A Study on Teaching Competencies of
Teacher Candidates
Assist. Prof. Dr. Süleyman Sadi SEFEROGLU Hacettepe University Faculty of Education
Department of Computer Education and Instructional TechnologyAnkara, 06800, TURKEY
e-Mail: sadi_at_hacettepe.edu.trWeb: http://yunus.hacettepe.edu.tr/~sadi/
International Conference on Education (ICE05) 6-9 December 2005, National University of Singapore
Dr. S. S. SEFEROGLU / International Conference on Education, 6-9 December 2005, NUS-Singapore -2-
Content
Introduction Purpose of the study Method
– Study group– Data collection instrument– Data analysis
Findings Conclusion
Dr. S. S. SEFEROGLU / International Conference on Education, 6-9 December 2005, NUS-Singapore -3-
Introduction
Relationships between progress and schools/education
The quality of the instruction The qualified teachers The role of teacher training institutions The quality and standards
Dr. S. S. SEFEROGLU / International Conference on Education, 6-9 December 2005, NUS-Singapore -4-
Introduction: Situation in Turkey
Restructuring teaching profession Beginning of the Turkish Republic (Early 1920s) Normal schools Village Institutes movement (1940s) 2 Year Colleges (1970s) 4 Year Colleges (1980s) Restructuring by Higher Education Council
Dr. S. S. SEFEROGLU / International Conference on Education, 6-9 December 2005, NUS-Singapore -5-
Introduction: The Role of MONE
Teaching Competencies Commission Content of Teaching Competencies
– Instructional competencies, – General social knowledge and skills competencies,
and– Field-specific knowledge and skills competencies.
Dr. S. S. SEFEROGLU / International Conference on Education, 6-9 December 2005, NUS-Singapore -6-
Introduction: The Role of MONE
The purpose of teaching competencies: Determining teacher training policies Pre-service training of teachers Selecting and appointing teachers Supervising and evaluating teachers In-service training Professional development of teachers
Dr. S. S. SEFEROGLU / International Conference on Education, 6-9 December 2005, NUS-Singapore -7-
Teaching Competencies: Instructional competencies
1. Knowing the Students2. Planning Instruction3. Material Development4. Instruction5. Managing the Instruction6. Measurement and Evaluation7. Guidance8. Developing Basic Skills9. Helping Students with Special Needs10.Teaching Adults11.After School Activities12.Personal Development13.School Improvement14.Developing School-Environment Relations
Dr. S. S. SEFEROGLU / International Conference on Education, 6-9 December 2005, NUS-Singapore -8-
Purpose of the study
Investigating the extent to which teacher candidates believe they possess the teacher competencies specified by the Ministry of Education.
Method
Dr. S. S. SEFEROGLU / International Conference on Education, 6-9 December 2005, NUS-Singapore -10-
Method
This study, which investigates opinions of senior year students at Faculty of Education of Hacettepe University, in Ankara, Turkey, is a descriptive study.
It aimed to examine candidates’ opinion on the extent to which they believe they possess the teacher competencies.
Dr. S. S. SEFEROGLU / International Conference on Education, 6-9 December 2005, NUS-Singapore -11-
Study Group
Departments f % Computer Education and Instructional Technology
45 27,6
Early Childhood Education 35 21,5 Elementary Education 33 20,2 Mathematics Education 30 18,4 Science Education 20 12,3Total 163 100,0
The study group consists of students from 4 departments at Faculty of Education of Hacettepe University.
Dr. S. S. SEFEROGLU / International Conference on Education, 6-9 December 2005, NUS-Singapore -12-
Study Group
The distribution of the participants in terms of gender shows that 65% of them are female, and 35% are male.
Department of Computer Education and Instructional Technology (27,6%) has the highest and Science Education (12,3%) has the lowest number of participants.
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
ComputerEducation and
Inst. Tech.
Early ChildhoodEducation
ElementaryEducation
MathematicsEducation
ScienceEducation
Departments
Perc
enta
ge
Dr. S. S. SEFEROGLU / International Conference on Education, 6-9 December 2005, NUS-Singapore -13-
Data Collection Instrument
The teaching competencies developed by MONE – “instructional competencies”, – “general social-cultural knowledge and skills”, and – “field-specific knowledge and skills”.
Instructional competencies category has 14 sub-categories with 206 competency items. Those competency items were turned into an instrument.
This instrument was a 4 point Likert type scale with a 0.98 reliability coefficient.
Dr. S. S. SEFEROGLU / International Conference on Education, 6-9 December 2005, NUS-Singapore -14-
Data Collection Instrument
The participants in this study were asked to evaluate their own competencies with reference
to the given items in the instrument using a scale ranging from “poor” to “excellent”. – Poor– Average– Good– Excellent
Dr. S. S. SEFEROGLU / International Conference on Education, 6-9 December 2005, NUS-Singapore -15-
Data Analysis
For every teaching competency, in 14 competency categories, percentages and means were calculated.
t-Test and one way Anova tests were conducted to look for significant relationships between – competency scores and – different variables such as
• candidates’ gender and • the department.
Among the 14 categories, only significant points are mentioned in each category.
Findings
Distribution of Mean Values of Competency Categories
Competency Categories1 Knowing the Students 3,092 Planning Instruction 3,053 Material Development 2,964. Instruction 3,155. Managing the Instruction 3,146. Measurement and Evaluation 3,037. Guidance 3,108. Developing Basic Skills 3,099. 9. Helping Students with Special Needs 2,7610. Teaching Adults 2,9111. After School Activities 3,0212. Personal Development 3,2013. School Improvement 2,9714. Developing School-Environment Relations 3,19
x
Dr. S. S. SEFEROGLU / International Conference on Education, 6-9 December 2005, NUS-Singapore -18-
2,5 2,6 2,7 2,8 2,9 3 3,1 3,2 3,3
1. Knowing the Students
2. Planning Instruction
3. Material Development
4. Instruction
5. Managing the Instruction
6. Measurement and Evaluation
7. Guidance
8. Developing Basic Skills
9. Helping Students with Special Needs
10. Teaching Adults
11. After School Activities
12. Personal Development
13. School Improvement
14. Developing School-Environment Relations
Com
pete
ncy
Cat
egor
ies
Mean
Dr. S. S. SEFEROGLU / International Conference on Education, 6-9 December 2005, NUS-Singapore -19-
1. Knowing the Students
Competency Category Mean
Knowing the students (10 items) Good +
Observing students’ interests and skills 3,26
Recognizing students’ learning style 2,97
Dr. S. S. SEFEROGLU / International Conference on Education, 6-9 December 2005, NUS-Singapore -20-
2. Planning Instruction
Competency Category Mean
Planning instruction (11 items) Good +
Determining the material of the instruction 3,52
Determining the content of the instruction 3,44
Preparing annual plans 2,75Preparing monthly plans 2,88
Dr. S. S. SEFEROGLU / International Conference on Education, 6-9 December 2005, NUS-Singapore -21-
3. Material Development
Competency Category Mean
Material development (20 items) Good
Preparing homework 3,59Preparing worksheets 3,39Preparing video cassettes 2,48
Dr. S. S. SEFEROGLU / International Conference on Education, 6-9 December 2005, NUS-Singapore -22-
4. Instruction
Competency Category Mean
Instruction (35 items) Good +
Teaching with video 2,64Teaching through lecturing 2,81
Dr. S. S. SEFEROGLU / International Conference on Education, 6-9 December 2005, NUS-Singapore -23-
5. Managing the Instruction
Competency Category Mean
Managing the instruction (21 items) Good +
Motivating students 3,40Reinforcing positive behaviors 3,36First-aid to students 2,80
Dr. S. S. SEFEROGLU / International Conference on Education, 6-9 December 2005, NUS-Singapore -24-
6. Measurement and Evaluation
Competency Category Mean
Measurement and evaluation (21 items) Good +
Evaluating his/her own teaching 3,21Preparing matching type tests 3,17Giving feedback to students 3,14Determining the reliability and validity of the tests prepared 2,60
Dr. S. S. SEFEROGLU / International Conference on Education, 6-9 December 2005, NUS-Singapore -25-
7. Guidance
Competency Category Mean
Guidance (20 items) Good +
Guiding parents about their children 3,36Listening to students, and helping them to express themselves 3,31
Guiding students with drug addiction problems 2,82
Dr. S. S. SEFEROGLU / International Conference on Education, 6-9 December 2005, NUS-Singapore -26-
8. Developing Basic Skills
Competency Category Mean
Developing basic skills (13 items) Good +
Helping students to develop Mathematics skills 3,25
Helping students to develop skills which needed to be a successful member of the society
3,20
Helping students to develop esthetic skills 2,93
Dr. S. S. SEFEROGLU / International Conference on Education, 6-9 December 2005, NUS-Singapore -27-
9. Helping Students With Special Needs
Competency Category Mean
Helping students with special needs (11 items) Good
Helping students with special needs to develop planning their professional life skills
2,99
Using appropriate teaching techniques for students with special needs 2,55
Dr. S. S. SEFEROGLU / International Conference on Education, 6-9 December 2005, NUS-Singapore -28-
10. Teaching Adults
Competency Category Mean
Teaching adults (8 items) Good
Determining personal educational needs 3,00
Being ready to work with adults 2,99
Dr. S. S. SEFEROGLU / International Conference on Education, 6-9 December 2005, NUS-Singapore -29-
11. After School Activities
Competency Category Mean
After school activities (10 items) Good +
Participating PTA meetings 3,37Cooperation with colleagues about students 3,22
Getting responsibilities in official commissions (such as purchasing) 2,74
Dr. S. S. SEFEROGLU / International Conference on Education, 6-9 December 2005, NUS-Singapore -30-
12. Personal Development
Competency Category Mean
Personal development (9 items) Good ++
Attending activities such as seminars, symposiums, conferences, etc. are very important
3,37
Sharing experiences with others is very important 3,33
Dr. S. S. SEFEROGLU / International Conference on Education, 6-9 December 2005, NUS-Singapore -31-
13. School Improvement
Competency Category Mean
School improvement (12 items) Good
Effective use of school properties 3,27Helping administration on school-environment interaction 3,20
Creating financial resources 2,66
Dr. S. S. SEFEROGLU / International Conference on Education, 6-9 December 2005, NUS-Singapore -32-
14. Developing School-Environment Relations
Competency Category Mean
Developing school-environment relations (5 items) Good ++
Introducing school to its environment 3,41
Cooperation with professional associations 3,01
Dr. S. S. SEFEROGLU / International Conference on Education, 6-9 December 2005, NUS-Singapore -33-
Participants Evaluation of Themselves in Terms of Different
Variables t-Test and One Way Anova Tests to look for
significant relationships Significant differences based on gender and the
department Females outscored males in the
– “managing the instruction” and – “personal development” categories.
Dr. S. S. SEFEROGLU / International Conference on Education, 6-9 December 2005, NUS-Singapore -34-
Participants Evaluation of Themselves in Terms of Different
Variables With regard to departmental differences,
participants from the Early Childhood Education department seem to outscore participants from the Computer Education and Instructional Technology department in the categories of – “knowing the students” and – “planning instruction.”
Dr. S. S. SEFEROGLU / International Conference on Education, 6-9 December 2005, NUS-Singapore -35-
Conclusion
Although there is some variations, in general participants evaluated themselves as “good” or “excellent” for most of the competency items.
It was a positive finding that in at least half of the items, “poor” was not selected by any of the participants.
The participants’ evaluation of their competencies show significant differences based on gender and the department.
Dr. S. S. SEFEROGLU / International Conference on Education, 6-9 December 2005, NUS-Singapore -36-
Conclusion
The participants see themselves unqualified in some competency items such as “helping students with special needs”, and “teaching adults”.
The reason why they found themselves unqualified is probably that their departments’ academic program simply does not include courses about those competencies.
Therefore, either MONE needs to revise those competency items, or academic programs of teacher education programs need to be revised.
Dr. S. S. SEFEROGLU / International Conference on Education, 6-9 December 2005, NUS-Singapore -37-
Last Word
It is hoped that the findings of this study will guide various institutions, (which mainly are Faculties of Education, the Higher Education Council, and Ministry of National Education) in terms of current situation in teaching competencies of teacher candidates.
The findings of this study can be a guide for the designers of the in-service training activities in terms of the type of personal and professional improvement programs they can offer.
Dr. S. S. SEFEROGLU / International Conference on Education, 6-9 December 2005, NUS-Singapore -38-
Thank You!!!
Assist. Prof. Dr. Süleyman Sadi SEFEROĞLU
• e-Mail: sadi_at_hacettepe.edu.tr• Web: http://yunus.hacettepe.edu.tr/~sadi/