We certify that we have read the thesis submitted by Güliz Bozkurt titled “The Effects of Using Diaries as a means of Improving Students’ Writing, Vocabulary and Reflective Thinking Skills”

(1)

We certify that we have read the thesis submitted by Güliz Bozkurt titled “The Effects of Using Diaries as a means of Improving Students’ Writing, Vocabulary and Reflective Thinking Skills”

and that in our combined opinion it is fully adequate, in scope and quality, as a thesis for the degree of Master of Arts.

_________________________________

Asst. Prof. Dr. Ediz Tuncel (Committee Member)

_________________________________

Asst. Prof. Dr. Doina Popescu (Committee Member)

_________________________________

Asst. Prof. Dr. Mustafa Kurt (Supervisor)

Approved for the

Graduate School of Education Sciences

(2)

DECLARATION

I hereby declare that all information in this document has been obtained and presented in accordance with academic rules and ethical conduct. I also declare that, as required by these rules and conduct, I have fully cited and referenced all material and results that are not original to this work.

Name, Last Name: _________________________

Signature : _________________________

(3)

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I would like to express my profound gratitude to my advisor, Asst. Prof. Dr. Mustafa Kurt for his invaluable supervision, encouragement, and patience throughout the study.

I am also grateful to my colleague İlkay Baykara who was willing to help me without hesitation.

I would also like to thank my parents for creating the environment for my education and I

am thankful to my husband for his personal support throughout the study.

(4)

ABSTRACT

The Effects of Using Diaries as a Means of Improving Students’

Writing, Vocabulary and Reflective Thinking Skills

Bozkurt, Güliz

MA, English Language Teaching Supervisor: Asst. Prof. Dr. Mustafa Kurt

October 2008, 151 pages

The research investigated and determined the effects of keeping diaries as a means of improving writing, vocabulary and reflective skills of a class of 7

^th

form students at Polatpasa Lycee. At first, the students were asked to keep diaries in order to improve their English language performance. Two groups of students were chosen through random selection and research had a quasi-experimental two-group pretest-posttest design using an untreated control group. Pretests were applied in order to find out the English language level of the research participants.

The research was conducted with twenty-five students; fifteen in the experimental and ten in the control group. Both groups were given pre-tests and post-tests. The result of the pre-tests showed that the English language level of the groups were comparable. Throughout the study, the results of the pre-test and post-test of the experimental group, which received the treatment and the untreated control group were compared to identify any possible variation.

The effect of treatment was obvious when the posttests were analysed. The performance of the experimental group in writing, vocabulary and reflective skills were noticeably higher than the performance of the control group.

In order to identify the opinions and the reflections of the participating students on dairy keeping, two main questions were asked to the experimental group. Almost all the participating students expressed that diary keeping improved their English language performance. It was also stated by the participating students that by keeping diaries they developed their abilities in vocabulary, constructing sentences, expressing ideas in English and writing in general. They also articulated that after keeping diaries, they started to understand the topics and what they read and hear easier. In addition, the participating students claimed that by reflecting on their lessons in their diaries, they began to take more responsibility for their learning.

Keywords: Diary, reflective journal, log, metacognitive strategy, experiential learning,

vocabulary

(5)

ÖZET

Öğrencilerin Yazma, Kelime Bilgisi ve Derinlemesine Düşünme Becerilerini Geliştirmede Günlük Kullanımının Etkileri

Bozkurt, Güliz MA, İngilizce Öğretmenliği Danışman: Yrd. Doç. Dr. Mustafa Kurt

Ekim 2008, 151 sayfa

Araştırma, Polatpaşa Lisesi’ndeki yedinci sınıfta okuyan öğrencilerin yazma, kelime bilgisi ve düşünsel becerilerin gelişmesi amacıyla günlük tutulmasının etkilerini irdelemiş ve saptamıştır.

Rastgele seçim yöntemi kulanılarak iki grup öğrenci seçilmiş ve İngilizce becerilerini geliştirmek için günlük tutmaları istenmiştir. Araştırmada, müdahale edilmemiş kontol grup ön test - son test yarı deneysel bir desen kullanılmıştır. Ön testler araştırmaya katılan öğrencilerin İngilizce bilgi ve becerilerini tespit etmek amacıyla yapılmıştır.

Araştırma, onbeşi deney, onu kontrol grubunda olmak üzere yirmibeş öğrenci ile gerçekleştirilmiştir. Ön test ve son testler her iki gruba da uygulanmıştır. Ön testlerin sonuçları grupların İngilizce seviyelerinin karşılaştırılabilir olduğunu göstermiştir. Daha sonra ise, günlük tutan deney grubunun ve kontrol grubunun ön test ve son test sonuçları arasındaki farklılıklar incelenmiştir.

Son testlerin incelenmesiyle müdahalenin etkisi ortaya çıkmıştır. Deney grubunun yazma, kelime bilgisi ve derinlemesine düşünme becerileri kontrol grubununkinden farkedilir şekilde daha yüksekti.

Son olarak, öğrencilerin günlük tutmayla ilgili görüşlerini belirlemek amacıyla, deney

grubuna iki soru yöneltilmiştir. Yaklaşık tüm öğrenciler günlük tutmanın İngilizce becerilerini

geliştirdiğini belirttiler. Öğrenciler, günlük tutmak yoluyla kendilerini, kelime bilgisinde, cümle

kurmada, düşüncelerini İngilizce olarak aktarmada, yazmada, ders konularını kavramada,

okuduklarını ve duyduklarını anlamada ve sorumluluk almada geliştirdiklerini ifade etmişlerdir.

(6)