Baku, Azerbaijan | 103 INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL of ACADEMIC RESEARCH Vol. 6. No. 2. March, 2014 I. Coskun. Self-efficacy perception of candidates' Turkish and primary school education on Turkish teaching. International Journal of Academic Research Part B; 2014; 6(2), 103-107. DOI: 10.7813/2075-4124.2014/6-2/B.16 Library of Congress Classification: L7-991, LB1501-1547 SELF-EFFICACY PERCEPTION OF CANDIDATES’ TURKISH AND PRIMARY SCHOOL EDUCATION ON TURKISH TEACHING Ibrahim Coskun Trakya University, Faculty of Education, Edirne (TURKEY) zibrahimc@gmail.com DOI: 10.7813/2075-4124.2014/6-2/B.16 Received: 30 Oct, 2013 Accepted: 15 Mar, 2014 ABSTRACT The purpose of the present study is to investigate the perceptions of self-efficacy in Turkish language and primary teaching trainees studying at the department of primary school teaching and Turkish language teaching. The study investigated whether the program in which they study had an impact on the perception of self-efficacy. As a descriptive study, the present study adopts a co-relational survey model, one of the commonly used survey models in the literature. In the present study, in which a previously developed self-efficacy perception scale was used, the data were analyzed using SPSS. The results indicated that the teacher trainees studying at the Turkish language teaching department had higher levels of self-efficacy. To boost the self-efficacy levels of the participants studying at the department of primary school education department various recommendations were made such as introducing more language courses and Turkish education courses into the curriculum and doing more practice. Key words: Turkish Language Teacher, Self-Efficacy, Teacher Candidate, Turkish Teaching 1. INTRODUCTION Turkish language lessons that appear in primary and secondary education are taught by elementary school teachers, while they are taught by teachers of Turkish in secondary schools. Teacher candidates who successfully get a bachelor’s degree and who outperform most other teacher candidates in the Examination for Selecting Public Employees are assigned to a public teaching post. As it is stated in the National Education Act, numbered 1739, teachers are required to be proficient in three major areas. Those who will perform the teaching profession are obliged to get prepared for the examinations by focusing on general knowledge, special domain education and pedagogical knowledge. Self-efficacy that these teachers develop through education and experience is highly significant because it has a deep impact on the capacity to perform the profession. Proficiency is defined as the extent to which a person has the knowledge, skills and attitudes that are essential for fulfilling a certain task (Balci, 2005, p.197). It is also defined as a person’s fulfilling tasks that he/she is expected to do or having the knowledge or skills that are needed for exhibiting certain behaviors (Sisman, 2006, p. 219; Demirtas and Gunes, 2002, p. 168, Sahin, 2006, p. 291). The perception of self-efficacy, on the other hand, is a person’s belief in his/her individual properties and capacity in successfully fulfilling a task that he/she encounters in life. According to Bandura (1997) Schunk (1991) and Tuckman (1991), it is defined as the ability to control emotional performance that helps a person achieve a task (such as an examination, homework or a certain task) that he/she is assigned. The perception of self-efficacy is one of the factors that are essential for success in life. If this perception is missing or poor, it is difficult for a person to overcome difficulties encountered or fulfill tasks to be done (Bandura and Bussey 1999). The perception of self-efficacy has various impacts on a person’s cognitive, motivational and affective preferences that directly affect what that person does (Bandura, 1994). In this respect, how self-sufficient learners view themselves directly affects their motivation, preferences, efforts and achievements. The following sources are used to acquire this belief; (1) mastery experiences, (2) vicarious experiences, (3) social persuasion and (4) psychological and emotional states (Bandura, 1995). In the literature, how teachers view themselves in terms of meeting the basic requirements of teaching is referred to as “teacher’s self-efficacy” (Schunk, 2009; Gibson, Dembo, 1984). In this respect, the perception of self-efficacy emerges as a significant concept with respect to educational and instructional processes. Saracaloglu et al., (2010); Swackhamer, et al., (2009); Yilmaz and Cokluk-Bokeoglu (2008); Capri and Celikkaleli (2008); Demirtas et al., (2011) and Bandura (1993)stressed the importance of this concept. Higher levels of perception of self-efficacy in teachers positively affect learners’ overall success and motivation, help them manage the classroom and available time well and assist them to prevent disruptive learner behavior in addition to encouraging them to use new instructional methods and increasing their commitment to the profession.