School of Foreign Languages

Presentation of Thesis Outcomes within the Scope of Continuous Professional Development by Lecturer Yasemin Aktaş

Lecturer Yasemin Aktaş, who works at the School of Foreign Languages of Nevşehir Hacı Bektaş Veli University, shared the findings of her master’s thesis titled “A Comparative Study of Compulsory and Optional English Preparatory Programs: Different Stakeholders’ Perspectives” and the recommendations she developed based on these findings with her colleagues. During the presentation, the current status of the Optional and Compulsory English Preparatory Programs carried out at the School of Foreign Languages, the opinions and expectations of students and instructors regarding preparatory education, and the main challenges encountered in the teaching process were discussed. In addition, the instructors attending the presentation shared their views on the findings and offered practical suggestions for making the English preparatory programs more effective.

Abstract

The present study aimed to compare the perceived effectiveness of compulsory and optional English preparatory programs at a state university in Türkiye and to determine whether their optional or compulsory nature has a perceived impact on the quality of education. Accordingly, an open-ended questionnaire was administered to 129 students enrolled in the optional preparatory program and 38 students enrolled in the compulsory preparatory program, and semi-structured interviews were conducted with 6 instructors teaching in both preparatory programs. The findings revealed that the majority of students in both optional and compulsory preparatory programs were highly pleased with the education offered, although they identified some deficiencies regarding the curriculum, including a lack of speaking practice and field-specific courses. Moreover, nearly half of the students in the optional preparatory program were content with its optional nature, while all students in the compulsory preparatory program expressed positive opinions about its compulsory structure. From the instructors’ perspective, the results showed that the optional preparatory program partially achieved its objectives due to a lack of student interest, whereas the compulsory preparatory program largely achieved its objectives thanks to students’ high level of motivation. It was also revealed that the optional nature of the program had a negative impact on the quality of education, whereas its compulsory nature positively affected educational quality according to the instructors.