Bulent Alci

The influence of self-efficacy and motivational factors on academic performance in general chemistry course: A modeling study

This study aims to determine the predictive and explanatory model in terms of university students’ academic performance in ‘General Chemistry’ course and their motivational features. The participants were 169 university students in the 1st grade at university. Of the participants, 132 were female and 37 were male students. Regarding their department, while 89 of them were students at Chemistry Department, 80 participants were at Chemistry Engineering Department. In order to determine students’ motivational stimulants towards General Chemistry, Science Motivation Questionnaire (SMQ) was used. The questionnaire was developed by Glynn et al. was adapted into Turkish by Ilhan et al. The scores that students got from General Chemistry course were obtained from the lecturers teaching them and they were the average academic performance grades measured during the term. The data were analyzed with SPSS 17.0 and AMOS 21.0 software program through Structural Equation Model (SEM). In this research, the first suggested model was tested and as a result of fit indexes, some modifications were done and it was verified accordingly. Key words: Academic achievement, extrinsic motivation, intrinsic motivation, Structural Equation Modeling.

Application of Context Input Process and Product Model in Curriculum Evaluation: Case Study of a Call Centre.

The goal of this research which was carried out in reputable dedicated call centres within the Turkish telecommunication sector aims is to evaluate competence-based curriculums designed by means of internal funding through Stufflebeam’s context, input, process, product (CIPP) model. In the research, a general scanning pattern in the scope of descriptive research is used. The data collection instrument consists of the professional competence development curriculum’s CIPP evaluation scale developed by researchers. Participants are 622 call centre agents who served in the Black Sea, Central Anatolia and Eastern Anatolia Regions in 2014 and 2015. Statistical analyses of the research were conducted by applying statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) v23.0 and Amos v21.0 software. In addition to gap analyses, the Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) was applied as well. For the construct validity of the scale, analyses of the illustrative and confirmatory factors are conducted respectively. In scoring, in focusing on the dimensions of the CIPP evaluation scale, significant variations by gender and education background have been observed between the opinions of the participants.

An Examination of Students’ Perceptions of Service Quality Dimensions in Higher Education

Abstract There have been so many recent changes in the universities. These changes force these institutions to provide better service quality. This study purposed to evaluate detailed exploration of service quality in the higher education by the instrument of service quality, Higher Education Performance (HEd-PERF). The scale was administered to 576 students studying at the Yildiz Technical University to find out if there are any differences between gender and year of study in terms of students’ perceptions of service quality dimensions. T-test results show that gender is a significant variable regarding students’ perceptions of accessing service and physical facilities. The Scheffe’s post-hoc test for multiple comparisons done reveal that the students’ perceptions of service quality dimensions change over depending on the year of study.

Medical Faculty Students' Academic Motivation Types: A Comparison with Respect to Various Variables

Abstract The purpose of this paper is to determine the types of academic motivation of medical faculty students according to the type of university they study at and their gender. The study group of this descriptive paper consists of 165 students who study at a state university and 162 students who study at two private universities. The total number of the study group was 327 medical faculty students. In order to find out the motivation types of the students, the Turkish version of “Academic Motivation Scale” was used. After t-tests analysis, it was found out that, statistically there is no significant difference between the motivation types of the state university students and private university students. On the other hand, when compared the motivation types of the female and male students, the paper concluded that there is a significant difference regarding intrinsic, extrinsic and total motivation types in favour of female students.

Evaluation of the Curriculum of English Preparatory Classes at Yildiz Technical University Using CIPP Model.

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the instruction program of preparatory classes at Yildiz Technical University using CIPP model. A total of 54 teachers and 753 university students attending preparatory classes in the Academic Year of 2014-2015 formed the study group. The research is based on a questionnaire applied to teachers and students. For the analysis of the data, the means and the standard deviation scores were determined separately. Furthermore, in order to figure out the differences between teachers’ and students’ responses, independent samples t-test technique was applied. The findings have indicated that although the teachers and students have some apprehensions on a few items such as balancing of skills, lacking of audio-visual materials, not acquiring the habit of studying in groups and the knowledge of English for different areas, they generally hold positive ideas towards the curriculum. It has also been revealed from the responses that, except for the context factor of the instruction program, the difference between the teachers’ and students’ opinions about the other factors of the instruction program are not significant. Key words: Curriculum evaluation based on CIPP model, English language teaching, curriculum.

The Correlation between Pre-service Teachers’ Attitudes towards Technology and Achievement in Material Design Course

Abstract This study aims to specify the correlation between pre-service teachers’ attitudes towards technology and achievement in material design. The participants of the study consisted of 127 pre-service teachers from different disciplines. To determine the attitudes of pre-service teachers, data was collected using the “Technology Attitude Scale”. The achievement scores of pre-service teachers in material design were obtained using the material evaluation form developed by the researchers based on the principles of designing material. While evaluating the data, analyses of Pearson correlation and t-test were conducted, the results revealed a positive correlation between pre-service teachers’ attitudes towards technology and achievement in material design. Also, significant differences were found according to pre-service teachers’ disciplines. These findings and implications for educational researchers were also further discussed.