Investigating the prediction levels of school alenation of the classroom teaching students' achievement orientation, self handicapping behaviours and demographic features

The aim of this study was to reveal whether the success orientation, self-handicapping behaviours and demographic features of the classroom teachers predict their school alienation in a meaningful way of or not. This research is a descriptive study that has the relational screening model which aims at determining the success orientation, self-handicapping behaviours and demographic features of the classroom teachers, which affect their school alienation levels, and identifying their mutual interaction. The population of the study consisted of 370 students of Çukurova University Faculty of Education, Department of Primary School Teaching, in the educational year 2014-2015. The data were collected by means of Students Alienation Scale developed by Çağlar (2012), 2X2 Success Orientation Scale of which validity and reliability tests were performed by Akın (2006a), Translation into Turkish by Özgüngör (2008), Preemptive Behavior scale of which validity and reliability tests were performed and Personal Information Form prepared by the researcher. The data obtained were analysed using the SPSS 21.0 programme. Correlation analysis was made in order to reveal relations among the variables. Independent groups t-test was used in order to identify whether the primary school teaching students' success orientation, self-handicapping and school alienation levels change depending on the variables of gender and decision making on choosing a department; and multiple regression analysis was used in order to identify the variables that predict the school alienation levels of the students of primary school teaching. According to the findings out of the research a meaningful difference in school alienation levels of the students of primary school teaching was found, with regard to gender and deciding upon choosing a department. While a meaningful difference according to gender was found in sub-dimensions of success orientation which are learning-approaching and learning-avoiding; a meaningful difference according to the decision on choosing a department have not been found in sub-dimesions of success orientation. Furthermore, a meaningful difference in self-handicapping behaviours have not been found, regarding gender and decision making on choosing a department. As a result of the multiple regression analysis that were made, it has been understood that weakness sub-dimension of school alienation by students of primary school teaching predicts respectively learning-approaching, poor relations with the teaching stuff, learning-avoiding, self-handicapping and very low academic success level; the normlesness sub-dimension predicts learning-approaching, academic success grade, performance-approaching, learning-avoiding, poor relations with the teaching stuff; the isolation sub-dimension predicts very good relations with classmates, performance-approaching, learning-avoiding, medium level relations with classmates and choosing department; the meaninglessness sub-dimension predicts performance-avoiding, learning-avoiding, self-handicapping, choosing department, poor relations with the teaching stuff and the gender; total point of school alienation learning- approaching, self-handicapping, choosing department, poor relations with the teaching stuff, acedemic success grade, performance-avoiding, learning- avoiding, variables. Keywords : Studentsof primary school teaching, school alienation, success orientation, self-handicapping.