An Alternative Approach in Preschool Education: Teachers', Parents and Executives' Views in Forest Schools

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Thesis Type: Postgraduate

Institution Of The Thesis: Ankara Yildirim Beyazit University, Sağlık Bilimleri Enstitüsü, Turkey

Approval Date: 2019

Thesis Language: Turkish

Student: Merve Koyuncu

Supervisor: Fatma Elif Kılınç

Abstract:

An Alternative Approach in Preschool Education: Teachers’, Parents’ and Executives’ Views in Forest Schools The philosophy of the forest school is based on a nature-based approach and includes active learning centered activities in the natural environment within forest schools. Dissimilarly to traditional education, forest school is an alternative education approach which supports the development of children by allowing the flexible learning in an outdoor environment and by using nature. The purpose of the administrators who work in schools that executes applications in Turkey and forest school teachers and parents of children who attend this school of research is to examine the opinions of those applications. In order to achieve this goal, we sought to answer questions about the differences between preschool and non-classroom activities in Forest School practices in accordance with the MEB curricula, the importance of forest schools, the need to increase the implementation examples, the qualifications of forest school to be trained, and how to carry out activities in order to raise awareness about what qualifications to be able to become a forest school instructor and the development of forest schools. Case science pattern was used in the study of qualitative research methods. The research has created schools that carry out forest nursery practices in Turkey. Among these, two states, seven administrators, 30 teachers and children working in three private forest nursery schools, constituted 83 parents’ sample groups continuing to this school. As a result of the research, parents, managers and teachers are preferred to be different from other educational institutions because of the application of the student-centered learning approach of the forest school. These participants, who think that holistic development is important for children, have pointed out that although they represent a high degree of Forest School awareness, there are difficulties in finding qualified staff.