Investigation of the reasoning styles of the teacher candidates in terms of decision making styles, learning modalities and gender (Süleyman Demirel University Education Faculty Case)

Abstract

Aim: The main aim of this study is to investigate the reasoning styles of teacher candidates in terms of their gender, decision making styles, and learning modalities. Methodology: The study is a quantitative study based on correlational survey model. Population: The population consists of 4th-grade students (teacher candidates) in social studies education in Süleyman Demirel University who are in Formal Operational Stage of Cognitive Development of Piaget. Results: No significant difference was found in terms of gender for reasoning styles. No significant difference was found in terms of gender for those styles except avoidant decion making styles and visual learning modalitiy both for parametric and non-parametric dimensions of decision making styles and learning modalities. Rational decision making style is correlated all the sub-dimension of reasoning styles at moderate or weak level, whereas other decision making styles are partially correlated with them except avoidant decision making style and spontaneous decion making styles. It was found that there was a significant weak correlation among he sub-dimension of the reasoning styles with learning modalities. Tt was found that there was a significant weak correlation among rational decion making style and intuitve decision making style among physical, auditory and visual learning modalities. However, dependent decision making style and avoidant decion making style has only weak correlation with physical and auditory learning modalities. No correlation was found among learning modalities with spontaneous decion making style. Discussion: Findings have strong indication regarding the content validity of reasoning styles model in this regard.