TEACHER TRAINING POLICIES AND DETERMINATION OF INADEQUACIES

Alper CELEBI¹--- Nurdan OZRECBEROGLU²⁺---Gunsel CAKIR GUNES³---Yelda SERIN GEZERCAN⁴

^1,2Department of Education Administration & Supervision, Social Sciences Institute, Cyprus Health and Social Sciences University, Mersin, Turkey.
^3,4Baris Primary School, Mersin, Turkey.

Keywords:Inadequate elements, Primary school teacher training policies, Reconstruction, Teacher opinions, Teacher quality, Value transformation.

ARTICLE HISTORY: Received:29 April 2022, Revised:27 June 2022, Accepted:8 July 2022, Published:22 July 2022

1. INTRODUCTION

Considering today's conditions, it is seen that teaching is defined as a professional profession that requires special expertise in its field, is full of knowledge, has the ability to use technological tools, can recognize students with language skills, direct them according to their social and cultural interests, and provide interaction (Gürlen & Demirel, 2010; Sişman & Acat, 2003) .

Technological and scientific developments affect all occupational groups, especially the teaching profession. Teachers are expected to develop methods and techniques that encourage group work according to different intelligence types and learning styles because community education and development can only be achieved in this way (Coskun, 2000).

It is known that the first and most important step in the education system structure of every society is the primary education level. The education that individuals will receive at this stage constitutes the basis of education at all other stages. While the correct management of this process allows the individual to establish positive relations with the whole society, it causes negative effects on the social scale if it is not managed correctly. An example of this is the unsuccessful basic education that affects the future of the country in a bad way. It should not be forgotten that although correcting a wrong behavior may seem as easy as introducing a new behavior, wrong information and behaviors in children cannot be corrected in the later stages of education. This leads to failure on an individual and societal scale (Cinar, 2008; Erden, 1998; Kaya, 1977).

The conditions for the appointment of primary school teachers in our country are implemented by considering the teachers' law. Some of the criteria determined in accordance with the sixteenth article of the relevant law are as follows;

"(1) The following special qualifications are sought for those who will be appointed as primary school teachers:

(a) To be a Teacher's College graduate.
(b) To graduate from an educational institution that trains teachers for primary schools and whose equivalence to the Turkish Teachers College (Atatürk Teachers Academy) has been approved by the Council of Ministers.
(c) Having graduated from high school, high school, two-year college, or university, to work as a temporary teacher for at least four years in primary education staff and to be successful in three-month accelerated education at Atatürk Teacher's College.

 (2) Those who will be appointed as private lessons teacher are required to graduate from the relevant department of the Teachers College or the physical education, painting, music and English departments of a 4-year university."

The number of students to be admitted to Atatürk Teachers Academy by examination is determined by the State Planning Organization (DPO) by determining the shortage of teachers that will occur after 4 years. The nobility of the teacher who is appointed after graduation is approved as a result of their success, merit, and competence performances for 2 years. The candidacy period of teachers who cannot be appointed due to their performance during the specified period is extended for one year. During this period, it is decided that teachers will be appointed according to their success and performance or that their duties will be terminated by the Public Service Commission.
This research aims to obtain information about the elements that are not considered sufficient in primary school teacher training policies. For this purpose, answers to the following questions were sought:

1. Do the opinions of the teachers in the study group change according to their gender?
2. Do teachers' opinions change according to their professional seniority?
3. What are the opinions of the teachers regarding the questions determined in the interview form?

It is known that the countries that direct the system with their education policies exhibit successful performance in the field of education (Sala-İ-Martin, 2002). For example, it is stated that the success of countries in PISA and similar exams is related to the high HDI (Human Development Index) index values. When the Education level report, which constitutes a large part of the HDI, is examined, it is seen that the United Kingdom, Germany and Finland are among the top 15 in the ranking. According to the standards set in 1984 by the Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (CATE) in the United Kingdom; pre-service teachers should know their school life and teaching practices, obtain expertise in the subject area and be aware of the teaching practices in the subject area, and have professional knowledge competence with the knowledge of teaching the subjects in primary school education. For this purpose, within the scope of the program determined by CATE in 1984, it is necessary to send teacher candidates to more than one school in order to increase their knowledge about teaching practices and school life, and the main purpose of the program designed in this way is to provide teacher candidates between 3 and 6 years with teaching practices rather than professional wisdom. It is stated that it is intended to teach how (Senemoglu, 1992).

On the other hand, when we look at the primary school teacher training program in Germany, which is in the top 15 of the HDI education ranking, it can be said that this program has two stages, and exams are applied at the end of each stage. After the 4-year undergraduate education, an exam consisting of two parts, written and oral, is held on the application methods of the subjects learned in the undergraduate education. The teacher candidate who successfully passes the exam in the first stage starts the second stage, the internship program, which varies between 18 and 24 months. The aim of the internship program is to enable pre-service teachers to have the competence to take responsibility during the teaching process. During the determined internship period, it is aimed that teacher candidates attend some seminars and develop and deepen the content they have obtained. In this way, if the teacher candidate who passes the last stage is successful in the second exam, he/she gains the right to teach in primary school (Coskun, 2000; Durukafa & Kiris, 2000).

Finally, when we look at the Finnish teacher training policy, it is seen that those who want to apply for the classroom teacher program have to be successful in the university entrance exam. It is seen that this exam consists of 3 stages including written, aptitude test and interview. When the relevant literature is examined, it can be said that Finland's teacher training system is based on 4 elements. These are expressed as below:

1. Combining practical and theoretical training.
2. The intermingling of content knowledge and pedagogical formation.
3. Continuing teacher education not only at the university but also throughout the profession.
4. Being research-based instead of giving direct information.

With the government policy created in this way, it aims to combine the theoretical and practical training of teacher candidates at the university and improve themselves throughout their profession and be aware of the changing information in the world. In addition, in line with this determined purpose, teachers are encouraged to participate in educational activities where they can improve themselves by being on full salary and leave once in 7 years (Bakioğlu & Elverici, 2014) .

2. METHOD

2.1. Research Method

This research, which aims to examine and describe the views of teachers about the elements that are not considered sufficient in primary school teacher training policies in our country, is qualitative-based descriptive research. It is aimed to present a direct and simple description of the phenomenon related to the subject discussed in descriptive studies (Lambert & Lambert, 2012).

2.2. Sample

The study group of the research consists of 50 teachers working in primary education institutions in the spring term of the 2020-2021 academic year and is determined by the easily accessible sampling method.

In Table 1, we can see that 31 of the 50 teachers participating in the research are male, and 19 are female. The data shows that 32 of the teachers have less than 20 years of experience. It is understood that the number of the remaining teachers with 20-24 years of professional experience (B Teacher) is 6, and the number of those with 25 years or more professional seniority (A Teacher) is 12.

2.3. Data Collection Tool

Semi-structured interview forums developed by the researchers were used to solve the problem identified in this study. Through semi-structured interview forms and open-ended questions prepared by the researcher, the current situation is determined by taking the opinions of the participants on the subject examined. While creating the form, attention was paid to internal validity by referring to the opinions of 3 different experts in the relevant field. In order to provide external validity as well as internal validity, a detailed description was made. The interview form consists of two parts, including demographic information and questions about teachers' opinions. While there are gender and professional seniority of the participants in the demographic information section, there are 7 open-ended questions regarding the objectives to be achieved in the research conducted in the questions section, where the opinions of the teachers will be taken.

2.4. Data Analysis

The data obtained from the study were analyzed by using categorical and frequency analysis techniques from content analysis techniques. Content analysis is re-transmitted to the reader by organizing the relevant interpretations (Weber, 1990). The research findings were tried to be expressed by including direct quotations of some teachers' opinions. Participant views were expressed using coding such as "T1, T2...T20".

3. FINDINGS

In this part of the research, the findings obtained from the research were tried to be shown together with the tables.

"What are your opinions about the things that you see as negative or dislike in the process of teacher training for primary education level?" The themes related to the answers given to the question are given in Table 2.

When Table 2 is examined, it is seen that the answers given by the participants (48%) are mostly on the theme of "increasing the number of school applications (internship)". The lowest participation rate was 2%, "There should be courses to increase the teacher's communication skills", "Lessons should be given about professional ethics" and "The government will follow a certain policy, the curriculum will be renewed, the exam system will be changed and the internship period will be extended and more practices will be given to a system. It is observed that it is aimed at the themes of "passing through". Regarding the findings, one of the teachers T14 (Male - less than 20 years): "More internships should be done and more space should be given to applications together with academic information", T24 (Female – B): "More theoretical and practical training should be given to teacher candidates about the ethical values ​​of the teaching profession", T33 (Male – less than 20 years): "I think that there should be applied courses aimed at increasing the communication skills that pre-service teachers will establish with primary and secondary school children and with parents", S8 (Female – A): "The government in our country should adopt a specific state policy on teacher training as soon as possible, restructure the teacher training curriculum in accordance with today's conditions, and increase the number of existing internships, namely school practices, so that teacher candidates should have more school experience I think". The opinion has been expressed. As a result of their research, Gökçe and Demirhan (2005) and Kucukyilmaz (2010) stated that teacher candidates should increase their school practice time. Similarly, Yazcayir (2010) concluded that, as a result of her research, novice teachers have deficiencies in gaining some competencies fully due to the insufficient duration of the practice course. When we look at Table 3, the teachers participating in the research asked, "To what extent do you think the teacher training program adopted in our country meets the needs of the age? Could you briefly explain why you think so?" The themes related to the question are included.

It is seen that the views of the teachers stated in Table 3, with a maximum of 36%, stated that the number of technology-based courses in AÖA should be increased. It is understood that 2% of them expressed the opinion that there are deficiencies in information sharing among teachers. When we look at the sentences made by the teachers who answered the questions, T48 (Male – less than 20 years): "Since this is the age of technology, it would be nicer to start using the technological tools that students are accustomed to using instead of notebooks, books, blackboards or whiteboards", "T19 (Female – less than 20 years): "They should have taught us to teach by focusing on technological and contemporary education approaches. We used to make presentations with the traditional method", while T27 (Female – less than 20 years old): "In these days when everyone is doing masters and doctorates, it is avoided to share knowledge and experience. There is a race in every educational institution.

Teachers are in an effort to establish superiority over other teachers by keeping the information to themselves. Looking at similar studies in the field, Ozusalam (2007) stated that the use of computers in mathematics lessons would make learning permanent by involving students in the lesson and emphasizing the importance of technology-based education. Cağıltay, Cakıroğlu, Cağıltay, and Cakıroğlu (2001) stated that teachers attach importance to computer-assisted education and therefore they are willing to take computer and technology-based education and improve themselves. Table 4 shows the question "What changes do you think need to be made in the teacher training program to make teachers more competent?" There are themes related to the answers given to the question.

When the answers given by the teachers participating in the research are examined, the most repeated opinion shown in Table 4 is 40%, "The number of school experience lessons of teacher candidates should increase." appears to be. "There should be incentives for the teacher to develop himself/herself according to the lifelong learning principle while performing his/her profession." reaches the conclusion that it is in contact. In this context, T42 (Male – A): "Practice should be done in classroom environments much more", While T17 (Male - B): "Practice studies should be increased and pre-service teachers should be given more chances in the classroom environment", T21 (Female - A): "Teachers need to be open to innovations throughout their life and for this, they first accept that learning continues. They need to constantly update their information. If necessary, the state or ministry should encourage the teacher in this direction. Expressed an opinion. Yapici and Yapici (2004) and Aydin (2007) found that teachers gained many gains such as self-confidence and experience with practice lessons, and therefore they stated that it would be an advantage for them to have a high number of applications.

In Table 5, the questions of the teachers participating in the research "Which achievements do you think teacher training programs should give priority?" There are themes related to the answers given to the question.

"Which achievements do you think teacher training programs should prioritize?" When we look at the answers to the question, "It should be ensured that they can follow the technology closely," with 24% of the highest participation. It is observed in Table 5 that it is in contact with it.

When we look at the answers given, with at least 4% of the participation, "It is necessary to focus on gains aimed at increasing problem solving skills." and "There should be activities to increase students' social skills." We observe that it is in the themes. Considering the findings, T27(Female – less than 20 years): "Should follow scientific and technological developments and keep themselves up to date", T13(Male – less than 20 years): "It should be gained to try to find ways to benefit from the developing and changing technology by closely following them" T42 (Male - A): "There should be activities aimed at increasing students' skills not only in lessons but also socially, and ways should be sought for students to be more social", T33 (Male - less than 20 years): "Students should be taught not only four procedures, but also they stated that it is necessary to have training aimed at gains that will enable them to solve the problems they will encounter in life. Davis (2003) stated in her study that the use of technology in the training of teachers would help to raise people with the qualities that societies in the information age need.

Agyei and Voogt (2011) emphasized the importance of pre-service teachers who can use technology and follow technology closely and stated that pre-service teachers' competencies in these areas should be increased.

Table 6 shows the question, "Which courses and subjects should be taught in teacher training programs?" There are themes related to the answers given to the question.

Table 6 shows the question "Which courses and subjects should be taught in teacher training programs?" with a maximum of 20% participation in the question "School practices need to be increased." We observe that it is in contact. When the answers given are examined, it is concluded that 4% of the participants responded with the theme "Classroom management course should be emphasized. T15 (Male – less than 20 years): "The internship period of teacher candidates at schools can be extended", T29 (Female – less than 20 years): "Our internship and observation periods were insufficient. Therefore, when we started our profession, we did not have enough school experience, this needs to be eliminated", while T44 (Female – A): "It is necessary to increase the skills of teacher candidates in classroom management in accordance with the differing student profiles". Aydın, Selçuk, and Yeşilyurt (2007) and Kilinc and Altuk (2010) emphasized in their studies that teaching practices should be increased so that teachers can improve themselves by interacting with students more.

Table 7 shows that the teachers participating in the research "What do you think should be the teaching methods-techniques and tools in teacher training programs?" There are themes related to the answers given to the question.

As we can see when we look at Table 7, the teachers participating in the research asked, "What do you think should be the teaching methods-techniques and tools in teacher training programs?" "Digital platforms need to be integrated into today's education," with the highest participation of 24%. While it was concluded that 2% of the response was the lowest, "The activities in today's program are sufficient." observed to be in contact. When we look at the answers given on this subject, T38 (Female - less than 20 years): "Contemporary education models away from plain language should be taken as an example, technology use should be maximized and technological opportunities should be used in the classroom", T14 (Male - less than 20 years): "Technology use very important. Especially in this pandemic process, the importance of using technology was understood. The acquisition of making use of in-class and out-of-class technological opportunities and working on this issue should be included in the teacher training program. Efe, Oral, Efe, and Sünkür (2011) emphasized in their study that the use of simulation in education has a positive effect on students' acquisition of knowledge and its permanent probability. Doğan and Seferoğlu (2015) stated that mobile technologies have entered our lives and that these digital devices cannot be prevented from being used in classrooms by integrating them into education.

In Table 8, the question "How do you think measurement-evaluation should be in teacher training programs?" There are themes related to the answers given to the question.

When Table 8 is examined, the teachers who participated in the research asked, "How do you think measurement-evaluation should be in teacher training programs?" 38% of the themes that stood out among their answers to the question "Measurement-evaluation should be done in internship environments." it is understood to be. The lowest participation, with 4% each, is "The measurement-evaluation activities in today's program are sufficient." and "Scientific and contemporary techniques should be used." appears to be about themes. Hew and Brush (2007) emphasized the necessity of finding practical activities and observing the practice in a successful teacher training program.

In Table 9, the questions of the teachers participating in the research are "What are your views on the classroom teaching competencies of graduates of academy and graduates from different faculties of universities and receiving pedagogical formation training?" There are themes related to the answers given to the question.

When Table 9 is looked at, the teachers participating in the research asked, "What are your views on the classroom teaching competencies of graduates of academy and graduates from different faculties of universities and receiving pedagogical formation training?" In line with the opinions obtained regarding the question, it was determined that 60% of the Academy graduates were more competent than the other graduates, and 18% of the teachers who graduated from an institution other than the Academy were not sufficient at the desired level. Some teachers' opinions on this are, T24 (Female – B): "Academy graduates are fully equipped with the knowledge and qualifications they have received", T8 (Female – A): "I think academy graduates are much better than other universities in terms of behavior, style, style and education level. they are good". Apart from that, T33 (Male - less than 20 years): "There is a big difference because the courses taken in the short-term pedagogical formation are not enough to fulfill the requirements of the teaching profession" and T40 (Male - B): "Unfortunately, this is the department where some faculties have the most trouble. Since the standing of the faculty in this formation is at the forefront, the necessary care is not shown in this regard. Therefore, proficiency is low". When we look at the teacher training systems in China and Singapore, the 2 countries with the highest scores in 2018 PISA mathematics, science and reading-comprehension, we observe that there is a local education system and teacher training program in China. In addition to education faculties, there are also teacher colleges that provide 3-4 years of education in order to become a primary school teacher in the country (Polat & Arabacı, 2012). In each state, teachers are required to pass different exams to enter the profession. For example, in Shanghai state, teachers are required to speak fluent English and Chinese, and they have to prove this in the interview. Although each institution has its programs in teacher training, the "Education Office" also has a say in teaching training programs (Orakci, 2015). In Singapore, it is seen that the only institution that trains teachers is the National Institute of Education (NIE) within the body of Nanyang Technological University, the most prestigious university in the country (National Center on Education and the Economy, 2018). Mathematics teaching is the basic compulsory course in the primary school teacher training program of the institute and all candidates are trained to teach English, Mathematics, Social and Science courses (Khoh & Teo, 2002).

4. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

When the results of the research were examined, it was seen that all the teachers who contributed to the research drew attention to the themes that the number of technology-based courses in AÖA should increase, along with the number of school applications, and that the academy graduates had more proficiency. However, it was observed that male participants expressed more opinions that teacher candidates should increase the number of school experience courses for the teacher to be more competent, while female teachers mostly expressed their views on the necessity of closely the following technology for the gains that should be given priority in the teacher training program. In other words, it can be said that teachers' views vary according to their gender. When the results obtained in terms of professional seniority are examined, it has been observed that teachers with less than 20 years of professional experience give similar answers on the themes of increasing the number of school applications, increasing the number of technology-based courses in AÖA, and academy graduates having more qualifications. On the other hand, it was observed that teachers with B professional seniority did not give a common answer to any question. When we look at the teachers with A professional seniority, it has been determined that the most common opinion of the teacher candidates is to increase the number of school experience courses and that the academy graduates have more qualifications. In other words, it can be said that teachers' views change according to their professional seniority.

Considering the opinions about the negative or disliked aspects in the teacher training process for primary education level, it is seen that the views on increasing the number of school practice (internship) are in the majority. Similarly, Darling-Hammond. and Baratz-Snowden (2007) stated in their study that new teachers act on their instincts and look for appropriate ways due to the deficiencies in the theoretical and practical connection arising from teacher training programs. Because of this situation, it is necessary to integrate the theoretical and practical issues in the teacher training program (Darling-Hammond. & Baratz-Snowden, 2007).

In line with the results obtained in the research, it was concluded that the number of technology-based courses in AÖA should increase. In this context, when the studies in the literature are considered, it is stated as one of the important points that the education faculties support teacher candidates for constantly renewed and updated methods and technologies in Austrian teacher education (Sözen & Cabuk, 2013).

Another result obtained in the research is that the number of school experience lessons of teacher candidates should increase for teachers to be more competent in the teacher training program. Similarly, Ramatlapana (2009) and Yuen‐Kwan (1998) concluded that teachers should improve themselves with the practical training they will receive during their undergraduate education in the vocational field, update their existing knowledge and follow the newly used techniques and methods. When we look at the study Aykaç, Kabaran, and Bilgin (2014), it has been observed that Turkey is the country that provides the least application opportunity to teacher candidates in England, France, Germany, Finland and Turkey. It has been observed that there are practical lessons every year during the 2-year teaching practice in England, Germany and France, and 4-year education in Finland. One of the main reasons why these four countries are ahead of Turkey in the PISA score ranking is the emphasis on theoretical courses rather than practice and internship in Turkey (Aykaç et al., 2014).

In line with the results of the research, it was pointed out that teacher training programs should primarily focus on the acquisition of the following technology closely. Burchell and Westmoreland (1999) also examined pre-service teachers' perceptions of competency-based teacher education and revealed that they focused on behaviors aimed at increasing pre-service teachers' ability to observe, provide guidance for targeted development, and measure and monitor after individual assessment.

Increasing school practices, which is one of the previous results of the subject that should be taught or given in teacher training programs, is considered as another result obtained from the research. This reveals that the participants expressed a common opinion that they are inadequate in their teaching practices. Similarly, Darling-Hammond and Bransford (2007) found in their study that many knowledge, skills and needs should not be overlooked in an efficient teacher training program despite the positive or negative opinions of pre-service teachers towards teacher training programs.

One of the important results of the research is related to the necessity of integrating the methods, techniques, materials and digital platforms to be used in the teacher training program into today's education. Another result obtained is related to the fact that the measurement and evaluation activity in the teacher training program should be done by observing the pre-service teacher in the internship environment. In the study conducted by Aytac and Er (2018), the importance of the role of counselor teachers was mentioned by monitoring the development of pre-service teachers. Thus, it has been revealed that the dimension of teaching practice is focused on quality rather than quantity, and the country's PISA success has been brought to the top level.

Another important result of the research is that teachers who graduated from the academy have more proficiency.

5. SUGGESTIONS

Since the research conducted in line with the results obtained consists of 50 people, the same subject can be addressed more comprehensively in future studies. In the study, it was tried to reach the opinions of the teachers in the sample about the points that are not considered sufficient in the primary school teacher training policies. In this direction, by increasing the scope of the research and the number of participants, a more detailed study can be put forward by obtaining the information of the teachers in different regions or the teachers throughout the country about the researched subject. In cooperation with the Ministry of Education, a training program can be prepared in line with the results obtained in order to determine a more efficient teacher training policy.

Since only the opinions of teachers were used in the study, the opinions of the pre-service teachers along with the opinions of the administrators can be included in the research in order to examine the scope of the research more broadly.

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