Abstract:

The aim of this study is to examine the opinions of primary school 4th grade students on the subject of Traffic Safety. In the study, independent word association test and drawing and writing technique were used to reveal the cognitive structures of the students towards the concept of traffic. Qualitative research model and case study design were used in the research, and the study group consisted of 250 (112 boys and 138 girls), 4th grade students studying in 10 different primary schools affiliated to the Directorate of National Education in Yenimahalle district of Ankara province.In order to create the test, the word traffic was chosen as a key concept. As a result of the test, the reliability coefficient was determined as %90.36 in the independent word association test and %90.58 in the drawing and writing method, and a frequency table was created based on the data obtained. According to the results of the study, the students associated the concept of traffic with various words both in the independent word association test and in the drawing and writing technique. When the words produced were examined, the words collected in the categories of road, human, stimulant were the common answer. This shows that students follow current events related to traffic. In addition, as a result of this study, it was seen that the students associated the words traffic and safety with each other. This shows that students have gained an important awareness about the concept of traffic. As a result, it can be said that the independent word association test and the drawing and writing technique are techniques that can be easily used to understand students' knowledge levels, thoughts, relationships between concepts and misconceptions.

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