gülten genç | Inönü üniversitesi (original) (raw)

Papers by gülten genç

International Journal of Psychology and Educational Studies, 2016

The aim of this study was to examine the relationships between some individual characteristics, l... more The aim of this study was to examine the relationships between some individual characteristics, learned resourcefulness and burn out on the one hand and the relationships between burn out and learned resourcefulness on the other. The participants in this research included 163 English teachers teaching in the schools located in Malatya. The participants were asked to anonymously fill out a questionnaire involving three parts which respectively investigated their background, burnout level and learned resourcefulness (Rosenbaum's Learned Resourcefulness Scale and Maslach Burnout Inventory). The findings indicated that more than half of the teachers possess moderately high level of learned resourcefulness and they are experiencing burnout at moderate level in three aspects of MBI. In addition, the analysis suggested an inverse relationship between learned resourcefulness and the three burnout subscales: as learned resourcefulness increases, emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and lack of personal accomplishment decrease. Furthermore; the independent variables (age, gender, and marital status) were not found to be significant in learned resourcefulness and any of the burnout dimensions. "The school type" is the only variable which was found to be significant in the three burnout sub-dimensions. Results are discussed in the light of current literature and suggestions were provided.

Anxiety plays a vital importance in language learning and it can affect language learning process... more Anxiety plays a vital importance in language learning and it can affect language learning process especially language learners' productive skills. Some studies on speaking anxiety have indicated that there is a strong relationship between anxiety and success in speaking in foreign language classrooms and speaking has been recognized as one of the most anxiety-provoking skill. Learners of foreign language use some coping strategies to overcome this anxiety. For this purpose, this study was designed to investigate the levels of speaking anxiety of 232 Turkish EFL learners (124 females and 108 males) at tertiary level and the strategies they are using to cope with the English speaking anxiety. Two scales (Foreign Language Speaking Anxiety Scale and Anxiety Coping Strategies Scale) were used to gather data. The findings revealed that the majority of Turkish EFL learners, experienced foreign language speaking anxiety in varying degrees and many of them also applied particular strategies to overcome their foreign language speaking anxiety. Based on the results of the study the researchers made some recommendations.

Foreign language anxiety has been one of the important issues that the researchers in the field o... more Foreign language anxiety has been one of the important issues that the researchers in the field of language teaching have studied on so far. There is a close relationship between language learners' anxiety level and their success in language learning. Anxiety appears to have a significant effect especially on productive skills like speaking and listening. Some studies have indicated that listening anxiety as a part of general anxiety has a detrimental factor that can affect language learners negatively. In the Turkish EFL context language learners have much difficulty with listening comprehension skill and do not know how to handle with this problem. For that reason, this study aims to measure listening anxiety of the students in University preparatory classes and to figure out coping strategies learners use to overcome this problem. For this purpose, the two questionnaires were used in the study mainly to seek information about the anxiety level of foreign language learners. Participants involved 223 Turkish EFL learners (121 females and 102 males) from preparatory classes of a state university. The results of the study indicated that Turkish EFL learners experience listening anxiety to some extent. In addition, a significant relationship between listening anxiety and metacognitive strategy use of the EFL learners were determined. Based on the findings of the study some recommendations were yielded.

Öz Bu çalışmanın genel amacı, İngilizce öğretmenlerinin mesleki olarak kendilerini yenileme çabal... more Öz Bu çalışmanın genel amacı, İngilizce öğretmenlerinin mesleki olarak kendilerini yenileme çabalarının önündeki engellerin neler olduğunu tanımlamak ve kategorize etmektir. Araştırma, durumu betimlemeye yönelik ve tarama modeline uygun olarak yapılmıştır. Araştırmanın çalışma evrenini, 2008-2009 öğretim yılında Malatya ilindeki ilköğretim ve ortaöğretim okullarında çalışan toplam 301 İngilizce öğretmeni oluşturmuştur. Veri toplama aracı araştırmacı tarafından geliştirilmiştir. Verilerin analizinde SPSS for Windows 15.0 paket programı kullanılmıştır. Çoklu karşılaştırmalarda Kruskal Wallis varyans analizi, ikili karşılaştırmalarda Mann Whitney U testi uygulanmıştır. Yaş ve kıdem değerleri ile boyut puanları ilişkisinde Spearman korelâsyonu analizi yapılmıştır. Anlamlılık düzeyi. 0.05 olarak alınmıştır. Analize tabi tutulan değişkenlerden yaş, kıdem, cinsiyet, öğretmenlerin mezun oldukları okul ve görev yaptıkları okul çeşitli boyutlarda mesleki gelişim açısından anlamlı farklar yaratmış olmasına rağmen, lisansüstü eğitim yapmış olma ve idari görev değişkenleri hiçbir boyutta anlamlı bulunmamıştır. Anahtar Kelimeler: Mesleki gelişim, öğretmenin mesleki gelişimi, İngilizce Öğretmenleri Abstract The purpose of this study is to determine and categorize the barriers perceived by English teachers against their professional development efforts. Survey model has been used and the scope of the research involves 301 English teachers working in Malatya province. The scale conducted to the teachers has been developed by the researcher and Kruskal Wallis and Mann Whitney U statistical tests were used in SPSS for Windows 15.0 to analyze the data (P<0.05). Among the variables, age, gender, seniority in the profession, the faculty that teachers graduated and types of the schools the teachers work were statistically significant in some dimensions of the professional development scale whereas administrative tasks and having a degree of MA and PhD were not.

ÖZ: Ülkemizde, 1997-1998 öğretim yılında uygulamaya konulan Sekiz Yıllık Zorunlu Eğitim gereğince... more ÖZ: Ülkemizde, 1997-1998 öğretim yılında uygulamaya konulan Sekiz Yıllık Zorunlu Eğitim gereğince, ilköğretim okullarının 4. ve 5. sınıfl arına haftada 2 saat zo-runlu yabancı dil dersi konulmuştur. Ayrıca sınıf öğretmenlerinin ilköğretimin ilk beş yıllık döneminde bütün derslere girmesine dayalı sistem 2006 yılından itibaren kalk-mıştır. Milli Eğitim Bakanlığı, ilköğretim 4. ve 5. sınıfl arda verilen branş derslerine sınıf öğretmeni yerine, branş öğretmenlerinin girmesini kararlaştırmıştır. Ancak, ülkemizde hala ikinci kademesi olmayan dolayısıyla yabancı dil öğretmeni olmayan veya birinci kademedeki İngilizce dersleri için de yeterli İngilizce öğretmeni olmayan okullar mev-cuttur. Bu durumda sınıf öğretmenleri hala yabancı dil derslerine girmek zorundadır. Bu çalışmanın amacı, gelecekte yabancı dil derslerine girmek zorunda kalabi-lecek sınıf öğretmeni adaylarının, üniversitede yabancı dil olarak okutulan İngilizce derslerine yönelik tutumlarını ve bu ders için akademik başarı düzeylerini saptamak ve duruma ilişkin öneriler geliştirmektir. Bu amaçla, Eğitim Fakültesi, İlköğretim Bölümü, Sınıf Öğretmenliği Ana Bilim Dalı'nın, öğretmen olmaya en yakın dönem-de olan 151 dördüncü sınıf öğrencisine "İngilizce Dersi Tutum Ölçeği" ile "Yaban-cı Dil Akademik Başarı Testi" uygulanmıştır. Elde edilen veriler, SPSS 15.0 paket programında analiz edilmiştir. Araştırmanın sonucunda öğrencilerin İngilizce aka-demik başarı düzeylerinin, ilköğretimin dördüncü ve beşinci sınıfl arındaki İngilizce derslerini öğretecek düzeyde olmadığı ve öğrencilerin tutumları ile akademik başarı düzeylerinin birebir ilişkili olduğu ve başarı düzeyi arttıkça tutumun da olumlu yön-de arttığı sonucuna ulaşılmıştır. Ayrıca çalışmada öğrencilerin İngilizceye yönelik tutumlarında yaş, cinsiyet gibi kişisel değişkenlerle daha önce İngilizce hazırlık eğiti-mi alıp almadıkları değişkenlerinin etkili faktörler oldukları görülmüştür. Araştırma, Eğitim Fakültelerinin İngilizce dersleri için bazı öneriler sunmaktadır. ABSTRACT. The purpose of this study is to determine the attitudes towards English courses and achievement level of prospective primary school teachers who

Foreign language learners' beliefs on English language learning are important in language educati... more Foreign language learners' beliefs on English language learning are important in language education. Recent studies conducted in relation to the language learning have indicated that learners' beliefs about foreign language learning show variations depending on some variables. Taking into consideration of these variables, this study aims to highlight the relationship between Turkish EFL learners' beliefs about language learning according to gender, self-reported academic achievement, type of high school that they graduated from and year at the faculty. For this purpose, the students were questioned about their beliefs. The data collected through closed and open-ended questionnaires (BALLI) were analysed quantitatively. This study reports the beliefs about language learning of almost 180 Turkish undergraduate students studying at the departments of English Language and Literature and English Language Teaching at a state university in Turkey. The findings revealed a dynamic relationship between learners' beliefs and the variables such as gender, self-reported academic achievement and type of high school. These results may be used in the future to inform pedagogy and as such the outcomes from this research are important for a country where the learning of English is an important educational requirement for academic career.

The purpose of this study is, firstly, to determine the levels of university students' autonomous... more The purpose of this study is, firstly, to determine the levels of university students' autonomous learning capacity and learning style preferences and their relationship with gender, age and each other. Secondly, it is aimed to increase the knowledge level of the students about these two topics through some education activities and lastly, to determine the principles of establishing a self-access center for foreign language learners where students can study on their own. The sample group of the study consisted of 408 students. A background questionnaire, "Autonomous Learning Capacity Questionnaire" and "Kolb's Learning Style Questionnaire" were used to collect data. The data were used to provide a descriptive and correlational analysis. The results show that almost half of the students have relatively high autonomous learning capacity, most of the students are divergers and least number of students are assimilators in terms of learning styles. It was also found that there is a significant relationship between autonomous learning capacity and gender; but there is no significant relationship between learning styles preferences with age and gender. Furthermore, there are no significant differences between autonomous learning capacity and learning style preferences.

In recent years, the increase in the use of computer and the internet has led to a change in the ... more In recent years, the increase in the use of computer and the internet has led to a change in the traditional concept of formal education today. Distance learning as a more student-centered system has been frequently used at universities. In this context, education has been applied to the individuals consisting of all age groups in accordance with their aspirations, expectations and interest in a more flexible way. This study aims to determine and compare the motivation and attitudes of language learners of online distance and traditional in-classroom education, in a state university in Turkey. Participants were 500 undergraduate university students in various disciplines. About 250 (half) of the participants studied English as a foreign language through traditional in-classroom education whereas the rest of the participants (250) studied English through online distance education in the same university by the same instructors. Two questionnaires (one to evaluate motivation level and one to evaluate attitudes of the participants related to English as a foreign language) and a background information form investigating individual information of the participants were used to collect data from the students of nine faculties at According to the nature of the research, the study used descriptive statistics (frequencies, range, means, and standard deviations), t-test and ANOVA as the statistical analysis methods. All collected data were coded and computerized using the SPSS software and the alpha level for the tests was set at .05. After calculating each participant's motivation and attitudes scores, their scores were compared to the variables selected for the study and each other. The findings indicated statistically significant relationships between motivation and attitudes of the participants and some individual variables. Some conclusions were reached based on the findings of the research and some recommendations and suggestions were made for future research into areas not covered by this study.

The application of metaphor analysis on foreign language acquisition is relatively new. In this w... more The application of metaphor analysis on foreign language acquisition is relatively new. In this way, students' prior beliefs about learning a foreign language are possible to make explicit, identify, and analyze. So, this study attempts to investigate how Turkish tertiary level EFL learners view their courses of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) through a metaphor analysis and the effects of gender, status at school, and self-reported academic success on their perceptions. Two hundred and fifty EFL learners were asked to generate metaphors of how they conceptualize learning English via prompts provided by the researcher. Data for the study were collected during the 2015-2016 academic year from the students of different faculties attending the School of Foreign Languages in a state university through a semi-structured questionnaire form. Firstly, a qualitative research method, which began to classify the data involving metaphorical images of the participants, was employed. Then, quantitative dimensions were analyzed using descriptive statistics, frequencies and chi square test of independence. The results indicate that students use various positive and negative conceptualizations to reflect their beliefs about studying English as a foreign language. Their concept of English is essentially an instrument of a better career, a better life, and success in business. The desire to gain social recognition or economic advantages has been seen as the first motivation for learning English. In addition, gender and academic success were not significant factors in their perceptions but "status at school" was. EFL learners, especially the ones taking optional English courses, hold positive attitudes toward the process of learning English. Implications and applications for learning English as a foreign language and suggestions for future research are discussed.

In the 21 st century, teachers are expected to help learners to get the ability of communicating ... more In the 21 st century, teachers are expected to help learners to get the ability of communicating with people from all over the world. In order to help students to gain the capability of communicating with people from different cultures and coping with the difficulties of various social and cultural environments, teachers themselves need to have those qualifications. Social intelligence or interpersonal intelligence is characterized by skills such as reading nonverbal cues and making inferences from the behavior of others. A socially intelligent individual is expected to have behavioral flexibility and to change his/her behavior depending on the circumstances of the situation. Intercultural sensitivity is the desire to motivate individuals to understand, appreciate, and accept differences among cultures, and to produce a positive outcome from intercultural interactions. For this purpose, this study aimed to investigate the intercultural sensitivity levels of prospective English teachers and possible effects of social intelligence and some demographic factors on it. The results indicated some meaningful relationships between social intelligence and intercultural sensitivity of prospective EFL teachers. However, age, communication with foreign people through internet and gender did not show any significant relationship with intercultural sensitivity. Some recommendations were yielded based on the findings of the study.

The purpose of the study was to explore whether learners use translation as a learning strategy i... more The purpose of the study was to explore whether learners use translation as a learning strategy in learning English. For this purpose, the research sought answers for the research questions investigating about the type of translation related strategies employed by Turkish EFL learners in learning English and the effects of some factors on the use of translation as a learning strategy. In reviewing the literature, it was seen that that language learners use some strategies in their foreign language learning process. Cognitive strategies were suggested to be one of language learning strategies that are mostly used by learners in improving their skills in the foreign language. In addition, it was also seen that, as one of the cognitive strategies, translation was used in learning a language by foreign language learners. Although some teachers and researchers present negative attitudes towards the use of this strategy in teaching a language, some put emphasis on the necessity and the role of translation in the development of learning. The researchers conducted a quantitative research with 159 students about the use of translation as a learning strategy. The participants were attending at a preparatory class in a state university and their ages ranged between 18 and 34. A questionnaire was comprised of some information concerning the students' gender and education background and translation strategy use. Data were statistically using SPSS package program and the results were presented in the tables. The findings showed that most of the learners use translation as a learning strategy and find it useful and important especially in thinking in their native language first and translate into the target language. Furthermore, it was seen that the learners with high proficiency level utilize translation as a learning strategy less than those with low proficiency level. Based on these findings of the study some recommendations were yielded.

Defining the English learning motivation of students and foreign language anxiety in language acq... more Defining the English learning motivation of students and foreign language anxiety in language acquisition has been at the centre of much research and controversy for many years. While motivation has been one of the key factors that influence the success of foreign language, the effects of anxiety on foreign language learning cannot be ignored. More recently researches have attempted to quantify the effects of anxiety and motivation on language learning but these efforts have met with mixed results. This paper examines the relationship between foreign language anxiety and English learning motivation of students in university preparatory classes in language learning. For this purpose, the two questionnaires were used in the study mainly to seek information about the anxiety and motivation levels of foreign language learners. Participants involved 140 students from compulsory and 60 students from optional preparatory classes. The results of the study indicated that there is a significant relationship between anxiety and motivation of the students and some individual variables are also statistically significant for the students' motivation and anxiety levels.

English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers, as the backbone of language teaching system, are ex... more English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers, as the backbone of language teaching system, are expected to raise the awareness level of students' intercultural communication competence by helping them relate their own culture to foreign cultures, empathise with foreign cultures' perspectives and tolerate the ambiguities or differences. This study examines the relationship between certain personal factors such as age, gender, year of study, overseas experience and students' preferences for Turkish movies over foreign ones and three predictors of intercultural communication competence namely, ambiguity tolerance, empathy and open-mindedness. The sample group of the study consisted of 145 prospective English teachers in the Educational Faculty of a state university in Turkey. The participants were asked to fill out a questionnaire consisting of two parts which investigated their background and perceived levels of ambiguity tolerance, open-mindedness and empathy in Turkish EFL context. The results indicated that half of preservice EFL teachers had poor intercultural communication competence. In particular, males, the final-year students and those who had been abroad indicated higher levels of tolerance than their respective counterparts. Besides, age and students' preferences for Turkish or foreign movies were not significant factors in any of the predictors of intercultural communication competence. 186 G. GENÇ Firth (1996, 240) notes that English has become an international language among people who share neither a common native tongue nor a common culture.

The aim o f this study was to describe E F L learners' critical thinking levels and to examine th... more The aim o f this study was to describe E F L learners' critical thinking levels and to examine the relationship between participants' critical thinking levels and selected variables such as gender, academic achievement in E F L , subject area, and self-reported reading. The overall design o f the study was based on the quantitative research method. D ata were collected fro m 2 8 0 students o f different faculties attending the School o f Foreign Languages using the T urkish adaptation o f the California Critical T hinking Disposition Inventory (C C T D I) during the 2 0 1 5-2 0 1 6 academic year. Measurements o f subscales were also used for diagnostic purposes. The results indicated that participants in this research generally have a low critical thinking disposition. Moreover, they have low critical thinking dispositions in Jive o f the scales-analyticity, inquisitiveness, s e lf confidence, truth-seeking and systematicity-while they have medium critical thinking disposition in ju s t one subscale-open-mindedness-. I t was seen that females had higher scores with respect to analyticity and open-mindedness; successful students were more open-minded; the participants reporting that they read every day had higher scores in inquisitiveness and self-confidence than the other groups and fin a lly it was seen that participants' subject areas did not indicate a significant relationship with any o f the subscales. Some recommendations were made in accordance with the findings o f the research.

Learners' perceived self-efficacy and beliefs on English language learning are important in educa... more Learners' perceived self-efficacy and beliefs on English language learning are important in education. Taking into consideration the important impact of individual variables on language learning, this study seeks to highlight the relationship between Turkish EFL learners' beliefs about language learning and their sense of self-efficacy. The participants are 210 Turkish EFL undergraduate students whose major is English. The subjects were questioned about their beliefs and self-efficacy as English language learners. The data gathered were analysed quantitatively. The findings demonstrated that EFL students have medium scores in their English self-efficacy and hold the strong belief that motivation factors have a great role on their learning process. Moreover, student's beliefs about language learning are affected by their English selfefficacy. It is recommended that teachers and teacher trainers enhance students' self-efficacy and help students hold correct beliefs about foreign language learning to motivate them. It is expected that the findings of the study will shed light on the relationship between EFL learners' beliefs and self-efficacy and provide guidelines for teachers to help their students become aware of and to evaluate their own beliefs in language learning and English self-efficacy during the teaching of a foreign language.

This article examines the impact of some personal factors on the autonomous learning capacity of ... more This article examines the impact of some personal factors on the autonomous learning capacity of student teachers in a foreign language department. The sample group of the study consisted of 146 prospective English teachers in the Educational Faculty of a state university. The participants were asked to anonymously fill out a questionnaire involving two parts which respectively investigated their background and autonomous learning capacity. The first part of the questionnaire is a combination of open-ended and multiple-choice items concerning the participant's age, gender, foreign language achievement, type of their high school and their degree. The second part of the questionnaire was originally developed to evaluate autonomous learning capacity of the students. The data were used to provide a descriptive and correlational analysis to address the research questions. The results indicate that there is a significant relationship between autonomous learning capacity of student teachers and some variables of the study. Finally, some practical recommendations were noted.

Emotional intelligence has recently attracted educators' attention around the world. Educators wh... more Emotional intelligence has recently attracted educators' attention around the world. Educators who try to investigate the factors in language learning achievement have decided to pave the way to success through emotional intelligence. The relationship between emotional intelligence and language learning is the major concern of this study. The study is to examine the role of emotional intelligence in second language learning and its effect on productive language skills: speaking and writing. At the end of the academic year, 150 students from different disciplines of the university and studying English as a foreign language in the School of Foreign Languages were asked to complete the Emotional Intelligence Inventory (EQ-i). Collected data were matched with the students' academic scores in speaking and writing. Predicting foreign language learning success from emotional intelligence variables produced divergent results. When EQ-i variables were compared in groups (successful vs. unsuccessful) who had achieved very different levels of academic success and scores in different skills, foreign language learning was strongly associated with several dimensions of emotional intelligence. All collected data were coded and computerized using the SPSS software and the alpha level for the tests was set at .05. After calculating each participant's emotional intelligence scores and their success in speaking and writing skills, their scores were compared to the variables selected for the study and each other. A positive and close relation between EQ and foreign language proficiency can be drawn out according to the results.

International Journal of Psychology and Educational Studies, 2016

The main purpose of this study is to analyze Turkish tertiary level EFL learners attributions to ... more The main purpose of this study is to analyze Turkish tertiary level EFL learners attributions to success and failure and the effects of gender, age, and perceived success on their attributions. The results indicated that EFL learners respectively attributed interest, ability, task difficulty, effort, luck and the influence of teacher and school as influential factors of their success whereas they respectively rated effort, interest, the effect of teacher and school, ability, task difficulty, and luck as influential factors of their failure. Furthermore, they were more inclined to agree that internal reasons are responsible for their success while blaming external reasons for their failure. In addition, females seemed to attribute external factors more than their male counterparts and unsuccessful learners attributed more importance to effort and internal dimension than successful students. Finally, the study revealed that age was not an important factor in EFL learners attribution to success and failure.