DETERMINATION OF EDUCATIONAL NEEDS OF TECHNOLOGY AND DESIGN COURSES IN SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS

Abstract

Parallel to the overwhelming development of information and technology in today’s world-changing work and living conditions have caused changes in the educational needs of both the society and the individuals. This study aimed at determining the educational needs for technology and design courses of today’s students who grow with technology and the digital World. The participants in this study, in which a mixed method was used, were the 7th year students studying in state secondary schools of TRNC (Turkish Republic of North Cyprus) in the 2017-2018 academic year. In the qualitative dimension, the students were assigned to write a composition and in the quantitative dimension, a needs analysis questionnaire was done. The data were analyzed through content analysis, arithmetic averages, and standard deviation. The priority in this research was to determine the students’ expectations towards technology and design course and according to these expectations, their educational needs were categorized. At the end of the research, the needs for technology and design course were determined in three different categories; general needs, needs for design, and needs for information technologies.