Development of social studies teacher candidates' conceptual understanding of environmental education with the literature circle method

This research was conducted in the Faculty of Education at a university during the spring semester of the 2023-2024 academic year. The study group consists of 13 teacher candidates who voluntarily participated in the research from the third and fourth-year students enrolled in the social studies education department of this university. The study aims to examine the effect of books read through the literature circle method on the conceptual understanding and environmental literacy of social studies teacher candidates regarding environmental education. A single-group pretest-posttest design without a control group, categorized as a weak experimental design, was used for the purpose. It was also supported by qualitative data. Studies conducted within the scope of eco-criticism were examined; a book list related to the environment was created based on the recommendations of the immediate environment and experts. Considering many factors such as the number of pages, content, adequacy in terms of words and concepts, and suitability for the student, the decision was made to read the books "White Ship," "Pomegranate Tree on the Hill," "The World is Called Forest," "Drift," "Empedocles' Friends," "Night of the Dogs," and "Overcoming Ecophobia." As data collection tools in the research; to measure the environmental literacy skills of teacher candidates, the "Environmental Literacy Scale," prepared by Kaplowitz and Levine (2005) and adapted to Turkish by Teksöz et al. (2010), was used. Reflective diaries to observe the reflections of the books read through the literature circle method on social studies teacher candidates in their individual reading and role preparation processes, vocabulary screening tests prepared for each book to examine the effect of the literature circle method on the conceptual understanding of the candidates, and an interview form to reveal the candidates' opinions regarding the literature circle method were used. The pre-test and post-test data obtained from the environmental literacy scale were analyzed with the Wilcoxon signed-rank test in the SPSS package program, the pre-test and post-test data obtained from the vocabulary screening tests prepared for each book were analyzed with descriptive analysis; the data obtained from reflective diaries and interview forms were subjected to content analysis. As a result of the research, it is seen that there is no statistically significant difference between the scores of the teacher candidates from the Environmental Literacy Scale before and after the literature circle application, but their conceptual understanding of environmental education has increased from a low level to a medium level. It can also be said that students have gained sensitivity and awareness about environmental consciousness. Additionally, it is observed that they questioned themselves regarding environmental consciousness and made positive behavioral changes. The results also indicate that the teacher candidates liked the literature circle method, wanted to apply it to their future students based on their own experiences, and were quite satisfied with the process.