Determining the Perceptions of Teacher Candidates on the Concepts of Science Course, Science Laboratory, Science Teacher and Science Student via Metaphors

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to determine the perceptions of teacher candidates on the concepts of science course, science laboratory, science teacher and science student using metaphors. In this study, the phenomenological research method was used. The participants consisted of a total of 58 first year students who are studying at the department of Science Education at a state university located in the Eastern Black Sea Region in Turkey. The data of the study was obtained by asking the students to complete the sentences “a science course is like …, because …”, “a science laboratory is like …, because …”, “a science teacher is like …, because …” and “a science student is like …, because…”. In this study which used the research design of phenomenology in the scope of a qualitative research approach, the obtained data was analyzed using the method of content analysis. The most frequently mentioned metaphors in the study by the teacher candidates were “life” for the concept of science course, “fun” for the concept of science laboratory, “mother” for the concept of science teacher and “dough” for the concept of science student. According to the results of the study, it was observed that most teacher candidates perceived the concept of science course as “understanding/discovering life (26.3%) and infinite (21%)”, the concept of science laboratory as “a place that provides experience (22.7%) and entertainment (22.6%)”, the concept of science teacher as “mentor (25%)” and the concept of science student as “a valuable being (20%)”. It was also observed that the perceptions of the teacher candidates on science were generally positive.