Investigating Teachers' Fidelity to Constructivist Chemistry Curriculum in Turkey: Congruence between Intended, Perceived and Observed Curriculum in Turkey

Abstract

This study aimed to evaluate chemistry teachers' curriculum fidelity in Turkey. Therefore, it was investigated how intended constructivist principles in the 9th grade chemistry curriculum in 2007, have been perceived and implemented into the practice by the chemistry teachers in Turkey. A qualitative evaluative case study guided this research study, which was carried out with 23 chemistry teachers, working in the high schools in Erzurum city center and selected by convenient sampling method. The data was collected through semi-structured interviews under the guidance of the “Teacher Interview Form (TIF)” and classroom observations using the “Chemistry Class Constructivist Environment Observation Form (CCCEOF)” developed by the researchers. The interview and observation data were subjected to content analysis. The findings showed that the constructivist principles intended in the chemistry curriculum are not adequately perceived by the teachers and are put into practice in a traditional way.