Uluslararası Öğrencilerin Akademik Türkçe İhtiyaçları

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate academic Turkish needs of international students and to determine the problems they encounter using academic Turkish. A triangulation method was used to collect the data necessary for the study. Quantitative data was gathered through the students’ and instructors’ surveys and qualitative data was obtained through semi-structured interviews for students. The subjects of the study were 697 international students from 54 universities and 203 content-area instructors from 15 universities in Turkey. Thus, a total of 900 subjects participated in the study. The quantitative data was analysed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (IBM SPSS 20) and the qualitative data was analysed using descriptive and content analyses. The results of the study revealed that listening is the most frequently used skill by students in content courses. The activities that are regarded as important for success are especially those which require receptive skills. Of the four language skills -reading, writing, speaking and listening-, students find writing the most difficult. The most difficult sub-skill in academic reading is to understand the specific vocabulary in textbooks, use appropriate academic style in writing, speak with minimum pronunciation mistakes while speaking in academic settings, and understand people with a strong accent in listening. Graduate students have more difficulties in writing, speaking and listening skills compared to ungraduated students. Students studying natural sciences face more difficulties in academic speaking than those who study social sciences. Students who speak Turkic languages experience less difficulty in using four language skills when compared to those who speak other languages. As students continue their education in content courses, their listening skill improves more than other skills. Finally, it was found that the responds of the instructors and those of students overlap greatly. Nevertheless, instructors’ responds to survey items reveal that students have much more difficulties in these language skills than they themselves perceive. It is hoped that the results of the present study will contribute to the curriculum and materials development in teaching academic Turkish.