Middle school teachers’ and students’ view about the secondary school entrance examinations (OKS and SBS)

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to explore middle school teachers’ and students’ view about the secondary school entrance examinations (OKS and SBS). With this respect, the students’ and the teachers’ opinions about the necessity of the examinations, process of preparing for the examination, the students’ reactions to the others’ approaches to the examination, and the effects of the examinations on the students’ personal, social and academic lives were investigated. Qualitative research method was used in this descriptive study. The sample of the study included 24 middle school teachers and 65 middle school students from 6^th to 8^th grades. The data was collected by a semi-structured interview form. According to the results approximately half of both students and teachers reported that the secondary school entrance examinations (OKS) were necessary, whereas this rate was very low during the period of SBS. Majority of the students reported that they were listening to the lessons during school hours and were taking educational tests outside school hours in order to prepare for the exams. Finally majority of both students and teachers reported that test taking is a major source of stress and have a negative impact on the students’ social lives.