Teaching idioms with artificial intelligence supported animations in teaching Turkish as a foreign language

Our language is a part of our culture and one of its best reflectors. Idioms, which are among the richness of our language and transmitters of culture, are conventionality expressions, and knowing a language fully requires knowing the idioms of that language. Idioms that are metaphorical and generally abstract are among the elements that are difficult to learn and remember. In teaching Turkish as a mother tongue and a foreign language, when idioms are taught only by giving their meanings when they appear in textbooks, this learning may not be permanent and effective. For this reason, using various materials in teaching idioms and paying due attention to idiom teaching will provide effective, entertaining and permanent learning. With this study, idioms that reflect Turkish culture and contribute to intercultural interaction were taught at B2 level, and animation films, which are original course materials, were created with the support of artificial intelligence. The mixed method explanatory design was used in the research. After collecting the quantitative data, qualitative data was collected. 11 students studying at Bartın University TÖMER constitute the control group and 11 students constitute the experimental group. Idiom Achievement Test as a data collection tool. It was prepared and applied to the students as pre-test and post-test. The application lasted 5 weeks. At the same time, a semi-structured interview form was prepared to be applied to the experimental group students at the end of the application. While the SPSS27 package program was used to analyze the quantitative data, the qualitative data were analyzed through content analysis. At the end of the research, it was seen that there was no significant difference between the experimental and control groups in terms of idiom knowledge. It was observed that there was a significant difference in terms of idiom success between the experimental group, which learned the idioms through animations, and the control group, which learned the idioms from the textbook. It was concluded that age, gender and country factors did not make a significant difference in the success of learning idioms. According to the results of the qualitative interviews with the students, the students found this application entertaining, liked the animations that appeal to both eyes and ears, and then wanted to use animations in teaching idioms. This study shows that teaching idioms with artificial intelligence-supported animations is effective in helping students learn more effectively and fun. The study can be applied in larger groups with student groups at different levels, thus providing effective and permanent learning.