Lecturers' opinions on the scientific research methods course in fine arts education

The Scientific Research Methods course is very important for raising awareness of the relationship between art and science among teacher candidates studying art education. The aim of this study is to reveal how the course subjects are associated with art education based on the views of the lecturers who teach the course in institutions that train visual arts educators. Qualitative research approaches were used in the study. The first step of the application was carried out using survey model, and an open-ended questionnaire was given to the lecturers. In the second step of the application, which is the main data source, the phenomenology design, one of the qualitative research designs, was applied. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with the lecturers. The lecturers were selected using maximum variation sampling among the participants that were in the first stage, and data type triangulation was achieved with document review and researcher diaries. The entire data set was analyzed using the thematic analysis method. In the findings obtained as a result of the analysis, the themes of Structural analysis, Interaction situations, Paradigmatic view and Integration of art education with scientific research methods were reached. According to the results, the importance of the interaction between art and science for this course, and the necessity to include examples from the field of art and visual-based approaches within the course has emerged. With this research, suggestions were developed for lecturers who want to improve the content of the Scientific Research Methods course in art education and assist researchers working in this field. Keywords: Art education, Research in art education, Research methods in education, Art-based approaches