An inquiry into the critical thinking disposition of Turkish pre-service teachers: A thematic analysis of theses

Abstract

This study aims to examine the theses on the critical thinking disposition of teacher candidates in Turkey. The document review method was used, which deals with documents related to a specific subject with a qualitative approach. The data of the research were analyzed by content analysis method. The Turkish Council of Higher Education (TCHE) national database was searched using the keywords "teacher candidate" and "critical thinking disposition," and 30 accessible theses were included in the research. Theses reached within the scope of the research; It was analyzed according to the themes of "academic level," "year," "scope of the subject," "research method," "sample," "data collection tools," "analysis method" and "results." The thesis studies were examined by two experts and coded according to themes. The percentage of agreement among experts was determined as 95%. It was understood that many of the theses examined were master's theses and were completed in 2019. It was observed that the samples of most of the theses consisted of social studies and science teacher candidates. It was determined that the Relational and Comparative research models were used more in the theses examined. t-Test, ANOVA, and correlation techniques are the most preferred techniques for data analysis. The number of theses in which qualitative research models are used is quite limited. The reviewed theses have focused on demographic characteristics, media literacy, entrepreneurship, emotional intelligence, and 21st-century skills as the primary correlates of critical thinking disposition. According to the results of the research, several recommendations have been developed.