Abstract:

The purpose of this study is to determine, with the help of metaphors, prospective preschool teachers’ perceptions of the concepts of “preschool teacher” and “children”, and to compare such perceptions based on the variable of the year of study. The participants of study were 100 volunteering prospective preschool teachers. Metaphors were the means used to collect prospective teachers’ opinions of “child” and “preschool teacher”. In this respect, the prospective preschool teachers were asked to complete the missing parts in the following sentences: “A child is like ….. because …..” and “A preschool teacher is like ….. because …..” Content analysis – one of the methods used in qualitative research – was used for data analysis. The study findings suggest that the categories in which child-related metaphors were most used were, in the order of frequency, guidance/molding, neediness and being affected from education. The categories related to preschool teaching were, in the order of frequency, meeting the needs, guiding and shaping and informing and enlightening. The distribution by year of study shows that the same metaphors and categories related to the child were placed at the first three ranks among both first-year and fourthyear students, and that there were differences between the two groups with regard to the metaphors and categories about preschool teachers.