Development of teacher resource materials for teaching ecology topics

The aim of the present study was to determine difficulties encountered by Biology teachers in high schools with ecology subjects and to provide teachers with a resource material to overcome these insufficiencies with 20 field trips and experiments. Four of these field trips and experiments were submitted to the evaluation of the participating 25 Biology teachers. After their evaluation of the materials, teachers? ideas and criticism/comments on the experiments were taken with respect to their applicability and availability to the relevent class levels and curriculum of high schools. The final material of the field trips/experiments were elaborated in accordance with the experts? ideas.According to the results of this study it is shown that teachers have had encountered significant difficulties while teaching ecological topics. Most common difficulties were summarized as the lack of materials, not knowing the basic concepts or misconceptions about them, limited number of activities such as experiments or field trips and lack of conceiving relationships between daily life and/or real events.Results of the study reveal that the field trips and experiments textbooks are inadequate. Field trips and experiments developed in the present study can be modified for application to different class levels. So, by developing experiments on ecology more permanent and effective teaching can be attained.