Pre-service secondary science and mathematics teachers’ classroom management styles in Turkey

Major teaching functions include instruction, classroom management, student socialization and disciplinary intervention (Brophy, 1987). In this sense, classroom management skill is sine qua non (an essential condition) for teachers, as they have to be efficient classroom managers, as well as efficient educators in classroom. In this setting, teachers are responsible for creating and maintaining an effective learning environment to achieve instructional goals (Savran and Çakıroğlu, 2004). Researches have shown that an efficient classroom management style has an influence on creating an efficient learning environment (Brophy, 1987; Savran and Çakıroğlu, 2004; Savran et al., 2006; Walters and Frei, 2007; Turan, 2008).

Classroom management refers to actions taken to create and maintain a learning environment conductive to attainment of the goals of instruction (Brophy, 1987). According to Doyle (1986), classroom management activities are closely associated with, and should be designed to support, the basic instructional activities for which schools were established. Classroom management is the process of efficiently organizing and continuing classroom activities as learning centered and guiding student behaviors (Turan, 2008).

According to Kellough and Kellough (1999) effective classroom management is the process of organizing and conducting a classroom so that it maximizes student learning. Many researchers do agree that good classroom management involves student motivation; minimizing behavioral disruption; having access to materials that are linked to learning; clarity in the minds of the learners as to what they are about, which means the teacher’s lesson is fairly concrete; good interpersonal rapport between all parties; and a lively tempo of teaching (Pankake, 2006).

Beliefs regarding classroom management vary among teachers and play an important role in effective instruction (Martin et al., 1998, 3). Martin et al. (1998) conceptualized classroom management style as two poles, non-interventionist and interventionist. The non-interventionist “presupposes the child has an inner drive that needs to find its expression in the real world”. At the opposite end of the continuum are interventionists who emphasize “what the order environment does to the human organism to cause it to develop in its particular way” (Martin et al., 1998, 4). The noninterventionist is the least directive and controlling, while the interventionist is most controlling (Savran et al., 2006, 217).

Accordingly, Willover et al. (1967) conceptualized teacher approaches towards classroom management or student control under two heading, supervisor control ideology and humanistic control ideology. In supervisor control ideology, organizations provide high level control to watch rules. Students are perceived as ordinary, irresponsible, undisciplined individuals who need to be controlled by limitations based on scolding because of their clothes, physical appearance, behaviors and social status of their families. Teachers do not tend to understand student behaviors. They emphasize moral conditions instead. Wrong behaviors are taken personally and relationships with students are private as much as possible (Willover et al., 1967; Hoy and Forsyth, 1986; Lunenburg and Mankowsky, 2000; Hoy, 2001; Hoy and Miskel, 2001). Students and teachers are responsible for their own actions to the extent that they fulfill directives (Lunenburg, 1983). In supervising schools, there is an autocratic organization in student activities and strictness in the distinction between teacher-student statuses (Kottkamp and Mulhern, 1987).

In humanistic control ideology, student learning and behaviors are handled psychologically and sociologically, rather than morally. In the humanistic view, socio-psychological (relating to social psychology) senses, developed by Fromm, are used (Hoy, 1969). In this view, shy children are considered equal to active and problematic children. Humanistic teachers are optimistic (seeing the good), and they fulfill positive expectations of respect and friendship by establishing close personal relationships with students. Teachers guide self-discipline, instead of imposing discipline (Willover et al., 1967; Hoy and Forsyth, 1986; Lunenburg and Mankowsky, 2000; Hoy, 2001; Hoy and Miskel, 2001). This style enables teachers to create a democratic classroom environment. Mutual communication and establishing a style to provide flexibility in rules and status are again possible. Thus, teachers and students are willing to act according to their own alternatives and to become responsible for their own actions. Humanistic ideology considers schools as education communities where students participate in the learning process with collaborative interactions and experiences (Lunenburg and Schmidt, 1989).

As it is clear from definitions and explanations, classroom management includes activities to largely organize classroom activity in an efficient way and remove obstacles to learning. In this context, classroom management is the action of creating a positive learning environment in the classroom. Teachers need to display efficient classroom management behaviors in order to create a positive learning environment. To this end, they must believe that they have sufficient content knowledge, professional knowledge and related competencies, as most of pre-service teachers and new teachers have certain troubles in classroom management (Walters and Frei, 2007). In this context, classroom management beliefs of pre-service teachers are crucial, and it is necessary to determine classroom management styles of pre-service teachers. Within this study, classroom management styles are defined as two dimensions (instructional management and people management).

The instructional management dimension includes aspects such as monitoring busy work, structuring daily routines, and allocating materials (Martin et al., 1998). The manner in which these tasks are managed contributes to the general classroom atmosphere and classroom management style (McNeely and Mertz, 1990; Martin et al., 1998). In this respect, for example, these teachers believe strongly that students need direction in how to work together, monitoring their learning behavior continuously, allocating classroom materials, assigning seats, and the structure of a daily routine that is organized by the teacher (Savran and Çakıroğlu, 2004). The people management dimension pertains to what teachers believe about students as persons and what teachers do to develop the teacher-student relationship (Martin et al., 1998). They give students opportunities to create their own daily routines, to judge the quality of their own work, to pursue their own interests and to select their own seats (Savran and Çakıroğlu, 2004).

Training secondary science and mathematics teachers in Turkey

In Turkey, secondary science and mathematics teachers are trained in two different ways. The first is teachers from departments of faculties of education. These people are trained to be teachers during their 5-year education (10-semester education). During the first three and a half years, pre-service teachers take theoretical lessons in the related field of study, and for the remaining one and a half years, they take courses on pedagogy for teacher training. Pre-service secondary science and mathematics teachers take approximately 185-credit courses during their education. They have a training program at schools, as well as theoretical and practical courses. The second way of training secondary science and mathematics teachers is a one-year-master’s program in which graduates participate after their four-year-undergraduate studies. Those who would like to enroll in these programs need to be graduated from related departments of faculties of science and letters and pass the graduate study admission examination. These people take approximately 130-credit theoretical and practical lessons during their four-year education. Those who pass the graduate study admission examination take pedagogy lessons for teacher training for one year. The following lessons are included in this curriculum: Introduction to Educational Sciences, Developmental Psychology, Program Development and Teaching, Special Education Methods, School Experience, Measuring and Evaluation, Classroom Management, Teaching Technologies and Material Design, Practice Teaching, Guidance, Learning and Teaching Theories and Approaches to Learning and Teaching and a Field Education Research Project.

The purpose of the present study is to determine classroom management styles of pre-service secondary science and mathematics teachers enrolled in the secondary school sciences master’s program (without thesis). The study attempted to answer the following questions:

Q1. What are pre-service secondary science and mathematics teachers’ classroom management styles?

Q2. Are there any differences between pre-service secondary science and mathematics teachers’ classroom management styles according to gender and field of study?