The Challenges Faced by the Teachers of 1st Grade in the 4+4+4 Education System

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This study investigates the difficulties teachers experienced at the first grade level in the new 4+4+4 school system introduced into Turkey in 2012, as well as the strategies they devised to deal with these problems. Through a questionnaire, data was collected from 301 first grade teachers. Demographics, the difficulties teachers faced in the new school system in adaptation and preparation activities, planning the school year, introducing games and physical education activities, teaching academic and basic skills and managing classrooms were the major issues discussed. In addition, a series of one- way ANOVA and independent samples t-tests explored the relationships between background variables and the problems raised. The results revealed that teachers had difficulties in 66-71-month-old children at an average level, while they had most difficulties in teaching 60-65-month-old students. They also revealed various strategies to deal with these difficulties. These difficulties were found to differ in relation to the type of school, class size and the number of 60-65, 66-71 and 72 (and more) month-old students in each class.

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Turkish education system , early school entry age , mixed , age classrooms , implementation of education policy

Başkent University Journal Of Education

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Başkent University Journal Of Education