The problem of binary voice in Turkish, its reflections on Turkish teaching and suggestions for solutions

The aim of this research is to examine the commonality of the suffixes "-(I)l-/-(U)l-" and "-(I)n-/-(U)n-" in passive and reflexive verb categories, which is called the "dual voice problem", the reflection of this commonality on Turkish language teaching, and to offer a solution proposal for this. In this context, the study falls into the "phenomenology" category within qualitative research designs in terms of defining a problem and offering a solution proposal. In this direction, the subjects of "verb", "voice as a grammatical category", "voice category in Turkish in Turkey" and "dual voice", which have a close connection with the voice category, are presented in a wide range in the study. Passivity and reflexivity categories, which are the components of the dual voice, are comprehensively addressed with the "diachronic" and "synchronic" approaches. The study is limited to the 8th grade level due to the Turkish Dictionary (TDK, 2023) and the subject of voice being covered in the 8th grade. In this context, the study was structured around the Turkish Dictionary (TDK, 2023), "curriculum", "course/workbooks", "central exam questions" and "teacher opinions". A total of 1 Turkish Dictionary (TDK, 2023), 6 curriculums, 36 course/workbooks, 38 central exams and 2 teacher opinions were obtained. The "systematic sampling" method and the "standardized open-ended interview" form were used to obtain teacher opinions, and "content analysis" was used to examine all data. According to the findings from the Turkish Dictionary (TDK, 2023) in the study, it was concluded that when the suffixes are used in the second function, their meanings become largely metaphorical; passive and reflexive verbs are never given at the same level in the curriculum; and after 2006, reflexive verbs were removed from the curriculum and given under the title of "active verb". In the textbooks/workbooks, a discrepancy with the curriculum between 1981-2006 was observed, and it was observed that both passive and reflexive verbs were covered in the books in the 8th grade. In this context, it was observed that the subject of the dual voice was referred to "indirectly" in the books between 1981-2006, and that there were multiple choice questions containing activities and distractors related to the subject. In the books between 2006-2024, no direct/indirect explanations were found regarding the subject of the dual voice, and it was observed that the voice activities in the books were limited to active-passive verbs. Only 1 question regarding the subject of the dual voice was identified out of 38 central exams. Teachers' opinions were that "the common affix in passive and reflexive verbs creates confusion in students." Keywords: verb, voice, dual voice, passive verb, reflexive verb