The role of spoken language in teaching Turkish as a second language: An analysis of student opinions and textbook activities

The aim of the study is to analyze the student views on the role and importance of spoken language in oral communication skills in teaching Turkish as a second language and the activities in the course books used in terms of spoken language. The study was conducted with a case study design, which is one of the qualitative research methods. In collecting the data, learner views and document analysis were used. The participants consist of C1 level students studying at TÖMER in different provinces of Turkey. The data were collected using a semi-structured interview form. The text and activities in the Yedi İklim Turkish Teaching Set C1-C2 Level Course Book were examined as documents. The analysis of the data was carried out with content analysis. The codes that emerged as a result of the analysis were combined under themes and presented to the reader. While the majority of the participants stated that individuals learning the target language should also have command of spoken language in order to communicate healthily in daily life, some participants did not feel the need for this language teaching. It was determined that the activities in the course book examined did not include enough elements of spoken language. Based on the findings, it was concluded that it is necessary to focus on spoken language as well as standard language in teaching Turkish as a second language, that while doing this, learners should be informed about the basic differences between standard language and spoken language, and that it is important to include spoken language elements in the activities in the textbooks.