THE ROLE OF FIELD WORK IN TEACHING AND LEARNING GEOGRAPHY

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THE ROLE OF FIELD WORK IN TEACHING AND LEARNING GEOGRAPHY (EDUCATION PROJECT TOPICS AND MATERIALS)

 

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1              BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY

Fieldwork has great importance in geography teaching since it allows many geographical phenomena to be observed on its own environment and be better perceived (TMNE, 2012; Article 14), real life experiences to be gained by turning theory into practice (Fuller, et al., 2006; Scott, et al., 2006), and thus leads to a better understanding of the real world (Fuller, 2006). Field is the laboratory of geographical research (Garipağaoğlu, 2001), and the utilization of this lab is possible through geographical field trips (Doğanay, 1993, 2002; Alkış, 2008; Kent, 1999).

n field trips, theoretical knowledge is put into practice (Gök and Girgin, 2001; Girgin, et al., 2003; Akbulut, 2004; Açıkgöz, 2006; Balcı, 2010a). Field trips also facilitate the teaching of concepts (Rudmann, 1994), increase permanence in learning (Balcı, 2010b), facilitate the acquisition of cognitive skills (Rudmann, 1994), and improve transferable skills (Scott, et al., 2006). In addition, geographical fieldwork allows students to improve their skills to make syntheses and assessments about concepts (Kızılçaoğlu, 2003; Akbulut, 2004); it also produces positive effects on students’ geographical expectations (Balcı, 2012), and ensures that students are in a permanent and enjoyable learning environment (Kent, et al., 1997). The importance of fieldwork in geography teaching has necessitated investigations to determine the self-efficacy perceptions of geography teacher candidates. Self-efficacy, in its shortest definition, refers to beliefs in one’s capabilities to organize and execute the courses of action required to produce given attainments (Bandura, 1986), or to one’s judgments or beliefs as to his/her capacity or performance (Bandura, 1977, 1994, 1997; Lee, 2005). In addition to these definitions, self-efficacy can also be described as: an individual’s response to questions such as “What can I do?” (Snyder and Lopez, 2002) or “Can I do this task?” (Donald, 2003); an individual’s self-confidence; an individual’s judgment about his/her confidence in his/her ability; or his/her belief formed through his/her experiences (Lee, 2005; Yılmaz and Köseoğlu, 2004).

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THE ROLE OF FIELD WORK IN TEACHING AND LEARNING GEOGRAPHY (EDUCATION PROJECT TOPICS AND MATERIALS)

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