Relationship between Mentor Teachers’ Mentoring Functions and Beginning Teachers’ Subjective Happiness

According to the Turkish Ministry of National Education Teacher Appointment and Substitution regulation,beginning teachers are subjected to a training period for the first six months of their recruitment. This newlylaunched program aims to train beginning teachers through a master–apprentice relationship, which can bedefined as a mentoring program. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between the level ofsubjective happiness of beginning teachers working at state schools and the mentoring functions their advisersperform with regard to various variables. Quantitative analysis was used, and the data were gathered throughthe Mentoring Functions scale, which was developed by Noe (1988) and the Subjective Happiness scale, developedby Lyubomirsky & Lepper (1999). The sample of the study included 171 beginning teachers from threedistricts of I stanbul province. Correlation and regression analysis revealed that there is a moderate, positive andsignificant relationship between the level of subjective happiness of trainee teachers and the level of mentoringfunctions their advisors perform. The mentoring functions the advisor teachers performed were found to be asignificant predictor of the level of subjective happiness of trainee teachers. For this reason, mentor selection,mentor–mentee match and other mentoring processes should be well structured

Coaching as a Performance Improvement Tool at School

The purpose of this study is to examine the current literature and have an insight about coaching as a performance improvement tool at school. In today’s world, schools have to survive and keep their organizational success in the highest level because of the high expectations from school stakeholders. Taking place in such a fierce competitive environment requires being more effective and efficient. Coaching can be a key to success for schools if it can be implemented in the school as a whole. The previous research findings show that if coaching techniques can be used effectively by the school principal, it becomes an effective motivation resource and performance booster not only for the teachers but also for the other staff and students. Keywords: Coach; coaching; principals; teacher; performanc

The CURRENT STATUS OF IN-SERVICE TRAININGS FOR TEACHERS AND EXPECTATIONS: DO THEY MATCH

Taking into consideration the INSETs’ direct influence on teachers’ professional development and indirect influence on the education, the present study aims to determine teachers’ opinions about in -service training activities and their proposed solutions to improve the effectiveness of the in-service training activities via the semi- structured and in-depth interviews. Also this paper specifically analyzes the latest statistics of in-service trainings in Turkey with holistic and critical approach. Data were collected from 59 teachers from three different types of school (primary, secondary, junior high school) in Turkey through a semi-structured interview, and analyzed through content analysis by searching for patterns and synthesizing them. The transcriptions were coded through NVivo 8 and then grouped together to derive broader themes shaped around core meanings (Miles & Huberman, 1994). While the most useful aspects of in-service training programs are found as professional development, meeting new people and professional development, weaknesses of in-service training programs are poor planning, lack of qualified trainers and lack of practical implications according to teacher opinions. Teachers suggested that employing expert trainers, effective planning and more interactive contents are crucial for an ideal INSET activity. The study concludes with possible reasons for the problems in concern, and practical implications

The Development and Evolution of Digital Leadership: A Bibliometric Mapping Approach-Based Study

The inevitable digitalization of workplaces in the present era, generally as a result of technological developments, has caused a paradigm shift, along with new innovative business models and business behaviors, which has required leaders to possess certain digital skills for sustainable corporate performance. Hence, studies on digital leadership have attracted the attention of academics and practitioners worldwide, with many studies having been conducted on the topic. However, a comprehensive analysis of the intellectual architecture, knowledge structure, and thematic evolution of the digital leadership field of research using science mapping tools has yet to be conducted. The current study, therefore, aimed at reviewing the intellectual structure and evolution of the digital leadership field through a bibliometric and science-mapping analysis. This study used digital leadership as an umbrella term comprising leadership styles such as e-leadership, virtual leadership, technology leadership, and leadership 4.0, which have similar meanings and can be used interchangeably. With this purpose, bibliometric performance and science mapping analysis was performed on articles related to the research field that were retrieved from the Scopus database using SciMAT software (version 1.1.04). The results of the study revealed that the scope of digital leadership research is gradually expanding and diversifying and that publication output is increasing steadily. In addition, period-based analysis showed that the technology management theme during the first period, the virtual teams and technology themes during the second period, and the COVID-19, virtual reality, and digital technologies themes during the third period emerged as the motor themes and formed the focus of research in this field. Thematic evolution analysis showed that virtual leadership during the first and second periods, virtual teams during the second period, e-leadership and technology during the second and third periods, and digital leadership, COVID-19, and virtual reality during the third period, along with technology leadership in all three periods were all noteworthy as well-developed research themes. These findings enable a better understanding of the research field of digital leadership and provide a reference for future research by revealing the conceptual structure and thematic evolution of the digital leadership knowledge base

Pradedančiųjų pedagogų požiūris į jiems skirtą naują mentorystės programą

The primary purpose of this research was to find out what novice teachers in Turkey think about the new mentoring program introduced by the Ministry of National Education (MoNE) in February, 2016. In order to collect more detailed data and gain a deep insight regarding research problem, qualitative research methods were preferred. The study group consisted of 22 newly appointed teachers during the 2016 academic term. A semi-structured interview form was used as data collection instrument. According to the results novice teachers think that the new mentoring program is beneficial in terms of classroom management, communication skills, professional efficacy; extending network and gaining experience. As for the disadvantages of the program, the novice teachers stated that they cannot choose their mentor teachers, the mentor teachers do not know the program in detail as it was used for the first time, there are a lot of trivial forms that novice teachers and mentor teachers had to fill in.Pagrindinis šio tyrimo tikslas buvo išsiaiškinti, ką pradedantieji Turkijos mokytojai mano apie naują mentorystės programą, kurią nacionalinio švietimo ministerija pradėjo vykdyti nuo 2016 m. vasario mėnesio. Ši mentorystės programa buvo privaloma ir visi naujai paskirti mokytojai turėjo joje dalyvauti. Tyrimui buvo pasirinkti kokybiniai metodai siekiant surinkti išsamesnius duomenis ir gauti gilesnių įžvalgų apie tyrimo problemą. Tyrimo dalyviai buvo 22 naujai paskirti mokytojai 2016 mokslo metų laikotarpiu. Mokytojai tyrime dalyvavo savanoriškai. Duomenų rinkimo priemonė buvo pusiau struktūruotas interviu. Pirmoje interviu dalyje buvo renkami demografiniai duomenys apie pradedančiuosius mokytojus ir jų mentorius. Antrąją interviu dalį sudarė penki klausimai apie mentorystės programos veiksmingumą. Duomenų apdorojimui, turinio analizei, buvo taikyta Nvivo 8 programinė įranga. Tyrimo rezultatai parodė, kad pradedantys mokytojai mano, kad nauja programa buvo naudinga klasės valdymo, bendravimo įgūdžiams tobulinti ir profesiniam veiksmingumui stiprinti, taip pat bendravimo tinklui plėtoti ir naujai patirčiai įgyti. Be to, pradedantieji mokytojai mano, kad jie išmoko naujų mokymo metodų stebėdami savo mokytojus mentorius. Kalbant apie programos trūkumus, pradedantieji mokytojai nurodė, kad jie negalėjo pasirinkti savo mentorių, be to, patys mentoriai nebuvo nuodugniai susipažinę su programa, kadangi ji buvo nauja, o pradedantieji mokytojai nebuvo patenkinti tuo, kad tiek pradedantiesiems mokytojams, tiek mokytojams mentoriams reikėjo pildyti daug nereikšmingų dokumentų. Jie mano, kad turėtų būti mažiau dokumentų, kuriuos reikia parengti. Pradedančiųjų mokytojų manymu, nauja mentorystės programa galėtų būti naudingesnė, jei Nacionalinė švietimo ministerija ją patobulintų. Šie rezultatai rodo, kad ministerija turėtų skubiai patobulinti mentorystės programą atsižvelgdama į pradedančiųjų mokytojų poreikius ir lūkesčius

Rethinking Decentralization in Education in terms of Administrative Problems

The general purpose of this study is to thoroughly examine decentralization in education according to the literature and previous research, and to discuss the applicability of educational decentralization practices in Turkey. The literature was reviewed for the study and findings reported. It has been observed that decentralization in education practices were realized in many countries after the 1980’s. It is obvious that the educational system in Turkey has difficulty in meeting the needs, and encounters many problems due to its present centralist state. Educational decentralization can provide effective solutions for stakeholder engagement, educational financing and for problems in decision making and operation within the education system. However, the present state of local governments, the legal framework, geographical, cultural and social features indicate that Turkey’s conditions are not ready for decentralization in education. A decentralization model realized in the long run according to Turkey’s conditions, and as a result of a social consensus, can help resolve the problems of the Turkish education system

A Situational Analysis of Educational Supervision in the Turkish Educational System

The purpose of this study is to conduct a situational analysis on the educational supervisions carried out within the Turkish educational system. Content analysis was used in this study, which is one of the qualitative research methods. An interview form was prepared by the researchers in accordance with the study purpose and expert opinion sought to ensure content and face validity. Findings of the study show that; supervision is necessary for an increase in educational quality, sustainability of educational worker development, determination and elimination of possible deficiencies, to ensure not falling behind developments in the educational system, and to collaborate within the school. It has been determined that the agents who carry out the supervision should have professional competencies, should be able to enter into effective communication, should be able to spare enough time for supervision and follow the principles of equality. In addition, the importance of effective and sufficient guidance and parental participation was highlighted. In a change to the Turkish educational system in 2014, the authority and responsibility of supervision was assigned to the school principals. Because it would decrease the psychological pressure that supervision imposes on educational workers, and enable a positive atmosphere for communication over a prolonged period, this change was believed to be beneficial overall. According to another standpoint, because school principals lack professional competencies regarding educational supervision and do not follow the principles of equality, this change instead was believed to be unfavorable