An Assesment of Social Studies Competency of Turkish Classroom Teachers

Abstract

The aim of this study is to determine the importance of the competence and competence acquiring levels in the subject matter and subject teaching of the teachers who are graduated from the primary school teaching programmes of the educational faculties, towards the social studies. The universe population of the research are the teachers who were graduated from the Education Faculties, Department of Elementary Education the primary school teaching programmes and whose assignments were made by the Ministry of National Education (MEB), 270 teachers in total have been taken into the sampling group. The subject matter and subject teaching competencies of the classroom teachers for the social studies are determined with the analyze method. The questionnaire forms are prepared upon the determined competencies. From the teachers included in the scope of the research, it was asked to declare their opinions on the importance of the social studies competency in the proceeding of the education-training activities and their acquisition levels for these competencies during their university studies. The ratio of the questionnaire forms which were filled out by the classroom teachers and sent via mail and whose validity is acknowledged is 51, 48%. It has been understood that, the determined competencies on the social studies have been found as important by the teachers. The average of their acquiring levels for the determined competencies is lower than their importance level average. In other words, some meaningful differences between the averages of the social studies importance and acquiring levels were found. The teachers could not have the competency on the social studies in a manner compatible with its importance..