Survey of the problems encountered by clasroom teacher in the teaching of social studies courses: The case of Kastamonu

Classroom teachers are the teachers who form the solid foundations of the education process in our schools, which are the first step of education. For this reason, classroom teachers, at the first stage of education, have an active role in helping children become useful and beneficial in their future. Social studies course is also a field of study for us to raise our students as responsible and useful individuals towards society. In this research, the problems encountered by our classroom teachers while teaching social studies course were examined. With our research, we tried to help our classroom teachers, even if only in a small way. To conduct this analysis, the opinions of 28 classroom teachers in 6 schools in the 2023 – 2024 academic year in Kastamonu city center were consulted. Since this research was examined based on teacher opinions, a qualitative research model was chosen. In our research, a semi-structured interview form was used as a data collection tool. This form was prepared by the researcher under the supervision and contributions of the consultant. Our classroom teachers were asked a single question by the researcher during the interviews. The results obtained as a result of the research were analyzed by content analysis and interpreted according to general trends and similarities. In this research, the problems encountered by classroom teachers in teaching social studies course were examined in five sub-steps. The main problems encountered were the personal attitude of the school administration, differences of teachers, student level, parent approaches and the learning environment. Economy seems to be a problem they encounter when it comes to obtaining materials and when traveling and observing. It was concluded that the excess of abstract concepts in the social studies course, its duration of 3 hours a week, and the inadequacy of textbooks were insufficient in keeping up with the curriculum and caused students to fail the courses.