Qualitative Inquiry in Education: Theory & Practice

Educational Science Traditions and Qualitative Research

Ali Yıldırım — 2023-12-27

The purpose of this conceptual paper is to analyze the two main education science traditions, Anglo-American and Continental European, in relation to their interaction with qualitative research. After these two traditions are described, construction and use of theory in research is problematized through the perspectives in these traditions, and qualitative research is positioned in the priorities and knowledge claims they offer. In addition, the use of qualitative research in various areas of educational science such as teacher education, teaching and learning, curriculum studies is analyzed through the diverse educational science orientations. Finally, the case of Turkish educational science tradition is discussed in terms of subfields and research priorities promoted.

A Critical View to Educational Technologies in the Context of Social Inequalities

Fatma Akgün — 2023-12-27

Equality of opportunity in education refers to the right of students to access compulsory education and to have equal opportunities in the process of education. In addition to offering many solutions to ensure equality of opportunity in education, there are also many obstacles. As a matter of fact, educational technologies are considered as an option in terms of having an effect on individuals having equal opportunities in the education process. Educational technologies can be seen as a solution to existing inequalities in order to provide equality of opportunity in education. From this point of view, in this study, it is aimed to determine the thoughts on the use of educational technologies in the education-teaching process in the context of social inequalities. In the study, the qualitative research design of phenomenology was used and ten teachers working in different branches in private and public schools were interviewed. Semi-structured interview technique was used as the data collection method and the interviews were conducted online with the teachers. Deductive analysis method was used to analyze the data. In the study, first of all, literature review was made in the context of social inequalities and themes were determined within the framework of the literature. The themes revealed were discussed as gender, socioeconomic level, parental education level, technology use proficiency of teachers and students with special needs. Within the scope of the themes obtained, teachers’ opinions and suggestions regarding the impact of educational technologies within the framework of the concept of equality of opportunity in education were included.

A Critical Overview of Turkish Research on 21st Century Skills in Education: 2017-2022

Hatice Ferhan Odabaşı — 2023-12-27

In the world and in Türkiye, the 21st century skills have occupied a very large place and many studies have been conducted. Although the 21st century skills have emerged with the expectations of the business world, the training of the manpower expected by the business world depends on the education that people receive. This has led to the research on the educational aspect of 21st century skills. While there are many studies on 21st century skills related to education in Türkiye, there is no comprehensive study on 21st century skills associated with education. In this study, the years and purposes of the studies on 21st century skills related to education in Türkiye, the data collection methods used, the 21st century skills that were addressed in the studies, and the results that were reached are analyzed in detail. It is expected that the analysis will shed light on those who work and will work on 21st century skills.

How Phenomenological are Phenomenology Studies in EducationalSocial Sciences: A Sample from TR Dizin

M. Emir Rüzgar — 2023-12-27

The main purpose of this research was to examine phenomenological studies in the field of social sciences and educational sciences, published between 2015 and 2023 in the TR Dizin database, in order to evaluate to what extent these studies meet the requirements and characteristics of the phenomenological research. We utilized the descriptive research model to achieve the research purpose in this study. We located 1048 research papers in TR Dizin that used phenomenological model. Then, we employed stratified sampling technique and chose 84 studies as the sample. Moreover, we created the Phenomenological Research Examination Form. The aforementioned form was used by two raters in addition to researchers. Reliability coefficient between four raters was found to be .91. We have found that a significant number of the studies in the sample collected their participants’ opinions, perspectives or perceptions. In terms of research questions of studies in the sample, we determined that a significant portion of the questions aimed at describing the consequences of the experience (opinion, perspective, perception, etc.) rather than understanding and making sense of it. The average number of participants in the phenomenological studies we examined was 55. Only a few of the research studies used observation as a data collection technique. We conclude that phenomenological research should be conducted by employing qualitative research understanding instead of quantitative one. Additionally, in phenomenological research, experience should be prioritized and studied instead of studying only opinion, perspective and perception.

How to Integrate Sustainable Development in English Lessons: Reflections from Teachers, Students and Academicians

Yasemen Şanal — 2023-12-27

This qualitative descriptive study as one small part of a big project sought to examine the opinions and recommendations of different stakeholders (i.e. students, teachers and academicians) as to the basic characteristics of a middle school English language course integrating sustainable development content. Three different interview schedules for each group of participants were developed by the researchers to elicit participants’ ideas about a sustainable development-oriented English course to be developed. Qualitative data were analyzed by means of content analysis and the main components of a course, that is, course aims, course content, learning-teaching experiences and course evaluation practices were utilized as themes to analyze the data. The results from this analysis indicated that the participants from each of these different stakeholder groups all appeared to appreciate and support the education for sustainable development. Their recommendations often pertained to course content that would include real-life videos and materials centering on the reallife issues already put forth by the 17 Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The utilization of technology and collaborative activities were recommended by all participants as an important dimension of teaching-learning experiences of this course. All stakeholders also emphasized the dominance or popularity of ecological dimension of sustainable development framework within their current experiences pointing out the lack or insufficiency in terms of including the economic and social dimensions of sustainable development for the teaching of English. Teachers and academicians mentioned some psychological conditions like students’ developing ecophobia and losing hope for future and they warned that these should be seriously taken into consideration in the course design process. Several constraints were also reported by teachers and students against the optimal utilization of foreign language teaching irrespective of the integration of sustainable development content.

Editorial

Ali Ersoy — 2023-12-27

I am delighted to announce the publication of the inaugural issue of “Qualitative Inquiry in Education: Theory & Practice (QIETP)” under the umbrella of EDU Publishing. It’s a great pleasure to reconnect with you through this new journal. QIETP, being the first thematic journal in its field in Türkiye, builds upon the experience I gained during my 10-year tenure (2013-2023) as the founding and chief editor of the Journal of Qualitative Research in Education (ENAD). I aim to advance this experience further in QIETP. I am fully confident that, with the support of our valued authors, reviewers, editors, and readers, QIETP will soon earn a respectable position in the field. The first issue of QIETP comprises 5 articles: 4 research articles and 1 review study. The first study in this issue, “A critical view to educational technologies in the context of social inequalities,” comes from Fatma Akgün, Cem Çuhadar, and Şenay Ozan Deniz of Trakya University. The authors have examined the use of technology in the learning-teaching process from a phenomenological perspective regarding social equality. The second study, “A critical overview of Turkish research on 21st-century skills in education: 2017- 2022,” is authored by H. Ferhan Odabaşı, Elif Akyol Emmungil, Elif Atabay, and Melkaç Değer Demir from Anadolu University. This article evaluates studies conducted in Türkiye between 2017 and 2022 on 21st-century skills in education through meta-synthesis. The third study in this issue is “How to integrate sustainable development in English lessons: Reflections from teachers, students, and academicians,” conducted by Yasemen Şanal, Sena Sezgin, Seden Doğa Döker, Furkan Yavuz, and Gülçin Mutlu from İzmir Democracy University. In their qualitative descriptive study, the authors aimed to examine the characteristics of a middle school foreign language curriculum that incorporates the concept of sustainability. The fourth study of this issue, “How phenomenological are phenomenology studies in educationalsocial sciences: A sample from TR Dizin,” is a research article by M. Emir Rüzgâr and İbrahim Sözcü. The authors have evaluated how much the phenomenology studies published in the national TR Dizin index in Türkiye adhere to the assumptions of phenomenology. Although the study’s findings are presented from a quantitative perspective, it was deemed worth publishing in QIETP as it directly evaluates phenomenological studies. The only review article in this issue is “Educational science traditions and qualitative research” by Ali Yıldırım from the University of Gothenburg. In this article, Yıldırım presents the relationship between qualitative research methods and two main traditions in teacher education: the Anglo-American and the Continental European. This informative work discusses both the teacher training in these traditions and their relation to qualitative research. I am grateful to many esteemed individuals who have shown their close interest and support throughout this process. I extend my endless thanks to all colleagues who have been part of QIETP’s boards and provided technical support. I feel indebted to thank Prof. Ali Yıldırım, a pioneer in the field of Qualitative Research Methods in Türkiye, for his role in forming the international editorial board and supporting the publication of articles in the first issue.