Material Development in the Context of the Preschool Teaching Profession

In Turkey, preschool education teachers take courses on material development during their university education, and as such are expected to prepare materials to meet children's interest and needs and enrich their learning environment. This study aims to reveal preschool education teachers' views on material development courses and the effects of these courses on preschool education teachers' professional lives. The participants in this qualitative study were 19 serving preschool teachers, who had taught in an MEB-affiliated kindergarten. In this study, an interview form was created by the researchers as the data-gathering tool. The interviews were conducted with teachers. After data gathering process, the content analysis was applied to the collected data. According to the results of the study, which is aimed to reveal preschool education teachers' views on material development courses and the effects of these courses on their professional lives, the preschool teachers recognized the importance of material development in preschool education and considered material development courses as significant within the teacher education program. In this context, teacher education programs should include material development courses. The study also reveals how material development reflects on the preschool teaching profession. [This study was presented as an oral presentation at the 7th International Congress on New Trends in Education, in Antalya, in May 2016.]