Socioeconomic Profile of Early Childhood Education Preservice Teachers
Socioeconomic Profile of Early Childhood Education Preservice Teachers
Purpose: Teachers are key determiners of qualityeducation, and regarding young children inparticular, the quality of teachers can have a remarkable influence on the quality of education. However, research on the socioeconomic profile of preservice teachers at university remains rare in Turkey, especially eastern Turkey, where living conditions are below of the national average. In our study, the socioeconomic profile of 2,115 early childhood teacher candidates in faculties of education at state universities in the Eastern andSoutheastern Anatolian Regions of Turkey wasexamined. The study aimed to determine the rankorder of students’ preferred early childhoodeducation bachelor programs and the reasons fortheir preferences.Methods: The descriptive profile research sought to identify the socioeconomic profile ofpreservice early childhood teachers recruited from 11 state universities. Participating studentswere asked several questions concerning the socioeconomic aspects of their university life infour domains: demographic and economic characteristics, education budget, familysocioeconomic composition, and educational and sociocultural background. Descriptiveanalyses were performed to analyze the data. Results: The findings revealed that the studentswere mostly from low-income families. Most students ranked an early childhood educationbachelor program among their top five choices on university selection exams. The top threereasons for their choosing early childhood education as a profession were love for childrenand the profession, the convenience of teacher appointment and satisfactory wage levels atstate preschools, and the convenience and enjoyment of preschool teaching. Implications forResearch and Practice: Most students were members of low-income families, for whom social,cultural, and sportive activities need to be more accessible. Similar studies should be repeatedin other geographical regions of Turkey with students from other university departments andfaculties in order to clarify the socioeconomic composition of university students, developmore effective bachelor programs, and improve student life at Turkish universities.
___
- Akyeampong, K., & Stephens, D. (2002). Exploring the backgrounds and shaping of
beginning student teachers in Ghana: Toward greater contextualization of
teacher education. International Journal of Educational Development, 22(3), 261-
274. doi: 10.1016/S0738-0593(01)00064-5
- Alat, Z., & Alat, K. (2011). A qualitative study of parental resistance to girls’
schooling. Educational Sciences: Theory & Practice, 11(3), 1369-1373.
- Aldemir, J., & Kurt, G. (2014). A program review: The Turkish early childhood
education preservice teachers’ perceptions about teacher and teaching. Sage
Open, 4, 1-11. doi: 10.1177/2158244014548847
- Anliak, S., & Sahin Beyazkurk, D. (2008) Career perspectives of male students in
early childhood education. Educational Studies, 34(4), 309-317. doi:
10.1080/03055690802034518
- Astin, A. W. (1984). Student involvement: A developmental theory for higher
education. Journal of College Student Personnel, 25(4), 518-529.
- Bakken, L., Brown, N., & Downing, B. (2017). Early childhood education: The long
term benefits. Journal of Research in Childhood Education, 31(2), 255-269. doi:
10.1080/02568543.2016.1273285
- Brilli, Y., Kulic, N., & Triventi, M. (2017). Who cares for the children? Family social
position and childcare arrangements in Italy, 2002-12. In H. P. Blossfeld, N.
Kulic, J. Skopek, & M. Triventi (Eds.), Childcare, early education and social
inequality: An international perspective (pp.31-48). Cheltenham: Edward Elgar
Publishing.
- Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey (2015). Indicative Exchange Rates Announced at
15:30 on 05/04/2015 by the Central Bank of Turkey. On September 11th., 2017.
http://www.tcmb.gov.tr/kurlar/201505/04052015.xml
- Coultas, J. C., & Lewin, K. M. (2002). Who becomes a teacher? The characteristics of
student teachers in four countries. International Journal of Educational
Development, 22(3), 243-260. doi:10.1016/S0738-0593(01)00066-9
- Council of Higher Education (2014). Higher education system in Turkey.
On March 3rd., 2016 retrieved from
http://www.yok.gov.tr/documents/10348274/10733291/TR%27de+Yükse
köğretim+Sistemi2.pdf/9027552a-962f-4b03-8450-3d1ff8d56ccc
- Daglioglu, E. H. (2014). Okul öncesi öğretmenin özellikleri ve okul öncesi eğitime
öğretmen yetiştirme [Features of the preschool teacher and training
preschool teachers]. İçinde G. Haktanir, Okul öncesi eğitime giriş [Introduction
to preschool education] (pp. 41-78). Ankara: Anı Yayıncılık.
- Early, D. M., Maxwell, K. L., Burchinal, M., Alva, S., Bender, R. H., Bryant, D., ... &
Henry, G. T. (2007). Teachers' education, classroom quality, and young
children's academic skills: Results from seven studies of preschool
programs. Child Development, 78(2), 558-580. doi:10.1111/j.1467-
8624.2007.01014.x
- Egert, F., Fukkink, R. G., & Eckhardt, A. G. (2018). Impact of in-service professional
development programs for early childhood teachers on quality ratings and
child outcomes: A meta-analysis. Review of Educational Research 20(10), 1-
33. doi:10.3102/0034654317751918
- Erkan, S., Tugrul, B., Ustun, E., Akman, B., Sendogdu M., Kargi, E., Boz, M., & Guler,
T. (2002). Turkish profile research of preschool student teacher’s. Hacettepe
University Journal of Education, 23, 108-116.
- Ersay, E, & Yazcayir, N. (2014). Yeni geliştirilen problem tarama envanteri (Mesleki
eğitim fakültesi örneği) [New Developed Problem Screening Inventory].
İnönü University Journal of the Faculty of Education, 15(2), 65-88. doi:
10.17679/iuefd.10643
- Haktanir, G. (2014). Türkiye Cumhuriyeti’nin kuruluşunun 100’üncü yılına doğru
ülkemizde okul öncesi eğitim [The preschool education in the country
towards the 100th. year of the constitution of the Republic of Turkey]. İçinde
G. Haktanir, Okul öncesi eğitime giriş [Introduction to preschool education] (pp.
307-328). Ankara: Ani Yayincilik.
- Hunt, J., & Eisenberg, D. (2010). Mental health problems and help-seeking behavior
among college students. Journal of Adolescent Health, 46(1), 3-10.
doi:10.1016/j.jadohealth.2009.08.008
- Karadag, E. & Yucel, C. (2017). Türkiye üniversite memnuniyet araştırması. [Turkish
universities satisfaction survey] Eskişehir: Üniversite Araştırmaları
Laboratuvarı Yayınları. doi: 10.13140/RG.2.2.31233.76641
- Kilinc A., Watt, H. M. G. & Richardson, P. W. (2012) Factors influencing teaching
choice in Turkey, Asia-Pacific Journal of Teacher Education, 40(3), 199-226. doi:
10.1080/1359866X.2012.700048
- Lin, Y. C., & Magnuson, K. A. (2018). Classroom quality and children’s academic
skills in child care centers: Understanding the role of teacher qualifications.
Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 42, 215-227.
doi: 10.1016/j.ecresq.2017.10.003
- Manuel, J., & Hughes, J. (2006). “It has always been my dream”: Exploring pre-
service teachers’ motivations for choosing to teach. Teacher Development,
10(1), 5-24. doi: 10.1080/13664530600587311
- MoNE (2008). Okul öncesi öğretmeni özel alan yeterlikleri [Preschool teacher competencies
in specific areas]. On March 1st., 2016 retrieved from
http://oygm.meb.gov.tr/meb_iys_dosyalar/2017_11/06160307_5-
YYretmen_Yeterlikleri_KitabY_okul_Yncesi_YYretmeni_Yzel_alan_yeterlikl
eri_ilkYYretim_parYa_8.pdf
- MoNE (2010). Okul öncesi eğitim süreci iç denetim raporu [Preschool education internal
audit report]. Retrieved March 1st., 2016 from
http://icden.meb.gov.tr/digeryaziler/Okul_Oncesi_Egitim_Ic_Denetim_Ra
.pdf
- MoNE (2012). Okul öncesi eğitim kurumları yönetmeliği [Regulations for preschool
education intuitions]. Retrieved March 1st., 2016 retrieved from
http://mevzuat.meb.gov.tr/html/25486_.html
- MoNE (2015). National education statistics, formal education.