No abstract

In the field of education, researchers have been studying individuals' psychological constructs such as burnout, engagement and personality traits to better understand their commitment. To this end, we examined the relationship among school engagement and burnout, personality traits and academic achievement in a sample of university students (N=301). The data were collected through Maslach Burnout Inventory-Student Survey, Utrecht Work Engagement Scale-Students Form and The Quick Big Five Personality Test. In order to test the hypotheses of the study, descriptive statistics, zero-order correlations and multiple regression analyses were performed with SPSS 22.0. In the regression analyses, the stepwise method was preferred to find out the best-fitted method. Results indicated that the relationships among the dimensions of burnout and school engagement were the strongest. On the other hand, only Conscientiousness had a positive medium level of correlation with school engagement among the assessed personality traits. We also found out that school engagement was predicted by Efficacy, Exhaustion, Cynicism, Conscientiousness and emotional stability scores. The findings offered valuable insights to enhance our understanding of the relationships between school engagement and personality traits and burnout.

Since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, several studies in medical fields have been conducted; however, the impact of the disease on individuals’ psychology has not been covered enough. The measures taken to prevent the spread of COVID-19 have brought various restrictions both in social life and in areas such as education, economy and health. Due to the pandemic and subsequent restrictions, students continuing to higher education are likely to experience some psychological problems such as anxiety and depression, like other individuals. Therefore, studies regarding the anxiety levels of students should be carried out. In line with this need, the aim of the study is to adapt the Coronavirus Anxiety Scale (CAS) into Turkish in the context of higher education. The sample consisted of 513 undergraduate and graduate students. The data collection tools were the CAS and the STAI, and data were collected through an online survey platform. The results of CFA supported the factor structure of the original scale and yielded an excellent fit for all the indices. The original factor structure of the CAS was also confirmed, and the scores significantly correlated with gender, state-anxiety and health status of the participants. The scores obtained from the adapted scale were found highly reliable and valid. The increase in the spread of COVID-19, especially after the mutations of the virus have emerged, indicates that its psychological and behavioral consequences and effects might last longer. To this end, the study has valuable implications for higher education policy makers, university administrators and teaching staff.

In this study, the relationship between the general competencies for teaching profession and teacher training programs in Turkey were investigated. The data were collected from 304 undergraduate students studying at a faculty of education in a state university. In order to collect data a scale consisting of the statements in general competencies for teaching profession and a list of elective and mandatory courses in the renewed teacher training program were used. The results revealed that students' competency levels were high. However, the correlation between the competency levels and the GPA of the students was weak.It was also found that pre-school teaching department students had significantly higher competency scores than the other students'. Lastly, it was found that the most required course was ‚Teaching Practice I-II‛ and the least required course was ‚The Philosophy of Education‛ from the participants' point of view.

This article evaluates the use of reflective practice (RP) tools by focusing on the main critiques on RP. In the literature, RP has often been criticised for its design-related problems, RP’s being directed by problem identification purposes rather than empirical data, and RP practitioners’ loss of contact with their discourse communities due to the undue emphasis on practical knowledge. Therefore, this article suggests methodological and data triangulation of RP tools as well as highlighting the community of inquiry framework to overcome the aforementioned problems While doing this, the authors reflect on their own RPs, both of which were conducted at a refugee centre in Philadelphia, USA. In this examination, the critical role of reflective tools is highlighted.