Study of Turkish Preschool Teachers’ Attitudes toward Science Teaching

Feyza T. Erdena* & Sema Sönmezb a Department of Elementary Education , Middle East Technical University , Ankara, Turkey b Department of Elementary Education , Abant Izzet Baysal University , Bolu, Turkey * Department of Elementary Education, Middle East Technical University, Room no. 115, Ankara 06531, Turkey E-mail: tfeyza@metu.edu.tr This study aims to explore preschool teachers’ attitudes toward science teaching and its impact on classroom practices through the frequency of science activities provided in the classroom. In addition, the study investigates if their attitudes are related to factors such as educational level, years of teaching experience, and the school type they work in. The present research was conducted with 292 preschool teachers who work in public and private schools in different districts of Ankara, Turkey. The data were collected by administering the Early Childhood Teachers’ Attitudes toward Science Teaching Scale. Our analyses indicate that there is a significant but weak link between preschool teachers’ attitudes toward science teaching and the frequency of science activities that they provide in the classroom. Further, while teachers’ characteristics such as educational level and experience are found to play an insignificant role on the overall measures of the scale, type of school appears to be a major factor in explaining the attitudes toward science teaching.