are different from opinions, values and beliefs. Attitudes and opinions resemble each other, but they differ from attitudes in terms of degree of generalizability and the measuring technique. Opinions are personal reactions to specific occurrences and conditions. But attitudes should be taken in a more general sense, as they influence people's reactions against sets of events and groups of people, in a more broad sense. The teaching profession has been mentioned among the favorite occupations, and researchers wanted to know if attitudes have anything to do with this tendency. It has been a subject for many researches that attitudes towards teaching profession differ by gender (Cook & Medley, 1954; Capri & Celikkaleli, 2008; Cetin, 2003; Dogan & Coban, 2009). The aim of this research is to determine the impact of gender variable on the teaching profession via meta-analysis method. Effect models specified for meta-analysis have been compared. This research covers the results of meta-analysis combining 27 researches determined useful by master's theses and doctorate dissertations which take gender as the variable. Effect size of the gender in relation with the attitude towards the teaching profession is found to be 0.301 for the fixed effect model, and 0.304 for the random effect model. When a frequency table for directions of effect sizes is created, 20 researches (74%) showed a positive effect size. Together with this result, 74% of the researches explain that females have more positive attitudes over males. Absence of any 0 effect size in this research explain that there has been no research indicating that attitudes towards the teaching profession do not differ between males and females. It has been concluded that medium differences exist according to Cohen's classification, and small differences exist according to Thalheimer's classification. It has been inferred from these findings that gender is an important variable in terms of attitudes towards the teaching profession, and that the medium effect it possesses over attitude should be examined.