İngilizce öğretmenlerinin sınıflarında beceri odaklı materyal kullanımı üzerine algıları

The aim of this study is to investigate the perceptions of in-service EFL teachers on the use of skills-focused materials in their classes. There are some studies in Turkey (Çelik, 2015, Ötüken, 2016) on the materials preferences of teachers and their evaluation process. This comprehensive research tries to reveal and gather the views of teachers on various topics related to skills-focused materials: the kinds of materials they use, language components they facilitate, the frequency of their materials use, the reasons to use materials, the evaluation and adaptation processes and their perception of themselves as materials designers. To that end, a qualitative research design has been followed to fully gather the insights of teachers. The case study includes the in-service EFL teachers in Bolu, Turkey. The participants are chosen according to convenience sampling method with the aim of including voluntary and available participants. 25 participants working at the state primary, middle, and high schools are interviewed using a semi-structured interview model. The gathered data are transcribed and analyzed by two raters to ensure reliability. The un-weighted Kappa co-efficiency is .78. The findings suggest that participants frequently use materials in their classes. They mostly rely on paper based materials such as worksheets and pictures. However, with the installation of computers and smart boards in the classrooms, they use PowerPoint presentations, cartoons, song videos, and digital materials, as well. Teachers mostly focus on vocabulary teaching and they try to teach for the exams rather than concentrating on developing four skills. Especially teaching of writing skills seems to be neglected the most. Teachers make use of different materials to focus on different skills; moreover, materials are especially utilized in the practice and production parts of the lesson to motivate students, boost the class atmosphere, address student needs and support the course books. Teachers spend considerable amount of time on materials, evaluating them based on their own experience, materials' usability in the curriculum, practicality in their classes and the standards of the Ministry of the National Education in addition to adapting them by adding, omitting, replacing, and simplifying. Finally, teachers perceive that working on materials improve their teaching skills, as well as English proficiency, help them understand students more, and make them feel good about themselves and their work.