The determination of high school students' views on their schools (Düzce case)

The aim of this study is to determine the views of high school students about the schools they are studying. In this context, in the research; student's perceptions about school concept and their emotions towards schools were determined. Also, students' opinions about the content of the courses, learning-teaching and evaluation processes, communication skills of teachers, school management and practices, friendship relations, physical environments of schools and social-sports activities carried out in schools were taken. The model of the research is a scanning model and it is a qualitative research. The study group of the study consists of 70, 11th grade students studying in eight high schools in Düzce Merkez in 2015-2016 academic year. In the selection of high schools, maximum diversity sampling method was used. At the stage of collecting the research data, first of all, field literature was searched for the purpose of the study. Then a semi-structured interview form was prepared by the researcher. In order to finalize the semi-structured interview form, expert opinion was consulted. The interview form is consisted of 29 questions. Content analysis method was used in the analysis of the data, obtained in the study. According to the findings of the study; within the scope of the first sub-purpose, the majority of the students expressed their opinions about school concept with positive metaphors as follows: School, second home, friend, family, course, place to learn, success, ladder / road that achieve the person to their aim, bridge, the treasure that promises future, life, absolute must, fun. Some students expressed school negatively by using such metaphors: waste of time, getting up early, doing homework, necessity, exam, time filling, prison, discipline, boring. Within the scope of the second sub-goal of the study, students' feelings about their schools were investigated. In this context, it was found out that the students went to school willingly and had more positive feelings towards the school. In the third sub-objective of the research, students think that the subjects are difficult and much more in number and some subjects are unnecessary. Students stated that their teachers used more narrative method as a method of teaching in their courses, and the practices in the courses were mostly multiple-choice test dissolution. Regarding the evaluation process, the students stated that the success should be evaluated and their own teachers haven't done a fair evaluation. Within the scope of the fourth sub-goal of the study, according to the opinions of the students, the effectiveness of the communication skills of their teachers makes sense according to their value. However, some students stated that their teachers discriminated among the students. The result of the fifth sub-objective of the study is that the majority of the students communicate with the school administration comfortably. They also stated that this situation has a more positive attitude towards school. Within the scope of the sixth sub-goal of the study, it was concluded that the friendship relations of the students had an important effect on the formation of their opinions towards the school. If the students have a positive friendship relationship, they are more willing to attend the school and if they have a negative relationship, their school perception can change completely. In the seventh sub-objective of the study, the majority of the students stated that the physical structure of the school was positive. In the context of the eighth sub-objective, regarding the social activities implemented in the schools of students; they stated that these activities were beneficial for them and that they contributed to their development in many ways. It is also concluded that these activities positively affect their attitudes towards school. In addition to all these results, for some students, it was concluded that there is no positive or negative effect of friendship relations, physical structure of school and social and sporting activities at school on their views and attitudes towards their schools. These students stated that it was important to realize their goals and to get the necessary training in their schools in line with this purpose. Key Words: School Engagement, School Attitude, School Climate, School Quality of Life, Metaphor