Open Journal for Educational Research

11-24

Authors: Charalambos I. Konstantinou & Ioannis Ch. Konstantinou

The purpose of this article is to highlight the factors that decisively affect the effectiveness of the teacher in fulfilling his role, giving special importance to his pedagogical and didactic training. Initially, the role of the teacher is approached in relation to the mission of the school and the characteristics of an effective teacher. Subsequently, the content and the importance of pedagogical and didactic training for the exercise of the educational work are approached, as well as the additional reasons that impose it. In addition, the existing pedagogical and didactic training of current teachers is approached, in relation to the consequences of its absence for the educational process and the student. The article concludes with the final findings and remarks.

37-48

Authors: Osman Akhan

The purpose of this research is to determine perceptions of refugee middle school students in Turkey about history subjects taught in social studies classes. Accordingly, the study was designed in the phenomenology model, a qualitative research method. The sample included 58 middle school 7th and 8th grade Syrian students (28 female, 30 male) legally registered in Gaziantep province of Turkey in 2019-2020. Convenience sampling method was used to select the schools, and criterion sampling, a purposive sampling method, was used to select the sample from students in these schools. Research data were collected with a questionnaire form containing open-ended questions created by the researcher, and subjected to descriptive analysis. Considering the results of the research, one can say that the students could remember the history subjects they learned, and found Ottoman history subjects more interesting. However, they found history lessons boring, and studying history subjects was not effective in creating patriotic perceptions.

63-76

Authors: Murat Keskin

The study aimed to determine whether there is a difference between the perceptions of pre-service teachers’ problem-solving skills according to various factors. 297 pre-service teachers from Afyon Kocatepe University Faculty of Education in the province of Afyonkarahisar in Turkey participated in the study. The group hidden figures test was used to determine the cognitive styles of pre-service teachers. The problem-solving inventory was used to measure the perceptions of problem-solving skills. According to the findings, it was found that the perception of problem-solving skills of pre-service teachers was high. It was observed that the candidates also perceived themselves as having these approaches in all sub-dimensions. According to the research results, problem-solving perception does not affect the way of approaching the problem. Male and female candidates’ perceptions of problem-solving skills are not directly related to gender. Candidates’ perceptions vary according to the grade level.

91-104

Authors: Mehmet Özcan, Mustafa Kemal Yöntem & Ahmet Galip Yücel

This study aims to reveal the opinions of the senior students of education faculty about the anxiety of not being appointed. Phenomenological research design is used in this research. The convenience sampling method was used in the selection of the participants. The data of the study is collected through face-to-face individual interviews with the students. The research form consists of 2 parts. The questions in the first part are about the demographic information of the participants. The second part includes questions aiming to reveal the experiences of the participants regarding the anxiety of not being appointed. Each interview lasted 20 minutes on average. All interviews conducted within the scope of the research were recorded using a voice recorder with the permission of the participants. Descriptive analysis was used in the analysis of data. According to the findings, it was observed that family expectations affected all of the participants who had anxiety about not being appointed. All of the prospective teachers who experienced anxiety about not being appointed were found to catastrophize the situation. Five of the participants who had anxiety about not being appointed had physiological symptoms and that anxiety affected daily life. Three of the participants who experienced anxiety about preparation for appointment stated that they had no additional effort to be appointed. All of the participants stated that they used social support mechanisms for anxiety.