Examination of gifted students' opinions on coronavirus and pandemic: Alanya BİLSEM example

The COVID-19 virus emerged in the city of Wuhan, China in December 2019, has affected the entire world in a short time, and was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization in March 2020 (WHO, 2020c). This large-scale outbreak has been on the agenda of Turkey. The main purpose of this research is to examine the opinions of gifted students about the coronavirus and the pandemic. The study was carried out with 70 gifted students studying in the 3rd and 4th grades of the Alanya Science and Art Center which is affiliated with the Alanya District National Education Directorate in Antalya, in the spring term of the 2021-2022 academic year, over a 2-week period. The phenomenological method was used for the study since the study aims to reveal the opinions of the students about the coronavirus and the pandemic documented in writing along with student pictures. Some parts of the book named "Benim Pandemi Hikayem (My Pandemic Story)" were used to obtain the study data. The children were asked to answer the questions in order to understand their views on the coronavirus pandemic and the process it brought and draw about coronavirus. The data obtained from the study were analyzed with descriptive and content analysis. According to the frequency distribution of the categories and codes of the theme "Resources for learning about the pandemic", students learned about the pandemic most from the news (f=47). According to the frequency distributions of the categories and codes of the theme "What I learned about COVID-19", students expressed the following the most: mask, distance, and hygiene rules (f=51). When the frequency distributions of the categories and codes of the theme "When you first learned about the pandemic" were examined, most of the students stated that they were with their families (f=48). When the frequency distributions of the categories and codes of the theme "After learning about the pandemic" were examined, the students stated that they felt afraid the most (f=21). When the frequency distributions of the categories and codes of the theme "Pandemic drawings" were examined, it was seen that the students mostly drew pictures including a mask (f=29). In conclusion, knowing how children perceive the process experienced is important for educators in terms of providing individual, social, and emotional support and taking necessary measures. During the COVID-19 pandemic, teachers, students, and parents have experienced fears and concerns. For this reason, psychological support programs can be prepared for children, teachers, and parents. Keywords: Pandemic, coronavirus, perception, special talent.