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TURKISH STUDENTS’ ERASMUS EXPERIENCES: CHALLENGE OF FACING THE UNKNOWN

TÜRK ÖĞRENCİLERİN ERASMUS DENEYİMLERİ: BİLİNMEYENLE YÜZLEŞME

Journal Name:

  • Selçuk Üniversitesi Edebiyat Fakültesi Dergisi

Publication Year:

  • 2017
DOI: 
http://dx.doi.org/10.21497/sefad.328309

Key Words:

Keywords (Original Language):

Author NameUniversity of AuthorFaculty of Author
Abstract (2. Language): 
With the commencement of the Erasmus student exchange programme, opportunities of studying abroad have been offered by universities in Turkey. While students apply to this programme mainly for increasing their language proficiency, gaining a global perspective and getting the chance to travel Europe, a significant outcome is learning about and being able to live in a different culture. There is consensus on the fact that higher education institutions can maximize such benefits of the study abroad experience by designing pre-departure training. By preparing students about culture-specific facts, problems that are likely to be encountered can be minimized. On the other hand, it can be claimed that difficulties related to the ‘surface-culture’ are easier to deal with, whereas issues of ‘deep-culture’ can cause more serious problems for the students if they are not prepared beforehand. In this paper, it is argued that Turkish students’ experiences of intercultural encounters in the host country provide a rich resource for preparation to the ‘deep culture’ and minimizing the problems related to them. However, student reflections show that these experiences are often ignored by higher education institutions and educators. The study was carried out with Turkish students who study English Language and Literature at a state university in Turkey and who returned from the Erasmus exchange programme. An interview was conducted to let students reflect on the most problematic intercultural encounters they had, which was the focus of the study. The collection of their narratives was analyzed and the emerging themes were identified. It is suggested that pre-departure training should give more emphasis on developing the necessary coping strategies by referring to the specific incidents experienced by the returned students.
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Abstract (Original Language): 
Erasmus öğrenci değişim programının uygulanmaya başlaması ile birlikte, Türkiye’deki üniversiteler tarafından öğrencilere yurtdışında eğitim görme imkanı sunulmaktadır. Öğrenciler bu programa öncelikli olarak dil seviyelerini geliştirmek, ufuklarını genişletmek ve Avrupa’yı gezme imkanı elde etmek için başvururken, programın önemli bir yararı öğrencilerin farklı bir kültürü öğrenmelerini sağlaması ve yabancı bir ülkede yaşayabilme becerisi kazandırmasıdır. Yurtdışı eğitim programlarının bu gibi yararlarını arttırmak için, yüksek öğretim kurumlarının gidiş öncesi hazırlık programları sunmasının avantajları bilinmektedir. Gidecekleri kültüre özgü bilgiler vererek, öğrencilerin karşılaşabileceği problemler en aza indirilmeye çalışılabilir. Diğer taraftan, ‘yüzeysel kültür’ öğeleri ile ilgili karşılaşılabilecek problemlerin üstesinden gelmek daha kolaydır. ‘Derin kültür’ öğeleri ile ilgili problemler söz konusu olduğunda ise, eğer öğrenciler bunlara hazırlıklı değilse, ciddi problemler yaşanabilir. Bu çalışmada, yurtdışı eğitimine katılacak Türk öğrencilerin ‘derin kültür’ öğeleri ile ilgili yaşayabilecekleri sorunlara hazırlanmaları ve bu sorunların en aza indirilmesi sürecinde, Erasmus programına katılmış ve dönmüş öğrencilerin deneyimlerinin zengin bir kaynak olarak görülmesi gerektiği üzerinde durulmaktadır. Ancak, çoğu zaman bu deneyimler yüksek öğretim kurumları ve eğitimciler tarafından fazla ciddiye alınmayıp araştırılmamaktadır. Çalışma, Türkiye’deki bir devlet üniversitesinde, İngiliz Dili ve Edebiyatı bölümünde okuyan ve Erasmus programına katılıp dönmüş öğrenciler ile yürütülmüştür. Yapılan görüşmede katılımcılar, çalışmanın odağını oluşturan, başlarından geçen en can sıkıcı olayları ve bunlarla ilgili görüşlerini paylaşmışlardır. Bütün katılımcıların paylaştıkları deneyimler analiz edilerek, en çok dile getirilen konular tespit edilmiştir. Gidiş öncesi hazırlık programlarında, dönen öğrencilerin başlarından geçen olayları esas alarak, problemlerin üstesinden gelme stratejilerine ağırlık verilmesi tavsiye edilmektedir.
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