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Readiness is important for the success of the e-learning process. The purpose of this study was twofold: to develop a scale to measure K-12 teachers' e-learning readiness, and to examine their readiness to teach online. The participants were 3,295 K-12 teachers working in Izmir, Turkey. First EFA, then CFA-SEM was performed. Additionally, teachers' e-readiness in terms of gender, years of service, school level, and daily device usage time were examined. Teachers are ready for e-learning considering their overall scores. A significant difference was found in favor of males in the "technical competence" factor and in favor of females in the "colleague, content, and pedagogical and ethical competence factors". The readiness of younger teachers is generally higher. On a factor basis, there is only a significant difference in the factors of computer self-efficacy and student readiness according to educational level. As the use of devices increases, technology-related readiness increases. The readiness of teachers plays an important role in determining future strategies, measures, and interventions that need to be taken to advance e-learning.

Programming knowledge is more important than ever in the digital world. However, teaching programming can be challenging, especially with novice learners. Considerable research has been conducted into the most effective methods for teaching programming. Extreme apprenticeship, a variation of cognitive apprenticeship, is a method that has been used in teaching programming at university level in recent years. Because this method focuses particularly on completing lots of exercises with coaching and guidance, it may solve many problems related to learning programming. Flipped learning can be useful for student preparedness and providing sufficient theoretical knowledge at the beginning of the course. This study compares the applications of the extreme apprenticeship method, flipped extreme apprenticeship, and traditional classroom, analyzing them at the university level in terms of their effects on academic achievement and engagement coupled with gender differences. The findings of the study indicate that the extreme apprenticeship and flipped extreme apprenticeship instructional methods improve academic achievement and student engagement in introductory programming more than the traditional method. The results of the research point to important directions for the development of the extreme apprenticeship method in programming instruction and provide a guide for instructors.

This study explored the association between flipped learning readiness (FLR), engagement, social anxiety, and achievement in online flipped classrooms among 200 freshman university students enrolled to an information technology course. The relational screening model was applied in order to reveal associations between variables. The study was conducted in two Turkish state universities. The students were sampled using the convenience sampling method. The data collection tools employed were a demographic data form, the Online Student Engagement Scale, the Online Learners' Interactions and Social Anxiety Scale, the FLR scale, and also achievement tests. Structural equational modeling was employed in the testing of the hypothesized model. Results from the structural equation modeling revealed that engagement and FLR were positively associated with student achievement, whilst there was a negative association revealed between social anxiety and achievement in the online flipped classroom. The study also revealed engagement as the most significant predictor of achievement in the online flipped classroom.

The aim of this study is to compare the effects of unplugged and plugged-in activities on academic achievement and computational thinking (CT) skills of sixth-grade students. Mixed-method research was carried out to explore whether there were differences between the groups, and to learn the students' opinions and experiences regarding the practices. For the quantitative phase, a quasi-experimental design was used with two groups. For qualitative phase, 12 students were interviewed. The participants were 84 sixth-grade students (between the ages of 10 and 11). The intervention was designed on a selection/construction of activities from seven different basic programming web platforms for the plugged-in group and the proposed national curriculum unplugged activities for the unplugged group. The results showed that significant differences between groups in academic achievement favoring the unplugged activities, but not in CT skills. Development in CT skills contributed to the unplugged group's academic achievement. In addition, qualitative results showed that the plugged-in group perceived their activities as fun and entertaining, but not exactly like a lesson; in contrast, the unplugged group did not experience anxiety or boredom since they perceived the activities as educational. CT explained 27 percent of the variance in academic achievement, suggesting that this skill is important for academic achievement in basic programming. These results suggest that students can improve their academic achievement and maintain the level of CT acquisition across unplugged and plugged-in activities. This article contributes to the body of knowledge about the positive impact of unplugged activities on teaching CT and programming fundamentals.

The pair programming approach is used to overcome the difficulties of the programming process in education environments. In this study, the interaction sequences during the paired programming of preservice teachers was investigated. Lag sequential analysis were used to explore students' behavioral patterns in pair programming. The participants of the study consist of 14 students, seven pairs enrolled in a Programming Languages course. The findings indicate that there are significant behavioral learning sequences. During the program development process, students hesitated to create an algorithm and to improve an existing one while proposing the next step. In addition, they constantly waited for approval. Collaborative behaviors such as giving and receiving feedback and helping other partners were less observed in females. In addition, significant sequential driver and navigator behaviors were presented. The findings of the study have important implications for instructors and designers when using a pair programming approach in teaching programming. In the future, programming instruction environments can be designed by considering the learner behaviors that are presented in this study.

Performance in and perceptions of computational thinking (CT) are considered vital dimensions for comprehensively assessing CT skills of students. In this study, secondary school students' CT performance and their perceptions were examined in terms of certain variables including gender, grade level, achievement and self-efficacy. Casual-comparative and correlational methods were used. The sample of the study consisted of a total of 328 fifth- and sixth-grade (10-12 years old) secondary school students taking visual programming lessons. CT performance and perception tests were employed as data collection tools. The results show that CT performance of boys was higher than that of girls. A significant difference was found in both CT performance and perception depending on grades. The results show that achievement in math positively affected CT performance and perception. However, achievement in IT affected CT performance less than achievement in math. Implications are discussed in terms of theoretical insights, practices for improving CT skills in secondary schools and directions for further research.

Students with specific learning disabilities (SLD) typically do not perform at the expected levels of academic achievement. Tangible mobile applications are learning devices that allow for physical engagement and multisensory interaction. They present as promising tools to facilitate learning for students with SLD. This study explored the use of a tangible mobile application for assisting three seventh-grade Turkish students with SLD to learn scientific principles regarding cell concepts. A multiple-probe design across participants was used to examine the effectiveness of a tangible mobile application. In addition, issues related to usability of the application were also explored. The overall results of the study showed that the tangible mobile application was effective, and the students with SLD were willing to use this application, enjoyed the process, and used the application and objects easily/correctly.

Because there is, currently, no education system for primary school students in grades 1-3 who have specific learning disabilities in Turkey and because such students do not receive sufficient support from face-to-face counseling, a needs analysis was conducted in order to prepare an adaptive, web-assisted learning system according to variables determined by the extent of learning disabilities. The scope of this study was limited to dyslexia, dyscalculia and dysgraphia. Data were collected from five subject area experts (psychologist and special education specialists) using semi-structured interview forms including open-ended questions, 15 parents, at least one of whose children has a specific learning disability and six classroom teachers via surveys including open-ended questions in the 2011-2012 academic year. A matrix diagram was prepared in order to analyze the data with a holistic approach and to show dependability and credibility of the study. The study revealed three main findings: a lack of information / interest about specific learning disabilities, the inadequacy of the Turkish Ministry of Education Specific Learning Disabilities Support Education Program, and the inadequacy of applications, both within and outside the classroom. The findings also showed that the students with specific learning disabilities need a web-assisted system that should be adaptive and which can be used both in school and at home. (Contains 5 tables.)

Objective: The present study, in patients with type 2 diabetes; It was aimed to analyze fasting blood glucose, insulin and HbA1c values and trace element (zinc, copper, magnesium and chromium) levels. Material and Method: The study included patients who were 20 patients with type 2 diabetes and 20 healthy controls applied to the Internal Medicine outpatient clinic of Erzurum Regional Training and Research Hospital. The results of the analyzes were calculated with the help of the SPSS (Version 19.0) software package. Results: Levels of HbA1c, glucose, and insulin in the patient group were significantly higher than in the control group. There was no significant difference among levels of plasma zinc (Zn) and copper (Cu) and erythrocyte Cu in the control group and the patient group. Levels of plasma magnesium (Mg) and chromium (Cr) and erythrocyte Zn, Mg and Cr levels in the control group were significantly higher than in the patient group. Levels of plasma and erythrocyte Mg in people with diabetes were significantly lower than in the control group (p <0.005). The levels of plasma and erythrocyte Cr in the group with type 2 diabetes were significantly lower than in the control group. Conclusion: To understand the relationship between diabetes and the trace element, well-specified patient samples should be collected. Studies should be carried out using standard methods. More studies should be done to make sense of the changes in trace element levels in diabetes. The necessity of trace element supplementation as a support for treatment should be investigated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The aim of this research is to reveal the awareness of teachers working in inclusion environments and their use of educational technology. Specifically, in this mixed methods study, a needs analysis was conducted to determine the knowledge levels of teachers about inclusive education, their awareness and use of educational technologies, and what kind of support they need. Data were collected through a questionnaire with 133 teachers and focus group discussions with 5 groups of 30 teachers. Based on the analysis of quantitative data using descriptive analysis and qualitative data employing the constant comparison method, the findings showed that teachers' knowledge of special education needs (SEN) students is insufficient and they need support at this point. In addition, the qualitative data analysis unveiled social, academic, and environmental positive outputs of inclusive education alongside the identification of the psychological, academic, and environmental challenges of inclusive education. The findings are expected to benefit the literature, the field of inclusive education, and policymakers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The role of techniques involving Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been becoming increasingly important in educational settings. This study aims to reveal the recent trends in research into artificial intelligence in special education by using the systematic review method. Across the 29 studies published between 2008 and 2020 that are reviewed here, the majority are articles on quantitative research carried out in the United States. In terms of learning content, most of the studies are about skill development, focusing on cognitive and affective factors. Moreover, the research was carried out in school settings with learners from various backgrounds. The purposes for and methods of using AI were examined and it was found that software-based methods are more common. The primary disability type examined in the articles covered in this review were disorders on the autism spectrum. There is a tendency toward technical models rather than educational models. ANN and SVM are the most used technical theoretical infrastructures. This study yielded interesting results both on the evolution of AI in special education over the years and on its future development. This paper ends with suggestions developed in light of these studies for the use of artificial intelligence in special education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]