Review of Classroom Teachers’ Standpoints for Elementary Schools in the Context of Schools’ Readiness

Abstract

In this study, our aim is to determine whether elementary schools are ready for children to start school in line with the opinions of the classroom teachers. This research was carried out based on single screening and causal comparison models. The population of the study consisted of 617 classroom teachers, who were selected out of 881 classroom teachers in the city of Çanakkale through stratified sampling method. Data were collected using Elementary Schools’ Readiness Assessment Tool (ESRAT), developed by Kartal and Güner (2019), in the 2018-2019 school year. These data were analyzed using frequency, percentage, average, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), and Tukey’s honestly significant difference test. The study found out that the sub-dimensions of the ESRAT with the highest average level of participation from the classroom teachers were respectively Implementations of transition to school, Physical arrangements in common use areas (PACUA), Physical security measures and Teachers’ preparations. It also revealed that professional seniority and first-grade teaching experience had an impact on the average scores obtained by the classroom teachers from the dimension of Teachers’ preparations. In addition, the study determined that there was a significant difference in the average scores of the classroom teachers on the ESRAT according to the level of education in terms of elementary schools’ readiness, whereas there was no significant difference according to professional seniority, first-grade teaching experience, and the socioeconomic level of the school environment. This research addresses the subject of school readiness, focusing on schools, more particularly on the significance of a different dimension of school readiness in the national-scale literature.