Esim GÜRSOY, Elif EKEN

English teachers‟ understanding of the new English language teaching program and their classroom implementations

Recent changes in Turkish educational system have increased the importance of teaching English, following a global trend to introduce foreign languages at earlier stages of the language teaching program. However, putting the new language program successfully into practice can be challenging. In this regard, this study attempts to investigate teachers‟ understanding and their instructional practices on curriculum innovation in teaching English to young learners. For this aim, basic components of the new English Language Teaching Program (ELTP) are taken as the criteria to shed light on teachers‟ beliefs with reference to 4+4+4 education reform introduced in 2013 and the implementations of this reformist program in young learners‟ foreign language classrooms. In this way, 232 EFL teachers who taught 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th grades in Turkish state schools participated in the study. The data were collected through a questionnaire composed of three parts in an attempt to find teachers‟ opinions about the starting grade for language instruction, their understanding about the new language teaching program and the implementations of this program while teaching YLs. Results indicate that teachers share almost the same opinion that foreign language instruction should start at the first grade of the education system. Despite the fact that they have mostly developed theoretically appropriate beliefs about TEYL, teachers, regarding their understanding about the new ELTP, cannot transfer their beliefs into their practices, especially with reading and writing skills in question.

İngilizce öğretmenlerinin yeni İngilizce öğretim programına dair algı ve sınıf içi uygulamaları

Dil öğretim programlarında yabancı dil öğretiminine eğitim sisteminin daha erken basamaklarında yer verilmesi yönündeki küresel anlayışın benimsenmesiyle Türk eğitim sisteminde yapılan son değişiklikler İngilizce öğretiminin önemini arttırmıştır. Fakat, yeni bir dil öğretim programının uygulanmaya konması zorlayıcı olabilir. Bu çalışma çocuklara İngilizce öğretimini esas alan yenilikleri dikkate alarak İngilizce öğretmenlerinin program hakkındaki algılarını ve sınıf içi uygulamalarını araştırmayı amaçlamaktadır. Bu amaçla öğretmen görüşlerinin değerlendirilmesi ve onların çocuklara yabacı dil öğretirken gerçekleştirikleri sınıf içi uygulamaları ortaya koymak için, 2013 yılında 4+4+4 eğitim sistemiyle uygulamaya konulan yeni İngiliz dili öğretimi programının temel esasları dikkate alınmıştır. Çalışmanın verileri devlet okullarında 2., 3., 4., 5., ve 6. sınıfları okutan 232 İngilizce öğretmeninden anket youyla toplanmıştır. İlgili anket üç bölümden oluşmakta olup, katlımcıların yabancı dil öğretimine başlama yaşı (sınıf düzeyi) hakkındaki görüşlerini, yeni dil öğretim programı hakkındaki algıları ve sınıf içi uygulamalarına dair bilgi toplamayı amaçlamaktadır. Araştırma sonuçlarına göre, katılımcılar yabacı dil öğretiminin eğitim sisteminin ilkokul 1. sınıf aşamasında başlaması yönünde görüş birliğinde olduklarını göstermiştir. Katılımcı öğretmenlerin çoğunlukla çocuklara yabancı dil öğretimi konusunda teorik olarak uygun görüşlere sahip olmalarına rağmen, özellikle yeni Ingilizce öğretim programının okuma ve yazma becerleri söz konusu olduğunda aynı görüşü sınıf içi uygulamalarına yansıtmadıkları görülmüştür.

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