Questions and problems of secondary school students regarding current belief problems: Aksaray example

The secondary education period, which corresponds to the age range of 14-18 in the shaping of faith, is a period in which young people undergo changes and transformations in many respects and reveal a life view of their own. The subject of this research is to investigate the questions and problems of secondary school students in Aksaray province, which exactly covers this period, about current belief problems. Society offers ready-made belief and behaviour patterns to the individual. The individual, in the process of development, especially during adolescence, adopts what he/she deems appropriate from these patterns and enters the process of change. This great change also affects students' belief development and change. In addition, this age range is a period of doubt and mental disintegration in terms of belief development. In every period, mankind is tested with certain problems. These problems are the "fire pits" of each period. Unfortunately, the fire pits of our period are the lack of Faith. In this period, which is also surrounded by Social Media and Peer imitation, our young people face many questions about faith. Unfortunately, many questions about faith remain unanswered in their minds due to the fact that they cannot find a satisfactory answer to these questions or do not sufficiently research the necessary answer. These questions lead our young people to denial about faith. These questions should not remain unanswered and satisfactory answers should be given. Our youth, who are threatened by the lack of faith in our age, share these questions with the teachers of Religious Culture and Moral Knowledge in high schools and Vocational courses in Imam Hatip High Schools. Based on this conclusion, in order to reach the belief problems of young people in our research, we conducted interviews with Religious Culture and Moral Knowledge Teachers working in high schools and Vocational Courses teachers working in Imam-Hatip High Schools in Aksaray province. We interviewed the teachers with predetermined interview questions. Thus, we analysed the answers given by the teachers and tried to determine in which subjects the students have questions and problems. The study is organized in the form of an introduction and two parts. In the Introduction Section, the subject and purpose of the research, the problem, the method followed in the research, the scope and limitations of the study, and the literature studies related to our research are included. In the first part, the development and changes of youth and youth period, which are discussed theoretically and conceptually, the concept of faith and the factors affecting the development of faith in young people are emphasized. Physical, cognitive, social, moral and identity, personality and self-dimensions of development are discussed. Under the heading of faith, the concept of faith is explained and the factors affecting the development of faith and religion in young people, their questioning and acceptance of religious issues, as well as the factors affecting the development of faith are examined. In the second part of the research, the problem areas of young people about faith were discussed. In this section, doubts about the existence of God, fate, the relationship between religion and science, the creation of the universe, eternity, atheism, deism and divine justice are included as subheadings. Again, in the second part, the findings and analyses, the data obtained in the interviews with the teachers were evaluated, and the questions were categorized and analysed. In the conclusion and recommendations section; some suggestions were made about the results obtained and the way to be followed in answering the questions and problems of secondary school students about faith.