Investigation of Primary School Textbooks and Cognitive Structures of Students in the Context of Thinking Skills Concepts

Abstract

In this study, it is aimed to examine the frequency of thinking skills concepts (problem solving, creative thinking and critical thinking) in primary school textbooks and the cognitive structures of primary school 4th grade students towards these concepts. Descriptive survey method was used in the study. Research data were collected by document analysis and word association test. In the document analysis process; life science, Turkish, mathematics, music, science, social sciences and traffic safety textbooks that were used in 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th grades were examined. In the second stage, in the 2018-2019 academic year, the word association test was applied to 325 students studying in the 4th class in schools having different socioeconomic status. At the end of the research, it is seen that the concept of problem was mostly used in mathematics course, whereas in other textbooks this concept was limited in number. The concepts of creativity and criticism were used in a limited number of all textbooks. As a result of the word association test, it is concluded that the students associate the concept of problem solving with mathematics concepts and they create a weak cognitive structure for the concepts of creative thinking and critical thinking.