Investigation of secondary school mathematics teachers' skills in using nature-related learning materials

Abstract

It has been observed that nature and science school programs have become popular in the educational environment in Turkey, and these programs are seen as a way to improve students' attitudes towards science. The general aim of these programs is to demonstrate how scientific facts and concepts in various fields are related to daily life and to make the study enjoyable. The aim of the research is to enable mathematics teachers to increase both their mathematics selfefficacy and their awareness of the sustainability of ecosystems by effectively using learning materials associated with nature. The method of the research is a pre-test-post-test design without a control group. Data collection tools were determined to be a mathematics self-efficacy scale and an ecosystem sustainability awareness scale. Data analysis was carried out using the Wilcoxon Signed Ranks test and descriptive statistics, which are non-parametric analysis methods. The findings of the study showed a positive and significant increase in the mathematics self-efficacy and awareness levels of 25 secondary school teachers working in different schools throughout Mersin who participated in the "Digital Approaches to the Mathematics of the Ecosystem" project supported by TÜBİTAK, due to nature-related activities. It is believed that the use of nature-related learning materials in mathematics teaching will make mathematics lessons more comprehensible and enjoyable, and will help students develop a more positive attitude towards mathematics lessons.