Elementary teachers' and students' perceptions of global citizenship in the social studies course

The aim of this study was to reveal elementary fourth graders'perceptions of global citizenship, and the practices conducted in the social studies course. In the study, which was designed in mixed model, sequential explanatory design was employed. The data were gathered through the Global Citizenship Perception Scale developed by the researcher and administered to elementary fourth graders, and the interviews conducted with the teachers, in the fall and spring semesters of the 2014-2015 school year. The results of the study showed that the students had a high level of global citizenship perception and their levels of perception did not show a significant difference based on gender, parents'educational status, and access to the Internet while there was a significant difference in terms of the socio-economic status of the area in which their schools are located, and their status of having been abroad. With regard to the students'perceptions of world citizenship, the themes revealed included the definitions they provided for world citizenship, the characteristics that world citizens should have, and awareness on the world and world citizenship. The teachers'perceptions of global citizenship were revealed as the definitions they provided for global citizenship, and the characteristics that global citizens should have. In addition, based on the results, the problems that the teachers experienced in global citizenship education were demonstrated, and solutions were offered. Key Words: Elementary education, Social studies, Global citizenship, Global citizenship education