Instructors' views on teaching approaches of the Arabic alphabet in preschool period

Since the first revelation, Muslims paid importance on learning and teaching the Quran and accepted these as responsibility. Up until a certain date, this responsibility had been practiced verbally; however, the practice was changed to using the Arabic alphabet afterwards. The Arabic alphabet teaching has evolved considering the method, technique, and content that are used. Moreover, the requirements, necessities, and target audience have also impacted the way the Arabic alphabet books have evolved. The main purpose of each of these alterations is to teach the Arabic alphabet in an easier, more effective, and more stable way. In today's world, this alteration still occurs. This thesis research has been made to determine which of these various approaches is the best when teaching the Arabic alphabet to preschool students. In the first chapter of this research, it is aimed to reveal the evolution of the Arabic alphabet teaching in the history of Quran lectures. In the second chapter, the applied approaches of teaching the Arabic alphabet in this era's preschool term are determined and evaluated. In the final chapter, to achieve the goal of this research, there were semi-structured interviews made with 5 Quran teachers from public schools and 6 Quran teachers from private schools, and the findings from these interviews were documented. As a result of the interviews and literature reviews, teaching the Arabic alphabet within preschool institutions using classical approach, Sawte (vocal) style, spelling technique, and verbal based approach were found. Just like each of these approaches have their benefits, they have their disadvantages as well. However, when these approaches are compared based on their duration of teaching, sorting and grouping types, correct pronunciation, and pedagogical relevance, it is concluded that vocal based approach works the best for preschool students.