The Perception of Pedagogical Formation Students have towards Educational Concepts: Metaphoric Study

Authors : Ahmet Şahin, Ali Sabanci

Pages : 179-207

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Publication Date : 2018-01-25

Article Type : Research

Abstract :         The aim of this study was to evaluate the perceptions pedagogical formation students have about basic educational concepts, such as education, school and class. The research was designed as a phenomenological study, a qualitative research method. The use of metaphors was used as the method of data collection. With this in mind, a structured question form was used to determine the metaphors the research group had developed with regards to certain concepts. The first part of the question form asked participants demographical information. The second part of the question form asked pedagogical formation course trainees what they would liken research concepts to and why. The data was then subjected to content and descriptive analyses through the use of metaphorical analysis. The study group was determined by the convenience sampling among the trainees who attended the pedagogical formation program given by the Faculty of Education at Akdeniz University during the fall and spring semesters of 2015-2016/2016-2017. 500 question forms gathered from pedagogical formation trainees were evaluated. Overall, the results revealed a holistic open system definition with an eclectic point of view, although the thoughts about the concepts of education, school and class were diversified in the study. Besides, pedagogical formation trainees seem to have a positive perception of the concepts of education, school and class. However, the results offer two different possible interpretations of the concepts. The first of these interpretations is that the participants interpreted the concepts of education in an ideal world. Accordingly, opinions about the concepts of education, school and the classroom are positive. The second interpretation reflects the actual practice. Accordingly, this points to the existence of an education and training environment far from fulfilling the expectations of these concepts. 
Keywords : education, school, class, pedagogical formation, prospective teacher