This research aimed to examine the effect of authentic learning activities on achievement in social studies and attitudes towards Geographic Information System (GIS). To this end, it used an explanatory mixed method design where both quantitative and qualitative data were collected. The quantitative data were collected using an academic achievement test and the Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Attitude Scale developed by Baloğlu Uğurlu and the qualitative data were collected using a semi-structured interview form. The research was carried out in two fifth-grade sections in a middle school in Kırşehir located in central Turkey during the fall semester of the 2019-2020 academic year. The study group consisted of 60 students, the half of whom were in the control group and the other half were in the experimental group. The experimental group was taught using authentic learning activities, while the control group was taught using textbook activities prepared in accordance with the social studies curriculum. According to the results of the analysis of the quantitative data, there was a significant difference in the test scores in favor of the experimental group and there was a significant positive difference between the experimental group’s mean pretest and posttest scores in the GIS Attitude Scale. The results of the analysis of the qualitative data showed that the students did not get bored with the social studies course, they were more active during the classes and attended the course thanks to the activities they did in the classroom, and they could see the landforms they had not had the chance to see before and learned better thanks to the GIS software. The research explores, for the first time, the effect of authentic learning on GIS attitude.

This article investigates cross-cultural differences in analytic/holistic cognitive styles among participants from 11 countries: Armenia, Australia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Czechia, Germany, Ghana, Philippines, Slovakia, Taiwan, and Türkiye. Using a preregistered design, 993 university students were assessed with three perceptual tasks based on Navon's hierarchical figures and Gottschaldt's embedded figures. Analytic and holistic cognitive styles were estimated using reaction time modeling, specifically a Bayesian four-parameter shifted Wald distribution and a hierarchical linear ballistic accumulator model. The results revealed notable cross-cultural variations in cognitive styles, though these differences did not align with predictions from analytic/holistic cognitive style theory. Countries traditionally characterized as more holistic or analytic did not consistently show the expected cognitive style patterns. Multilevel modeling examined the influence of country-level variables, such as Hofstede's and Schwartz's cultural dimensions. While some dimensions, like individualism and long-term orientation, were associated with both analytic and holistic thinking, many cultural predictors had no significant impact on cognitive styles. Additionally, exploratory latent profile analysis assessed cognitive metastyles, such as flexibility and rigidity, but the findings do not support the presence of a rigidity metastyle. No profiles exhibited a strong preference for one cognitive dimension while showing a low preference for the other. These findings challenge the straightforward application of analytic/holistic theory across diverse cultural contexts and suggest a need for reevaluation of its generalizability. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Oryantiring sporunda harita ve pusula kullanımı bir gerekliliktir. Bu nedenle oryantiring bireyin coğrafi becerilerinin gelişimine katkı sunabilir. Bu çalışmanın amacı oryantiring dersinin Beden Eğitimi ve Spor Yüksekokulu öğrencilerinin harita okuryazarlık becerilerine etkisini incelemektir. Araştırmada tek grup öntest - sontest zayıf deneysel desen kullanılmıştır. Uygulama 15 hafta sürmüştür. Araştırmanın çalışma grubu çalışma evreninden seçkisiz olmayan amaçsal örnekleme yöntemlerinden ölçüt örnekleme yöntemi ile belirlenmiştir. Araştırmaya Aydın Adnan Menderes Üniversitesi Beden Eğitimi ve Spor Yüksekokulu’nda farklı sınıf düzeylerinde öğrenim gören ve oryantiring dersini alan 48 öğrenci katılmıştır. Araştırma sonucunda; çalışma grubunun öntest ve sontest puan ortalamaları arasında istatiksel açıdan anlamlı bir farkın olduğu, oryantiring dersinin öğrencilerin harita okuryazarlık becerilerini geliştirmede orta düzeyde etkili olduğu belirlenmiştir.

This research aimed to investigate the effect of a technology-supported 3E learning model on middle school students’ knowledge of disasters and their attitudes towards disaster preparedness. To this end, it used an explanatory sequential mixed methods design. Quantitative and qualitative data were used to describe how the technology-supported 3E learning model changes the learning environment. A pretest-posttest control group quasi-experimental design was used in the quantitative part of the research, and a case study was used in the qualitative part. The experimental procedure lasted for six weeks. The sample consisted of 33 fifth-grade students attending a public school. The Disaster Preparedness Attitude Scale, an achievement test, and an interview form were used as data collection tools. The analysis results showed that the experimental group achieved statistically significantly higher scores in the posttest and the retention test of the Disaster Preparedness Attitude Scale, and the achievement test compared to the control group. Additionally, according to student views, the technology-supported 3E learning model is more helpful in acquiring skills and values, provides the opportunity to learn by experiencing, increases students’ motivation, and facilitates effective disaster education. These results indicate that conducting activities on a subject that concerns the whole society, such as disasters, using advancing and innovative technological devices, preparing lesson plans, and demonstrating their effectiveness in education will make a significant contribution to the literature.