Theses supervised by Yrd. Doç. Dr. İlker Kalender
14 theses · İhsan Doğramacı Bilkent University
Uluslararası Bakalorya Diploma Programı İngilizce puanları İngilizce yeterlilik sınavı puanları ve ÖSS puanları arasındaki ilişki: Bir korelasyon çalışması
English language teaching has become one of the most inseparable parts of Turkish National Education Curriculum. With the emergence of international programs such as International Baccalaureate, International General Certificate of Secondary Education and Advanced Placement English language teaching and language proficiency gained new perspectives in Turkey and around the world. While the English curriculum in Turkish national system focuses on receptive and productive skills; reading, listening, writing and speaking, the curriculum of international programs focus more on critical thinking skills in the target language. The question of how well a student who received IB Diploma Programme English education can perform in a standardized English proficiency test which focuses on critical thinking skills rather than four skills remains unanswered in Turkish context. This study aimed to explore the relationship between IB DP English scores, a standardized English test scores (COPE) and student Selection Examination (OSS) scores of Bilkent Erzurum Laboratory School graduates. This study was completed by using the IB DP English, COPE and SSE scores of 119 students as instruments. The data were analysed with correlational analysis approach. Statistically significant relationships were discovered between COPE exam scores and IB predicted grades. Keywords: International Baccalaureate, Diploma Program, Language Proficiency, English education, COPE exam, Student Selection Examination.
Bir kümeleme yöntemi ile öğrencilerin İngilizce dil yeterliliklerine ilişkin faktörlerin belirlenmesi
English is regarded as the common language all over the world. It is used as the language to communicate in politics, economy, tourism, and education in addition to many other fields. As the need to communicate in English increases, teaching English as a foreign language and testing of English become more significant in Turkey as well as worldwide, and methodologies for the development of proficiency in English has already become a predominant research area. This study aimed to explore via a segmentation method the relationship between reading and listening sub-dimensions of English language proficiency and selected background factors related to high school and university placement examination. The research was conducted at a foundation university, in Ankara, Turkey. The sample consisted of 645 students. The data were provided by university database. The results revealed different predictor variables for reading and listening proficiency. Key words: Proficiency in English, high school type, academic achievement
Türkiye'deki öğrencilerin matematik, fen bilimleri okuryazarlığı ve okuma becerilerindeki performanslarının PISA 2012 verisine göre incelenmesi
Every student needs to be provided a certain minimum level of acquisition in the education system. Hence, this study investigated differences in students' performance in mathematics, reading and science literacy among the school types and geographical regions in Turkey by using PISA 2012 data. In this research, MANOVA was employed using Multivariate Linear Model procedure of SPSS. The aims of the research were to examine if there are any differences among Turkish students' performance that live in different geographical regions in Turkey in terms of mathematics, reading and science literacy and also to examine whether there are any differences among Turkish students' performance in mathematics, reading and science with respect to the school types or not. Analyses of the current study based on PISA 2012 data showed that Turkish students' performance in mathematics, reading and science differed significantly across the geographical regions and school types. The major difference was observed among school types. Key Words: PISA 2012, mathematics literacy, science literacy, reading literacy, geographical regions in Turkey, school types in Turkey
Yüksek öğrenime giriş sınavının bilgisayar ortamında bireyselleştirilmiş test ve kağıt kalem testi formatlarından elde edilen puanlarının karşılaştırılması
The purpose of this study was to investigate the possibility of computerized adaptive testing (CAT) format as an alternative to the paper and pencil (P&P) test of thestudent selection examination (SSE) in Turkey. The scores obtained from both P&P format of the SSE and CAT through post-hoc simulations were compared using science subtest items. Different test termination rules (fixed length and fixed standard error) and ability estimation methods (EAP and MLE) were used to operate the CAT version of the SSE P&P test. 10, 15 and 25 items were used as fixed length test and standard errors of 0.30, 0.20 and 0.10 were used as fixed standard error thresholds in terms of test termination rules. Results indicated significant correlations between scores from SSE and CAT. The comparisons between results obtained from CAT and P&P tests also revealed that there exists similar ability distributions and significant reduction in the number of items used through CAT. The findings from the research showed that CAT could calculate reliability using fewer items than P&P test. This study suggests that CAT can be an alternative to SSE with comparable scores to P&P format. Key words: CAT, computerized adaptive testing, science achievement, student selection
Uluslararası Bakalorya Programı ve Milli Eğitim Bakanlığı ilköğretim programlarının ilköğretim 4.sınıf öğrencilerinin kesirler konusundaki kavram yanılgılarına dayanarak karşılaştırılması
The purpose of this study was to compare the misconceptions of fractions in IB Primary Years Program (IBPYP) to the misconceptions of fractions of Ministry of National Education (MoNE) 4th grade students. To measure this, the three most popular subtopics of fractions covered in 4th grade mathematics curriculum were selected. These subtopics were (1) partitioning, (2) ordering and (3) addition. Then, nine questions for each subtopics were developed. Accordingly, a fractions test that included 27 items total was developed and used in this research. Analyses were conducted to determine if different curricula cause any response patterns. Analysis showed that only 7 out of 27 items were answered statistically differently by the IBPYP and MoNE students. PYP students had higher correct answer and lower misconception rates in 6 out of these 7 items. However, in general, the correct answer and wrong answer patterns seemed to have no substantial difference across the two curricula. Also, the results proved that some fractions subtopics were more challenging for students than others. Some suggestions about how to address misconceptions were made in the present study. Key words: Mathematics education, misconceptions, fractions, IBPYP, MoNE primary mathematics education.
PISA 2012 sonuçlarına göre eğitim ortamı kalitesinin okuma becerisi üzerindeki etkisi
This study aims to explore the effect of school environments on student literacy achievement levels in reading among 15-year-old students participating in PISA 2012. The purpose of this study is to determine the variables that significantly affect the quality of education using school principals' evaluations given in the PISA 2012 questionnaires. The target population of this study consists of 15-year-old students at the time of the assessment from various categories of Turkish schools. The sample of PISA 2012 for Turkey consists of 4,848 students who were randomly chosen from 170 schools across all regions in the country. The results of this study shed light on the effect of: shortages in a schools' capacity to provide instruction; factors which hinder learning; the extent of parental involvement; teacher morale; and school management. The findings suggest that a number of constituents of these factors have a significant relationship with student literacy achievement of 15 year olds in Turkey. Key Words: educational environment, reading literacy, PISA 2012
Türkiye genelinde ve okul türleri bazında öğretmen ve öğrenci ile ilgili faktörlerin öğrencilerin problem çözme becerisi ile ilişkisi: PISA 2012 analizi
Problem solving, which is one of the 21st century skills, is a targeted skill to gain by students in schools. However, problem solving is not taught as a separate lesson. Teachers should integrate this skill into their lessons and encourage their students to improve this skill. Therefore, teachers and students themselves have a major role in developing students' problem solving competency. In this study, the relationship between teacher and student related factors and students' problem solving skill as perceived by students were analysed both throughout Turkey and across school types. While conducting the study, PISA 2012 data was used and the analysis was done with the multiple linear regression method. According to the results of the study, there are statistically significant relationships between student and teacher related factors and problem solving skill. It was observed that the related factors are differed across the school types.
Üniversite yerleştirme sınavına giren öğrencilerin, fen alanındaki bilişsel seviyeleri
The Undergraduate Placement Examination (UPE) determines students' future careers in three hours. The content of the UPE, its quality, and the cognitive level of the items, must have high selectivity features in terms of getting students into higher education programs. The aim of this study is: to classify UPE science items in accordance with Bloom's Taxonomy, to determine the difficulty parameters of those items, and the cognitive levels of the students who take the UPE according to science subtests. Four science pre-service teachers classified 30 science items in regards to Bloom's Taxonomy. Quantitative exploratory research was employed as a research design. Quantitative analyses were carried out by using SPSS. Sample science responses of 3382 randomly selected students were analysed. It was found that there were 4 knowledge level items, 10 comprehension level items, 11 application level items, and 5 analysis level items as defined by Bloom's Taxonomy. Moreover, it was observed that students generally encountered difficulty when responding to science items. The results show that students were more likely to answer knowledge and comprehension level items.
PISA 2009 uygulaması kapsamında okuma ile ilişkili faktörlerin okul türlerine göre farklılıkları
This study aims to find out whether there is any difference between school types in terms of reading enjoyment time, reading attitude and learning strategies based on Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2009 cycle. The target population of this study consists of 15 years old students at the time of the assessment from different groups of school in Turkey. Four thousand nine hundred ninety-six randomly chosen students from 170 schools participated in PISA from Turkey. The reading-related data collected through a student questionnaire. The results of this study reveals that reading enjoyment time differs between vocational high school and Anatolian, general high schools. Also, reading attitude differs between school types; while Anatolian high school students got higher mean scores, vocational high school students got lower mean scores in terms of reading attitude. Additonally, learning strategies differs across all school types to some extent and while maximum difference was found between Anatolian high school and vocational high school, minimum difference was found between Anatolian high school and science high school.
Öğrencilerin matematik okuryazarlığını etkileyen faktörlerin PISA 2012 verilerine göre kültürler arası incelenmesi
The main purpose of this study is to determine factors affecting mathematics literacy level of participating countries based on the framework of Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2012. In this study, the dependent variable was the mathematics literacy scores whereas the independent variables were index scores of factors i.e. mathematics self-efficacy, mathematics self-concept, teacher-student relations, index of economic, social and cultural status, mathematics teacher's classroom management, mathematics anxiety, attitude towards school: learning outcomes, attitude towards school: learning activities, sense of belonging to school, and mathematics interest. The data were first analysed using multiple linear regression for three different achievement strata of countries (high-, normal- and low-achieving). Then using the standardized regression coefficients, three separate cluster analyses were conducted to group the countries within each group. At the end of the study, a general framework of the relationship between factors of index scores and mathematics literacy scores were obtained. The results of this framework showed that mathematics self-efficacy, index of economic, social and cultural status, mathematics interest and mathematics anxiety did not indicate distinguishing properties among countries' groups. In general, variable of sense of belonging to school had negative relationship with mathematic achievement in high-achieving countries as teacher-students relations indicate negative relationship with mathematics achievement in low-achieving countries' groups.
Türkiye'de cinsiyet ve öğrenci başarısı: PISA 2012 verisine göre okul türleri ve bölgeler arası farklılıklar
Gender inequality has always been a major global issue in all fields. Unfortunately, we are living in a world that is still dealing with this persistent problem, the core of which is primarily education. According to global indexes and surveys, Turkey is almost always well below the world average in ensuring gender equality. In this sense, this study uses PISA 2012 data to explore whether the student achievement differs in Turkey between female and male students. The relationship between student achievement and several variables i.e. Teacher Student Relations, Attitude Towards School: Learning Outcomes, Attitude Towards School: Learning Activities, and Sense of Belonging to School was also examined. Two control variables were included in the analyses conducted: geographical regions and school types, in addition to the above-mentioned school related variables. The results indicate that there are no major gaps between genders; yet, school types equally affect both genders dramatically. Geographical regions only contribute to the between-schools differences; while school related variables, make no difference in Turkish students' achievement levels. The results also show that higher level of variables should be considered as evidenced by the variation between school types before focusing on teaching-level variables. In this context, Turkish educational system should shift its focus from gender as the primary issue to the immense variances between schools in order to ensure a better education that will result in higher averages.
Yılmazlık gösteren öğrencilerin PISA 2012'deki fen ve matematik okuryazarlık başarı farklarına neden olabilecek faktörlerin açıklanması
This study investigated teacher- and school-related factors which affect science and mathematics achievement of the students who have a socio-economically disadvantaged background in Turkey. A segmentation method was used to find the relationship between teacher-and school-related factors and academic achievement in science and mathematics literacies. The sample consisted of 1200 low-SES students. Seven dimensions of PISA 2012 student questionnaire including 38 items were used to determine the students' attitudes towards learning activities and their outcomes in school, perceptions of the students for the student-teacher relationship, sense of belonging to school. The analysis showed that being a resilient student or a low-achiever could be explained with investigating some of these items. The study results provide an insight into designing educational policies to enhance resilience of socio-economically disadvantaged students.
Mühendislik eğitimi için gerekli olan lise matematik bilgisi ve becerileri üzerine bir anket çalışması
The focus of the study is to explore if there is a difference among the engineering departments based on the topics and skills that students are expected to gain in high school, by investigating importance levels of the topics and skills. For the purpose of identifying importance levels mathematical topics and skills, university staffs with different academic ranks from different universities were asked with a questionnaire including Likert scale items to express their opinions about topics and skills in high school mathematics curricula of both National Curriculum and International Baccalaureate Diploma Program (IBDP). The main conclusion drawn from present study were that packaged curricula for specific engineering departments in university can be designed for high schools and the core topics required for engineering departments should be included in earlier grade levels. Besides, some topics from IBDP should be considered to be added to Ministry of National Education (MoNE) curriculum. Key words: Mathematics curriculum, mathematics topics, engineering education, mathematical skills, differentiated curriculum
Sosyal bilimlerdeki bölümlerde gerekli olan lise matematik bilgi ve becerilerini belirleme anketi
The purpose of this study is to identify the mathematics topics and skills that are important in high school mathematics curriculum for higher education in social science departments such as law, psychology and history, based on scores assigned by staff from university and industry. A survey including five-point Likert type items was used in the present study. Analyses were conducted with respect to departments and institutions. There was a convergence of the perceived importance selected mathematical knowledge and skills for preparation of social science education at university. However, 9th grade mathematics topics are enough to teach all students who prefer to study in a social science in this regard. Also there was no difference among institutions. Some suggestions about high school mathematics curriculum are made in the present study. Key words: Differentiated curriculum, social sciences, mathematics high school curriculum, and university education.