Pre-service science teachers’ opinions about using the feedback process in the preparation of teaching materials

Findings

This section will examine the opinions under the themes determined using the research questions.

1. The pre-service teachers’ opinions about the theme of feedback’s contributions to learning.

The pre-service teachers had positive opinions on the use of feedback in preparation of material in terms of its contribution to learning seeing and correcting their errors about the materials they prepare and thereby ensure a significant and permanent learning were the most emphasized opinions.

Table 1 presents the data associated with the first research question.

Table 1: The results of the content analysis of the pre-service teachers’ opinions about the theme of feedback’s contributions to learning.

Keywords	f	Keywords	f
Recognizing errors	33	Distinctive thinking	3
Correcting mistakes	25	Improving oneself	2
Meaningful learning	18	Synthesis	2
Eliminating deficiencies	7	The reflection of learned knowledge on performance	2
Permanent learning	6	Writing the acquisitions	2
Experience	5	Thinking deeply	2
Creativity	5	Eliminating misconceptions	1
Doing research	4	Doing interpretation	1
Communication (teacher-student)	4	Analysis	1
Recognizing and correcting ambiguities	4	Broad thinking	1
Approaching excellence (quality)	4	Objective criticism	1
Instant feedback	4	Effective use of time	1
Production of new ideas	4	Reviewing the knowledge	1
Being aware of responsibilities	4	Putting original ideas into practice	1
Achievement	4	Making students think	1
A second chance	3	Unique studies	1
Discovering details	3	Breaking the ice with the course	1
Associating the course with daily life	3	Learning the source of the mistake	1
Effective group work	3	Enjoyable	1
Increasing attention	3

Table 1 shows that the pre-service teachers’ most commonly held opinion was that the use of feedback in teaching materials preparation helps them to recognize and correct mistakes. Here are some of the pre-service teachers’ (PST) opinions about this:

PST1: “If the purpose of the study is to teach something, then mistakes should definitely be corrected.”

PST2: “It helps us to correct the concepts that we understand or express inaccurately.”

Another pre-service teacher used a different approach, and said: “In this process, we see that the things that we think we know and do correctly are actually incorrect” (PST3). This shows how effectively feedback prevents incorrect learning. Table 1 also shows that the students think that feedback contributes to meaningful and permanent learning. One pre-service teacher said: “In this process, we try to correct our mistakes and learn at the same time. So, the feedback process enables to achieve permanent learning” (PST4). Another student who said that a feedback should not only be a grade also said that: “The use of feedback definitely increased the quality of learning. If we were merely informed about our grade after the assignments, it would not add to our knowledge” (PST5). Some students said that it was absolutely necessary to eliminate deficient learning to be able to learn something new.

Table 1 shows that feedback is also beneficial to professional experience, establishing communication between teachers and students and objective criticism. One student expressed this opinion by saying: “To me, learning by practicing provides more permanent, solid and unforgettable knowledge. What’s more, this process makes us aware about the kind of attitude we should have when criticizing something. For instance, I am learning how to be more realistic and objective when I make a criticism. This helps me to recognize my mistakes and deficiencies more easily” (PST6). This opinion shows that teachers’ objective attitudes towards students’ performances persuade them about their mistakes and deficiencies. Some students said that feedback contributes to distinctive thinking and producing new ideas (Table 1). During the interviews, one student said: “In my opinion, being given feedback during the learning process corrects our mistakes and misconceptions and helps us comprehend new information better, which leads to full learning. It also makes it possible to discover more distinctive and original ideas. So, our creativity is enhanced by such an environment” (PST7). Another student described working more on an insufficient teaching material and eliminating its deficiencies instead of throwing it away, which is important because the student recognized that every effort can be improved even if it is deficient.

2. The pre-service teachers’ opinions about the theme of feedback’s advantages.

The pre-service teachers believed that the use of feedback in preparation of materials had many advantages. The most emphasized advantages were obtaining information about errors, seeing their deficiencies and complete them, and permanent learning.

Table 2 presents the data associated with the second research question.

Table 2: The results of the content analysis of the students’ opinions about the theme of feedback’s advantages

Keywords	f	Keywords	f
Information about errors	20	A second chance	2
Permanent learning	18	Changing the teacher’s image in students’ minds in a positive way	2
Correcting mistakes	15	Enhancing motivation	2
Recognizing and eliminating deficiencies	13	Being aware of the expectations of the teacher	2
Comprehension	10	Maintaining interest in the course	2
Knowledge in the study area	9	Multidimensional thinking	1
Conveying the subject effectively	9	No repetition of mistakes	1
Professional experience	5	Quality in education	1
Prevention of conveying incorrect knowledge	5	Doing research	1
Challenging process and excellent outcome	5	The benefit of instant feedback	1
Learning about teaching material preparation	3	Doing interpretation	1
Practical learning	3	Improving oneself	1
Awareness	3	Creativity	1
Communication	2	New ideas	1

Table 2 shows that most of the pre-service teachers thought that feedback’s greatest advantage was providing information about the mistakes in the teaching materials they prepared. They also stated that the process was advantageous in terms of correcting mistakes, eliminating deficiencies and providing permanent learning. One pre-service teacher said: “People achieve permanent learning by recognizing their mistakes and inadequacies. Thanks to the feedback process, I don’t have any regrets such as, ‘I wish I wrote this, too’” (PST1). It is important that the pre-service teachers said feedback added to their knowledge about their study area, prevented the conveyance of incorrect information due to the teacher and helped them gain professional experience at the same time. Here are four pre-service teachers’ opinions about these points:

PST2: “The feedback process gave me an advantage in directing students towards a pre-determined learning goal.”

PST3: “To me, this process had many advantages and helped me improve myself. It taught me to write the acquisitions of the teaching material to be prepared, something about which I had little knowledge or ability.”

PST4: “Besides learning, this process affected my opinions about how to teach. So, I think this process changes students’ perspectives on the teacher because students are always like teachers more if they explain errors and give students a second chance by showing how to fix them instead of handing you your exam paper and forgetting about it because you got a low grade.”

PST5: “A teacher can convey accurate information to students in an incorrect way. In the feedback process, the teacher has the chance to recognize this mistake and convey the information in the correct way. Or maybe the teacher has forgotten to teach information in the lesson. This information will be presented thanks to feedback.”

Table 2 shows that pre-service teachers think that feedback is challenging and requires a lot of effort, but that it helps them to approach excellence. They also said that they had practical information and experience about how to prepare teaching materials. One pre-service teacher said: “It is not enough to know that something you have done was not true or insufficient. When there is no feedback, we complete the activities without correcting errors and eliminating problems. We only learn that there is incorrect or insufficient information. We do not learn how to eliminate it or correct the error” (PST6). As implied by the pre-service teachers’ opinions, students will recognize errors and deficiencies in learning, and accordingly, they will have experiences which will help them accomplish their tasks in the best possible way. Another advantage of feedback is enhancing motivation. Here is one pre-service teacher’s opinion about this point: “Feedback gets students to do their homework better. When students do their homework better, this positively affects their motivation and thus their achievement in lessons” (PST9).

Table 2 shows that the pre-service teachers thought another advantage of feedback was multidimensional thinking, which will establish communication between teachers and students and positively affect the lessons. Here are some of the pre-service teachers’ opinions about this:

PST7: “I think giving feedback may reduce quarrels between teachers and students because the students may react to the teacher when they get low grades, and lose interest in the course, but feedback makes students who recognize their mistakes try to correct them on their own.”

PST8: “This process has enabled us to think in a multidimensional way. It also helped us to develop different perspectives on a certain event and create different solutions. So, I have begun to like this course better than the others.”

3. The pre-service teachers’ opinions about the theme of feedback’s disadvantages.

Most pre-service teachers believed that the use of feedback process in preparation of materials had no disadvantages. The most stressed disadvantages were its being time-consuming and exhausting.

Table 3 presents the data associated with the third research question.

Table 3: The results of the content analysis of the pre-service teachers’ opinions about the theme of feedback’s disadvantages.

Keywords	f	Keywords	f
No disadvantages	18	Failure anxiety	2
Being time-consuming	10	Having a lot of homework	2
Exhausting the pre-service teachers	6	Making a mistake	1
Giving up	4	Misconception	1
Being elaborative	2

Table 3 shows that a majority of the pre-service teachers said that feedback had no disadvantages. On the other hand, some pre-service teachers said that the time consuming nature of the feedback process was its biggest disadvantage. Here is one such opinion: “I think the process took a very long time because the teaching materials need to be organized one by one and this requires a lot of time” (PST10). The pre-service teachers said that the feedback process was exhausting for them. One pre-service teacher said: “The teacher may be exhausted by the feedback process” (PST5), which shows that the pre-service teacher perceived the process as exhausting for teachers, too. The students made revisions every week based on written and verbal feedback about their teaching materials and their initial grades. Then, they were given final grades for the teaching materials they improved or revised. It is probable that this process exhausted some pre-service teachers and caused feelings of failure anxiety and wishing to give up due to being unable to present an excellent product in the first stage and to use their second chance well. One participant said: “Not being able to achieve the desired outcome even at the end of the feedback process may cause students to give up” (PST7). Table 3 shows that some other pre-service teachers said it was a disadvantage that the teaching materials needed to be prepared comprehensively and that there was a lot of homework.

4. The pre-service teachers’ opinions about the theme of feedback preferences in professional life.

The pre-service teachers had positive opinions on the use of feedback in terms of preferring it in professional life. The most highlighted points were that the process provides effective and significant learning, helps them to see their errors clearly, and ensures the permanence of the information learned.

Table 4 presents the data associated with the fourth research question.

Table 4: The results of the content analysis of the pre-service teachers’ opinions about the theme of feedback preferences in professional life.

Keywords	f	Keywords	f
Effective and meaningful learning	18	Learning no longer being an obligation	2
Recognizing students’ mistakes clearly	10	Continuous communication	2
Permanent learning	9	Instant feedback	2
Comprehensive learning	9	An enjoyable environment	2
A second chance	7	Achievement	1
Saving time	5	Teacher acting as a guide	1
Reducing mistakes	5	Correcting information which was conveyed incorrectly before	1
Thinking	5	Written and verbal feedback being effective	1
Self-assessment	4	Guidance	1
Eliminating the deficiencies	4	Communication	1
Accurate (objective) evaluation	3	Affects homework and projects	1
Practical learning	3	Awareness of the student	1
Doing research	3	Individual learning	1
Improving oneself	3	Creative thinking	1

Table 4 shows that the pre-service teachers’ most commonly held opinion of feedback in professional life is that it enhances effective and meaningful learning. Two pre-service teachers said:

PST9: “I will use feedback in my professional life. I think it will be beneficial for my students to use it to recognize their deficiencies and achieve effective learning.”

PST10: “I will definitely use it in my professional life. I think feedback improves the meaningful learning process, and students improve themselves this way.”

Table 4 shows that pre-service teachers thought feedback contributed to the achievement of full and permanent learning, helped teachers see students’ mistakes and helped students recognize their own errors. Here are some of their opinions about this from the interviews: “Feedback can influence students’ learning. It provides continuous communication between teachers and students. Students see their mistakes and see what they should do, and the teacher acts as a guide (PST2).” This opinions shows that the pre-service teachers accept the ideas of student-centered learning, communication between teachers and students helping to achieve learning and establishing communication using feedback. Here is another opinion about the recognition of mistakes: “I will use the feedback process in my professional life because I think my students should recognize their mistakes and learn how to correct them right away” (PST4). This opinion is important since it shows that feedback importantly allows students to recognize and correct their learning mistakes on their own.

Table 4 also shows that some pre-service teachers regard feedback as a way of saving time for learning and a second chance. One pre-service teacher said: “I will use feedback in my professional life. It is necessary to give students a second chance to get them to learn by recognizing and correcting their mistakes” (PST6). Another pre-service teacher said: “I would like to use feedback in my professional life because I think it is better to give another chance to correct a mistake instead of being judged for that mistake” (PST7). These opinions are important evidence that learning is achieved in a certain period of time, and that students see feedback about their work as a second chance.

One pre-service teacher provided this opinion about written and verbal feedback: “In my professional life, giving written and verbal feedback together would help me ensure that what I want to explain and teach be more permanent. I correct the incorrect information that students have, and I aim to minimize my students’ mistakes” (PST3). Other pre-service teachers thought that feedback made their classes more enjoyable and improved communication with their students. One pre-service teacher said: “My communication with my students would be stronger. They would try to correct their mistakes by learning individually. So, I would be able to spare time for each student. None of the students would think that they received less attention than the others” (PST5). These opinions show that communication between teachers and students will help students recognize and correct their mistakes, which will make them to learn. It also indicates that feedback will ensure that teachers will show equal personal attention to each student.