ASSESSING THE LEARNING NEEDS OF TURKISH …. ümit yıldız.pdf · boyutunda dil bilimi, dil...

Tarih Okulu Dergisi (TOD) Journal of History School (JOHS)

Mart 2015 March 2015

Yıl 8, Sayı XXI, ss. 503-525.. Year 8, Issue XXI pp. 503-525.

DOI No: http://dx.doi.org/10.14225/Joh709

ASSESSING THE LEARNING NEEDS OF TURKISH LANGUAGE

STUDENT TEACHERS IN REGARD TO TEACHING TURKISH AS A

FOREIGN LANGUAGE

Ümit YILDIZ

Abstract

This particular study aimed to highlight the student teachers’ perceptions, needs,

and expectations, current and desired competencies in terms of necessary teaching

competencies in teaching Turkish as a foreign language (TFL) with the hope of

designing a better learner-centered curriculum that goes more in line with their specific

needs. The study was conducted with 367 student teachers at three state universities in

2013-2014; 2014-2015 academic years in Turkey. The results of the study revealed that

regarding the students’ views on the content /field knowledge dimension, almost all of

the items such as content knowledge of foreign language teaching/TFL methods,

grammar and language skills were perceived by student teachers highly needed.

Similarly, regarding the interdisciplinary/complementary competencies, program

knowledge, competency in linguistics and language acquisition dimensions were

perceived highly necessary. Related to competencies in learning-teaching process, it

was observed that participants strongly would like to be competent in the professional

knowledge and application of the methods of teaching TFL. On the other hand,

currently, they perceived themselves only partially competent in these dimensions.

Key words: Turkish as a Foreign Language, Teacher Competency, Student

Teachers.

Yabancı Dil Olarak Türkçe Öğretimi Bağlamında Türkçe Öğretmen Adaylarına

Yönelik Gereksinim Çözümlemesi

Özet

Bu çalışma yabancı dil olarak Türkçe öğretimi alanında gerekli öğretmen

yeterliliklerini mevcut ve istenilen yetkinlik düzeyleri açısından ortaya koymayı

amaçlamıştır. Çalışmada 2013-2014 ve 2014-2015 akademik yıllarında üç devlet

Yrd. Doç. Dr., Akdeniz Üniversitesi Türkçe Eğitimi

Ümit Yıldız

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üniversitesinde 367 Türkçe öğretmen adayının anket yoluyla görüşlerine

başvurulmuştur. Çalışmanın alan bilgisi boyutuna yönelik sonuçları öğretmen

adaylarının yabancı dil öğretim yöntemleri, yabancılara Türkçe öğretim yöntemleri, dil

bilgisi ve dil becerileri açısından yeterlilik kazanmayı son derece gerekli gördüğünü

ortaya koymuştur. Benzer şekilde, çalışmanın disiplinlerarası/tamamlayıcı yetkinlikler

boyutunda dil bilimi, dil edinimi ve program bilgisi boyutları öğretmen adayları

tarafından gerekli olarak ifade edilmiştir. Öğretmen adayları, öğrenme-öğretme

sürecinde alan bilgisi ve yabancı dil olarak Türkçe öğretim yöntemlerini uygulama

noktasında yetkin olmak istedikleri yönünde görüş bildirmişlerdir. Diğer taraftan, bu

alanlarda kendilerini yeterince yetkin hissetmediklerini ifade etmişlerdir.

Anahtar Kelimeler: Yabancı Dil Olarak Türkçe, Öğretmen Yeterlilikleri,

Öğretmen Adayları.

INTRODUCTION

It is well known that successful teachers are the ones who have been

trained in efficient education programs. The significance of these programs

which we assume have a direct or indirect influence on the development of the

teacher competencies shows up to be a more sensitive point to focus into.

Following this argument, the question to be asked comes as how much such

programs and program contents overlap in relation to the competencies teachers

need/will need. While the question of “How do we teach?” gains a certain

importance in the field of teaching Turkish to foreigners (TTF), on the other

hand, the research on the competencies of language instructors who will take

part in the teaching process have proved to be quite insufficient. In this regard,

this study intends to contribute to this field partly, if not completely.

It is a clearcut fact that teacher education is divided into two categories:

theory and practice. Mata (2014) stresses that language education should be

taken as a multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary process which bears a variety

of theories and teaching approaches in the background. According to Dahlgren

and Chiriac (2009) there exists a certain need for an investigation of the

relationship between the teacher education and teachers’ training and

professional practices. Narrowing the argument specifically to the area of

training teachers in the field of teaching Turkish a foreign language (TFL), we

see that not a sufficient number of the studies have been carried out in this semi-

explored field. Hence, there is an urgent need for a deep investigation of the

matters like the course content, professional knowledge and skills,

Assessing the Learning Needs of Turkish Language Student Teachers in Regard to

Teaching Turkish as a Foreign Language

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interdisciplinary knowledge and settling the competencies that teachers in this

field need, and the design of the programs which serve for the main objectives.

The Criteria of the Professional Competencies for the Language

Teachers

In relation to the fact that all the educational instutions, students, and

the society have some expectations and demands from the teachers who take

direct part in the teaching processes. Mata (2014) signifies that these

expectations are mainly about field knowledge and professional competencies at

minimum. Many criteria stand out while conceptualizing the teacher

competencies. Mata (2014) gives the ideas of different researchers and writers

on this subject as in Table 1. As it is easily deduced from the table, writers

generally emphasize the importance of the development of pedagogical

competencies in the field of teacher education.

In this study for focusing on the areas of teacher competencies, Day and

Conklin (1992)’s classification model was used and the knowledge and

competencies the student teachers must have in the processes of teaching TTF

are captioned under 3 categories which forms the basis of the study: 1) subject

field/field knowledge, 2) knowledge and skill competencies in relation to

learning-teaching process/teaching profession, 3)

interdisciplinary/complementary competencies.

It is ensured that in education of the student teachers there have

emerged multifaceted dimensions in the areas like the pedagogic field

knowledge they will need in the learning-teaching processes and their

professional practices, skills and values.

Table 1. The classification of professional standards for preparing

language teachers: authors’ categories of professional competencies

Shulman (1987)

knowledge of the target language and culture;

pedagogical knowledge – learning theories, approaches and

strategies;

disciplinary knowledge – applied linguistics (theories of

language learning);

professional and contextual knowledge;

Ümit Yıldız

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ethical knowledge (engaging with otherness, responsibility and

evolving self)

Commins (1995)

using and developing professional knowledge and values;

communicating, interacting and working with students and

others;

planning and managing the teaching and learning process;

monitoring and assessing student progress and learning

outcomes;

reflecting, evaluating, and planning for continuous

improvement

Day and Conklin (1992)

content knowledge of the subject matter as represented by

courses in syntax, semantics,

phonology, and pragmatics as well as literary and cultural aspects;

pedagogic knowledge, focusing on knowledge of generic

teaching strategies, beliefs, and

practices, regardless of the focus of the subject matter (how we teach),

e.g. classroom management, motivation, decision making;

pedagogic content knowledge (the specialized knowledge of

how to represent content knowledge in diverse ways so that students may

understand; knowledge of how students come to understand the subject matter,

what difficulties they are likely to encounter when learning it, what

misconceptions interfere with learning, and how to overcome these problems);

support knowledge, referring to the knowledge of the various

disciplines that inform our approach to the teaching and learning of mother-

tongue language (psycholinguistics, linguistics,

first language acquisition, sociolinguistics, research methods)

(Mata 2014, p.342)

It goes without doubt that the competencies of the teachers taking part

in the process of teaching foreign language area of great importance in terms of

providing successful outputs in the learning-teaching environments. Many

researchers are underlying the importance of advancing and/or developing

teachers’ educational profession. Cannon, Kithchel and Duncan (2010) state

that researchers agree that teachers should be provided by appropriate training.

However, they add that it is much more difficult to determine the most



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appropriate and most needed trainning that best fit their specific professional

needs and expecatations. Cook and Schirmer (2003) highlight the importance of

professional development and acknowlege that for high quality educators, it is

crucial. They also add that teachers’ creating effective classroom environments

is very much depend on intensity of in-depth training. Leigh and Mead (2005)

state that there is a direct link between the quality of the instruction and the

competencies and qualifications of the teachers. Çelik et al. (2012:295) state

that ‘…an effective teacher is always in the process of professional growth; and

thus, teacher effectiveness should be perceived as a luid rather than a ixed

phenomenon.’ Friend et al. (2010) suggest advanced professional development

opportunities for teachers to encourage them to take part in collaborative

relationships. They also recommend teachers to attend professional teacher

training and development programs in order to obtain benefit at the very most.

Teacher Competencies in Terms of Teaching Turkish to Foreigners

Recently, it is observed that the number of learners of TFL as a foreign

and second language is continuously increasing in and out of Turkey. Whether

this increasing demand is being responded as it should be, or not, is still being

discussed (Güler, 2012). Evaluation of the TFL programs in terms of content,

approaches, techniques and teaching materials is very crucial. However, the

qualtifications of teachers, that are the applicants, have direct influence on the

quality of teaching process. In this sense, teachers are one of the most important

shareholders of the educational processes. So, teachers’ this significant role, that

they play in the process, requires the necessity of the continuous evaluation and

development of their professional competencies and qualifications (Mete,

2013).

In recent years, the concern of competency and qualifications of the

teachers is not only the interest area in the world, and in Turkey; one of the

most popular topics recently in the field of TFL is determination of the

professional qualifications of the TFL teachers (Barın, 2010). Akış (2009)

highlights the serious problem of lack of specialists that will train the teachers

who will teach TFL, and the lack of teaching materials. Yağmur (2009) in her

research study states that TFL is a special scientific field, and stresses the

importance and necessity of specific curricula that fit teachers’ these specific

needs who will take part in the teaching processes of TFL.

Ümit Yıldız

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Barın (2004) stresses that it should be accepted that teaching TFL is a

discipline all by itself and in this sense planning the training of the specialists in

this field should be given high importance. In line with this, Karababa and

Çalışkan (2013) put forward that in our time many of the institutions which

employ the instructors to teach TFL do not focus on the teacher competencies

that they should have and they do not make any extensive research on this.

As it can be seen, the competencies of the instructors who will take part

in the process of teaching TFL appear to be extremely crucial.

Objectives of the Study

This particular study aimed to determine the student teachers’

perceptions, needs, and expectations, current and desired competencies in terms

of necessary teaching competencies in teaching TFL. In this respect, there are 4

research questions of this study:

1. What are the perceptions and needs of the student teachers

about subject field/field knowledge?

2. What are the present professional competency level of student

teachers in relation to the pedagogic knowledge and practical competencies in

the subjects like choosing and applying the appropriate teaching approaches,

methods, techniques, classroom management, measurement and evaluation?

3. What are the desired/needed professional competency level of

student teachers in relation to the pedagogic knowledge and practical

competencies in the subjects like choosing and applying the appropriate

teaching approaches, methods, techniques, classroom management,

measurement and evaluation?

4. What are the perceptions and needs about the

interdisciplinary/complementary competencies in the domains of the programs,

program development, acquisition of native and second language, linguistics

and foreign language knowledge?

METHODOLOGY

In this research, survey model was used and data was collected through

a questionnaire. As stated by Fraenkel and Wallen (2006), survey is ‘a

collection of information from a sample by asking questions in order to describe

some aspects of the population of which the sample is a part’. Researchers

usually carry out a survey research to determine the attitudes, perceptions,



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opinions, behaviors, needs or characteristics of a target group by preparing a

questionnaire to ask a number of questions related to one particular topic or

issue with the aim of finding answers to these questions. The collected answers

to these specific issues constitute the data of this study (Ekşi, 2010).

Participants

The study was conducted on 367 student teachers in the 2013-2014;

2014-2015 academic years at the departments of Turkish language teacher

training at Akdeniz University (AU) in Antalya, Mehmet Akif Ersoy University

(MAEU) in Burdur, and Afyon Kocatepe University (AKU) in Afyonkarahisar

in Turkey. Census sampling procedure was performed, in which all the

members of the population at AU, MAEU and AKU, who have already taken,

selected/are taking the course Teaching Turkish to Foreigners, were selected in

the study.

Instrument and Procedures of Data Analysis

A needs analysis questionnaire was administered to determine the

perceived levels of the desired/current teaching competencies of the student

teachers in TFL. Some parts/dimensions of the questionnaires developed by

Yıldız (2004);Yıldız and Tepeli (2013), with permission, used/partially adapted

in the data collection procedure of the research study.

In the first part of the questionnaire, the views of the student teachers on

content knowledge/field knowledge were asked. In this part, the contents a

foreign language instructor has to/should excel at were listed. They were asked

to indicate to what extent they want to be competent in the given areas by

putting a cross (X) in the boxes representing their opinions.

In the second part of the questionnaire, the student teachers’ views on

the competencies for teaching-learning process/teaching profession and

techniques for teaching Turkish and practical skills were searched for. This part

contains the essential pedagogic knowledge and competencies which an

instructor who will teach/teaches TFL needs to be embellished with. On the left

part of the table, the student teachers were asked to put a cross (X) in the related

box which they think best reflects how competent they find themselves in the

field, and to put a cross (X) in the box on the right side of the table which they

think best reflects the level of their need/desire for that particular competency.

Ümit Yıldız

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In the third part of the questionnaire, the views of the student teachers

on the interdisciplinary complementary competencies were asked for. They

were asked to put a cross (X) in the related box to mark how competent they

need/want to be in these areas.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

The findings of the study were discussed, in parallel with the research

questions, under four headings as follows; 1) What are the perceptions and

needs of the student teachers about subject field/field knowledge? 2) What are

the present professional competency level of student teachers in relation to the

pedagogic knowledge and practical competencies in the subjects like choosing

and applying the appropriate teaching approaches, methods, techniques,

classroom management, measurement and evaluation? 3) What are the

desired/needed professional competency level of student teachers in relation to

the pedagogic knowledge and practical competencies in the subjects like

choosing and applying the appropriate teaching approaches, methods,

techniques, classroom management, measurement and evaluation? 4) What are

the perceptions and needs about the interdisciplinary/complementary

competencies in the domains of the programs, program development, and

acquisition of native and second language, linguistics and foreign language

knowledge?

Results Regarding the Students’ Views on the Content Knowledge/

Field Knowledge

As it can be observed in Table 2, about item 1, majority of the

participants [(C; %:51,2),(VC; %:30,8] stated that teachers of TTFL should

have good professional knowledge of foreign language teaching methods.

Regarding item 2, majority of the participants [(C; %:46,9),(VC; %:36,2] stated

that TFL teachers should be either compentent or very comptent in methods for

teaching Turkish as a foreign language. Regarding the item 3 ‘grammar’,

majority of the student teachers [(C; %:42,0),(VC; %:42,5] stated that the

grammar knowledge of teachers of TFL is very much needed. As it can be seen

in Table 2, for items 4,5,6,7 and 8 TFL teachers are very much expected to be

‘comptent’ and ‘very competent’ by the participants in the fields of knowledge

of communicative skills [(C; %:30,5),(VC; %:63,2], written expression skills

[(C; %:38,7),(VC; %:40,9], oral expression skills [(C; %:31,9),(VC; %:58,0],



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reading comprehension skills [(C; %:34,6),(VC; %:54,8], listening

comprehension skills [(C; %:31,3),(VC; %:58,0].

The TFL teachers are expected to be moderately [(C; %:30,0),(VC;

%:21,3] professionally skillful by the participants in the field of ‘competence in

the fields of literary terms and theories, in child literature, world literature and

folk literature to make use of while teaching Turkish to the foreigners’ for item

9, as compared to first 8 items in the questionnaire. On the other hand for item

10, the knowledge of vocabulary for a TFL teacher is found very much needed

in teaching TFL by more than 90 % of the participants [(C; %:27,0),(VC;

%:63,2].

The items 11 and 12 ‘the scientific, judicial and ethic knowledge and

values related to the teaching profession required in our contemporary world

and in the law [(C; %:31,9),(VC; %:46,3]; basic knowledge about the Turkish

culture, traditions-customs and lifestyle [(C; %:27,0),(VC; %:52,0]’ were

similarly founded highly needed professional knowledge for TFL teachers by

the participants. On the other hand, regarding item 13, more than half of the

participants [(C; %:31,6),(VC; %:34,1] agreed on the fact that TFL teachers

should be ‘competent’ and ‘very competent’ in the field of ‘the basic knowledge

on the administrative structure of the Republic of Turkey and the geography of

Turkey’.

Table 2: Student teachers’ perceived views on the content knowledge/field knowledge

Level of needed competencies

NCA NC PC C VC

No Items f % f % f % f % f %

1. Foreign language teaching methods

5 1,4 11 3,0 50 13,6 188 51,2 113 30,8

2. Methods for teaching Turkish as a foreign language

5 1,4 11 3,0 46 12,5 172 46,9 133 36,2

3. Grammar 4 1,1 10 2,7 43 11,7 154 42,0 156 42,5

4. Communicative skills 2 0,5 4 1,1 17 4,6 112 30,5 232 63,2

5. Written expression skills 3 0,8 9 2,5 63 17,2 142 38,7 150 40,9

6. Oral expression skills 1 0,3 6 1,6 30 8,2 117 31,9 213 58,0

7. Reading comprehension skills 1 0,3 9 2,5 29 7,9 127 34,6 201 54,8

8. Listening comprehension

skills

2 0,5 9 2,5 28 7,6 115 31,3 213 58,0

9. Competence in the fields of literary terms and theories, in child literature, world litrerature and folk literature to make use of while teaching

7 1,9 38 10,4 134 36,5 110 30,0 78 21,3

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Turkish to the foreigners

10. Vocabulary 1 0,3 8 2,2 27 7,4 99 27,0 232 63,2

11. The scientific, judicial and ethic knowledge and values related to the teaching profession required in our contemporary world and in the law

4 1,1 13 3,5 63 17,2 117 31,9 170 46,3

12. Basic knowledge about the Turkish culture, traditions-customs and lifestyle

6 1,6 15 4,1 56 15,3 99 27,0 191 52,0

13. The basic knowledge on the administrative structure of the Republic of Turkey and the geography of Turkey

13 3,5 28 7,6 85 23,2 116 31,6 125 34,1

(NCA: Not Competent at all; NC: Not Competent; PC: Partially Competent; C: Competent; VC: Very Competent)

Results Regarding the Student Teachers’ Perceived Current/Needed

Views on Competencies in Learning-Teaching Process/Teaching Profession

and Competencies in Knowledge and Practice in Teaching Turkish as a

Foreign Language

In Table 3, student teachers’ perceived views on competencies in

learning-teaching process/teaching profession and competencies in knowledge

and practice in TFL were given and discussed. The data related to the current

competency level are presented without parenthesis. The data related to the

perceived needed/desired competency level are presented in parenthesis in bold.

Regarding item 1, it could be observed that participants strongly [(C;

%:51,5),(VC; %:35,7] would like to be ‘competent’ and ‘very competent’ in the

professional knowledge and application of the methods of teaching TFL. On the

other hand, currently, they do not find themselves competent enough in this area

[(C; %:7,4),(VC; %:5,2].

As it is observed in the Table 3, for all of the items their expectation

level for the dimensions of ‘competent’ and ‘very competent’ ranged from 81.6

% to 94 %. The most emphasized aspects, regarding the total of the dimensions

of ‘competent’ and ‘very competent’ for current level, were for item 35

“motivating students” with the percentage score of 94 %, and for the items 5

(92.1 %), 8 (92.1 %), 11 (92.3 %), 12 (92.1 %), 13 (92.4 %), 15 (92.1 %), 26

(92.6 %) and 36 (92.9 %). The results revealed that the participants’ desired

competency levels in these aspects were very high. They desired to be

competent in the aspects of classroom management, use of technology



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effectively, giving clear, straight and understandable instructions, using course

book and teaching materials effectively, preparing supportive teaching

materials, using the visual materials effectively, using essential methods in

improving students’ speaking skill and understanding the needs of the students

and leading the teaching process accordingly.

Regarding the participants’ perceived current competency level of the

dimensions, the total percentage scores of ‘not competent at all’ and ‘not

competent’ ranged from 16 % (item 15) to 60.3 % (item 10).

As can be also observed, regarding the total percentage scores of the

dimensions of ‘not competent at all’ and ‘not competent’, in Table 3,

participants perceived themselves less competent especially in the items 10

(60.3 %), 32 (59.9 %), 4 (58 %), 31 (53.1 %), 1 (49.4 %), 3 (44.5 %). In other

words, participants stated that they do not perceive themselves competent

enough in the areas: speaking a foreign language and using it as a tool language

in the teaching atmosphere, using the essential techniques for improving his\her

students’ vocabulary size, applying the essential teaching methods in TFL and

competent in teaching language skills.

Compared to these items, regarding the total of the dimensions of

‘competent’ and ‘ very competent’, the participants perceived themselves more

competent in the items of 9 (54.8 %), 35 (50.6 %), 8 (46.6 %), 34 (45.8 %), 22

(45.7 %), 36 (43.4 %), 7 (43.0 %) and 15 (43.0 %). The results show the

participants’ perceived current competency levels in these aspects are somehow

higher than the above mentioned. They perceive themselves moderately

competent in motiving students, enjoying a variety of competencies for

motivating the students, using technology effectively, correcting students’

mistakes, using question-answer technique effectively, understanding the needs

of the students and leading the teaching process accordingly, providing all the

necessary opportunities to enable the students speak and participate in learning

process and using the visual materials effectively. Demirel (2011) after

conducting a study with the aim of determining the perceptions of student

teachers on the course Teaching Turkish to Foreigners, suggested that student

teachers should be provided with the teaching practice opportunities that will

create richer TFL environments.

Ümit Yıldız

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Table 3: Student teachers’ perceived current/needed views on competencies in learning-teaching process/teaching

profession and competencies in knowledge and practice in teaching Turkish as a foreign language

An instructor of Turkish as a foreign language;

Level of needed(desired)/current competencies

NCA NC PC C VC


1. knows and applies the methods of teaching Turkish as a foreign language.

49

(5)

13,4

(1,4)

132

(8)

36,0

(2,2)

140

(34)

38,1

(9,3)

27

(189)

7,4

(51,5)

19

(131)

5,2

(35,7)

2. is competent in comprehension-instruction language skills.

21

(10)

5,7

(0,3)

77

(8)

21,0

(2,2)

167

(229

)

45,5

(6,0)

74

(163)

20,2

(64,4)

28

(173)

7,6

(77,1)

3. is competent in comprehension-instruction language skills in the field of teaching Turkish as a foreign language.

38

(3)

34,1

(0,8)

125

(8)

10,4

(2,2)

139

(48)

37,9

(13,

1)

47

(167)

12,8

(45,5)

18

(141)

4,9

(38,4)

4. is competent in the field

of teaching grammar to foreigners.

72

(6)

19,6

(1,6)

141

(7)

38,4

(1,9)

86

(42)

23,4

(11,

4)

50

(174)

13,6

(47,4)

18

(138)

4,9

(37,6)

5. is competenet in classroom management.

19

(3)

5,2

(0,8)

119

(6)

32,4

(1,6)

140

(20)

38,1

(5,4)

46

(94)

12,5

(25,6)

43

(246)

11,7

(66,5)

6. is competent in working with small and big groups.

16

(3)

4,4

(0,8)

64

(6)

17,4

(1,6)

159

(27)

43,3

(7,4)

92

(141)

25,1

(38,4)

36

(190)

9,8

(51,8)

7. provides all the necessary opportunities to enable the students speak and participate in learning process.

14

(2)

3,8

(0,5)

56

(5)

15,3

(1,4)

139

(19)

37,9

(5,2)

101

(140)

27,5

(38,1)

57

(201)

15,5

(54,8)

8. uses technology

effectively.

11

(1)

3,0

(0,3)

46

(4)

12,5

(1,1)

139

(24)

37,9

(6,5)

107

(97)

29,2

(26,4)

64

(241)

17,4

(65,7)

9. motivates students in their learning process.

12

(2)

3,3

(0,5)

34

(1)

9,3

(0,3)

120

(25)

32,7

(6,8)

127

(99)

34,6

(27,0)

74

(240)

20,2

(65,4)

10. speaks at least one foreign language.

78

(2)

21,3

(0,5)

143

(8)

39,0

(2,2)

99

(31)

27,0

(8,4)

26

(119)

7,1

(32,4)

21

(207)

5,7

(56,4)

11. gives clear, straight and understadable instructions

.

18

(3)

4,9

(0,8)

51

(1)

13,9

(0,3)

153

(24)

41,7

(6,5)

104

(104)

28,3

(28,3)

41

(235)

11,2

(64,0)

12. uses course book and teaching materials effecively.

18

(2)

4,9

(0,5)

51

(3)

13,9

(0,8)

154

(24)

42,0

(6,5)

91

(104)

24,8

(28,3)

53

(234)

14,4

(63,8)

13. is competent in preparing supportive teaching materials apart from the

23

(2)

6,3

(0,5)

78

(5)

21,3

(1,4)

147

(21)

40,1

(5,7)

80

(142)

21,8

(38,7)

39

(197)

10,6

(53,7)



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course book

14. apart from the course book, effectively uses supportive teaching materials in the teaching process.

21

(2)

5,7

(0,5)

69

(7)

18,8

(1,9)

144

(27)

39,2

(7,4)

93

(130)

25,3

(35,4)

40

(201)

10,9

(54,8)

15. effectively uses the visual materials.

13

(3)

3,5

(0,8)

46

(5)

12,5

(1,4)

150

(21)

40,9

(5,7)

112

(105)

30,5

(28,6)

46

(233)

12,5

(63,5)

16. effectively uses the auditory materials.

16

(4)

4,4

(1,1)

55

(5)

15,0

(1,4)

160

(22)

43,6

(6,0)

99

(131)

27,0

(35,7)

37

(205)

10,1

(55,9)

17. effectively uses the drama, role play techniques.

30

(6)

8,2

(1,6)

85

(11)

23,2

(3,0)

147

(37)

40,1

(10,

1)

67

(122)

18,3

(33,2)

38

(191)

10,4

(52,0)

18. benefits from the informative and educational games to reinforce the teaching process.

33

(5)

9,0

(1,4)

76

(7)

20,7

(1,9)

141

(26)

38,4

(7,1)

73

(139)

19,9

(37,9)

44

(190)

12,0

(51,8)

19. prepares and directs the

discussions which will reinforce the teaching in the classroom.

25

(2)

6,8

(0,5)

80

(4)

21,8

(1,1)

127

(27)

34,6

(7,4)

91

(130)

24,8

(35,4)

44

(204)

12,0

(55,6)

20. makes use of the authentic materials in the class.

34

(2)

9,3

(0,5)

96

(6)

26,2

(1,6)

144

(35)

39,2

(9,5)

69

(151)

18,8

(41,1)

24

(173)

6,5

(47,1)

21. uses Turkish songs that will enhance the teaching

process .

35

(6)

9,5

(1,6)

101

(9)

27,5

(2,5)

105

(40)

28,6

(10,

9)

82

(136)

22,3

(37,1)

44

(176)

12,0

(48,0)

22. effectively uses question-answer technique.

15

(3)

4,1

(0,8)

62

(5)

16,9

(1,4)

122

(27)

33,2

(7,4)

108

(125)

29,4

(34,1)

60

(207)

16,3

(56,4)

23. gives feedback often enough and sufficiently.

20

(1)

5,4

(0,3)

76

(6)

20,7

(1,6)

130

(28)

35,4

(7,6)

99

(112)

27

(30,5)

42

(220)

11,4

(59,9)

24. assigns homework and gives feedback for it.

16

(4)

4,4

(1,1)

70

(9)

19,1

(2,5)

126

(34)

34,3

(9,5)

112

(125)

30,5

(34,1)

43

(195)

11,7

(53,1)

25. allocates enough time during the classes for the improvement of the writing skills in the class and uses essential methods and techniques.

23

(2)

6,3

(0,5)

81

(6)

22,1

(1,6)

138

(31)

37,6

(8,4)

90

(136)

24,5

(37,1)

35

(192)

9,5

(52,3)

26. allocates enough time during the classes for the improvement of the speaking skills and uses essential methods and techniques.

25

(3)

6,8

(0,8)

93

(5)

25,3

(1,4)

113

(19)

30,8

(5,2)

100

(127)

27,2

(34,6)

36

(213)

9,8

(58,0)

27. allocates enough time 22 6,0 72 19,6 127 34,6 110 30,0 36 9,8

Ümit Yıldız

[516]

during the classes for the

improvement of the listening skills and uses essential methods and techniques.

(2) (0,5) (6) (1,6) (25) (6,8) (116) (31,6) (218) (59,4)

28. allocates enough time during the classes for the improvement of the

reading skills and uses essential methods and techniques.

27

(1)

7,4

(0,3)

80

(7)

21,8

(1,9)

117

(27)

31,9

(7,4)

106

(119)

28,9

(32,4)

37

(213)

10,1

(58,0)

29. allocates enough time during the classes for the improvement of grammar use and uses essential methods and techniques

31

(4)

8,4

(1,1)

81

(9)

22,1

(2,5)

137

(36)

37,3

(9,8)

81

(180)

22,1

(32,2)

37

(200)

10,1

(54,5)

30. allocates enough time during the classes for the improvement of vocabulary and uses essential methods and techniques.

26

(3)

7,1

(0,8)

89

(4)

24,3

(1,1)

128

(27)

34,9

(7,4)

79

(121)

21,5

(33,0)

45

(212)

12,3

(57,8)

31. uses the native language

of the students in the classroom.

82

(13)

22,3

(3,5)

113

(13)

30,8

(3,5)

81

(25)

22,1

(6,8)

56

(107)

15,3

(29,2)

35

(209)

9,5

(56,9)

32. uses at least one foreign language in the classroom as a tool to communicate.

97

(9)

26,4

(2,5)

123

(13)

33,5

(3,5)

89

(38)

24,3

(10,

4)

32

(120)

8,7

(32,7)

26

(187)

7,1

(51,0)

33. should have a less speaking time than the

students during the class.

34 (7)

9,3

(1,9)

89

(17)

24,3

(4,6)

142

(40)

38,7

(10,

9)

78

(133)

21,3

(36,2)

24

(170)

6,5

(46,3)

34. corrects student mistakes. 22

(2)

6,0

(0,5)

61

(7)

16,6

(1,9)

116

(28)

31,6

(7,6)

114

(102)

31,1

(27,8)

54

(228)

14,7

(62,1)

35. enjoys a variety of competencies for motivating the students.

20

(4)

5,4

(1,1)

49

(5)

13,4

(1,4)

112

(13)

30,5

(3,5)

126

(101)

34,3

(27,5)

60

(244)

16,3

(66,5)

36. understands the needs of the students and leads the teaching process accordingly.

30

(1)

8,2

(0,3)

64

(3)

17,4

(0,8)

114

(22)

31,1

(6,0)

103

(109)

28,1

(29,7)

56

(232)

15,3

(63,2)

37. has the competency to teach the basics/concepts of Turkish culture,

traditions-customs and lifestyle during teaching Turkish as a foreing language.

33

(6)

9,0

(1,6)

56

(8)

15,3

(2,2)

122

(27)

33,2

(7,4)

91

(96)

24,8

(26,2)

65

(230)

17,7

(62,7)

38. should have the 31 8,4 60 16,3 125 34,1 89 24,3 62 16,9



[517]

competency to teach the

basics/concepts of the administrative structure of the Republic of Turkey and the geography of Turkey during teaching Turkish language to the foreigners.

(9) (2,5) (11) (3,0) (32) (8,7) (103) (28,1) (212) (57,8)

(NCA: Not Competent at all; NC: Not Competent; PC: Partially Competent; C: Competent; VC: Very Competent)

The data related to the Current Competency Level are presented without parenthesis The data related to the Needed/Desired Competency Level are presented in parenthesis

Participants’ perceptions on the needed/desired competencies, in terms

of total percentages of ‘competent’ and ‘very comptent’ dimensions, in

learning-teaching process/teaching profession and competencies in knowledge

and practice in teaching TFL can be briefly summarized as follows:

A Summary of the Participants’ Perceptions

Positive perceptions


enjoys a variety of competencies for motivating the students (%

94).

understands the needs of the students and leads the teaching

process

accordingly (% 92.9).

provides all the necessary opportunities to enable the students

speak and participate in learning process (% 92.9).

uses technology effectively (% 92.1).

effectively uses the visual materials (% 92.1).

effectively uses question-answer technique (% 90.5).

corrects student mistakes (% 89.9).

Less positive perceptions


speaks at least one foreign language (% 88.8).

knows and applies the methods of teaching Turkish as a

foreign language (% 87.2).

uses the native language of the students in the classroom (%

86.1).

Ümit Yıldız

[518]

is competent in the field of teaching grammar to foreigners (%

85).

is competent in comprehension-instruction language skills in

the field of teaching Turkish as a foreign language (% 83.9).

uses at least one foreign language in the classroom as a tool to

communicate (% 83.7).

As can be seen the perceptions of the student teachers mentioned above,

regarding the needed/desired level of the dimensions, it was observed that they

were highly desirous to become competent in the given fields.

Results Regarding the Interdisciplinary/Complementary

Competencies

As it can be observed in Table 4, about item 1, majority of the

participants [(C; %:37,3),(VC; %:50,1] agree that teachers of TTFL should have

good knowledge of program knowledge in teaching Turkish as a foreign

language. Regarding the item 2, majority of the participants [(C; %:33,5),(VC;

%:55,3] stated that teachers of TFL should know the general goals of teaching

Turkish as a foreign language. Similarly, for item 3 and 4, more than 87 % of

the participants think that teachers of TFL should be highly competent in the

fields of ‘(knowledge of) the specific goals of teaching Turkish as a foreign

language’ and ‘application and interpretation of the programs of Turkish

language teaching as a foreign language’. Regarding item 5, more than 89 % of

the participants agreed with the statement ‘notices and interprets the weak and

strong sides of the present programs in the field of teaching Turkish for

foreigners’ most of the participants’ for teachers of TFL. Similarly, most of the

participants [(C; %:36,8),(VC; %:47,1] had a consensus on the idea that the

teachers of TFL should be professionally competent enough in designing TFL

programs. Observation of the Table 4 revealed that more than 87 % of the

participants agreed with the statements in the items 7, 8,9,10. For the item 11,

regarding a TFL teacher, 83.4 % of the participants agreed with the statement

‘knows basic things about the geographies, histories and lifestyles of the

countries’.

In general, the analysis of Table 4 revealed that the lowest expected

level regarding the fields mentioned in the table were for items 11 and 6 with a

score of 83,4 %; 83,9, and the highest one was for item 9 with a score of 90,2

%. The participants’ high expected competency level from the TFL teachers can



[519]

be interpreted as the desire of the participants being trained in the mentioned

fields professionally as TFL teachers.

Table 4: Student teachers’ perceived views on interdisciplinary/complementary competencies

Level of needed competencies


NCA NC PC C VC


1. has the program knowledge in teaching Turkish as a

foreign language.

3 0,8 12 3,3 31 8,4 137 37,3 184 50,1

2. knows the general goals of teaching Turkish as a foreign language.

3 0,8 7 1,9 31 8,4 123 33,5 203 55,3

3. knows the specific goals of teaching Turkish as a foreign language.

2 0,5 12 3,3 31 8,4 128 34,9 194 52,9

4. excels in application and interpretation of the programs of Turkish language teaching as a foreign language.

3 0,8 11 3,0 30 8,2 122 33,2 201 54,8

5. notices and interprets the weak and strong sides of the

present programs in the field of teaching Turkish for foreigners.

3 0,8 8 2,2 28 7,6 134 36,5 194 52,9

6. is competent enough to design a program for Turkish as a foreign language.

5 1,4 13 3,5 41 11,2 135 36,8 173 47,1

7. is competent in the field of linguistics.

5 1,4 13 3,5 30 8,2 125 34,1 194 52,9

8. is competent at language acquisition.

5 1,4 11 3,0 27 7,4 117 31,9 207 56,4

9. notices the similarities and differences of the process of

teaching a native and a foreign language.

3 0,8 7 1,9 26 7,1 125 34,1 206 56,1

10. speaks at least one foreign language.

6 1,6 7 1,9 33 9,0 102 27,8 219 59,7

11. knows basic things about the geographies, histories and lifestyles of the

countries.

5 1,4 13 3,5 43 11,7 116 31,6 190 51,8

(NCA: Not Competent at all; NC: Not Competent; PC: Partially Competent; C: Competent; VC: Very Competent

Ümit Yıldız

[520]

Findings and comments regarding the student teachers’ views on the

subject matter/field knowledge majority of the student teachers (above 80 %)

stated that teachers of TFL should have good professional knowledge of foreign

language teaching methods. Besides, they perceived that TFL teachers should

be either compentent or very comptent in methods of teaching TFL. Regarding

the subject matter/field knowledge student teachers think that TFL teachers

should be especially competent in: knowledge of foreign language teaching

methods, methods of teaching TFL, grammar subject area, communicative skills

such as writing, reading, speaking and listening. Similarly, by the student

teachers, basic knowledge about the Turkish culture, traditions-customs and

lifestyle were founded highly needed professional knowledge for TFL teachers.

On the other hand, competence in the fields of literary terms and theories, in

child literature, world literature and folk literature to make use of while teaching

Turkish to the foreigners and the basic knowledge on the administrative

structure of the Republic of Turkey and the geography of Turkey were not

perceived as highly needed as the above mentioned areas by the student

teachers. It can be said that the student teachers perceived almost all of the

competencies mentioned regarding the subject matter/field knowledge in this

particular study found highly needed and important. Mete and Gursoy (2013)

conducted a study collecting data under the topics of A: Professional knowledge

B: Professional skills and C: Professional attitudes and values by the references

of Turkish National Education Ministry teacher competencies. The survey was

applied to those who teach TFL or has worked on the subject. According to the

findings, % 65,3 of them find TFL teachers’ competencies are very important,

% 32 of them important and % 2,7 of them moderately important. Mete and

Gursoy (2013) state that the field knowledge of TFL should be framed and the

content topics should be determined by opening the teacher traning BA

programs in universities. It can be assumed that being competent in field

knowledge may increase the self-confidence in teachers.

Related to student teachers’ perceived needed (desired)/current views

on competencies in learning-teaching process/teaching profession in TFL,

generally, student teachers were in favor of being competent in the aspects of

classroom management, use of technology effectively, giving clear, straight and

understandable instructions, using course book and teaching materials

effectively, preparing supportive teaching materials, using the visual materials

effectively, using essential methods in improving students’ speaking and



[521]

understanding the needs of the students and leading the teaching process

accordingly. The results of the study also revealed that the student teachers were

in need of professional development in many areas of teaching TFL. The

findings have similarities with the study conducted by Şahin et al. (2013). In

his study, student teachers also perceived themselves not competent enough in

the field of methods and techniques in TFL. According to the findings, related

to the teaching skills dimension, almost all of the items related to desired level

dimension of the questionnaire scored above/and 79.6 %, which demonstrates

that the participants are highly desirous in having high quality teaching skills.

On the other hand, related to current level, it was observed that they feel

themselves not competent enough in various teaching skills of TFL as much as

they expect to be. The research study conducted by Mete and Gürsoy (2013)

revealed that most of the teachers who were teaching TFL stated that

competency in teaching skills was not less important than the field knowledge.

Regarding the interdisciplinary/complementary competencies, program

knowledge, competency in linguistics and foreign language dimensions were

perceived also highly needed (desired) with a score of above/and 87 %

regarding the ‘competent’ and ‘very competent’ dimensions.

CONCLUSION

As far as the students’ views on the content/field knowledge is

concerned, dimensions such as content knowledge of foreign language and TFL

teaching methods, grammar and language skills were perceived by student

teachers highly needed. Similarly, related to interdisciplinary/complementary

competencies, all of the items given in the questionnaire such as program

knowledge, competency in linguistics and foreign language were perceived by

student teachers highly demanded. As far as the dimension competencies in

learning-teaching process is concerned, it was observed that generally

participants would like to be ‘competent’ and ‘very competent’ in the

professional knowledge and application of the methods of teaching TFL. On the

other hand, currently, they perceived themselves only partially competent in

these dimensions. ‘A certain level of unsatisfied demand might be expected; it

is natural that a certain proportion of teachers will at some time not feel fully

equipped to carry out their work effectively. Nonetheless, the extent of

unsatisfied demand appears large, and in some countries the great majority of

teachers state that they need more professional development than they receive’

Ümit Yıldız

[522]

(OECD, 2009). In this regard, student teachers should be provided the necessary

environment and opportunities in order to develop their professional

competency and proficiency as they should be considered the future teachers of

TFL.

Before concluding some suggestions may be for the program

improvement at the Turkish language teacher training departments can be done;

1. The content and content topics of the Turkish language teacher

training programs should be reconstructed so that it help future TFL teachers in

terms of needed proficiency in field knowledge. Especially, the

content/dimensions related to foreign language teaching methods, methods of

TFL, and skills teaching should be added and/or enriched,

2. More training in language teaching methodologies in order to

provide student teachers with necessary professional skills needed in TFL

environments,

3. The dimensions of interdisciplinary/complementary

competencies such as curriculum, curriculum design, linguistics, language

acquisition, culture and history should be added to the content of the Turkish

language teacher training programs. The training in TFL methodologies should

be included in the curriculum in order to educate student teachers how to teach

these dimensions in various TFL contexts.

4.

LIMITATIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

The result of the study limited to only 367 participants at three state

universities in Turkey. it may not be generalized to other contexts of similar

studies. Results may not be fully generalized to other TFL contexts. For further

studies, implementation of this study with different measurement tools can be

suggested with the student teachers at different universities in Turkey, and in

other countries where similar programs are carried out. In addition, besides the

quantitative data gathered, qualitative data can be also collected through

interviews, observation and document analysis in similar/further studies.

Besides, more in-depth data can be collected by including the other shareholders

of the TFL process such as administrators, graudates and teachers.



[523]

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