Universal Journal of Educational Research 4(9): 1994-2001, 2016 http://www.hrpub.org DOI: 10.13189/ujer.2016.040909 A Research about the Level of Using Language Teaching Methods and Its Effect on Some Variables: in Turkey Burcu Okmen*, Abdurrahman Kilic Department of Educational Sciences, Duzce University, Turkey *Corresponding Author:[email protected] Copyright ©2016 by authors, all rights reserved. Authors agree that this article remains permanently open access under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0 International License. Abstract The aim of this research is to define language methods to develop language skills [2]. teaching methods used by English teachers in Turkey and For centuries, people have attempted to learn their usage level and to define if the level of usage changes foreign/second languages through formal education. The according to gender, seniority and graduated school types. methods and approaches employed have changed through The research group consisted of 95 English teachers who the years, having been impacted by advancements in the study in secondary school in Duzce in 2013-2014. Survey theories and psychology of learning [3]. method was used and quantitative data were used. “Language teaching has a long, fascinating but Language teaching methods scale developed by researcher rather tortuous history, in which a debate on teaching was practiced to define which methods English teachers use. methods has evolved particularly over the last As a result, it was seen that teachers used Grammar Based hundred years. The names of many of the methods Method at a high level and used Speaking Based Method at (Grammar-Translation Method, Direct Method, a low level. As a result of statistics, it was seen that Audio-lingual Method, Communicative Teaching methods changed according to gender, seniority and Method, etc) are familiar enough, yet the methods are graduated school types. not easy to grasp in practice because a method, Keywords Language Teaching Method, Gender, however ill-defined it may be, is more than a single Seniority, Graduated School Type strategy or a particular technique. As a part of language teaching theories, these methods derived partly from social, economic, political, or educational circumstances, partly from theoretical consideration (new changes in language theories and 1. Introduction in new psychological perspective on language Communication among different nations became very learning), partly from practical experience, intuition, important in our increasingly shrinking world in terms of and inventiveness [4].” globalization. Today communication is done Prior to this century, language teaching methodology multi-dimensional and in different types [1]. In world, vacillated between two types of approaches: one type of nowadays, we live knowledge era, language is the most approach which focused on using a language (i.e., speaking important key of lifelong learning and development. and understanding), the other type which focused on Actions such as reading, writing, thinking, solving problem, analyzing a language (i.e., learning the grammatical rules). criticizing, and understanding occur with language. Both the Classical Greek and Medieval Latin periods were Language is the basic tool of development in terms of characterized by an emphasis on teaching people to use social, mental and sensitive. Language has an important foreign languages. The classical languages, first Greek and place in processes such as communicating, explaining then Latin, were used as Iingua francas. Higher learning emotions and opinions, integration with world, cultural was given only in these languages all over Europe. They connection and interaction. Characteristics such as were also used very widely in philosophy or religion, developing capacity of people, solving complicated politics, and business. Thus, the educated elite became problems, thinking scientific, having different values, wide fluent speakers, readers, and writers of the appropriate worldview are effected by language. This situation shows classical language. We can assume that the teachers or us that language skills should be developed lifelong and tutors used informal and direct approaches to convey the shouldn't be limited with school education. So many form and meaning of the language they were teaching countries give importance to using new approaches and and that they used aural-oral techniques with no language Universal Journal of Educational Research 4(9): 1994-2001, 2016 1995 textbooks per se, but rather a small stock of hand-copied methods used by English teachers in Turkey and their usage written manuscripts of some sort, perhaps a few texts in the level and to define if level of usage changes according to target language, or crude dictionaries that listed equivalent gender, seniority and graduated school types. In this context, words in two or more languages side by side [5]. The 20th questions below will be answered: century was characterized by many changes and 1. What is the level of usage of language teaching innovations in the field of language teaching ideologies. In methods? the history of language teaching approaches and methods, 2. Does the level of usage of language teaching there was a move away from methods that focus on writing methods change according to gender, seniority and and reading to methods that stronger concentrate on the graduated school types? skills speaking and listening [6]. 1.3. Importance of Research 1.1. Language Teaching Methods Throughout the history, a lot of methods were revived. In language teaching, methods were formed to remove Linguists offered different methods. Because the aim of deficiency and inadequate of methods that were used before. language teaching changed and it was claimed that previous These studies contributed to teaching a foreign language one was inadequate. It is known that the level of foreign and gave alternative methods. Foreign language teaching language is so low in our country. If one of the most methods accepted by Department of Modern Languages important factor in achieving education’s aim is method, it Council of Europe and used widely are [7]: should be defined what teachers do in class and which Grammar-Translation Method language teaching methods they use. In this research, Direct Method thinking that linguists offered language teaching methods it Natural Method was defined which language teaching methods teachers use Audio-Lingual Method and it was researched usage of methods according to gender, Cognitive-Code Method seniority and graduated school types. In this regard, this Communicative Method research will show the availability of our curriculum. Eclectic Method The other methods used alternatively and less widely are: 2. Research Design and Methodology Suggestopedia Community Language Learning 2.1. Research Model The Silent Way Total Physical Response The aim of the survey method is to describe the situation Audiovisual Method of the research subject. In this kind of research, relations Task-Based Method between variables can be measured [9]. So survey method Content-Based Method was used and quantitative data were used. In Turkey, Direct Method was tried to using in language teaching but it was seen that students learned only basic 2.2. Sample sentences in 1919. Grammar-Translation Method was used The research group consisted of 95 English teachers who in foreign language teaching from constitutional monarchy study in secondary school in Duzce in 2013-2014 teaching to republic. Because aim defines methods, education in year. In this research, it is aimed to reach all English language teaching was centered reading-understanding and teachers in Duzce. translation so Grammar-Translation Method was used until 1941 and after. Then Direct Method was tried to using in 2.3. Data Collection Tools language teaching again between 1944 and 1952 and books Scale developed by researcher was used to define were organized according to this method. In 1966 language teaching methods that teacher use [10]. Authority Auido-Lingual Methods was used in teaching of both view was applied, plot implementation was done, English and French. Universities were also just like other confirmatory and exploratory factor analysis were done to education instutions [8]. provide the validity of scale. Cronbach Alpha reliability There are a lot of suggesstions and arguments about value was calculated as .80. Scale was consisted of five language teaching. Although there are a lot of researches factors. Total variance explained by five factors was about the factors effecting learning foreign language, there calculated as 54.69%. Confirmatory factor analysis results isn't enough research about teaching in Turkey. Curriculum confirmed the form of five factors. Factors were named as suggests teacher how and which methods should be used for "Active Teaching Method, Listening Based Teaching which aims. But there is no research about the level of usage. Method, Four Basic Skills Focused Method, Speaking So in this research it was focused on it. Based Method, and Grammar Based Method". While factors were being named, items in each factor were 1.2. Aim of Research reviewed and according to common features of items in a The aim of this research is to define language teaching factor, items were named. 1996 A Research about the Level of Using Language Teaching Methods and Its Effect on Some Variables: in Turkey Table 1. The Result of Normalcy Test Kolmogrov-Smirnov Shapiro-Wilk Statistic sd p Statistic sd p Active Teaching Method ,250 93 ,000 ,597 93 ,000 Listening Based Teaching Method ,200 93 ,000 ,922 93 ,000 Four Basic Skills Focused Method ,323 93 ,000 ,696 93 ,000 Speaking Based Method ,285 93 ,000 ,867 93 ,000 Grammer Based Method ,375 93 ,000 ,486 93 ,000 2.4. Data Collection Table 2. Usage of Active Teaching Method After permission was obtained from Duzce Provincial Item Item N ? SS Directorate for National Education, "Language Teaching No Methods Scale" was filled by 95 English teachers who 1 I place games in exercises 95 1.83 .76 study in secondary school in Duzce in 2013-2014 teaching I use technique forming active 2 95 1.75 .88 year.