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Procedia Social and Behavioral Sciences 1 (2009) 1302-1306
World Conference on Educational Sciences 2009
Investigation of the attitudes of the students of vocational education faculty towards profession of teaching
Sabahattin Qftgi*, Ali Meydan, Serdarhan M. Ta§kaya
aAhmet Kele§oglu Education Faculty, Selguk University, Konya 42090, Turkey Received October 23, 2008; revised December 10, 2008; accepted January 2, 2009
Abstract
Teaching is a profession requiring cognitive abilities such as knowledge and skill as well as emotional abilities such as attitude and behavior. During the training of the teachers before service, their gaining value and attitudes about their profession is also as necessary as knowledge. From this point of view, it is important to investigate the attitudes of teacher applicants about the teaching profession. In this study, it was investigated how the attitudes of teacher applicants is about the profession in terms of some variables. This study in sort of combing was carried out by the students of vocational Education Faculty of Seljuk University in the province Konya. 494 students, in the first and third grade, who have been educated in 4 departments taking places in this faculty, were included in the study. Data were collected via Attitude Index Toward Teaching Profession. Analysis of the data was carried out by SPSS program. During the study, these conclusions were obtained: The attitudes of the teacher applicants in Professional Education Faculty about teaching do not differentiate according to the department variable. As a result of the analyses carried in order to determine whether or not the attitudes of teacher applicants of Vocational Education Faculty about the teaching profession differentiate according to the grades, department of Bringing Up and Educating Children was found significant in favor of those studying in first grade of main scientific branch (MSB). However, in the other main scientific branches, any significant difference was not found according to the grade variable. © 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved
Keywords: Teaching is a profession; teacher applicants; attitude; attitudes of teacher applicants; students of vocational education faculty .
1. Introduction
To catch the desired success in education is possible in case that all elements of the education are a full cooperation as purpose- oriented, and these elements have the expected requirements from them. One of the most important elements of the education is teacher.
Teaching is a profession requiring cognitive abilities such as knowledge and skill as well as emotional abilities such as attitude and behavior. During the training of the teachers before service, their gaining value and attitudes about their profession is also as necessary as knowledge (Vari§, 1988; Qelikoz & Qetin, 2004).
*Sabahattin Qiftgi.
E-mail address: sciftci@selcuk.edu.tr.
1877-0428/$-see front matter © 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.sbspro.2009.01.230
"Attitude is an intellectual, emotional, and behavioral reaction tendency organized by the individual against himself/herself or any object, social matter, or event in his/her surrounding, based on his on his/her experience, knowledge, and emotion, and motivation" (ínceoglu, 2004: 19). "Attitude is described as the words such as emotional contented ideas, important beliefs, prejudges, tendencies, evaluations, and state of being ready." (Kadhiravan & Balasubramanian, 1999: 1).
"Attitudes have some degrees in respect of depth and intensity. Attitudes may either be well or badly according to the matter being interested in them, and the degrees of their being close to the mind and sense." (Ersin, 1982). If the attitude is positive, positive feelings, evaluations, and tendencies towards the object, case, and person is under consideration; otherwise, negative feelings, evaluations, and tendencies. "When the direction of the attitude is positive, individual approaches the subject of attitude, otherwise, goes away from the subject of attitude" (ínceoglu, 2004: 48). "Attitude developed as toward a profession is the most important determinant of the individuals' achievement in that profession" (Qakir, 2005). When evaluating from this point of view, the attitude of teacher toward teaching profession will reflect one of the strongest determinants of his/her behaviors in the profession i.e perception of teaching profession. Gokge (1995) and Jeans (1995) emphasize that the attitudes and behaviors of teachers have a very important effect on the students. Particularly the attitudes of teachers toward the students and employees in the school influence largely the students' learning and their personalities. Mostly, the students pay attention the approach of the teacher to the subject rather than the subject itself and are influenced his/her interpreting the cases. Interest and attitude are important factors for achievement and the attitudes and behaviors of the teacher play a clear role in his/her relationship with the student and in realizing of learning. In this context, in a surrounding where the attitude factor is not considered, with forming learning lives, it is necessary not to forget that there is likely to face very important difficulties in realizing activities for teaching (Sozer, 1996: 8-91).
If teacher applicants are raised as owners of the positive attitudes toward their professions, when they become teacher, they execute fully their task. They exhibit more positive behaviors toward the students and become searching. They think of creatively and transfer the innovations easily into the learning media. Their positive attitudes reflect to their acts and they motivate the students more easily. Thus, the teachers behave sincerely to their students and not harden to them and are not rule-centered. They also use their times effectively. Shortly, they carry out their profession in affection. They are pleased from their professions and therefore, they can undertake the tasks, responsibilities, and roles of teacher in better way (Qelikoz & Qetin, 2004).
In this study, with introducing the attitudes of the teachers about teaching profession, it is aimed for them to gain an awareness related to their professional lives and to increase their awareness. According to these results:
• Is there any significant different between the teacher applicants attending school in the first grade of Professional Education Faculty about teaching profession and the attitudes of the students attending school in the 3rd grade of their departments?
• Are there any significant differences between the attitudes of the students of Professional Education Faculty attending school in the distinct departments about teaching profession?
2. Method
"The study was carried out in the general combing model. General combing models, in a universe forming of a number of elements, in order to reach a general judgment about the universe, are the combing arrangements carried out on all of universe or on the group to be taken from it" (Karasar, 2002). The sample of the study consists of the teaching applicants attending school in the 1st and 3rd grades of the departments of Education about Handcrafts, Education about Clothing Industry and Clothing Arts, and Education about Child Development, and House Management, Seljuk University, Konya, and wiling to attending in the study.
Table 1. The information about the teacher applicants taking place in the study group
Departments l.Grade (N) 3. Grade (N) N
Child Development Education 51 55 106
Embroidery Teaching 61 41 102
Flower knitting and weaving teaching 50 37 87
Clothing Teaching 55 40 95
House Economics and Nutrition Teaching 60 44 104
Total 277 217 494
2.1. Data collecting tool
During application, the attitudes of teacher applicants were identified by using "Attitude Index about Teaching Profession" developed by Yildirim (2002). In this index applied on the teachers, there are 19 items about the teaching profession. In this index developed by using 4 points, ratings are: 1 = never, 2 = sometimes, 3 = often, 4 = always. The Cronbach Alfa reliability coefficient of this index was identified as 0.79 by Yildirim (2002).
2.2. Analysis and interpretation of the data
In interpreting of the data, SPSS package program was used. During the interpretations made, mean values were employed. The significance level was accepted as p<0.05. The difference between mean values was tested via t -test and f-test.
3. Results and interpretations
3.1. Results and discussions about first sub-problem of the study
In the first sub-problem of the study, it was investigated whether or not there is any difference between the attitudes about the teaching professions of the applicants attending school in the 1st grades and 3rd grades of their departments. As a result of statically analysis carried out and the results obtained, the following results were reached.
Table 2. The Attitudes Of Teacher Applicants About Teaching Profession In Grade Levels
Grades N X SS
Child Development Education 1. Grade 51 63.59 6.007 .034
Child Development Education 3. Grade 55 60.95 6.654 P < 0.05
House Economics and Nutrition Teaching 1. Grade 60 60.73 6.689 .543
House Economics and Nutrition Teaching 3. Grade 44 59.91 6.877 P>0.05
Flower Knitting and weaving teaching 1. Grade 50 63.76 6.232 .053
Flower Knitting and weaving teaching 3. Grade 37 61.22 5.789 P> 0.05
Embroidery Teaching 1. Grade 61 62.57 6.825 .460
Embroidery Teaching 3. Grade 41 61.61 6.156 P> 0.05
Clothing Teaching 3.Grade 55 62.84 5.692 .321
Clothing Teaching 3.Grade 40 61.68 5.535 P> 0.05
When examining Table 2, for Bringing up and educating Children 1. Grade, while X =63,59, for 3.grades X = 60,95. It is seen that mean values for l.grades is higher than that of 3. grades. Whether or not the difference between mean scores is significant was checked via t-test. The value t = 2.149 obtained by comparing the tests was found significant in the level of 0.05. According to the result obtained, it can be said that the attitudes of those studying in the 1st grades of the department of Child Development Education about teaching profession are higher than those studying in the 3rd grades of the same department.
When considering the mean values between 1st and 3rd grades of the other main scientific branches and main art branches, the mean scores of those studying in the 1st grade is higher than the mean scores of those studying in the 3rd grade. Whether or not the difference between mean scores is significant was checked via t-test. t-values obtained by comparing the tests were found significant in the level of 0.05. This indicates that there is no significant relationship between the grade levels of the students and their attitude scores. In another word, As the grade levels of the students become higher, their attitudes toward teaching profession do not change positively and negatively.
3.2. Results and discussions about the second sub-problem of the study
In the second sub-problem of the study, it was tried to understand whether or not there is a significant difference between the attitudes of the students of Professional Education Faculty studying in distinct departments about the teaching profession.
Table 3. The Attitudes Of Teacher Applicants Toward The Teaching Profession According To Their Departments
Departments N X Ss F P
Child Development Education 106 62.22 6.459
Flower Knitting and weaving teaching 87 62.68 6.145
House Economics and nutrition teaching 104 60.38 6.48 2.057 .085
Embroidery Teaching 101 62.22 6.575 P>0.05
Clothing Teaching 95 62.35 5.626
When examining Table 3, the mean values are close to each other, regarding to the mean score of the attitudes toward the teaching profession, but the highest mean score belongs to the teaching applicants studying in the department of Flower Knitting and Weaving Teaching, the lowest mean score to those studying in the department of House Economics and Nutrition Teaching. According to the department variable, it was tested via variance whether or not there is any significant difference between departments. f = 2.057 obtained a s a result of the analysis carried out was found significant in the level of .05.
4. Conclusion and Discussion
When examining the results related to the sub-problems of the study, the following results turn out.
1. As a result of the analysis carried out toward determining whether the attitudes of the teaching applicants studying in Vocational Education Faculty differentiate according to the grades, a significant result was found in favor of those studying in the department of Child Development Education. The result of the study Qapa and Qil (2000) is in parallel with the result of this study. This may be resulted from the case faced by the teaching applicants during their studying life, the experiences in this period, and the professional education they took. Also, it can be said that having a higher motivation of the students in the first grade due to their being successful in university exam hold recently is effective on this result.
In the other science and art branches taking place in the study group, any significant difference was not found according to the grade variable. This result is similar to the obtained results from studies carried out by Tanriogen (1997), Erdem and Anilan (2000), Terzi and Tezci (2007). This contrasts to the expectation that the students develop more positive attitudes about the teaching profession as they go to the higher grades or approach to the graduation. For the reasons of that, two view may put forward: The first is that no important change to influence the attitudes of the teaching applicants was done In this context, in case that the support given by the society to the teaching profession, the status, and the conditions related to teacher salary become better, it may be expected that the positive changes will turn out in the attitudes of the teaching applicants about the profession. Secondly, it may be suggested that the institute, where the education is hold, is not effective on the students (Tanriogen 1997). Unlikely from these results, Ho§gorur and et all.(2002), as a result of the study they carried out, stated that teacher applicants developed the positive attitudes as they reach 4th grades.
2. As a result of analysis carried out toward determining whether the attitudes of teacher applicants about the teaching profession differentiate according to the department variable, it was found that there was no significant difference between the departments. This result shows parallelism with the results of the study carried out by Qapri and Qelikkaleli (2008), and Oral (2004). According to this result, it may be said that the programs where the teaching applicants study do not have any influence on their attitudes about the teaching profession. In the light of these data, we may suggest the following ones.
The attitude about the teaching profession, in the process of raising teacher, is an important feature requiring to be taken into consideration. Therefore, the study to be carried out should be in the direction of gaining the attitudes toward the teaching profession to teacher applicants. So, in order to enhance the interest toward the teaching profession and provide to develop the positive attitudes, the teaching profession should be improved from professional, social, cultural, and economic points of view. In addition, it is considered that carrying out the studies - looking at the matter from similar or different aspects- about this matter lights the way will provide important contribution for the literature.
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