An examination of the opinions of prospective teachers on outside-school learning environments in science teaching

The main purpose of this research is to examine the opinions of preservice teachers regarding out-of-school learning environments in science education. The research was conducted with both quantitative and qualitative methods. In the quantitative dimension of the research, a single-group pretest-posttest design was applied within the scope of the weak experimental design, while the case study design was used in the qualitative dimension. The research group consisted of a total of 33 preservice teachers studying in the Science Education program at Kırşehir Ahi Evran University in the 2023-2024 academic year. Quantitative data in the study were collected using the Out-of-School Learning Activities Development Scale. Qualitative data were collected using a semi-structured interview form developed by the researcher to gain an in-depth understanding of the pre-service teachers' out-of-school learning experiences, opinions, and suggestions. Descriptive statistics and the SPSS package program were used to analyze the quantitative data, while content analysis was used to analyze the qualitative data. The research results revealed a significant difference between the pre-test scores of the out-of-school activity development scale, the overall scale, and the sub-factor scores, in favor of the post-test. Pre-service teachers stated that out-of-school learning environments increased students' motivation and enriched the learning process, and they noted difficulties encountered in practice, such as logistical and time constraints.