Recent Researches in Education [1 ed.] 9781527514829, 9781527513037

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Recent Researches in Education

Recent Researches in Education Edited by

Recep Efe, Irina Koleva and Emin Atasoy

Recent Researches in Education Edited by Recep Efe, Irina Koleva and Emin Atasoy This book first published 2018 Cambridge Scholars Publishing Lady Stephenson Library, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE6 2PA, UK British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Copyright © 2018 by Recep Efe, Irina Koleva, Emin Atasoy and contributors All rights for this book reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright owner. ISBN (10): 1-5275-1303-3 ISBN (13): 978-1-5275-1303-7

CONTENTS

Preface ........................................................................................................ xi Chapter 1 ..................................................................................................... 1 An Investigation of Learning Centres for Effective Learning Ayúe Öztürk Samur and Gözde Inal KÕzÕltepe Chapter 2 ................................................................................................... 17 Examining the Value Perceptions of Preschool Children Studying the Values Education Curriculum Banu Akbaú and Yunus Günindi Chapter 3 ................................................................................................... 34 A Review Study on the Foreign Language Teaching Methods for Preschool Children Aslin Arslano÷lu and Zülfiye Gül Ercan Chapter 4 ................................................................................................... 56 Effects of Math Games Program on Low Income Preschoolers’ Quantitative Reasoning, Academic and Language Skills Gözde Inal KÕzÕltepe and Özgün UyanÕk Aktulun Chapter 5 ................................................................................................... 71 Father-Child Relationship and Father Involvement in the Preschool Period Zeynep Nur Aydin Kiliç and Fatma Tezel ùahin Chapter 6 ................................................................................................... 87 Assessment of Academic and TEOG Exam Success Levels of Sports High School Students Fatma Çelik Kayapinar, Ilknur Özdemir and Kamil Dikici Chapter 7 ................................................................................................. 107 Inclusive / Mainstreaming Õn Preschool Õn Turkey (From Whence to Where?) Latife ÖzaydÕn

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Contents

Chapter 8 ................................................................................................. 127 The Effect of Activities on the Subject of Genetics, Prepared to Develop Scientific Creativity, on Scientific Creativity and Academic Achievement Leyla Ayverdi and Serap Öz Aydin Chapter 9 ................................................................................................. 147 Understanding of Childhood Müge Kunt and Neslihan Avci Chapter 10 ............................................................................................... 160 Space and Music with Analogies Ayúegül ùeyiho÷lu and Neúe Duman Chapter 11 ............................................................................................... 170 History of Childhood ùermin Metin Chapter 12 ............................................................................................... 184 The Effect of Art EducatÕon on Interpersonal Problem-SolvÕng SkÕlls of Adolescents Elifcan Didin and Aysel Köksal Akyol Chapter 13 ............................................................................................... 198 Examination of Behavioural and Emotional Strengths of Five-Year Old Children Güneú Sali and Aysel Köksal Aksoy Chapter 14 ............................................................................................... 212 An Examination of Postgraduate Theses in Social Studies Education (2012-2017) according to Various Variables Fitnat Gürgil Chapter 15 ............................................................................................... 228 Prospective Teachers’ Attitudes towards Cheating: The Case of Ondokuz Mayis University Yücel Öksüz, Melek Baba Öztürk and Ayyüce Öksüz Chapter 16 ............................................................................................... 241 Perceived Organisational Support Õn Schools Tevfik Uzun

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vii

Chapter 17 ............................................................................................... 259 An Examination of Some Parameters that Determine the Bullying Levels of Vocational High School Students Rezzan Gültan Çamultaúi and U÷ur Gürgân Chapter 18 ............................................................................................... 278 The Effects of the Premarital Social Skills Development Program on Romantic Relationship Satisfaction and Communicational Skills U÷ur Gürgân and Fahri Sezer Chapter 19 ............................................................................................... 292 An Overview of Pre-School Digital Education Portals: The Case of Turkey Adalet Kandir, Mehmet Akif Inci and Ümmühan Akpinar Chapter 20 ............................................................................................... 313 The Study of Validity - Reliability of Scientific Process Skills Assessment Scale for 48-66-Month-Old Children Hacer Tekerci and Adalet Kandir Chapter 21 ............................................................................................... 326 Contribution of Drama Activities based on Children's Literature to the Speaking and Writing Skills of Students Õn Teaching Turkish Language Murtaza Aykaç and Buket Aslanda÷ Soylu Chapter 22 ............................................................................................... 344 A Change Õn the Education: Forest School Remziye Ceylan and Fatma Aktaú Chapter 23 ............................................................................................... 355 The Friedrich Froebel Approach Gökçen Ilhan Ildiz and Emine Ahmeto÷lu Chapter 24 ............................................................................................... 367 Psychological Stability in Education Hatice Vatansever Bayraktar and Sinan Girgin Chapter 25 ............................................................................................... 380 Different Approaches Õn Preschool Education Mehmet Sa÷lam and Ramazan Inci

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Contents

Chapter 26 ............................................................................................... 399 The Cultural Dynamics of Open and Distance Learning Nilgün Tosun and Gülsün Kurubacak Chapter 27 ............................................................................................... 417 Technology and Children Seçil Yücelyi÷it and Neriman Aral Chapter 28 ............................................................................................... 425 Learning with Learning Õn Early Childhood: Stem Approach Semiha Önder Chapter 29 ............................................................................................... 436 An Analysis of the Relationship between Transformational Leadership and Organizational Cynicism Ali Riza Terzi and Ayúe Pinar Dülker Chapter 30 ............................................................................................... 450 Montessori Approach and Gardner's Theory of Multiple Intelligences Tringa Shpendi, Emine Ahmeto÷lu and Ezgi AkúÕn Yavuz Chapter 31 ............................................................................................... 466 Technology and my Child: The Views of Fathers over how their Children Use Technology Cansu Tutkun and Fatma Tezel ùahin Chapter 32 ............................................................................................... 481 Vocational Preferences of Preservice Teachers who got Training for Pedagogical Formation Certificate Gulçin Saraço÷lu, Gürcü Erdamar, Gülgün Bangir Alpan, Özden Demirkan and Nevriye Yazçayir Chapter 33 ............................................................................................... 495 Relationships between Violence Õn Romantic Relationships of University Students, Parental Attitudes and Self-Respect Meltem Yildiz and Jale Eldeleklio÷lu Chapter 34 ............................................................................................... 514 The Effects of Environmental Education Applications on Primary Education Students’ Knowledge and Attitudes towards Environment Yeter ùimúekli

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Chapter 35 ............................................................................................... 525 Development and Education of Senses Õn Children Meral Deveci and Zülfiye Gül Ercan Chapter 36 ............................................................................................... 538 Description and Critical Assessment of Prahbu’s “Task-Based” Approach Erkan Yilmaz Chapter 37 ............................................................................................... 548 Role of Play in Development and Education during Early Childhood Elif Türel Bor and Ender Durualp Chapter 38 ............................................................................................... 555 The Analysis of the Influence of Mother Attachment Styles of Children on their Level of Social Skills Esra Do÷anay Koç and Gülümser Gültekin Akduman Chapter 39 ............................................................................................... 569 Death Concept and Death Education in Preschool Period Ayúenur Gündüz and Gülümser Gültekin-Akduman Chapter 40 ............................................................................................... 583 Investigation of the Effect of Problem-Solving Skills and Empathy on Life Satisfaction Hatice Kumandaú Öztürk, Esra ÇalÕk Var and ùükran KÕlÕç Chapter 41 ............................................................................................... 593 Science Teachers' Perspective on Metal-Nonmetallic Concept: A Qualitative Study Sevgül Çaliú and N. Remziye Ergül Chapter 42 ............................................................................................... 601 Computational Thinking and Õts Efficiency Õn Early Childhood Years Mehmet Nur Tu÷luk and Sümeyye Öcal Chapter 43 ............................................................................................... 609 Metaphors Related to the Elements of Education Okan Kuzu, SadÕk Yüksel Sivaci and Yasemin Kuzu

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Contents

Chapter 44 ............................................................................................... 625 Views of Teacher Candidates on the Folk Culture Course Fitnat Gürgil Chapter 45 ............................................................................................... 639 Special Educatıon and Rehabilitation Services Provided for Adult Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities in Turkey Ali Kaya Chapter 46 ............................................................................................... 647 Children’s Participation Right in Early Childhood Education Approaches Kevser Tozduman Yarali and Elifcan Didin Chapter 47 ............................................................................................... 660 Development and Technology in Early Childhood Hatice Bekir and Remzi Aydin Chapter 48 ............................................................................................... 670 Social Support Needs of Parents of Children with Hearing Impairment or Speech and Language Disorders Beyhan Özge Yersel and Ender Durualp Chapter 49 ............................................................................................... 681 Infant Programs and Best Practices from an Early Intervention Perspective Berrin Somer Ölmez and Neslihan Avci Contributors ............................................................................................. 696

PREFACE

This book, “Recent Researches in Education” has 49 chapters including special education, values of education, effective learning, effect of games on learning, scientific creativity and academic achievement, understanding of childhood, art education, environment education, behavioural and emotional strengths, prospective teachers, perceived organisational supports in schools, bullying levels of high school students, social skills, digital education portals, reliability of scientific process skills, speaking and writing skills, forest school, psychological stability in education, approaches in preschool education, open and distance learning, Stem approach, technology and children, transformation leadership and organizational cynicism, Montessori Approach and Gardner’s theory, role of play in education, metaphors related to the elements of education and other aspects of education. Contributions in each chapter are prepared by experts in the respective fields and mirror the advancement in the approach. This book contains important future tasks of the particular fields and supplies extensive bibliographies at the end of each chapter, as well as tables and figures that illustrate the research findings. All these make this book highly useful and a must read for students, researchers and professionals in educational sciences. We would like to express our gratitude to all contributors for bearing with us as the volume has taken time to come to fruition. We particularly wish to express our thanks to the team at Cambridge Scholars Publishing for preparing the book for publication. The Editors

CHAPTER 1 AN INVESTIGATION OF LEARNING CENTRES FOR EFFECTIVE LEARNING AYùE ÖZTÜRK SAMUR AND GÖZDE INAL KIZILTEPE

Introduction A learning environment is very important for preschool education institutions to enhance the quality of education. Learning environments which are often referred to as the ‘third teacher’ (Hebert 1998, Moore and Sugiyama 2007), after a family and a teacher (Gandini 1998), and sometimes after a teacher and a curriculum, must be well-designed and organized for the children because children need environments which allow them to experience and explore things around them. Moreover, a learning environment which is well-organized and equipped with rich stimulators promotes children’s effective learning and develops their creative problem-solving skills (KandÕr 2003, MEB 2013). Many educational theorists and practitioners mention the effect of environmental factors (Bronfenbrenner 1979, Piaget 1952), culture, and social environment (Vygotsky 1986), on children’s development and learning, and stress that the environment must be designed in such a way that it should provide opportunities for children to move freely and to explore (Montessori 1964). The learning environment in a child-centred classroom must be well-designed for children to interact with their peers, to allow easy access to promote their interests and effective learning, to be well-equipped, and to raise their curiosity (Biddle, Garcia-Nevarez, Henderson and Valero-Kerrick 2013). In many preschool education curricula, there are learning centres including similar materials and equipment, and tools to encourage unstructured and open-ended activities (Biddle et al. 2013, Beaty 2014). The learning centres, also called learning areas, interest centres, or activity centres, are systems used to organize a

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Chapter 1

classroom or materials in the classroom (Brewer 2006, Jackman et al. 2014, Metin 2017). In other words, learning centres are places which include a variety of materials and opportunities to enable children for hands-on learning at individually appropriate levels (Copple and Bredekamp 2006, Epstein 2007). It is emphasized in the Ministry of National Education (MEB) (2013) Preschool Education Curriculum, which began to be implemented in 2013 after being updated in Turkey, that learning environments designed as interest corners before, must be reorganized to include learning centres in which children engage in more effective and active learning so that curricula can be planned and implemented considering its purpose. Learning centres are defined as play grounds which involve a wide range of materials chosen in line with the learning outcomes and indicators studied in the daily learning pacing in the curriculum, and which are separated from each other with a variety of materials (cupboards/shelves at the right height for kids, board, carpets in different colours, floor coverings or sticky tapes, etc.) (MEB 2013). The design and organization of learning centres play an important role for a successful curriculum (Butin and Woolums 2009). Learning centres and the materials included in these centres must be designed and developed considering the childrens’ interests, skills, and holistic developmental domains (Biddle et al. 2013). Different coloured cards including the names and symbols of the learning centres must be put up, or stuck on, somewhere where the children can see them in the learning centres, so that the children can use these centres more effectively (MEB 2013, Beaty 2014). A teacher is responsible for the choice of the appropriate materials considering the purpose of the curriculum, organizing these materials for the children to access, and having children use and learn these centres via careful planning (Cohen, Manion and Morrison 2010, Gullo 2006, Wortham 2010). A teacher can organize the learning centres in line with the curriculum; however, she/he must allow the children to decide how to interact with these materials in the centre (Biddle et al. 2013). Thus, children are free to choose a learning centre considering their interests, to move from one learning centre to another, to produce unique and new products, and to exhibit creative behaviours. The teacher must consider determining whether or not all of the learning centres can be used in a day, and the limitations of the learning centres. The learning centres which children are not interested in must either be changed or transformed (Gullo 2006). The teacher can hold the children’s interest in the materials and centres by adding new materials in line with the curriculum goals and objectives, and updating materials either by removing or replacing some of

An Investigation of Learning Centres for Effective Learning

3

them (MEB 2013). At the same time, the teacher’s role is to observe what children do, and respond to the new opportunities to have children continue their research, to guide children when they need it, and to join the game as a player to enrich the game and learning (Gullo 2006, Ehly 2009, MEB 2013). The learning centres which are very well-organized both support children’s effective learning by allowing them to interact directly with the environment and the other children (Mayesky 2012), and also enable children to explore the environment and gain experience at their own developmental speed (Jackman et al. 2014). These centres offer opportunities to children like freedom, taking risks, patience, creativity, reasoning, problem-solving, learning how to learn, understanding the concepts, expressing themselves, helping each other, sharing, cooperation, finishing what they started, taking responsibility and fulfilling the responsibility, making a choice, making a decision, acquiring a social gender role, and developing motor skills (Diffily, Donaldson and Saaman 2001, Gullo 2006, Aral, KandÕr and Can Yaúar 2011, Mayesky 2012). The borders between the learning centres allow students to focus on the task and benefit from the classroom much better (Trancik and Evans 1995). Using the borders helps to reduce the destructive behaviours that are caused by the intensive activities or lack of physical separation (Olds 1989, Ratcliff 2001). However, the borders of the centre must be flexible in order to transfer the suitable interactions from one place to another and to respond to the children’s changeable interests (MEB 2013). Moreover, while designing the centres, how children use these areas must be considered (Moore 1996). For example, while the book centre where they can spend time individually is determined as a small space, the areas where children can play group games, like the block, and dramatic play centres, must be designed much bigger. Depending on the number of the children, in addition to determining space where children can move freely, quiet and noisy places, and tidy and messy spaces, must be separated from each other (Olds 1989, Trancik and Evans 1995, MEB 2013, Beaty 2014). Thus, the centres in the classrooms must be designed considering their features so that children can both play group games, and also work individually. It is important that children’s views should be taken for the organization of learning centres to support children to adopt the classroom, and fulfil their responsibilities (MEB 2013). The most common learning centres that could be set up temporarily in line with children’s interests in preschool education institutions, are: block, art, book (reading, writing, and listening), dramatic games (puppet show), science (mathematics and science), music (music/movement),

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Chapter 1

computer (technology), and sand and water centres (KandÕr et al. 2010, Aral et al. 2011, Demiriz et al. 2011, Mayesky 2012, Biddle et al. 2013, Beaty 2014, Jackman et al. 2014). The specific number and variety of learning centres in preschool education settings offer different stimulators and learning opportunities for children (Conn-Powers 2010). According to the MEB (2013) Preschool Education Curriculum, the suggested learning centres in preschool education institutions are: block centre, book centre, music centre, art centre, science centre, and dramatic play centres. It is clearly emphasized in the fundamental principles of the curriculum that learning centres are important. In addition, detailed information about the foundation and organization of learning centres, materials, and the importance of the teacher is given (MEB 2013). Thus, the examination of the quality of the learning centres that the MEB (2013) Preschool Education Curriculum particularly focuses on is very important, as it presents the reflections of implementations for the updated curriculum, and offers suggestions that can make contributions to the teachers’ professional development. From this point of view, this research study was carried out to examine the quality of learning centres in preschool education institutions.

Material and Method The survey model which aimed at investigating the learning centres existing in pre-school education institutions was used in the study. The Study Group: Criterion sampling, one of the purposeful sampling techniques, was used in the study. The principle that underlies this sampling method is that the cases that meet some predetermined criterion of importance are studied. The researcher predetermines a set of criteria (YÕldÕrÕm and ùimúek 2011). The research study was carried out in the classes for different age groups of six privately-owned preschools and nursery classes, within elementary schools which have at least two classes, and are located in different neighbourhoods in the centre of AydÕn. Out of the privately-operated and government-run preschools which met these criteria, observations were carried out in a total of 54 classes; 34 privatelyowned preschool classes and 20 nursery classes, within elementary schools. Data Collection Tool: The ‘Learning Centre Evaluation Form’, developed by the researchers to determine the qualitative characteristics of learning centres, was used as a data collection tool. While the evaluation form was designed, the centres (block centre, book centre, music centre, art centre, science centre, and dramatic play centre) suggested by the MEB

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5

(2013) Preschool Education Curriculum for preschool education classes were considered. As a result of literature review, an evaluation form consisting of questions, including the characteristics of predetermined learning centres [separating the learning centre from the other centres, centre tag (a picture symbol of the centre and a printed name tag), location (separating the centres that require quiet/noisy study environment), wideness, cupboards at the right height for children, the availability of the materials to find-use-return cycle, receiving natural light, sitting area, easy to clean flooring, and possibility of using water], was developed. Three experts’ opinions in the field of preschool education were taken. Considering the suggestions and criticism made about the evaluation form by the experts, necessary changes and corrections were made, and the ‘Learning Centre Evaluation Form’ was finalized. Data Collection procedure: After taking the necessary permissions from AydÕn Provincial Directorate of National Education, the observations were carried out during the spring term of 2016-2017 education years between 10 and 29 April 2017. Before the study, the teachers and the directors were informed about the purpose of the study, and the days and the time of the observations were decided. Two researchers observed the learning centres in the classrooms on the determined dates and time, and filled in the Learning Centre Evaluation Form.

Findings The findings about the qualitative characteristics of the learning centres located in the pre-school education classrooms were presented below. Table 1. Learning centres in the classrooms Learning Centres Block centre Dramatic play centre Music centre Book centre Science centre Art centre Other centres (Math centre)

Available f % 49 90.7 47 87 34 63 46 85.1 32 59.2 11 20.4 3 5.5

Non-available f % 5 9.3 7 13 20 37 8 14.9 22 40.8 43 79.6 51 94.5

Total f % 54 100 54 100 54 100 54 100 54 100 54 100 54 100

When Table 1 is examined, it is seen that there are mostly block centres (n=49) in the classrooms. The block centre is followed by the

Chapter 1

6

dramatic play (n=47), book (n=46), music (n=34), science (n=32) and art centres (n=11), consecutively. Moreover, it was determined that there was a math centre in three classes. In addition to this, among the classrooms observed, 5 of them do not have block centres, 7 of them lack dramatic play centres, 20 of them do not have music centres, 8 of them lack book centres, 22 of them do not have science and there are not art centres in 43 of them. Table 2. Evaluation of Block Centres

Block Centre

Available

Nonavailable

f

%

f

%

f

%

Total

The centre’s separation from the other centres The centre’s tag

15

30,6

34

69,4

49

100

17

34,7

32

64,3

49

100

The centre’s width

26

46,9

23

53,1

49

100

The centre’s location

22

44,9

27

55,1

49

100

41

83,7

8

16,3

49

100

18

36,7

31

63,3

49

100

Cupboards at the right height for children The availability of the materials to find-use-return cycle

When the block centres existing in the classrooms were examined, it was revealed that out of 49 centres, 15 of them were different from the other centres with regard to cupboards and carpets, 17 of them had a printed name tag with a symbol of the centre on it and 26 of them were large enough. Only 22 block centres were located away from the centres that require quiet learning environment due to their location. Moreover, it was observed that the shelves of the cupboards in 8 centres were not at the right height for the children, and the materials which were present in only 18 centres were appropriate for the find-use-return cycle. It was observed in these block centres that the plastic and wooden blocks were grouped separately and put on the shelves. In addition, the small materials like toy blocks were put in transparent plastic containers and put on the shelves. When Table 3 was studied, out of 47 dramatic play centres, it was determined that 17 of them were separated from the other centres in terms of cupboards, carpets, and cushions. The width of 26 of them was suitable and due to their position, 21 of them were located far away from the other centres that required quiet atmosphere. It was also revealed that only 16 of

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7

the dramatic centres had a printed name tag with a picture symbolizing the centre on it. There were shelves of cupboards which were not at the right height for the children in 11 dramatic centres, and the materials were put on the shelves in an unorganized fashion without considering the find-usereturn cycle in 31 centres. Table 3. Evaluation of Dramatic Play Centres Dramatic Play Centre The centre’s separation from the other centres The centre’s tag The centre’s width The centre’s location Cupboards at the right height for children The availability of the materials to find-use-return cycle

Available

Nonavailable f %

f

%

17

36,2

30

16 26 21

34,0 55,3 44,7

36 16

Total f

%

63,8

47

100

31 21 26

66,0 44,7 55,3

47 47 47

100 100 100

76,6

11

23,4

47

100

34,0

31

66,0

47

100

Table 4. Evaluation of Music Centres Music Centre The centre’s separation from the other centres The centre’s tag The centre’s width The centre’s location Cupboards at the right height for children The availability of the materials to find-use-return cycle

Available

Nonavailable f %

f

%

8

23,5

26

7 6 16

20,6 17,6 23,5

15 13

Total f

%

76,5

34

100

27 28 26

79,4 82,4 76,5

34 34 34

100 100 100

44,1

19

55,9

34

100

38,2

21

61,8

34

100

When the music centres were analysed, it was observed that the area where the musical instruments were hung on a colourful wooden panel on the wall by the teachers, was called a music centre. Only eight of them were organized as an area except for the wooden panel. Thus, it was determined that eight music centres organized apart from the wooden panel, differed from the other centres with regard to a cupboard. When the

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Chapter 1

wooden panels and centres were explored, only seven of them had printed name tags with pictures on them, six of them had suitable width, 16 of them had a suitable location, and 13 of them had materials which were suitable to the find-use-return cycle. Moreover, it was observed that 15 of them were suited to the children’s height (the cupboard in eight centres were at the right height for the children, and the wooden panel was hung on the wall considering the right height for the children). Table 5. Evaluation of Book Centres

Book Centre The centre’s separation from the other centres The centre’s tag The centre’s width The centre’s location Cupboards at the right height for children The availability of the materials to find-use-return cycle Having a sitting area (cushion, small armchairs, carpet, etc.) Receiving natural light

Available

Nonavailable f %

f

%

41

89,1

5

15 24 31

32,6 52,2 67,4

42

Total f

%

10,9

46

100

31 22 15

67,4 47,8 32,6

46 46 46

100 100 100

91,3

4

8,7

46

100

31

67,4

15

32,6

46

100

38

82,6

8

17,4

46

100

39

84,8

7

15,2

46

100

When Table 5 was examined, it was determined that out of 46 book centres, 41 of them were different from the others, in that that they had cushions, small armchairs, carpets, and cupboards, 24 of them were large enough, and 31 of them were far away from the centres which needed a noisy study atmosphere. It was found that only 15 book centres had printed name tags with a picture of the centre. Moreover, it was determined that most of the book centres included a sitting area with cushions, small armchairs, and carpets, received natural light, and the cupboards suited to the children’s height. It was observed that because the books in the book centres were shelved side by side, their covers were not seen, so the materials in the centres did not suit the find-use-return cycle. It was determined that 21 science centres were not different from the other centres with regard to various materials, 18 science centres did not have a printed name tag with a picture symbolizing the centre, the width of the 27 science centres and the location of the 18 science centres were not

An Investigation of Learning Centres for Effective Learning

9

suitable. In addition to this, it was determined that most of the science centres received natural light, the cupboards were suited to the height of the children, and the materials suited the find-use-return cycle. Furthermore, it was observed that the number of materials used in the science centres was not adequate. Table 6. Evaluation of Science Centres Available

Science Centre The centre’s separation from the other centres The centre’s tag The centre’s width The centre’s location Cupboards at the right height for children The availability of the materials to find-use-return cycle Receiving natural light

Nonavailable f %

f

%

11

34,4

21

14 5 14

43,7 15,6 43,8

23

Total f

%

65,6

32

100

18 27 18

56,3 84,4 56,3

32 32 32

100 100 100

71,9

9

28,1

32

100

25

78,1

7

21,9

32

100

27

84,4

5

15,6

32

100

Table 7. Evaluation of Art Centres Art Centre The centre’s separation from the other centres The centre’s tag The centre’s width Cupboards at the right height for children The availability of the materials to find-use-return cycle Flooring that is easy to clean Possibility of using water

Available

Nonavailable f %

f

%

5

45,5

6

7 7

63,6 63,6

9

Total f

%

54,5

11

100

4 4

36,4 45,5

11 11

100 100

81,8

2

18,2

11

100

7

63,6

4

36,4

11

100

11 3

100,0 27,3

8

72,7

11 11

100 100

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Chapter 1

Out of the 54 classrooms, only 11 of them had an art centre. It was determined that the other classrooms did not have an art centre and they had only cupboards which contained the materials the children used with art activities. It was observed that the art centres had easy-to-clean flooring, and the cupboards in most of them were at the right height for children. In addition to this, seven art centres had a printed name tag with a symbol of the centre on it, the width of them was suitable and the materials suited to the find-use-return cycle. It was observed in these centres that the materials were grouped in terms of types of paints (pastel crayon, dry pastel crayon), scissors, glue, different drawing papers, and waste materials, and put on the shelves or in different containers. Only three art centres had an opportunity to use water. Out of these three centres, two learning centres were located next to the washbasin in the classroom and a small bottled water dispenser was put near the science centre so that the children could get water.

Results and Discussion It was concluded in the study which was carried out to determine the qualitative characteristics of learning centres involved in the pre-school education institutions, that the block, dramatic play, book, music, science, and art centres mostly existed in the classrooms. In addition to this, there are not block centres in five of them, dramatic play centres in seven of them, music centres in 20 of them, book centres in eight of them, science centres in 22 of them, and art centres in 43 of them. This result is similar to the other research study results in the literature (Özyürek and KÕlÕnç 2015, Metin 2017). In the study carried out with 20 pre-school teachers by Özyürek and KÕlÕnç (2015), which aimed at determining the learning centres on children’s free play behaviours in preschool education institutions, all of the teachers stated that there were block, science, music, and art centres in their classrooms, and out of 20 teachers, 19 of them stated that there was a book centre and 17 of them said that there was an art centre. Metin (2017) carried out a study which aimed at investigation of the practices in learning centres of pre-school education institutes with 15 pre-school teachers, and the teachers stated that there was dramatic play, block, music, science, book, and puppet centres but one teacher said that there was an art centre in the classroom. While setting up the learning centres, it is important that the borders of the learning centres must be defined very well (Hohmann and Weikart, 2000, Hirsh 2004). It was determined in the Preschool Education

An Investigation of Learning Centres for Effective Learning

11

Curriculum that learning centres could be separated from one another with cupboards and panels at the right height for the children, colourful carpets, floor coverings, or sticky tapes (MEB 2013). However, it was concluded that in most of the block, dramatic play, music, science, and art centres, the centre did not separate from the other centres with different materials; in other words, their borders were not clearly defined. It was observed that most of the borders of the book centres were defined with cushions, small armchairs, carpets, and cupboards and in that way, they were different from the other centres. In the study carried out by Aysu and Aral (2016), it was determined that the learning centres in preschool education institutions were separated from the other centres with different materials. When the learning centres were examined, it was found that only the name of the centre was written on the name tags of the block, dramatic play, music, book, and science centres. It was observed that most of the art centres had printed name tags with pictures symbolizing the centres. In fact, it is required that the cards with the names and symbols of the learning centres must be hung or stuck somewhere where children can see them (MEB 2013, Beaty 2014). It is suggested that tags, both with a picture and a statement, should be used together to organize the classroom, to present the learning centres to the children, and to promote literacy awareness (Vogel 2012). It is emphasized in the High Scope curriculum that learning centres must have tags with a picture and a verbal statement (Hohmann and Weikart 2000). When the learning centres were examined in terms of width and location, all of the centres except for the science centre were suitable in terms of width and, considering the position, only the book centre was available. Similar to this finding obtained from the research study, in a study conducted by Metin (2017), it was determined that most of the teachers did not pay attention to the characteristics of location while setting up the learning centres. The number and the width of the learning centres are affected by the number of children in the class and the physical qualities of the classroom. It is suggested that learning centres having similar qualities to one another should be combined, or these centres should be alternately included for small classrooms in the curriculum (MEB 2013). Because the classrooms with suitable width were high in number in the classrooms examined, it can be interpreted that these recommendations were taken into consideration. In addition to this, the number of learning centres which were not big enough was considerably high. The reason for this situation might be that because teachers want to include more learning centres in their classrooms, the width of the learning centres designed is reduced. The position of the learning centres changes

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Chapter 1

depending on the qualities of the centres. Accordingly, the learning centres which require relatively much noisier environments for activities (block, dramatic play, etc.) must be away from the centres that need a much quieter learning environment (book, science centres, etc.), as far as possible (Hohmann and Weikart 2000, MEB 2013, Beaty 2014). Moreover, due to their characteristics, science and book centres should receive natural light, the book centre should have seating arrangements so that the children can review the books easily, and the art centre should have easy-to-clean flooring covers and easy access to water (Stephens 1996, as cited in Kocamano÷lu 2014, Hohmann and Weikart 2000, KandÕr et al. 2010, Demiriz et al. 2011, Izadpanah and Günçe 2014). It was revealed in the study that all of the qualities required for learning centres were considered, except for the opportunity for water use. When the cupboards at the right height for children in the learning centres were examined, it was determined that except for the music centre, the cupboards in most of the other learning centres were suited to the height of the children. However, it was found that the musical instruments were hung on a panel which children could not reach, in the area called music centre by the teachers. Yet children develop much better in the environments where they experience freely and move easily (MEB 2013). Thus, children must reach the materials in the learning centres easily (Hohmann and Weikart 2000, Moyer 2001, Demiriz et al. 2011, MEB 2013, Beaty 2014). Similar materials in the learning centres must be grouped together, and small objects must be put in transparent containers, so children can easily see these materials which are put on the shelves in an organized manner (Hohman, and Weikart 2000). Organizing the materials neatly in the learning centres can facilitate children to reach them easily, return them carefully, and keep items organized. However, the findings obtained from the research study reveal that the materials were organized without considering the find-use-return cycle in most of the learning centres. In a study conducted by Aysu and Aral (2016), it was found that it was not very easy for the children to reach the materials. Particularly, while shelving the books, the book covers must be facing out in the book centres; however, fifteen book centres did not pay attention to storing books by displaying their covers (Stephens 1996, as cited in Kocamano÷lu 2014, Hohmann and Weikart 2000, Aral and Bulut 2001, KandÕr et al. 2010, Demiriz et al. 2011).

An Investigation of Learning Centres for Effective Learning

13

Conclusions The findings of this study reveal that learning centres, which are the important components of pre-school education settings, and emphasized in pre-school curricula, are not well-designed and organized effectively. Considering this, it can be stated that the borders of the learning centres should be determined well by separating them with variety of materials so that they can be perceived as an area, and the centres should be tagged by using both their names and pictures. With regard to the characteristics of the learning centres, their width and location should be considered, and the materials should be organized considering the find-use-return cycle. In addition to this, there are also some limitations of the study. The research study was limited to 54 pre-school education classes in a city, and the learning centres stated in the MEB (2013) Pre-school Education Curriculum. In line with this, more classes and different learning centres in different cities can be examined, and the findings obtained can be compared. Moreover, setting up sample practice classes, the teachers can be given training, and the quality of the learning centres can improve. Inservice training can be developed, working cooperatively with universities to set up learning centres and applied on teachers and school directors.

References Aral, N. & Bulut, ù. (2001). AnasÕnÕfÕ ö÷retmenlerinin çocuk kitaplarÕyla yaptÕklarÕ uygulamalarÕn incelenmesi. Ça÷daú E÷itim Dergisi, 25(278), 13-19. Aral, N., KandÕr, A. & Can Yaúar, M. (2011) Okul öncesi e÷itim ve okul öncesi e÷itim programÕ (Geliútirilmiú IV. BaskÕ), østanbul: YA-PA YayÕnlarÕ. Aysu, B. & Aral, N. (2016). Okul öncesi ö÷retmenlerinin ö÷renme merkezleri hakkÕndaki görüú ve uygulamalarÕnÕn incelenmesi. Kastamonu E÷itim Dergisi, 24(5), 2561-2574. [Avaiable online at: http://dergipark.gov.tr/kefdergi/issue/27735/318061] Retrieved on July 05, 2017. Beaty, J. J. (2014). Preschool appropriate practices: Environment, curriculum and development. Fourth edition Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning. Biddle, K. A. G., Garcia-Nevarez, A., Henderson, W. J. R., & ValeroKerrick, A. (2013). Early childhood education: Becoming a professional. Los Angeles: SAGE. Brewer, J. A. (2006). Introduction to early childhood education: Preschool

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through primary grades (6th Edition). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson. Bronfenbrenner, U. (1979). The ecology of human development: Experiments by design and nature. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Butin, D., & Woolums, J. (2009). Early childhood centres. Washington, DC: National Clearinghouse for Educational Facilities. Cohen, L, Manion, L. & Morrison, K. (2010). A guide to teaching practice. (5th edition). London: Routledge. Conn-Powers, M. C. (2010). Early Childhood School Readiness series 2: Preparing children for kindergarten: Learning centres. [Avaiable online at:https://www.iidc.indiana.edu/styles/iidc/defiles/ECC/Learning Centers.pdf ] Retrieved on June 20, 2017. Copple, C., & Bredekamp. S. (2006). Basics of developmentally appropriate practice: An introduction for teachers of children 3 to 6. Washington, DC: NAEYC. Demiriz, S., Ulutaú, ø. & Karada÷, A. (2011). Okul öncesi e÷itim kurumlarÕnda e÷itim ortamÕ ve donanÕmlar. Ankara: AnÕ yayÕncÕlÕk. Diffily, D., Donaldson, E., & Sassman, C. (2001). The scholastic book of early childhood learning centre. New York; Scholatic. Inc. [online at: http://bpsassets.weebly.com/uploads/9/9/3/2/9932784/the_scholastic_b ook_of_early_childhood_learning_centers.pdf] Retrieved on July 05, 2017. Ehly, S.Y. (2009). The learning-centered kindergarten: 10 keys to success for standards-based classrooms. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press Epstein, A.S. (2007). The intentional teacher: Choosing the best strategies for young children’s learning. Washington, DC: NAEYC Gandini, L. (1998). Educational and caring spaces. In C. Edwards, L. Gandini, & G. Forman (Eds.), The hundred languages of children: The Reggio Emilia approach-advanced reflections (2nd ed., pp. 161-178). Norwood, NJ: Ablex. Gullo, D. F. (2006). K today: Teaching and learning in the kindergarten year. Washington, DC: NAEYC. Hohmann, M. & Weikart. D. P. (2000). Küçük ÇocuklarÕn E÷itimi. [Education of young children]. (Çev: Sibel Saltiel Kohen, Der: Ülfet Ö÷üt). østanbul: Hisar E÷itimVakfÕ YayÕnlarÕ. Hebert, E. (1998). Design matters: How school environment affects children. Educational Leadership, 56(1), 69-70. Hirsh, R. E. (2004). Early childhood curriculum: Incorporating multiple intelligences, developmentally appropriate practice, and play. Boston, Allyn & Bacon. Izadpanah, S., & Günçe, K. (2014). Integration of educational methods

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and physical settings: Desing guidelines for High/Scope methodology in pre-schools. South African Journal of Education, 34(2), 1-17. [Avaiable online at: http://www.scielo.org.za/pdf/saje/v34n2/06.pdf] Retrieved on July 05, 2017. Jackman, H., Beaver, N., & Wyatt, S. (2014). Early education curriculum: A child's connection to the world. (Sixth Edition). Stamford, USA: Cengage Learning. KandÕr, A. (2003). Erken çocukluk e÷itiminde kaliteyi belirleyen ölçütler. (YayÕma HazÕrlayan: Müzeyyen Sevinç). Erken Çocuklukta Geliúim ve E÷itimde Yeni YaklaúÕmlar (s.36-40). østanbul: Morpa Kültür YayÕnlarÕ. KandÕr, A., Özbey, S., & ønal, G. (2010). Okul öncesi e÷itimde programme: Kuramsal temeller. østanbul: Morpa Kültür YayÕnlarÕ. Kocamano÷lu, D.Ö. (2014). Ö÷renme merkezleri kullanÕlarak oluúturulan bir okul öncesi e÷itim sÕnÕfÕnda çocuklarÕn sanat ürünlerinin incelenmesi and estetik yargÕlarÕnÕn belirlenmesi. YayÕnlanmamÕú Yüksek Lisans Tezi, Ankara Üniversitesi, Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü, Ankara. Mayesky, M. (2012). Creative activities for young children. (Tenth Edition). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning. MEB (2013). Okul öncesi e÷itim programÕ. Ankara: Milli E÷itim BakanlÕ÷Õ Temel E÷itim Genel Müdürlü÷ü YayÕnlarÕ. Metin, ù . (2017). Investigation of the practices in learning centers of preschool education institutes. Turkish Journal of Education, 6 (1), 1-16. doi: 10.19128/turje.267357 Montessori, M. (1964). The montessori method. New York, Schocken Books. Moore, G. T. (1996). How big is too big? How small is too small? Child Care Information Exchange, 7(110), 21-24. Moore, G. & T. Sugiyama (2007). The children's physical environment rating scale (CPERS): Reliability and validity for assessing the physical environment of early childhood educational facilities. Children, Youth and Environment, 17(4), 24-53. [Avaiable online at: http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.7721/chilyoutenvi.17.4.0024] Retrieved on June 20, 2017. Moyer, J. (2001). The child-centered kindergarten: A position paper: association for childhood education international. Childhood Education, 77 (3), 161-166. Olds, A. R. (1989). Psychological and physiological harmony in child care centre design [Electronic version]. Children’s Environments Quarterly, 6(4), 8-16.

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Özyürek, A. & KÕlÕnç, N. (2015). Okul öncesi e÷itim kurumlarÕndaki ö÷renme merkezlerinin çocuklarÕn serbest oyun davranÕúlarÕ üzerine etkisi. Karabük Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü Dergisi, 2015, 5 (2), 125-138. Doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.14230/joiss124 Piaget, J. (1952). The origins of intelligence in children. New York, NY: International Universities Press. Ratcliff, N. (2001). Use the environment to prevent discipline problems and support learning. Young Children, 56(5), 84-87 Trancik, A. M., & Evans, G. W. (1995). Spaces fit for children: Competency in the design of daycare centre environments. Children, Youth and Environments, 12(3), 43-58. Wortham, S. C. (2010). Early childhood curriculum: Developmental bases for learning and teaching. (5th edition). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Vogel, N. (2012). Arranging the active learning environment: Setting up the preschool environment. ReSource, 31(1), 11-14. [Avaiable online at: http://www.highscope.org/file/ NewsandInformation/ReSource Reprints/Spring2012/ReSourceSpring2012_LearnEnvironment.pdf] Retrieved on July 05, 2017. Vygotsky, L. (1986). Thought and language. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. YÕldÕrÕm, A. & ùimúek, H. (2011). Sosyal bilimlerde nitel araútÕrma yöntemleri. (8. BaskÕ). Seçkin YayÕnevi: Ankara.

CHAPTER 2 EXAMINING THE VALUE PERCEPTIONS OF THE PRESCHOOL CHILDREN STUDYING THE VALUES EDUCATION CURRICULUM1 BANU AKBAù AND YUNUS GÜNINDI Introduction The concept of value was first used by Znaniecki in the 20th century (Bilgin 1995:83). Halstead (1996) defines values as “principles, fundamental convictions, ideals, standards or vital attitudes that are closely related to personal integrity and identity, which are guided by behaviour, which are referenced without considering judgments or beliefs” (ùener, 2013). Meanwhile, Schwartz (1992) defines values as “the criteria people use to judge their actions and justify them, to assess people, events and situations” (cited in ùener 2013). Values change from society to society and from age to age. Liberal values, such as individual freedoms, social justice, human rights, and respect for diversity in societies, exist where a democratic political tradition is in place, whereas, in less democratically stable societies, values relating to character, such as honesty, courage, respect and tolerance, are emphasized (Print 2009, cited in ArÕkan 2011). Values explored in the context of values education in Turkey are listed as “cooperation, solidarity, tolerance, hospitality, patriotism, integrity, goodness, cleanliness, diligence, honesty, affectation, respect, sensitivity, fairness and sharing” (MEB 2010). In addition to all these different values, core values, such as honesty, respect, responsibility, fairness, sensitivity and citizenship, are emphasized in many countries. The preschool period is the first and most important period during which the foundations of values are introduced to children. After this 1

This study was delivered as an oral presentation at the First National Higher Education Research and Practices Congress on Field Education Research and Applications.

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Chapter 2

period, changes in values are possible, although the main values are already formed (UyanÕk Balat and Balaban Da÷al 2009). Values education is carried out in different ways at different ages. In children’s early years, values education, which is a natural consequence of increasing interactions with adults and other stimuli in the environment, involves an implicit program of systematic studies at school. In the preschool period, socioemotional learning elements, such as self-perception, managing and sharing feelings and behaviours, and the development of supportive values, play an important role, while religious, social and political values start to appear in children’s lives during their secondary school phase (Halstead 2007, cited in ArÕkan 2011). When helping children acquire values, the different development levels among them, due to the development and internalization of values, as well as their cognitive and socio-emotional development, should be taken into consideration. In other words, preschool values should include ethical, social and individual values in the educational content of education as a whole, in accordance with children’s development, with no particular field considered on its own. In this way, a child will be able to accept universal values and develop an ability to understand him/herself and the society in which he or she lives (Sözkesen 2015). Sometimes, conflicts can be seen between values, but the individual seeks to strike a balance over time. In the main, the acquisition of values results from the influence of a child’s mother, father, family environment, culture and social class (Silah 2000). In early childhood, children need to be accepted as individuals, respected, happy, learning and exploring, while enjoying freedom and stable relationships. Values can be functional and humanistic if education is based on these basic requirements. In the preschool period, the encounter between children and values takes place through various experiences. Values education can facilitate personality and identity creation, when it is delivered in a free environment (Ça÷lar 2005, Neslitür et al. 2015). The values that children try to acquire in the early stages of development cannot be considered, apart from in the context of their cognitive and social development (UyanÕk Balat 2005). Therefore, if values explored during early years of education are intended to support all the development areas of a child, the child will in turn be able to participate in the integration process. Researchers have proposed different definitions of friendship, responsibility, respect and sensitivity. Friendship values include affection, respect, trust and cooperation. Children develop trust within an environment of love, respect, and cohesive relationships, as well as when experiencing trouble-free interaction with their peers and other people

Examining the Value Perceptions of Preschool Children

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around them (AltÕnköprü 2000, cited in ArÕkan 2011, Dönmezer 2001, cited in ArÕkan 2011, Oktay and Polat Unutkan 2003). Similarly, children encounter these values when interacting with friends, when there is an expectation that their behaviours will be in accordance with friendship, and friendship values. Responsibility in children is not cultivated suddenly. Pre-primary education institutions also play an important part in the provision of teaching responsibility to children, although their initial impressions of responsibility will be formed from the affectation, interest and other positive behaviours shown while their basic needs are met. Offering a variety of options to the child at certain ages, and choosing from these options is important for gaining a sense of responsibility. It is very important for children be able to make decisions on any topic, based on mature cognitive, social and emotional skills. As such, according to a child’s age and development characteristics, he or she is given the right to speak on certain matters, as well as to start taking responsibility by being given appropriate duties, until he or she is given full responsibility for his or her actions. In this environment, the child learns self-sufficiency and self-regulation. Avoiding parental responsibility, and showing a protective approach, prevent the child from being a self-contained, independent individual (Unutkan 2005, AltÕnköprü 2000, cited in ArÕkan 2011, Yavuzer 1998, Öztürk 2011). The importance of respect, along with the development of respectful behaviours for children, must firstly involve respect for adults and their surroundings. For the development of respect in children, they should be respected, while their opinions should be given importance, their desires should be acknowledged, and their communication efforts should not be ignored (UyanÕk Balat and Da÷al 2006). Once adults in their environment show them respect, relevant to their appropriate age levels, they can learn to respect each other in an environment of mutual trust. While selfcentredness is dominant, children become socialized through games, such that they can come out of their own shell (Lott et al. 2000, Ömero÷lu and KandÕr 2005, Baúal 2007, Öztürk 2011). In Aksaray, sensitivity is considered in relation to the slogan, ‘cooperation, cooperation and cooperation’. It is expected that children will continue to work in cooperation and solidarity with other members of the class, and teachers. The value of mutual aid can also be evaluated in the context of solidarity. It is necessary to demonstrate that, nowadays, coexistence in life has become more stable due to initiatives allowing children to observe cooperative values in action. For example, employees have been known to explain how cooperation works in their cooperative

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grocery stores. In the process, children see how difficult it is to live an individualistic life, and how cooperation makes life easier (UyanÕk-Balat and Balaban-Da÷al 2006).

Method This study involved descriptive research using a survey model in order to determine perceptions among children after receiving values education at independent kindergartens. A screening model was used for ‘identifying the views or interests of a participant in a topic or event, skills, abilities, attitudes, etc.’ (Erdi 2013). An interpretive content analysis method was used in the collection, analysis and interpretation of data, using qualitative research methods. The study group consisted of 113 children, aged five years and older, all of whom attended an independent kindergarten located in the central province of Aksaray. The values contained within the education plan during the research process in Aksaray Province were determined as friendship (in September), responsibility (in October), respect (in November), and sensitivity (in December). Measurement Tool: The draw-and-explain technique was used to determine the value perceptions of children after receiving values education (Brackett-Milburn 1999, Shepardson 2005). The drawing-telling technique is a diagnostic method used to understand how children construct thoughts and concepts (McWhirter et al. 2000). The children were asked to draw whatever came into their mind when ‘friendship, responsibility, respect and sensitivity’ were mentioned, and explain their drawings in the relevant time frames (one day for each value). The researcher recorded the children’s explanations according to preprepared codes (these are not used in the filing of children’s drawings, but included the determination of gender and picture order), which were applied to each drawing. Application Process and Environment: The study was conducted during the 2013-2014 academic year. After permission had been obtained, the researcher went to the participating institutions and informed the administrators about the study. Next, an implementation plan was prepared with the school administrators in order to determine when, and how, the measurement instrument would be implemented. The measuring instrument was applied by the researcher following the completion of the children’s drawings, while the children’s narration of their drawings was recorded. Researcher’s Role: Before the research, the researcher visited the participating schools for four weeks, to teach two days a week, providing

Examining the Value Perceptions of Preschool Children

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two-hour lessons about issues independent of the research. This was to enable the children to become acquainted with the researcher, so that they could express themselves in a comfortable manner. Finally, the researcher asked the children: “what comes into your mind when you hear ‘friendship, responsibility, respect and sensibility?” They were then asked to draw their responses, which were neither guided nor interrupted by the researcher. After the children had completed their drawings, the researcher asked questions about them, and what they wanted to express. Each drawing was filed separately after the researcher had recorded each child’s narration of his or her drawing on a blank sheet, attaching it to the reverse of each picture (Figs 1-9). The researcher allocated separate days for each value in the schools. Data Analysis: The data consisted of visual and written items relating to the children’s perceptions about ‘friendship, responsibility, respect and sensibility’. The data were analysed by qualitative analysis methods using an interpretive content analysis approach (Ball and Smith 1992, Banks 2001). Interpretive content analysis includes the determination and definition of themes, subjects and phenomena in visual and written material obtained during research (Giarelli and Tulman 2003). The acquired codes and themes were reviewed by the researcher for validity and reliability, as well as analysed in line with procedures used by different specialist researchers. The reliability formula suggested by Miles and Huberman (1994) was employed in order to calculate the reliability of the research: Reliability = agreement/ (agreement + disagreement). The reliability of the research was calculated to be 83%, with values above 70% considered reliable (Miles and Huberman 1994). However, kappa (compliance) analysis was also conducted in order to evaluate the level of consensus among experts and researchers. As a result of this evaluation, the kappa value was found to be 86%. The result was considered reliable for the study. The use of verification strategies in qualitative research is important in order to increase reliability (Morse et al. 2002). Thus, all steps followed in the research are reported. The researcher took short notes for all observations and evaluations in the implementation environment, as well as the steps he followed during the implementation process. The short notes were developed the same day in order to describe those living in the application environment, and then transferred to a new file as field notes. While field notes were not used as data, they allowed the researcher to

Chapter 2

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review the application. The data were also analysed by descriptive analysis, while being reported using percentage and frequency analysis.

Findings The study sought to determine the ‘friendship, responsibility, respect and sensibility’ perceptions held by children attending independent kindergartens. The data gathered for this purpose were evaluated and analysed, with the findings on responsibility presented in Table 1, respectability in Table 2, friendship in Table 3, and sensibility in Table 4. By analysing the collected data, a total of 157 codes were obtained: 37 for responsibility, 37 for respect, 41 for friendliness, and 42 for sensitivity.

Perception of Responsibility Value Table 1. Figures included in the drawings of the children participating in the study about responsibility value Codes Personal Belongings Toys Clothes Family Mother Elder Sister Siblings/ Father Other People Elderly People Wounded People Police/ Soldier/ Friend/ Boy/ Girl Environmental Responsibility Garbage Forest Fire Garbage Can Paper Waste/Recycle bin Plastic bottle

f

%

12 3

10.61 2.65

23 8 6

20.35 7.07 5.30

5 2 1 6

4.42 1.76 .88 5.30

22 7 5 2 1

19.46 6.19 4.42 1.76 .88

Examining the Value Perceptions of Preschool Children

Animals Cat Butterfly Bird/Turtle Rabbit/Dog Buildings/Vehicles House School Firetruck Room/Bus Car/Classroom Hospital Skyscraper/Garden/Ship

23

7 3 2 1

6.19 2.65 1.76 .88

15 13 6 4 3 2 1

13.27 11.50 5.30 3.53 2.65 1.76 .88

The figures included in the drawings, and the frequencies of these figures are given in Table 1. When this table is examined, 6.19% of the children drew a bed to refer to the behaviour related to making a bed, 10.61% drew a toy to refer to the behaviour related to picking up their toys after playing with them, 1.76% drew a lamp for the behaviour of avoiding wastage, 2.65% drew milk to refer to the behaviour related to eating healthily, 4.62% drew elderly people to refer to the responsibility related to helping the elderly with their work and giving up their seat to the elderly, 19.46% drew rubbish in order to represent their responsibility toward the environment, 6.19% drew a cat in order to represent their responsibility toward animals, and 20.35% drew their mother as one of their family members in order to express their responsibility in terms of helping with the housework. Examples of the children’s drawings about the perception of responsibility are given in Figs. 1-2. In Figure 1, the child is seen playing a game in class to demonstrate their responsibility toward nature, as it indicates how they avoid wasting energy by turning the lamp off during the day. In addition, the child reflected on their responsibilities in the classroom by saying that they return toys and other items to the right place after using them.

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Fig. 1

Fig. 2

In this figure, the perception of responsibility is expressed in terms of listening to the words of elders, and holding their hand while crossing a road, as well as feeding the birds.

The Perception of Respect Value Table 2. Figures included in the drawings of the children participating in the study about respect value Codes Other People Elderly People Friends Foreign Girl Foreign Boy Teacher Visitor/Pregnant Woman Thief Atatürk/Disabled/Child/Enemy/Driver Action Fighting Do not Listen to Talking Breaking Toy Other Elements Toy Fodder/ Gift Hunting/Paint/Service/Drinking/Fountain Balloon/Clothes/Tablet/Fire/Ball/Lamp

f

%

30 15 11 6 5 3 2 1

26.54 13.27 9.73 5.30 4.42 2.65 1.76 .88

3 2 1

2.65 1.76 .88

7 2 1 1

6.19 1.76 .88 .88

Examining the Value Perceptions of Preschool Children

Family Mother Father Sibling Respect for Environment Trash Trash Box/Environmental Pollution Paper Waste/Recycle Bin/Exhaust/Fume

25

13 4 3

11.50 3.53 2.65

4 2 1

3.53 1.76 .88

The figures included in the drawings and the frequencies of these figures are given in Table 2. When Table 2 is examined, 6.19% of children drew a toy for representing behaviour of taking toys by getting permission of their friends, 1.76% of them drew the action of listening while someone is speaking, 26.54% of them drew elderly people for respecting toward these people, 11.15% of them drew their mother for expressing the feeling of respect against their mother as a family member, 11.5% of them watered flowers in nature in order to show respect against nature, and drew flowers for showing how they do not harm nature, and 7.95% of them drew birds for showing their respect against animals which live in nature. Examples of children’s drawings about respect perception are given in Figure 3 and 4.

Fig. 3

Fig. 4

In this figure, the perception of respect is depicted in terms of a child speaking after getting permission. The drawer also stated that, by showing trees in a box, he was protecting them. He also said that he did not harm nature. In this figure, the drawer depicts respect in terms of the need to seek permission from their friends to use something of theirs. The drawer indicated that we can only use others’ belongings if we ask their owners for permission to do so.

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Chapter 2

Perception of the Friendship Value Table 3. Figures included in the drawings of the children participating in the study about the friendship value Codes Person Friend Teacher Red Riding Hood Person with disabilities Family Mother Father Baby Sibling/Cousin/Grandfather Natural events Rainbow Rain Buildings House Car School/Playground Camp/Tent/Mall/Class/Garden Hospital/Playhouse/Drama centre Animals Bird Dinosaur Butterfly Plant Flower Forest Toys Ball Toy Balloon Bicycle/Heart Swing

f

%

85 7 2 1

75.22 6.19 1.76 .88

10 6 2 1

8.84 5.30 1.76 .88

3 1

2.65 .88

10 5 4 1 1

8.84 4.42 3.53 .88 .88

4 3 2

3.53 2.65 1.76

20 2

17.69 1.76

11 11 6 3 2

9.73 9.73 5.30 2.65 1.76

Examining the Value Perceptions of Preschool Children

Games Evcilik/Wrestling/Football Hide and seek/Tag/Jumping in puddles

1 1

27

.88 .88

The figures included in the drawings and the frequencies of these figures are given in Table 3. When this table is analysed regarding the value of friendship, 75.22% of the children drew a friend, 8.84% drew their mother because they perceive their mother as friend, 8.84% drew a house to express spending time at home with their friend, 17.69% drew a flower to represent giving a present to their friend, 6.19% drew a cake to represent a friend’s birthday, and 5.3% drew games that they play with their friends. In the drawings on this theme, children usually included activities that they like to participate in with their friends. They also drew objects that make them happy. Girls often depicted time with friends in parks, forests, gardens, homes and classrooms, while boys referred to parks and classroom activities. These drawings usually showed friends who were helping, sharing, spoiling a game, nourishing animals, playing soccer, asking for permission, listening to their friends while talking to their classmates, and friends at their birthday party. In a small number of cases, children drew a friend who has been vaccinated or a disability, as well as figures in which they were walking with friends in the rain. Emotions and behaviours that were foregrounded with regard to the friendship value were sharing, affectation, friendship, happiness and respect. Examples of children’s drawings about the friendship value are given in Figure 5 and 6.

Fig. 5

Fig. 6

28

Chapter 2

Perception of the Sensitivity Value Table 4. Figures included in the drawings of the children participating in the study about the sensitivity value Codes Person Friend Child Disabled person Old person Hunter Family Mother Father Sibling Plants and animals Bird Flower Tree/Dog Cat Sea creatures/Butterfly/Monkey/Rabbit/Bee Ant/Snail/Spider/Beetle/Tortoise/Wolf Buildings/vehicles House Car Room Playground/Classroom/Bus Environmental sensitivity Exhaust fumes Computer/Light pollution/Fire Cigarette butts /Hunting Others Rubbish Ball Toothbrush Fountain /Plaster /Ice cream

f

%

15 12 7 5 1

13.27 10.61 6.19 4.42 .88

33 18 13

29.19 15.92 11.50

9 6 4 3 1 1

7.96 5.30 3.53 2.65 .88 .88

21 9 2 1

18.58 7.96 1.76 .88

2 1 1

1.76 .88 .88

9 3 2 1

7.96 2.65 1.76 .88

The figures included in the drawings and the frequencies of these figures are given in Table 4. When this table is analysed regarding the value of sensitivity, 13.27% of the children drew a friend, 21.23% drew

Examining the Value Perceptions of Preschool Children

29

their mother, 18.58% drew a house, 26.54% drew the sun, 7.95% drew a bird, and 7.96% drew rubbish. Examples of children’s drawings about the perception of sensitivity are given in Figs. 7-9.

Fig. 7

In figure 7, the perception of sensitivity focuses on cooperation. The child refers to cooperation by showing moments when everyone was invited to paint the wall of the classroom. In this drawing, people can be seen building houses with cooperation from the homeless and disadvantaged people. The drawer also described the happiness of those who undertook this task in the drawing. Fig. 8

In this figure, sensitivity is considered in many ways. Sensitive behaviours, such as helping a disabled person, carrying water for their mother, preparing a meal with their mother, taking an accident victim to hospital, and helping a person with a hearing impairment, are depicted.

30

Chapter 2

Figure 9

Discussion Figures 1 and 2 are examples of drawings that refer to the perception of responsibility. While the value of responsibility is expressed by teachers, it seems that four main topics are covered in the drawings, namely, responsibilities towards nature, family, class, and each other. Responsibilities towards nature are depicted in drawings of children protecting nature, watering and planting trees, feeding animals, building a shelter for animals, not polluting the environment, recycling, not wasting water in the drinking fountain, and turning lights off that are not needed. In order to express responsibilities towards the family, topics such as helping to prepare the dinner table, listening to parents, tidying a room, making the bed, and folding the clothes and placing them in the wardrobe were depicted. Expressing responsibilities towards the class usually referred to class rules (arriving at school on time, greeting classmates, tidying up after playing with toys, putting a hand up to talk, listening while friends are talking, not giving up on an activity, fulfilling the tasks assigned to the class). Responsibilities towards each other were often expressed in terms of personal hygiene and eating a balanced diet. The value of respect was depicted by the children with regard to two specific themes: ‘respect for nature’, and ‘respect for people’. Figures in the drawings of the children participating in the study about the respect value, referred to protecting trees and animals, speaking in class after seeking permission, protecting nature, using the recycling bin, planting seedlings, protecting animal habitats, listening to the advice of elders, kissing the hand of elders on religious festivals, and respecting the national anthem, the Turkish flag, and Ataturk.

Examining the Value Perceptions of Preschool Children

31

When you look at the figures related to friendship, some show sharing, spending time with friends, avoiding behaviours that friends dislike, and surprising friends to make them happy. Some children seem to have chosen animals when describing their friends. In some of the figures, drawings of disabled friends are found. This research represents a rare study conducted in the Turkish context, due to the inclusion of children’s drawings as part of preschool values education. When children’s value perceptions are examined, it can be seen that they perceive values as a whole, and that their values are not separated along sharp lines. It should not be forgotten that the family and the teacher play the most important roles in the development of children’s sense of values. Explaining each value by associating it with other values has an effect on the occurrence of this perception among children. In the course of this study, teachers were found to have experienced difficulties caused by the new integration of values education into the current program. Since the values education program is only provided as a framework by the Ministry of National Education, teachers often express values in reference to their own experiences. The preschool period is a critical stage in which many skills and abilities are developed. In order to train healthy, peaceful and balanced individuals, who are in harmony with themselves and their surroundings, it is necessary for teachers to have comprehensive knowledge and competence in this regard, such that they can offer effective guidance to children in class using more concrete examples of values education. The fact that Aksaray is not a cosmopolitan province significantly explains why similarities in the perception of values in the schools involved in the research were found. The following suggestions were made to the teachers in light of the disruptions they experienced while delivering values education: x Teachers need to believe in the importance of teaching values at an early age. Preschool teachers should be informed about the necessity of values education as part of the early years’ education program. x The ministry should provide teachers with a values education-based activities booklet. x The ministry should provide families with a values education-based guidebook.

32

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References ArÕkan, A. (2011). “De÷erler E÷itiminin TanÕmÕ, Önemi ve KapsamÕ”, Okul Öncesi Dönemde De÷erler E÷itimi, Eskiúehir: AçÕkö÷retim Fakültesi YayÕnlarÕ. Ball, M. & Smith, G. (1992). Analyzing and visualizing data. London: Sage. Banks, M. (2001). Visual methods in social research. London: Sage. Baúal, H. A. (2007). Okul öncesi e÷itim. Morpa, østanbul. Bilgin, N. (1995). Sosyal Psikolojide Yöntem ve Pratik ÇalÕúmalar, østanbul: Sistem YayÕncÕlÕk. Brackett-Milburn, K. (1999). A critical appraisal of the draw and write technique. Health Education Research, 14(3), 387-395. Ça÷lar, A. (2005). Okul Öncesi dönemde de÷erler e¤itimi. M. Sevinç (YayÕma hazÕrlayan). Erken Çocuklukta Geliúim ve E÷itimde Yeni YaklaúÕmlar, Cilt 2, ss. 304-310. Ankara: Morpa YayÕnlarÕ. Giarelli, E. & Tulman, L. (2003). Methodological issues in the use of cartoons as data. Qualitative Health Research, 13(7), 945-956. Güngör, E. (1993). Ahlak Psikolojisi ve Sosyal Ahlak. østanbul: Ötüken YayÕnlarÕ. Erdi, B. (2013, Nisan 13). Bilimsel AraútÕrma Yöntemleri. (2013, Ekim 20) javascript.wikispaces.com/file/view/nicel+araútÕrmalar.pptx Lott, L. Nelsen, J. Glenn, S. (2000). “A’dan Z’ye Pozitif Disiplin”. Murat Ersin (Çvr.). østanbul: Hayat YayÕncÕlÕk. McWhirter, J. M., Collins, M., Bryant, I., Wetton, N. M., & Bishop, J. N. (2000). Evaluating ‘safe in the sun’, a curriculum programme for primary schools. Health Education Research, (15)2, 203-217. MEB. (2010). ølk ders genelgesi (B.08.0.TTK.0.72.02.00). Ankara. Miles, M. B. & Huberman A. M. (1994). Qualitative data analysis: an expanded source book. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Morse, J.M., M. Barrett, M. Mayan, K. Olson, & J. Spiers. (2002). Verification strategies for establishing reliability and validity in qualitative research. Int. J. of Qualitative Methods, 1(2), 13-22. Neslitürk, S., Özkal, N. & Dal, S. (2015). 5-6 yaú çocuklarÕnÕn de÷er kazanÕm süreçlerine anne de÷erler e÷itimi programÕnÕn etkisi. Mersin Üniversitesi E÷itim Fakültesi Dergisi, 11(3): 883-899. Oktay, A. & Polat, Unutkan, Ö. (2003). Erken çocuklukta geliúim ve e÷itimde yeni yaklaúÕmlar (Edt. Sevinç, M.), østanbul: Morpa K. Y. Ömero÷lu, E. & KandÕr, A. (2005). Biliúsel geliúim. østanbul: Morpa K. Y. Öztürk, N. (2011). 61-72 aylÕk çocuklar için ahlaki de÷er yapÕsÕnÕ belirleme ölçe÷inin geçerlik ve güvenirlik çalÕúmasÕ (Ankara

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örneklemi). YayÕmlanmamÕú yüksek lisans tezi, Gazi Üniversitesi, Ankara. Roth, J. (Ed.). (2004). Ethics (Revised ed.). Pasadena, California: Salem Press. Shepardson, D. P. (2005). Student’s ideas: what is an environment? Journal of Environmental Education, 36(4), 49-58. Silah, M. (2000). Sosyal psikoloji: davranÕúÕ bilimi (1. BasÕm). Ankara: Gazi Kitabevi. Sözkesen, A. (2015). 60-72 aylÕk çocuklarÕn de÷er e÷itiminde öykü temelli yaratÕcÕ drama yönteminin etkisi. YayÕmlanmamÕú yüksek lisans tezi, Adnan Menderes Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü ølkö÷retim Anabilim DalÕ, AydÕn. ùener, H. (2013). Hayriyye-i Nabi’de AktarÕlan De÷erler. Turkish Studies, 8(1): 2501-2524. Unutkan, Ö. P. (2005). Okul Öncesi Dönemde Sorumluluk E÷itimi. A Oktay ve Ö. Polat Unutkan (Der.), Okul Öncesi Dönemde Güncel Konular (s.189-196). østanbul: Morpa Kültür YayÕnlarÕ. UyanÕk, Balat, G. & Balaban Da÷al, A. (2009). Okul Öncesi Dönemde De÷erler E÷itimi Etkinlikleri (2. BaskÕ). Ankara: Kök YayÕncÕlÕk. UyanÕk, Balat, G. (2005). De÷erler E÷itimi ve De÷erler E÷itimi ProgramlarÕ. østanbul: Morpa Kültür YayÕnlarÕ Yavuzer, H. (2008). Çocuk psikolojisi. østanbul: Remzi Kitabevi. http://tegm.meb.gov.tr/dosya/okuloncesi/ooproram.pdf Eriúim:12.05.2014 Saat:00.25

CHAPTER 3 EFFECTS OF MATH GAMES PROGRAM ON LOW INCOME PRESCHOOLERS’ QUANTITATIVE REASONING, ACADEMIC AND LANGUAGE SKILLS GÖZDE INAL KIZILTEPE AND ÖZGÜN UYANIK AKTULUN Introduction Mathematics is a powerful tool to understand and discover the world for preschoolers who are curious, inquisitive, imaginative and creative. Children exposed to mathematics through the physical and social environment begin to acquire basic concepts and skills to understand mental relationships (Copley 2000, Brewer 2007, Charlesworth and Lind 2009). However, relevant studies show that children at low socioeconomic levels from socially disadvantaged neighborhoods have a lower gain means, in terms of mental processes and academic and language skills, compared to their peers (Denton and West 2002, Arnold and Doctoroff 2003, Jensen 2009, Isaacs 2012, Duncan and Magnuson 2012, Çelik 2015). The adverse effects caused by socioeconomic conditions during childhood extend up to the high school years (Black et al. 2000, Entwisle, Alexander and Olson 2005) and may have long-term consequences that affect the child's advanced academic life (Lee and Burkam 2002, Duncan et al. 2007). Games on mathematical concepts and skills create an atmosphere of independent learning and understanding for preschoolers, especially in low socio-economic neighbourhoods. With such games, children's attention, interest, curiosity, desire and research skills emerge spontaneously, and provide creative environments and appropriate educational opportunities for them to develop positive attitudes towards mathematics. Basic concepts and skills, such as the number concept, operations, pattern-

Effect of Math Games Program on Low Income Preschoolers’

35

association, geometry, measurement, and collecting information-mapping, can be supported by mathematical games. At the same time, children produce solutions to problems, develop alternative ways of thinking, think about their own learning processes, and learn from their mistakes (NCTM 2000, Brewer 2007). Through the games related to mathematics, children begin to use mental processes such as communication, association and representation, cause-effect relationship, problem solving and reasoning functionally, and the need to formulate various strategies related to mathematics (Sarama and Clements 2009, Orçan 2014). Reasoning, one of the skills related to the mental process, is an important part of problem-solving which allows deduction from given information. Reasoning skills involve perceiving similarities and making predictions, and making decisions on problems in the direction of relationships (Oaksford 2005, Eysenck and Keane 2015). Quantitative reasoning is the ability to represent quantitative information and reach previously unknown results about the quantities represented, or the relationship between them (Nunes et al. 2015). Quantitative information is at the basis of quantitative reasoning. For this reason, mathematics is the focal point of the areas where the use of reasoning skills in children can be most clearly seen (KandÕr et al. 2016). Mathematical numbers, geometry, measurement, data analysis and problem-solving require the use of reasoning, and as children gain experience with mathematics, they gain reasoning and proving processes (Churcman 2006). Mathematics education, in its nature, has an important place in the use and development of reasoning skill (Umay 2003). Studies by Berninger and Richards (2002), Swanson and Berninger (1996) have shown that there is a strong relationship between mental processes and academic skills (as cited in Dehn 2008). Mathematical games, such as coding, new inference from previous knowledge, collecting data related to an event, fact or situation, classifying and recording data, creating a model for solving problems, trial-and-error, organizing the living space, the positions of objects relative to each other (such as side by side), their use by time, space, and people (sequences, combinations, mappings, etc.), allow children to talk, read, and write about mathematics (Clements and Sarama 2009, KandÕr et al. 2016). Playing according to the rules of the games, expressing numbers with dots and symbols, the use of various counting, comparison, matching methods, comparing objects, symbols and spaces, recognizing the cognitive and affective aspects of the opponent, and producing new strategies, provide meaningful learning by using quantitative reasoning, and academic and language skills (Brewer 2007).

36

Chapter 3

In this context, it is important to emphasize the importance of educational programs, including various activities, books and games related to mathematics, in enhancing numerical reasoning skills (Starkey et al. 2004, Kidd et al. 2008) and academic language skills (Chapman et al. 2000, Campbell et al. 2001, Greenes et al. 2004, Turhan 2004, YoungLoveridge 2004, Turkmenoglu 2005, Ramani and Siegler 2008, Giles Vitulli and Byrd 2013), of young children at low socioeconomic level. Although there are studies carried out with the aim of supporting children with numerical reasoning and academic and language skills, none of the studies have intended to support children’s numerical reasoning and academic language skills as a whole, through integration mathematical games. Therefore, the researchers believed that the mathematical games support program prepared for supporting numerical reasoning and academic language skills of children from low-income families, would be useful for giving teachers a different viewpoint and contributing to the literature in this field. From this point in this study, it was aimed to investigate the effect of the Math Games Support Program on numerical reasoning and early academic and language skills of 61-72-month-old preschoolers.

Method The Research Model: The pre-test/post-test experiment control group quasi-experimental design was used in the study. Semi-experimental designs are a high modality of application in educational research when it is not possible to control all variables (Cohen, Manion and Morrison 2007). It is important to note that groups of experiment and control groups are assigned by the researcher, instead of random assignments (Fraenkel and Wallen 2006). The first factor of the 2x3 mixed experimental design used in the study showed the independent factor groups (experiment and control), while the second factor pointed out the repeated measures (pretest/post-test/follow-up test) on dependent variables. In this design, children in the experimental and control groups were pre-tested with the Quantitative Battery of Cognitive Abilities Test Form-6 (CogAT Form-6), and the Kaufman Survey of Early Academic and Language Skills-K-SEALS. Following the pre-test measurements, the children in the experimental group were administered the Math Games Program twice a week for 12 weeks. In this process, no action was taken on the control group. After completion of the experimental procedure, Quantitative Battery and K-SEALS were administered to the children in the experimental and control groups as a post-test. Five weeks after the

Effect of Math Games Program on Low Income Preschoolers’

37

post-tests were given, the same tests were applied as a follow-up test to the children in the experimental group. The Study Group: The population of the study was comprised of 6172-month-old children who were showing normal developmental characteristics and attending nursery classes of primary schools affiliated to the Afyonkarahisar Provincial Directorate of National Education, during the 2016-2017 academic year. The study group was formed using a purposive homogenous sampling procedure. This method of sampling defines the selection of a homogenous subgroup from the population for the research problem (Büyüköztürk et al. 2012). In the formation of the study group, firstly the neighbourhoods where the families living at low socioeconomic level, which is accepted as socially disadvantageous through the Governorship of Afyonkarahisar, were determined, and then a list of the nursery classes found in these districts was obtained from the Provincial Directorate of National Education. Obtained lists were examined by the researchers, and interviews with school administrators and kindergarten teachers, to find out whether a special education program had been implemented in any subject and information about the parent profile, was obtained. It was also noted that the strategic plans of the identified schools indicated that the profiles of the parents were at a low socioeconomic level. A total of 46 children, including experimental (n: 23) and control (n: 23) groups, were included in the study. 52.2% of the children in the experimental group were female, 47.8% were male, 8.7% were first children, 65.2% were in the median or median, 26.1% were the last child. 46.5% had two siblings, 53.5% had three or more siblings, 96.2% of them did not have pre-school education before, and 3.8% of them had taken pre-school education before. 30.4% of the children's mothers were under 29 years old, 52.2% were between 30-39 years, 17.4% were over 40 years old, 9% of them did not graduate from any educational institution, 69.2% were primary school, 15.1% were junior high school, 6.7% were high school graduates, 84.2% did not work and 15.8% workers. 21.8% of the children’s fathers were 29 years old or younger, 60.9% were between 30-39 years old, 17.3% were 40 years old and over, 69,5% of them were primary school, 16,6% were junior high school, 10,8% were high school students and 3.1% were university graduates, 78,2% were workers and 21,8% were self-employed. Of the children assigned to the control group, 47.8% were female, 52.2% were male, 8.7% were the first child, 60.9% were median or median, 30.4% were the last child, 30.4% were two siblings, 69.6% had three or more siblings, 93.9% of them did not have pre-school education and 6.1% of them had taken pre-school education before. 26.0% of

Chapter 3

38

children's mothers were 29 years old or younger, 56.6% were between 3039 years old, 17.4% were over 40 years old, 10.7% did not graduate from any educational institution, 48.7% were primary school, 23.2% were junior high school, 17.4% were high school graduates and 78.3% did not work while 21.7% were workers. 17.4% of the children’s fathers were under 29 years old, 52.2% were between 30-39 years, 30.4% were over 40 years old, 11.9% were primary school, 23.2% were junior high school, 59.1% were high school graduates and 5.8% were university graduates; 79.6% were workers, and 20.4% were self-employed. Prior to the implementation, the Independent Samples T-test was used to identify whether there was a significant difference between the Quantitative Battery and K-SEALS pre-test scores of the children in the experimental and control groups, and the results were presented in Table 1.

K-SEALS

CogAT-6

Table 1. Independent Samples T-test Results According to Control and Experimental Group Children’s Quantitative Battery and KEADBAT Pre-test scores

p>.05

Quantitative Battery Quantitative Battery Vocabulary Vocabulary Numbers, Letters and Words Numbers, Letters and Words Early Academic and Language Skills Composite Early Academic and Language Skills Composite

ഥ ࢄ

Group

n

Exp.

23

26

3

Cont.

23

25

7

Exp. Cont.

23 23

26 25

2 4

Exp.

23

9

3

s.d.

Cont.

23

8

5

Exp.

23

35

4

Cont.

23

33

7

d.f.

t

p

22

.314

.755

.698

.489

22

.619

.539

22

.810

.422

22

Effect of Math Games Program on Low Income Preschoolers’

39

Table 1 shows no significant difference between the pre-test mean scores of control and experimental group children from Quantitative Battery (t=.314, p>.05), Vocabulary (t=.698, p>.05), Numbers, Letters and Words (t=.619, p>.05) and Early Academic and Language Skills Composite t=.810, p>.05). According to this result, it can be said that control and experimental groups had similar characteristics in terms of quantitative reasoning and academic and language skills.

Data Collection Tools In order to collect demographical data about the children and their parents the ‘Personal Information Form’, which was developed by the researchers was used, together with quantitative reasoning battery of Cognitive Abilities Test Form-6 which was developed by Lohman and Hagen (2000) and adapted by ønal and Ömero÷lu (2011) to assess children’s quantitative reasoning skills, as well as Kaufman Survey of Early Academic and Language Skills, which was developed by Kaufman and Kaufman (1993) and adapted for six-year-old Turkish children by UyanÕk and KandÕr (2014) to determine children’s academic and language skills. Personal Information Form: The form includes items related to children’s age, gender, number of siblings, duration of attendance at preschool, parents’ educational levels and professions. Cognitive Abilities Test (CogAT) Form 6: The scale was developed by Lohman and Hagen in 2000 to assess the level of achievement in reasoning abilities of children aged 5-18 years. It can be administered to an individual or a small group, and consists of 120 items assessing the ability of reasoning in three dimensions: verbal, quantitative and nonverbal (Lohman and Hagen 2003). In the study, the quantitative reasoning battery of the test was used. The quantitative reasoning dimension consists of two sub-tests, relational concepts and quantitative concepts. The ‘Relational Concepts’ and ‘Quantitative Concepts’ tests, each of which consists of 20 items, assess skills, such as reasoning based on inductive and deductive reasoning, numbers and operations, exploring the relationship between the two situations, and forming a rule or principle that explains the relationship to reveal mathematical thinking skills. In the test, multiplechoice answers to each question are shown as pictures. There is a hollow circle under each picture. During the administration, each question is read aloud, and the children are asked to mark one of the circles under the picture (ønal and Ömero÷lu 2011).

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For the reliability study of CogAT Form-6 which was adapted to Turkish by ønal and Ömero÷lu (2011) in Turkey, item total correlations, KR-20 reliability coefficient was determined, and test/retest reliability was evaluated. The item total correlations for the Quantitative Dimension batteries were found to be high, and the KR-20 reliability coefficient was found to be .82. Quantitative size test/retest correlation was determined to be .989. Kaufman Survey of Early Academic and Language Skills - KSEALS: The original form developed by Kaufman and Kaufman (1993) provides an assessment of early language, cognitive proficiency and academic skills of children between 36-83 months. K-SEALS consists of three sub-tests, including vocabulary, numbers, letters, and the words and articulation survey, and there are four scales under these three subtests, together with early academic and language skills composite. It is administered in a quiet and suggesting environment. When the test is being performed, the picture of each item in the test book is shown to the children, the instruction of the illustration is read aloud, and children are expected to respond. For each correct answer, one (1) score is recorded on the test record form, and zero (0) points for each incorrect answer. The test consists of a total of 90 items and it takes 15-25 minutes for each child to administer. The raw score for each subtest is the number of items correctly answered (Kaufman, and Kaufman 1993). According to the confirmatory factor analysis results of K-SEALS which was adapted to Turkish by UyanÕk and KandÕr (2014) in Turkey, it was determined that the one-dimensional factor structure was confirmed. The KR-20 reliability coefficient for K-SEALS was found to be .971 and the item total correlation coefficient of the majority of the items was at a high level of reliability. The test/retest correlation for K-SEALS total was set at .908. The relationship between the two test results was found to be significant at p Avaiable online at: https://www.researchconnections.org/childcare/resources /4069/pdf@ Retrieved on June 20, 2017. Duncan, G.J., Dowsett, C.J., Claessens, A., Magnuson, K., Huston, A. C., Klebanov, P., Japel, C. (2007). School readiness and later achievement. Developmental Psychology, 43(6), 1428-1446. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/0012-1649.43.6.1428 Duncan, G.J., Magnuson, K. (2012). Socioeconomic status and cognitive functioning: Moving from correlation to causation. WIREs Cognitive Science, 3, 377–386. doi: 10.1002/wcs.1176 Entwisle, D., Alexander, K., Olson, L. (2005). First grade and educational attainment by age 22: A new story. American Journal of Sociology, 110, 1458-1502. Eysenck, M.W. & Keane, M. T. (2015). Cognitive Psychology: A Student Handbook, Psychology Press, ISBN 978-1-84872-415-2, New York. Fraenkel, J.R., Wallen, N.E. (2006). How to Design and Evaluate Research In Education, McGraw-Hill, ISBN: 978-0-07-352596-9, New York. Giles, R.M., Vitulli, P., Byrd, K.O. (2013). Ten black dots make an integrated math activity. Alabama Journal of Mathematics, 37 (2013). >Avaiable online at: http://ajmonline.org/2013/giles.php @ Retrieved on May 21, 2017. Greenes, C., Ginsburg, H.P., Balfanz, R. (2004). Big math for little kids. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 19(1), 159-166. doi: 10.1016/j.ecresq.2004.01. Isaacs, J.B. (2012). Starting school at a disadvantage: the school readiness of poor children (executive summary (march)), The Brookings Institution, Washington, DC [Avaiable online at: https://www.brookings.edu/wpcontent/uploads/2016/06/0319_school_ disadvantage_isaacs.pdf] Retrieved on May 21, 2017. ønal, G., Ömero÷lu, E. (2011). Biliúsel yetenekler testi form 6’nÕn 61–72 aylar arasÕnda olan çocuklar için geçerlik güvenirlik çalÕúmasÕ. Kuramsal E÷itim Bilim Dergisi, 4(2), 198-207. ørkörücü, S. (2006). Okul öncesi e÷itim kurumuna devam eden altÕ yaúÕndaki çocuklara uygulanan ev odaklÕ matematiksel destek programÕnÕn çocuklarÕn matematiksel kavram edinimine etkisinin incelenmesi. YayÕnlanmamÕú Yüksek Lisans Tezi, Gazi Üniversitesi E÷itim Bilimleri Enstitüsü, Ankara.

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Jensen, E. (2009). Teaching With Poverty in Mind What Being Poor Does to Kids’ Brains and What Schools Can Do About It, ASCD Publications, ISBN 978-1-4166-0884-4, Alexandria. KandÕr, A., Can Yaúar, M., YazÕcÕ, E., Türko÷lu, D. ve Yaman Baydar, I. (2016). Erken Çocukluk E÷itiminde Matematik, Morpa YayÕncÕlÕk, ISBN 978605390298-0, østanbul. Kaufman, A.S., Kaufman N.L. (1993). K-SEALS Kaufman Survey of Early Academic and Language Skills: Manual, Pearson Assesments, USA. Kidd, J. K., Pasnak, R., Gadzichowski, M., Ferral-Like, M., Gallington, D. (2008). Enhancing early numeracy by promoting the abstract thought involved in the oddity princible, seriation and conversation. Journal of Advanced Academics, 19(2),164-200. Klein, A., Starkey, P., Deflorio, L., Brown, E.T. (2011). Scaling up an effective pre-k mathematics Õntervention: mediators and child outcomes. Society for Research on Educational Effectiveness. [Avaiable online at: http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED518141.pdf] Retrieved on June 20, 2017. Lee, V.E., D.T. Burkam (2002). Inequality at the starting gate: Social background differences in achievement as children begin school, Econonomic Policy Institute, Washington, DC. [Avaiable online at: http://epsl.asu.edu/epru/articles/EPRU-0603-138-OWI.pdf] Retrieved on June 20, 2017. Lembke, E., Foegen, A. (2009). Identifying early numeracy Õndicators for kindergarten and first-grade students. Learning Disabilities Research & Practice, 24(1), 12–20. doi:10.1111/j.1540-5826.2008.01273.x. Lohman, D.F., Hagen, E. (2003). Interpretive guide for teachers and counselors: cognitive abilities test Form 6-all levels, Riverside Publishing, Itasca, Illinois MoNE (2013). Okul Öncesi E÷itim ProgramÕ, Milli E÷itim BakanlÕ÷Õ Temel E÷itim Genel Müdürlü÷ü YayÕnlarÕ, Ankara. National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (Ed.). (2000). Principles and standards for school mathematics. Reston, Va.: NCTM [Avaiable online at: http://www.nctm.org/Standards-and-Positions/Principlesand-Standards/] Retrieved on June 20, 2017. North Carolina Department of Public Instruction. (2008). Report to the joint legislative education oversight committee: Make at four prekindergarten programme (Report 35). [Avaiable online at: http://www.ncleg.net/documentsites/committees/JLEOC/Reports%20R eceived/Archives/2008%20Reports%20Received/More%20at%20Four .pdf]. Retrieved on June 20, 2017.

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Nunes, T., Bryant, P., Evans, D., Barros, R. (2015). Assessing quantitative reasoning in young children. Mathematical Thinking and Learning, 17(2-3), 178–196. doi.org/10.1080/10986065.2015.1016815 Oaskford, M. (2005). Reasoning. In: N. Braisby, & A. Gellaty (Eds.), Cognitive Psychology, Oxford University Press, New York: 418-458. Orçan, M. (2014). Matematik Ö÷renme Süreçleri. øçinde ø. Ulutaú (Ed), Her Yönüyle Okul Öncesi E÷itim 5 Okul Öncesinde Matematik E÷itimi, Hedef YayÕncÕlÕk, Ankara:233-256. Polat, Ö., Dilli, F. (2015). 60-72 aylÕk sosyal açÕdan dezavantajlÕ çocuklar için hazÕrlanan destek programÕnÕn çocuklarÕn ilkokula hazÕr bulunuúlu÷una etkisi. International Journal of Curriculum and Instructional Studies, 5(9), 81-103. Presser, A.L., Clements, M., Ginsburg, H., Ertle, B. (2012). Effects of a preschool and kindergarten mathematics curriculum: Big Math for Little Kids. Center for Children and Technology. [Avaiable online at: http://cct.edc.org/sites/cct.edc.org/files/publications/BigMathPaper_Fin al.pdf]. Retrieved on June 20, 2017. Ramani, G.B., Siegler, R.S. (2008). Promoting broad and stable improvements in low-income children’s numerical knowledge through playing number board games. Child Development, 79(2), 375–394. doi: 10.1111/j.1467-8624.2007.01131.x Sarama, J., Clements, D.H. (2009). Early Childhood Mathematics Education Research Learning Trajectories for Young Children, Routledge, ISBN 9780415656351, New York. Sarama, J., Lange, A.A., Clements, D.H., Wolfe, C.B. (2012). The impacts of an early mathematics curriculum on oral language and literacy. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 27(3), 489-502. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecresq.2011.12.002. Starkey, P., Klein, A., Wakeley, A. (2004). Enhancing young children’s mathematical knowledge through a prekindergarten mathematics intervention. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 19(1), 99-120. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecresq.2004.01.002. Taner, M., Baúal, H. A. (2005). FarklÕ sosyoekonomik düzeylerde okul öncesi e÷itimi alan ve almayan ilkö÷retim birinci sÕnÕf ö÷rencilerinin dil geliúimlerinin cinsiyete göre karúÕlaútÕrÕlmasÕ. Uluda÷ Üniversitesi E÷itim Fakültesi Dergisi, 18(2), 395-420. Turhan, G. (2004) AnasÕnÕfÕna devam eden alt sosyo-ekonomik düzeydeki çocuklara uygulanan matematiksel kavramlarÕ destekleyici e÷itim programÕnÕn cümle ve sayÕ olgunlu÷una etkisinin incelenmesi. YayÕnlanmamÕú YL tezi, Gazi Üni. E÷itim Bilimleri Enstitüsü, Ankara. Türkmeno÷lu, F. (2005). 60-72 aylÕk cocuklarÕn matematik becerilerini

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kazanmalarÕnda oyun yoluyla matematik becerilerini kazandÕrma programÕnÕn etkisinin incelenmesi. YayÕmlanmamÕú Yüksek Lisans Tezi, Gazi Üniversitesi E÷itim Bilimleri Enstitüsü, Ankara. Umay, A. (2003). Matematiksel muhakeme yetene÷i. Hacettepe Üniversitesi E÷itim Fakültesi Dergisi, 24, 234–243. UyanÕk, Ö., KandÕr, A. (2014). Kaufman erken akademik ve dil becerileri araútÕrma testinin 61-72 aylÕk Türk çocuklarÕna uyarlanmasÕ. Kuram ve Uygulamada E÷itim Bilimleri- Educational Sciences: Theory & Practice 14(2), 669-692. doi: 10.12738/estp.2014.2.1682. Young-Loveridge, J. M. (2004). Effects on early numeracy of a programme using number books and games. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 19, 82-98. doi:10.1016/j.ecresq.2004.01.001.

CHAPTER 4 A REVIEW STUDY ON THE FOREIGN LANGUAGE TEACHING METHODS FOR PRESCHOOL CHILDREN ASLIN ARSLANOöLU AND ZÜLFIYE GÜL ERCAN Introduction In today’s increasingly globalized world, there is a growing awareness of the significance of foreign language education, and studies conducted in the field of early foreign language education are becoming widespread. Language development follows a predictable sequence, but the rate of development may vary from child to child. Babies initially make various sounds with their vocal organs, and they begin to produce the phonemes of their native language at around 9-10 months. They start producing singleword utterances at around one year and understand more words than they can produce. They ask and answer questions and even comment on their surroundings. Between the ages of 18-30 months, they produce two-word sentences, which are not grammatically correct. From about 30 months, their mean length of utterance increases, and they start using grammatical markers (e.g. conjunctions). Children use basic grammatical rules and make more sophisticated sentences at the age of 4-5 years (Gross 2010). As children grow older and acquire their first language, they gain competence in different aspects of language namely semantics, phonology, morphology, syntax and pragmatics (YÕlmaz 2012). There have been a number of theoretical perspectives brought to explain how children acquire their first language. The behaviourist perspective views language acquisition as a process of habit formation. Skinner (1957) stated that, just like any other behaviour, language is acquired via operant conditioning in which learning occurs through a process of imitation and reinforcement. He argued that a child acquires language through imitating adult utterances, and pointed out that the child’s successful efforts to produce

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speech, which are rewarded by his/her environment, become stronger. Chomsky’s innatist perspective opposes the behaviourist view of learning and underlines that the environment has a minor role in language development. Chomsky (1965) laid emphasis on the idea that children are born with a ‘Language Acquisition Device’ that contains the fundamental knowledge of language, known as ‘Universal Grammar’. He claimed that this innate knowledge of language enables children to adopt the basic principles of language that are common and universal to all languages. Piaget stated that children learn through interacting with their environment, and highlighted that cognitive development takes place as a result of two processes: assimilation and accommodation. He pointed out that children use these processes to create a schema (a mental framework) through their experiences in the outside world. Assimilation is the process of including new information into existing schemata. However, accommodation is the process in which the child feels the need to modify the pre-existing schemata to fit in the new information that is so different from what he/she already knows (Comer and Gould 2011). Piaget viewed children as active learners, alone in a world full of objects. However, Vygotsky and Piaget approached learning in different ways. Vygotsky’s idea of the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) emphasizes that learning occurs through social interactions. Vygotsky (1978) defined ZPD as the distance between the child’s actual developmental level, which is determined by his/her ability to solve a problem independently, and the child’s level of potential development which is determined by his/her ability to solve a problem with the help of an adult or a more proficient peer. Wood, Bruner and Ross (1976) stated that tutorial interactions are crucial for both cognitive and language development. They defined ‘scaffolding’ as a process in which the adult controls the elements of a task that is far beyond the child’s present capacity and allows him/her to achieve a goal. They listed the primary functions of parents in the process of scaffolding as getting children interested in the task, keeping them in pursuit of the objective, controlling their frustration, simplifying the task, marking its critical features and modelling solutions to a task. In the field of language education, a distinction is made between second and foreign language acquisition. Lalleman (1996) stated that second language acquisition is related to the acquisition of the dominant language of the country. However, foreign language acquisition is the process of learning of a second language or a subsequent language outside of its own language area, and it is based on learning rather than acquisition. According to Krashen’s (1985) Acquisition-Learning

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Hypothesis, acquisition is a subconscious process, and children acquire their target language in a similar way they pick up their first language. On the other hand, they learn languages by consciously focusing on the rules of their target language. Piaget’s term ‘accommodation’ is discussed in second language acquisition under the name of ‘restructuring’. Lightbown (1985) stated that as individuals are introduced to new forms, these newly acquired forms cause a restructuring in the whole system, and added that this process may also occur in the first language acquisition. Krashen’s (1985) Comprehensible Input Hypothesis points out that language acquisition occurs when individuals are exposed to a target language that contains ‘i+1’, in which ‘i’ stands for the learners’ current level of language proficiency, and the ‘+1’ refers to a level above the learners’ level. Krashen’s input hypothesis is similar to Vygotsky’s idea of ZPD. According to Krashen’s input hypothesis, language is understood with the help of a caretaker who provides extra-linguistic context to the child by making use of visual aids and by focusing on familiar topics. By putting forward her Comprehensible Output Hypothesis, Swain (1995) underlined that producing a target language helps individuals notice their linguistic problems as they receive feedback from an interlocutor. She also stated that it enables individuals to try out new forms and structures to see how their target language works. Language learners reflect on their target language, which allows them to control and internalize linguistic knowledge. It is through language production that individuals encounter gaps in their linguistic knowledge, and they try to modify and enhance their language output. Krashen (1981) stated that just hearing a second language is not sufficient for language acquisition; a person must be open to the language input. Anxiety and motivation are two important factors that can affect individuals’ language learning outcomes. Krashen’s Affective Filter Hypothesis underlines that the affective filter is a psychological filter that may hinder or facilitate individuals’ ability to process language information, even when appropriate input is available. A higher level of anxiety and a lower level of motivation and self-confidence can negatively affect individuals’ language learning outcomes. Gardner and Lambert (1959) stated that there are two types of motivation: instrumental and integrative. The former refers to the desire to learn a language for pragmatic purposes (e.g. passing an exam), and the latter is related to the desire to learn more about the target language community. Aljaafreh and Lantolf (1994) conducted a study with three students who wrote one in-class essay per week and received corrective feedback

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during their tutorials. The writers underlined the positive impact of both implicit and explicit type of feedback on learners’ linguistic performance. They stated that experts should discover the learner’s ZPD to offer the appropriate level of assistance. They emphasized that help should be offered only when it is needed and should be withdrawn when the learner gains the ability to function independently. Cameron (2001) stated that Vygotsky’s thoughts construct a theoretical framework for foreign language education, and underlined that teachers plan lessons, mediate learners’ learning process and talk to them minute by minute. Early language teaching methods and approaches were constructed on grammatical rules and vocabulary rather than the communicative aspects of language. The theoretical views of language include structural (e.g. Audiolingual Method, Total Physical Response, the Silent Way), functional (e.g. Communicative Language Teaching) and interactional views (e.g. Task-Based Language Teaching, Cooperative Language Learning, Content-Based Instruction). The structural view points out that language contains structurally-related elements that convey meaning, the functional view places great emphasis on the communicative and semantics functions of language, and the interactional view claims that language supports interpersonal relations (Richards and Rodgers 2001). The methodology of language teaching has evolved from teacher-centred and structure-based approaches to more learner-centred approaches that encourage learners to engage in meaningful, authentic and purposeful language learning tasks. Learning a language at an early age is of great benefit for children. Young learners who are exposed to a new language are more likely to develop a native-like proficiency in their target language. Lenneberg’s (1967) Critical Period Hypothesis claims that there is a sensitive period for language acquisition that ends at puberty. According to Long (1990), there are sensitive periods for language acquisition, and the age-related loss of ability to acquire a language may begin as early as age six. Cameron (2001) stated that children feel less embarrassed than adults at talking in a new language, which helps them gain more native-like accent. Bates and MacWhinney (1989) developed a framework for the crosslinguistic study of language use called the Competition Model. According to this model, the meaning of language is interpreted by comparing a series of linguistic cues in a sentence (e.g. syntax, morphology, phonology). As individuals learn to focus on the linguistic cues in their first language, they use these comprehension strategies when learning subsequent languages. Teacher attitudes and abilities may also influence foreign or second

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language learning process. Teachers, who teach young learners should have a sense of humour, should work on their abilities (e.g. acting, playing a musical instrument, and drawing) and should be open-minded, adaptable and patient. They should make learners feel secure and should encourage them to become independent learners. They should have routines, and the surroundings should be pleasant and familiar (e.g. drawings, posters, plants). As young learners have a very short attention and concentration span, teachers should include various types of language teaching activities (e.g. songs, stories, games, videos, poems, group work activities) to sustain learner motivation. To assess students’ progress, teachers should make use of alternative assessment techniques such as taking regular notes about students, talking to parents to get information about their students, asking students to self-assess their progress and promoting cooperation among students (Scott and Ytreberg 1990, Çoúgun-Ögeyik 2012). Rosenbush (1987) stated that parents can support their children at home, at school or in the community by carrying out activities such as reading stories, playing board games, making picture dictionaries, giving financial support for the purchase of teaching materials, establishing a local parent support group for foreign language education, and encouraging teachers to seek parents’ active support. Bernhardt and Tedick (1991) also listed parents’ educational and literacy levels and their socioeconomic status among the factors affecting learners’ target language skills. The purpose of this study was to review the literature pertaining to the methods of teaching a foreign or a second language to preschool children.

Material and Method The present study aimed to provide a review on the existing research on the methods for foreign or second language instruction in the preschool period. Studies were obtained from multiple databases (Research Gate, Google Scholar, ERIC and Springer Link) using the following keywords and phrases: ‘preschool period’, ‘foreign language education’ and ‘methods and approaches’. The inclusion criteria were as follows: studies of preschool-age children, studies focusing on foreign or second language teaching, and studies published from 1998 to present. A total of 23 studies, published between 1998 and 2017, met the criteria and were included in the review.

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Results Studies were classified under two headings: a) studies on the use of traditional methods in foreign/second language teaching, and b) studies on the use of technological resources in foreign/second language teaching. a) Studies on the use of traditional methods in foreign/second language teaching Atwill et al. (2007) conducted a study with 68 Spanish-speaking children with a mean age of 69 months, to assess the impact of L1 receptive vocabulary on cross-language transfer of phonemic awareness. Participants were given two receptive vocabulary tests and two phonological awareness measurement tasks, both in English and Spanish. They were asked to choose the picture of the word pronounced by the examiner during the receptive vocabulary tests. The phonological awareness measurement tasks aimed to assess students’ ability to match initial sounds and their phoneme segmentation fluency. Receptive vocabulary and L1 phonemic awareness skills predicted L2 phonemic awareness of children with average to above-average L1 skills. Karabulut and Dollar (2016) investigated whether presenting English words in semantic, thematic or unrelated clusters had any impact on Turkish-speaking children’s word learning. A total of 51 five-year-old children were pre-tested to assure that the pre-determined L2 words were unknown to them. Target words were introduced with flashcards and were reviewed with the use of PowerPoint slides and mini cards. The immediate and delayed recall test scores indicated that introducing words in clusters facilitated L2 vocabulary retention, but learners recalled the highest number of words when the words were grouped in unrelated clusters. Perera (2001) examined the role of prefabricated language (PL) in teaching English as a second language. Four Japanese-speaking preschool children, aged between 3.4 to 5.3 years, participated in the study. Participants’ single- and multi-word utterances were recorded both in the school and at home. The children picked up PL through socialization (e.g. on the playground), internalized the grammatical rules in ready-made chunks of sentences and made use of them to construct more complex sentences. PL became a scaffold for linguistic creativity. Morin (2016) explored the impact of dramatic play centres on the engagement level of English language learners. Three kindergarten students coming from various language backgrounds were observed. In the first week, participants were given finger puppets that were not related to any theme they had studied before, and they showed lower levels of

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engagement. In the second week, they were given some paper dolls and a theme from a book they had read before, and they showed more engaged learning behaviours. In the third week, they made props and additional characters, painted settings for the characters and displayed high levels of engagement. The effective use of dramatic play centres positively affected learners’ oral language proficiency. Piker and Rex (2008) carried out a study with four three-to-five-yearold, Spanish-speaking children to explore the role of teacher-child interactions in developing English language learners’ oral language skills. Learners played either alone, or with their same and different language peers. It was concluded that as teachers spoke English and used Spanish for translations, children had the opportunity to improve their L2 comprehension skills, but not their oral language skills. It was also pointed out that children’s attempts to talk about an event were also hindered by their teachers’ brief responses, which negatively affected their use of English in more complex forms. Fassler (1998) investigated the influence of peer interaction on English language learners’ communication skills. A group of six kindergarteners from different language backgrounds were placed in peer groups with whom they did not share a common home language. Findings indicated positive outcomes for learners who encouraged each other to elaborate and clarify their target language utterances, and facilitated each other’s learning by employing various types of language learning strategies such as asking each other to label things, creating language plays, breaking into the conversations when their peers used their L1, using pantomime, gestures, sound effects and demonstrations. Smith (2013) performed a study in Sénégal to examine the impact of shared reading on preschool students’ vocabulary development in French. A total of 42 students, aged four to six years, participated in the study. Students were randomly assigned to three groups: a group that used predictable books with repetitive phrases and sentences (n=15); another group that included non-predictable books with stories that had complex plots, vocabulary and grammatical structures (n=15); and a control group that used the teaching method in place (n=12). Weekly, immediate and delayed post-tests were used to measure the receptive and expressive vocabulary of learners, and their semantic and syntactic understanding. Learners who used predictable books outperformed their peers in the remaining groups. Collins (2010) focused on English language learners’ word learning from storybook reading. Eighty Portuguese-speaking preschool students, aged four and five years, were divided into experimental (n=36) and

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control (n=34) groups. A representative no-story group (n=10) was also created, which participated in target vocabulary testing along the same timeline as other groups. The experimental group was provided with rich explanations of the target words (e.g. illustrations, synonyms, gestures), and the control group did not receive any treatment. Parents also carried out home reading practices and completed questionnaires on the frequency of reading. Picture vocabulary test scores indicated the positive effects of baseline L2 vocabulary, explanations and home reading practices on learners’ word learning, as the experimental group outscored the remaining study groups. Chow et al. (2010) examined the impact of dialogic parent-child reading on learning English. A total of 51 Chinese students, aged 57-71 months, were divided equally into three groups: 1) the dialogic reading group that included pictured storybooks and guidelines for parents to prompt their child to talk about the books; 2) the typical reading group in which parents were given the same books without any guidelines; and 3) the control group, in which parents relied on their own literacy habits. Post-test scores indicated that both the typical reading and the dialogic reading groups showed significant improvements in English word reading, the latter being particularly effective in promoting phonological awareness in both Chinese and English. Huennekens and Xu (2010) explored the impact of shared reading experience in children’s home language on their English language acquisition. Two Spanish-speaking four-year-old children were read storybooks by their parents in Spanish, and the English versions of the books were simultaneously read in their classrooms. Parents were provided with guidelines to follow and with materials to use as they read the books (e.g. a reading log, dialogic reading questions). Findings showed that the frequency of utterances, the mean length of utterances and the frequency of child-initiated utterances increased over time from baseline to intervention. Mavilidi et al. (2015) analysed the role of body movements in Italian word learning. A total of 111 English-speaking children with a mean age of 4.94 were randomly assigned to four conditions: 1) learners used physical exercises to enact the actions indicated by the target words; 2) they used physical exercises that were unrelated to the learning task; 3) they remained seated and used gestures to enact the actions indicated by the target words; or 4) they remained seated and repeated the words. Six weeks later, learners were asked to recall words from the learning phase. They were also shown some pictures and were asked to name them in Italian. Learners who used physical exercises to enact the actions indicated

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by the words received the highest score. b) Studies on the use of technological resources in foreign/second language teaching Parreño and Eamoraphan (2017) explored the role of English Phonics online games in teaching phonics to foreign language learners in Thailand. Eleven children of different nationalities, aged four-five years, participated in the study. English Phonics post-test scores of learners were significantly higher than their pre-test scores. The student interview results showed that learners had positive perceptions towards the use of online games, as the game features (e.g. animation, colourful objects, interactive and challenge components) provided an enjoyable learning experience for them. Da÷al et al. (2015) studied the impact of computer-assisted training programs on the Turkish learners’ acquisition of some basic English concepts (e.g. colours, numbers, shapes). A total of 160 children, aged 6072 months, participated in the study. Students were first introduced to the concepts individually, and then they listened to songs about these new concepts. In the following week, they played computer games about the newly acquired concepts. Results showed that computer-assisted training programs positively affected learners’ language skills, as learners scored higher on their post-test than they did on their pre-test. Segers and Verhoeven (2003) investigated the role of intensive vocabulary training on computer in teaching Dutch words. A total of 164 immigrant and native children with an average age of 5.1 participated in the study. Students, who were in their first or second year of kindergarten, were assigned to experimental (n=67) and control (n=97) groups. Students in the experimental group listened to stories with characters that asked questions and provided assistance when needed, and they played vocabulary games. The control group followed the regular curriculum. Significant learning gains were found on the curriculum-dependent test for all children, but a trend was found towards a positive impact of the intervention on the curriculum-independent test for older students. Basoz and Can (2016) carried out a study with 35 Turkish-speaking children who were five years of age. Learners were randomly assigned to experimental (n=16) and control (n=19) groups. Both groups were introduced to the same words in English, but with different types of instruction formats. The experimental group studied the target words through computers, whereas the control group followed a traditional method of instruction. Post-test scores of both groups suggested that both types of instruction formats positively affected learners’ vocabulary knowledge, and there was no significant difference between the groups.

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Aghlara and Tamjid (2011) examined the role of a digital game software in teaching English vocabulary. A total of 40 Iranian children, aged six-seven years, were equally divided into experimental and control groups. The software used in the study was comprised of seven units (e.g. the family, toys, food), and four blocks of activities (presentation, interaction, evaluation and review). The mean score of the experimental group on the final vocabulary test was significantly higher than the control group, suggesting the usefulness of digital games in vocabulary learning. Verhallen and Bus (2010) explored the use of digital picture storybooks in teaching Dutch as a second language. A total of 92 fiveyear-old children from immigrant backgrounds were randomly assigned to treatment groups, or the control group. Digital storybooks with static pictures or with video images were used in the treatment groups. Learners completed receptive (e.g. choosing the illustration that represented the target item) and expressive vocabulary tests (e.g. completing sentences by looking at the pictures on the computer screen). The control group played a nonverbal computer game. Both treatments yielded a positive impact on receptive and expressive vocabulary acquisition, but the video books were more effective in improving expressive vocabulary skills. Verdugo and Belmonte (2007) investigated the impact of digital stories on a group of six-year-old Spanish-speaking learners’ English listening comprehension skills. A total of 220 participants were assigned to experimental (n=108) and control (n=112) groups. Listening activities included various tasks (e.g. listen, point and say, look, listen and act, listen and circle, listen and colour, listen and draw). No internet-based technology was used in the control group. Findings showed that the experimental group outscored the control group on the post-test. Prosic-Santovac (2016) focused on the impact of media material on the English knowledge of a four-year-old Serbian child. The study included a popular cartoon series, and various types of materials and activities (e.g. reading picture books, playing board games, filming puppet plays, making origami, inventing new stories with the cartoon characters, inventing new rhymes to the songs of the cartoon series). The materials and activities used in the study positively influenced the child’s target language skills (e.g. vocabulary, grammar use, pronunciation, fluency). Angarita-Rivas (2010) conducted a study in Colombia to examine the use of video-karaoke as an English language teaching tool. A total of 50 students, aged four-six years, were placed equally, either in video karaokebased lessons or non-video karaoke-based lessons. In video karaoke-based instruction, the teacher presented the topic by using puppets and flashcards, and modelled for the students to sing the karaoke songs.

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During non-video karaoke-based lessons, the words were presented through puppets and flashcards, and the activities were based on listening and repetition practices. Both types of lessons supported foreign language vocabulary learning, but video karaoke-based lessons promoted learner motivation and encouraged children to become active learners. Özçelik (2013) explored the impact of talking toys on English word learning. A total of 48 five-year-old Turkish-speaking students were equally assigned to experimental and control groups. The experimental group practiced the target words by pressing the pictures on a small musical carpet, and listened to the names of ten different vehicles, and also their sounds. The control group was instructed using flashcards. Vocabulary test results indicated that the experimental group obtained higher scores on receptive and expressive vocabulary tests than the control group. Kim et al. (2014) ran a study with three-to-seven-year-old children, whose home language was one other than English, and analysed the impact of a robot app on students’ language learning outcomes. Words and concepts in English, such as shapes, colours and sounds, were introduced by songs, and after each verse learners repeated the words and the sounds. The game portion of the app enabled students to practice the words introduced in the songs. Then, the robot asked them to find the words and concepts in a new context. Findings showed that the robot app provided rich learning experiences for learners, and enhanced their self-confidence. Freed (2012) investigated the impact of a French-speaking social robot on L2 word learning. The study included 16 English-speaking learners between three and six years old, and their parents and siblings. The robot introduced itself, named fruits in French, ate some fruits or refused them with a disgusted facial expression. It smiled when it heard French but wore a confused expression when it heard English. Learners were motivated to speak in French, and they tried various types of strategies to communicate when the robot showed confusion (e.g. repeating the content of their utterances in French, simplifying their utterances, touching). Parents and siblings also scaffolded and modelled communication with the robot.

Conclusions The purpose of this review was to present an overview of the methods used to teach a foreign or a second language to preschool-age children. Studies that covered both in-class and out of class language learning practices were clustered into two categories, as studies on the use of traditional methods in foreign/second language teaching, and studies on

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the use of technological resources in foreign/second language teaching. Learning a new language at an early age optimizes children’s learning potential, as they have the ability to learn a language effortlessly and naturally. As a result, foreign or second language teachers should consider individual differences among learners to support learners’ language learning outcomes and to sustain their motivation. Teachers should include a variety of methods and strategies, in both instruction and assessment, to design a coherent, inclusive and rich curriculum that is responsive to the needs, interests and developmental progress of children. Findings of the current study indicated that, if used correctly and effectively, meaningful, communicative, and appealing learning tasks that support teacher-student interactions, student-student interactions, parent, or caregiver-child interactions and student-technology interactions contribute to preschoolage children’s receptive and expressive language skills.

References Aghlara, L. & Tamjid, N. H. (2011). The effect of digital games on Iranian children's vocabulary retention in foreign language acquisition. Procedia-Social and Behavioural Sciences, 29, 552-560. Aljaafreh, A., & Lantolf, J. P. (1994). Negative feedback as regulation and second language learning in the Zone of Proximal Development. The Modern Language Journal, 78(4), 465-483. Angarita-Rivas, N. J. (2010). The effect of video-karaoke based lessons and not video-karaoke based lessons in the learning of early EFL vocabulary to preschoolers at the Corazonista School (Master's thesis). Universidad de La Sabana, Colombia. Atwill, K., Blanchard, J., Gorin, J. S., & Burstein, K. (2007). Receptive vocabulary and cross-language transfer of phonemic awareness in kindergarten children. The Journal of Educational Research, 100(6), 336-345. Basoz, T., & Can, D. T. (2016). The effectiveness of computers on vocabulary learning among preschool children: A semiotic approach. Cypriot Journal of Educational Sciences, 11(1), 2-8. Bates, E., & MacWhinney, B. (1989). Functionalism and the competition model. In B. MacWhinney & E. Bates (Eds.), The crosslinguistic study of sentence processing (pp. 3–73). New York: Cambridge University Press. Bernhardt, E. B., & Tedick, D. (1991). On paradoxes and paradigms in language education research. In E. S. Silber (Ed.), Critical issues in foreign language education (pp.43-62). New York: Garland

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Publishing. Cameron, L. (2001). Teaching languages to young learners. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Chomsky, N. (1965). Aspects of the theory of syntax. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. Chow, B. W. Y., McBride-Chang, C., & Cheung, H. (2010). Parent–child reading in English as a second language: Effects on language and literacy development of Chinese kindergarteners. Journal of Research in Reading, 33(3), 284–301. Collins, M. F. (2010). ELL preschoolers' English vocabulary acquisition from storybook reading. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 25(1), 84–97. Comer, R., & Gould, E. (2011). Psychology around us. New Jersey: John Wiley &. Sons. Çoúgun-Ögeyik, M. (2012). Okul öncesi dönemde yabancÕ dil e÷itimi. Y. FazlÕo÷lu (Ed.), Erken çocukluk geliúimi ve e÷itimi (ss. 351-363). Edirne: Paradigma Kitabevi YayÕnlarÕ. Da÷al, A. B., Balat, G. U., Kanburo÷lu, V., ùallÕ, D., & Birbir, Y. (2015). The development of English computer aided education programme for acquisition of colour, number and shape concepts in preschool children without foreign language education background. Procedia-Social and Behavioural Sciences, 176, 87-94. Fassler, R. (1998). Room for talk: Peer support for getting into English in an ESL kindergarten. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 13(3), 379–409. Freed, N. A. (2012). “This is the fluffy robot that only speaks French”: Language use between preschoolers, their families, and a social robot while sharing virtual toys (Master’s thesis). Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge. Gardner, R. C., & Lambert, W. E. (1959). Motivational variables in second language acquisition. Canadian Journal of Psychology, 13(4), 266-272. Gross, R. (Ed.). (2010). Psychology: The science of mind and behaviour (6th ed.). London, UK: Hodder Education. Huennekens, M. E., & Xu, Y. (2010). Effects of a cross-linguistic storybook intervention on the second language development of two preschool English language learners. Early Childhood Education Journal, 38(1), 19-26. Karabulut, A., & Kesli-Dollar, Y. (2016). The effects of presenting different types of vocabulary clusters on very young learners’ foreign language learning. Education 3-13, 44(3), 255-268.

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Kim, Y., Smith, D., Kim, N., & Chen, T. (2014). Playing with a robot to learn English vocabulary. KAERA Research Forum, 1(2), 3-8. Krashen, S. D. (1981). Second language acquisition and second language learning. Oxford: Pergamon Press. Krashen, S. D. (1985). The input hypothesis: Issues and implications. New York: Longman. Lalleman, J. (1996). The state of the art in second language acquisition research. In P. Jordens, & J. Lalleman (Eds.), Investigating second language acquisition (pp. 3-69). Berlin & New York: Mouton de Gruyter. Lenneberg, E. (1967). Biological foundations of language. New York: John Wiley & Sons. Lightbown, P. M. (1985). Great expectations: Second-language acquisition research and classroom teaching. Applied Linguistics, 6(2), 173-189. Long, M. (1990). Maturational constraints on language development. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 12(3), 251-285. Mavilidi, M. F., Okely, A. D., Chandler, P., Cliơ, D. P., & Paas, F. (2015). Eơects of integrated physical exercises and gestures on preschool children’s foreign language vocabulary learning. Educational Psychology Review, 27(3), 413–426. Morin, M. M. (2016). Engagement of kindergarten English learners during the dramatic play centre (Master’s thesis). Hamline University, Minnesota. Özçelik, B. (2013). The effect of the integration of talking toys on preschoolers’ vocabulary learning in English (Master’s thesis). Middle East Technical University, Ankara. Parreño, M. D. A., & Eamoraphan, S. (2017). A study of kindergarten 2 students’ English phonics achievement and their perceptions towards the use of English phonics online games at St. Mark’s International School, Thailand. Scholar, 9(1), 312-326. Perera, N. S. (2001). The role of prefabricated language in young children’s second language acquisition. Bilingual Research Journal 25(3), 327-356. Piker, R. A., & Rex, L. A. (2008). Influences of teacher-child social interactions on English language development in a Head Start classroom. Early Childhood Education Journal, 36(2), 187-193. Prosic-Santovac, D. (2016). Popular video cartoons and associated branded toys in teaching English to very young learners: A case study. Language Teaching Research, 1-21. Richards, J. C., & Rodgers, T.S. (2001). Approaches and methods in language teaching. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

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Rosenbusch, M. H. (1987). Foreign language learning and children: The parental role. Retrieved from ERIC Database. (ED289366) Scott, W. A., & Ytreberg, L. H. (1990). Teaching English to children. New York: Longman. Segers, E., & Verhoeven, L. (2003). Effects of vocabulary training by computer in kindergarten. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, 19(4), 557-566. Skinner, B. F. (1957). Verbal behaviour. New York: Appleton-CenturyCrofts. Smith, K. A. (2013). Building language and literacy foundations for L2 learners in West Africa with oral vocabulary instruction and shared reading of predictable and non-predictable stories in picture books (Doctoral dissertation). Auburn University, Alabama. Swain, M. (1995). Three functions of output in second language learning. In G. Cook, & B. Seidlhofer (Eds.), Principle and practice in applied linguistics: Studies in honour of H. G. Widdowson (pp. 125-144). Oxford: Oxford University Press. Verdugo, D. R., & Belmonte, I. A. (2007). Using digital stories to improve listening comprehension with Spanish young learners of English. Language Learning & Technology, 11(1), 87–101. Verhallen, M. J. A. J., & Bus, A. G. (2010). Low-income immigrant pupils learning vocabulary through digital picture storybooks. Journal of Educational Psychology, 102(1), 54-61. Vygotsky, L. (1978). Interaction between learning and development. In M. Cole, V. John-Steiner, S. Scribner, & E. Souberman (Eds.), Mind in society: The development of higher psychological processes (pp. 7991). Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Wood, D., Bruner, J. S., & Ross, G. (1976). The role of tutoring in problem solving. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 17(2), 89-100. YÕlmaz, ù. (2012). Erken çocuklukta iletiúim-dil-konuúma. Y. FazlÕo÷lu (Ed.), Erken çocukluk geliúimi ve e÷itimi (ss.53-69). Edirne: Paradigma Kitabevi YayÕnlarÕ.

CHAPTER 5 FATHER-CHILD RELATIONSHIP AND FATHER INVOLVEMENT IN THE PRESCHOOL PERIOD1 ZEYNEP NUR AYDIN KILIÇ AND FATMA TEZEL ùAHIN Introduction Today, as the mothers have also started to go out to work, the share of fathers both in household chores and in child care and education has increased compared to the previous times. Since the fathers have an active and a significant role in child’s life, the better his relationship with the child, the more positive impact he makes in child’s growth. Father’s involvement that includes the presence of father, parental satisfaction, father’s raising of the child and his financial support has been found to be positively related to the academic development of children (Downer et al. 2008, Mwoma 2009). For this reason, it has been considered highly crucial that fathers take sufficient and qualified time for their children, which, in the end, will contribute to children’s development (Tutkun and Tezel ùahin 2016). Fathers who are in an active relationship with their children support their children in every aspect. The children who have active and positive relationship with their fathers’ exhibit relatively higher self-respect, secure attachment, positive behaviours of discipline, and rapid development of intellectual skills as compared to their peers (Gustasfon 2011). According to Palkovitz (2002), father involvement is a part of fatherchild relationship. The relationship between father and child is shaped by the relationship of child with mother and other family members and the influence of the culture and environment in which the father grew up 2

This research was adapted from a master’s thesis titled “Analyzing of Father’s Involvement in Child’s Life and The Relationship between Father and Child in The Sample Group of Ankara-Trabzon-Erzurum.”

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(Cited in Palkovitz 2007). Therefore, plenty of factors such as socio-economic and cultural status of the father, and his conventional attitudes, mother’s working status, marital adjustment of parents can affect father involvement and fatherchild involvement (Mwoma 2009). Some studies have investigated whether there is a difference between the families in which only the fathers earn an income and the families in which both mothers and fathers earn an income in terms of father involvement, and it has been revealed by various studies that mother’s work outside the house and her working program have impact on father involvement. It has been observed that the fathers in dual-income families spend more time on child’s care (Cabrera et al. 2007). Accordingly, the present study was carried out to investigate the relation between father-child relationships and involvement of fathers whose children attend a preschool in the cases of Ankara, Trabzon, Erzurum. In addition, this study has also aimed to investigate whether involvement of fathers in child’s life and their relationship with children differ according to the working status of their wives.

Method This research study is an example of relational screening model. These models, that are also called correlational screening, are researches in which the relationship between two or more variables are examined without any intervention on variables (Büyüköztürk et al. 2012). Population and Sample: The fathers of the children whose ages range between 4-6 and who attend independent kindergartens in the central districts of Erzurum, Trabzon and Ankara (TÜøK 2014), which are three cities that have the highest population density of their geographical region and different cultural characteristics, constituted the population of this research. A total of 870 fathers, of which 297 were from Ankara, 325 from Trabzon, and 248 from Erzurum, were included in the sample of the research. Tools of Data Collection: In this research, we have used the Personal Information Form developed by the researchers in order to determine the demographic information of children and their fathers; the ‘Father Involvement Scale’ developed by SÕmsÕkÕ and ùendil (2011), and the ‘Parent-Child Relationship Scale’, which was adapted to Turkish by Özkan and Tezel-ùahin (2014) in order to identify father-child relationship.

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The Father Involvement Scale-FIS The Father Involvement Scale has been developed by SÕmsÕkÕ and ùendil (2014) to measure the frequency of the participation of fathers whose children between the ages of three and six in the activities with their children, and to determine the type of those activities. 48 items on the draft scale that were prepared with the corrections made by the researchers were directed to the fathers of 350 children. Explanatory factor analysis was calculated according to the responses of fathers given for the scale items. 12 items of which the factor loadings were less than 0.30 and indicate high factor loading in more than one factor were removed from the scale. We continued the analysis using the oblique rotation method on the rest of the items and the scale items were classified under three factors, It was determined that the total of 37 scale items could explain 41.7% of the variance. In order to determine the reliability of responses given to the Father Involvement Scale, first of all, Cronbach's alpha coefficient was calculated in line with the opinions of 350 fathers. Then, the scale was reapplied to 75 fathers two weeks later, and the test-re-test reliability coefficient was calculated. Cronbach’s alpha reliability coefficient was calculated as 0.89 for arbitrary occupation dimension; 0.85 for the dimension of attention and affiliation 0.83 for the basic care, and 0.92 for the whole scale. The test-retest reliability coefficient was calculated as 0.92 for the arbitrary occupation subscale, 0.99 for the attention and affiliation subscale, 0.94 for basic care subscale, and 0.98 for the whole scale (SÕmsÕkÕ and ùendil 2014). Information related to the dimensions of the scale is as follows: Arbitrary occupation sub-dimension: It comprises free time activities that the father participated in, and various games he played with the child. Attention and affiliation sub-dimension: It requires acting sensitively to the child’s experiences and showing the child verbal or physical affection. Basic care sub-dimension: It includes various activities which foresee meeting the child's daily needs and providing physical care to the child. Within the scope of this study, opinions of the fathers of 48-66-monthold children attending preschool education institutions were taken. Cronbach’s alpha reliability coefficient was calculated for each subscale and the total scores of the scale in order to determine the reliability of the responses of the fathers to the scale items. In this research the Cronbach’s alpha reliability coefficient calculated according to the responses of fathers for the arbitrary occupation sub-dimension is 0.867, 0.786 for the subscale of attention and affiliation, and 0.831 for the basic care sub-dimension. The reliability coefficient for the whole scale was determined as 0.908.

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Accordingly, it was determined that the Father Involvement Scale is reliable.

Child-Parent Relationship Scale-CPRS In the study, the Child-Parent Relationship Scale was used, which has been developed by Pianta (1992) in order to determine the relationship of the fathers of 48-66-month-old children who are attending a preschool education institution, and has been adapted to Turkish by Özkan and Tezel-ùahin (2014). In the direction of responses of 214 mothers and fathers living in Ankara, an exploratory factor analysis was conducted to identify the construct validity of the scale, and it was found that the scales were classified under three subscales. For identification of the reliability of the scale, the Cronbach’s alpha internal consistency coefficient of the positive relationship subscale, which is called the primary subscale of the scale, was calculated as 0.722; this coefficient was 0.742 for the conflict sub-dimension and 0.531 for the attachment sub-dimension. Positive Relationship Sub-Dimension: It consists of positive perception and behaviour of parents in their relationships with their children. Conflict Sub-Dimension: It is related to the conflict dimension of the relationship of parents with their children. Attachment SubDimension: It consists of the dimension exhibiting the attachment behaviour of children to their parents. The high scores obtained on the scale reflect the positive relationship (Özkan 2014). The items in the conflict sub-dimension are reverse coded and the obtained high scores are indicators of the absence of conflict. However, since all the items in the conflict sub-dimension are negative, they may not be reverse coded. This shows that the high scores obtained from the conflict sub-dimension are indicators of a conflict. In this study, Cronbach’s alpha reliability coefficient was calculated to detect the reliability of the responses given by fathers to the scale items. We can see that the Cronbach’s alpha coefficient was 0.660 for the positive relationship subscale in the direction of the responses of fathers who participated in the research, 0.678 for the conflict sub-dimension, 0.669 for attachment sub-dimension, and 0.626 for all the items of the scale. These values express that the responses of fathers to the scale items are highly reliable (KalaycÕ 2009).

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Data Collection and Analysis After obtaining the required permissions, the administrators and classroom teachers of all the independent kindergartens in the central districts of Ankara, Trabzon and Erzurum were informed about the aim of the study. A parents’ meeting was organized for fathers with the help pf teachers and the scales were distributed and applied to the fathers who participated in the meeting. In the schools where a meeting could not be organized, the forms were distributed to the parents with the help of teachers, and data were collected within a certain period of time. For the purpose of solving the problems of the research, the data were analysed with respect to the sub-problems of the research. During the analysis, firstly the Levene test was utilized to control whether the variances are homogeneous. In cases where the variances are homogeneous, the calculations were made through parametric tests, and in cases where the variances are non-homogeneous, the calculations were made using nonparametric tests. The data obtained from the investigation of father-child relationships, and the father involvement depending on the working status of the mother, were analysed using t-test analysis with unrelated measures. Pearson Correlation coefficient was calculated in order to determine the correlations between the father's involvement in child's life and the father-child relationship. According to the statistical analysis, the significance level was selected as 0.05.

Results A t-test was performed with unrelated measures for the purpose of examining whether there is a significant difference between the subdimension scores and the total participation scores of FIS's arbitrary occupation, attention and affiliation, basic care subscale scores depending on the working status of the wife. The results are indicated in Table 1.

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Table 1. T-Test Results of Unrelated Measures of the Father Involvement Scale Depending on the Working Status of the Wives FIS

City

Arbitrary Occupation

Ankara Trabzon Erzurum

Attention and Affiliation

Ankara Trabzon Erzurum

Basic Care

Ankara Trabzon Erzurum

Total

Ankara Trabzon Erzurum

Working status of mother Working Not W. Working Not W. Working Not W. Working Not W. Working Not W. Working Not W. Working Not W. Working Not W. Working Not W. Working Not W. Working Not W. Working Not W.

N

ܺƲ±SS

133 164 106 219 75 173 133 164 106 219 75 173 133 164 106 219 75 173 133 164 106 219 75 173

63.99±10.79 54.68±11.35 58.57±10.14 57.39±11.67 64.84±9.97 55.04±10.62 55.71±4.49 53.79±7.38 54.92±5.29 55.76±5.27 55.39±3.84 53.82±7.44 28.23±6.81 26.01±7.93 26.65±6.48 28.03±7.87 29.19±6.97 26.93±8.17 147.93±18.45 134.48±21.94 140.14±18.37 141.19±20.62 149.41±16.76 135.79±21.47

t

p

7.184

0.000

0.886

0.376

6.798

0.000

2.624

0.009

1.341

0.181

1.730

0.085

2.561

0.011

1.567

0.118

2.085

0.038

5.635

0.000

0.444

0.657

4.888

0.000

According to Table 1, there is a significant difference in the arbitrary occupation subscale scores of the FIS depending on the working status of the wife (t(295) = 7.184; p < 0.05) between the fathers of the children living in Ankara in favour of the fathers whose wives are working (ܺƲ= 63.99 ± 10.79). It was determined that the arbitrary occupation subdimension scores of the fathers living in Trabzon do not indicate any significant difference depending on the working status of the wife (t(323)=0.886; p>0.05). Besides, it was detected that arbitrary occupation subscale scores of the fathers living in Erzurum exhibit significant difference (t(246)=6.798; p0.05) depending on the working status of the wife. According to the basic care subscale scores, it was determined that the scores of the fathers living in Ankara showed a significant difference (t(295)=2.561; p0.05) do not reveal a significant difference depending on the working status of the wife. It was determined that the positive correlation subscale scores of the CEQ did not show any difference according to the working status of the partners. When the conflict subscale scores were examined, it was detected that the conflict subscale scores of the fathers living in Ankara did not show any significant difference depending on the working status of the wife (t(295)=1.924; p>0.05). In addition, it was determined that the conflict subscale scores of the fathers living in Trabzon showed a significant difference (t(295)=2.850; p. Besides, it was found that the attachment subscale scores of the fathers living in Trabzon showed a significant difference (t(295)=2.377; p 0.05) and the dimensions of skills to manage own emotions of social skills (t = 1.17, p> 0.05) and total social skill (t = 1.245, p> 0.05) don’t constitute a statistically significant difference according to the gender of the child. When the results of the study are examined, no significant difference is found between the social skill and the sex of the child. However, it is observed that the girls obtain higher score than scores of boys in the dimensions of initial skill, academic support skill, friendship skill and skill to manage own emotions. Girls like to share everything with their friends or family members more than boys. Girls are more sociable, talkative, emotional and sharer and this can have an impact in maximizing their emotional skills. They act more comfortable in expressing themselves in their surroundings and especially enjoy spending more time with their mothers. It can be said that this can have an impact in maximizing their social skills.

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563

There are some studies in the literature showing that there is no significant difference between social skill and gender, and that gender has no influence on the social development of child, and that the girls get higher scores than scores of the boys, and these studies support this research (Gülay 2004, Seven 2006, Özdemir 2012, Yaúar Ekici 2013). Table 4. Results of Correlation Test Between Close Relationships Inventory II and Social Skill Dimensions Variables

Anxiety

Avoidanc e

Initial Skills

Academic Support Skills

Friends hip Skills

r

-0.045

-0.071

-0.165

Skills to Manage Own Emotions -0.067

Total Social Skills

p

0.639

0.463

0.087

0.486

0.265

N

109

109

109

109

109

r2

0.002

0.005

0.027

0.004

0.011

r

-0.230*

-0.118

-0.184

-0.131

-0.199*

p

0.016

0.222

0.056

0.173

0.038

N

109

109

109

109

109

r2

0.052

0.013

0.033

0.017

0.039

-0.108

*p 0.05). The relationship between the avoidance dimension of Close Relationships Inventory II and the initial skills dimension of Social Skill dimensions has been determined as r = -0.230. This relationship is weak and avoidant. As long as the score of initial skills increases, the avoidance score decreases. Although this coefficient is significant, the amount of common variance explained by these two variables is 1.6% (p 0.05). The relationship between the avoidance dimension of Close Relationships Inventory II and the friendship skills dimension of Social Skill dimensions has been determined as r =-0.184. Although this coefficient is not significant, the amount of common variance explained by these two variables is 5.6 % (p>0.05). The relationship between the avoidance dimension of Close Relationships Inventory II and the skills to manage own emotions dimension of Social Skill dimensions has been determined as r =-0.131. Although this coefficient is not significant, the amount of common variance explained by these two variables is 17.3% (p>0.05). The relationship between the avoidance dimension of Close Relationships Inventory II and total score of social dimensions has been determined as r =-0.199. This relationship is weak and avoidant. As long as the social skill scores increases, the avoidance score decreases. Although this coefficient is significant, the amount of common variance explained by these two variables is 3.8 % (p