ÖĞRENCİLERİN E-KİTAP OKUMA TUTUMLARININ İNCELENMESİ

In this study, the descriptive survey model was employed to identify high school students' e-book reading attitudes scores. The survey, conducted on students from vocational high schools, Anatolian high schools and science high schools, found the students from Anatolian high schools as having the highest e-book reading attitudes scores while the students from science high schools as exhibiting the lowest e-book reading attitudes scores. The e-book reading attitudes scores were found to be highest among the ninth graders. The e-book reading attitudes scores tended to decrease as the grade level increased. Introduction and Purpose of the Study: Technological advancements have started to alter our reading habits and e-books have become globally available as part of our reading activities. E-readers, tablet PCs, laptops, desktops, smartphones and many other technological gadgets help people read e-books. The availability of e-books in our country is lower compared to many countries. The study aims to examine the e-book reading attitudes of high schools in terms of "grade levels, reading frequencies, school types, environment choice in reading, and frequency of participation in social media" using the e-book reading attitudes (EBRA) scale, originally developed by Güneş and Kırmızı (2014). In this context, the study tries to answer the following questions: (1) Do e-book reading attitudes of students vary according to grave levels? (2) Do e-book reading attitudes of students vary according to school types? (3) Do e-book reading attitudes of students vary according to their reading frequencies? (4) Do e-book reading attitudes of students vary according to their choice of reading environment? (5) Do e-book reading attitudes of students vary according to their frequency of participation in social media? Conceptual Framework: Baştuğ and Keskin (2013: 296) define attitude as "acquired feelings, thoughts and tendencies that are considerably influential in guiding individual behaviors." In this context, it can be suggested that student attitudes may be formed positively or negatively depending on teachers or schools. Students may develop different reading attitudes in the face of e-book reading as is the case with reading from printed books. The term e-book (electronic book) essentially refers to a book which cannot be read without using a computer while it can also refer to a mobile product designed to be carried in digital products (Diez & Bravo, 2009: 86). Digital reading introduces certain conveniences which are not found in traditional book reading practices. For instance, it is easier to look up words in online dictionaries or have a look at other digital texts (Jung & Chih, 2010: 560). According to the 2012 statistics, e-book sales constitute about 20 percent of all book sales in the United States. In addition, smartphones, tablet PCs and similar electronic gadgets offer quicker access to electronic reading materials designed specifically for kids (Miller & Warschauer, 2013: 285). A study conducted with a small group at the Southern Methodist University found that male secondary school students who read e-books tend to exhibit an increase in their reading awareness and reading success (Miranda, Williams-Rossi, Johnson, and McKenzie, 2011). The findings in Hamer and McGrath (2010), one of the pioneering studies on digital readings, suggest that students can focus more easily on texts on display than on texts on paper, but they can remember more from the printed text than from the displayed text. E-book reading is becoming popular among young people as it is an enjoyable activity (Miranda, Williams-Rossi, Johnson, McKenzie, 2011). The use of technological devices in education is assessed in various respects in Turkey as well as in other countries. Balcı (2013) developed an "attitude scale for measuring the effect of the use of tablet PCs in Turkish language teaching courses on language skills of primary school students" in connection with the Turkish government's FATİH project that seeks to promote use of technological gadgets in public schools. The scale in question was found to measure the effect of the use of table PCs in Turkish language teaching courses on two basic language skills, namely reading and listening. Another study by Kamacı (2014) drew attention to the fact that 94 percent of teachers of Turkish language and literature find information and communication technologies as beneficial in terms of attaining the goals of the teaching program. 82 percent believe the use of information and communication technologies improve the quality of courses. Method: The descriptive survey method was used in this study. The descriptive model aims to describe the existing status of the topic studied without introducing any change to it (Karasar, 2005; Yıldırım and Şimşek, 2008). This model was chosen for this study as an existing situation is examined without changing the conditions. Findings and Discussion: As a result of the study, the e-book reading attitudes level of the participants was found to vary between "I agree at a medium level" and "I don't agree much" (X=2.51). This finding indicates that e-book reading attitudes scores of high school students are low. Although the students who participated in the study generally owned all or some of the technological gadgets required for reading e-books such as computers, laptops, tablet PCs, and smartphones, their attitudes for reading e-books were found to be at a low level. A perusal of the study findings according to grade levels demonstrates that ninth graders stand out in terms of e-book reading attitudes. The students in this grade level tend to have higher e-book reading attitudes scores. In the studies they conducted with secondary school students, Gürbüzoğlu Yalmancı and Aydın (2014) observed that seventh and eighth graders tend to have higher attitudes scores for technology than sixth graders. However, it is interesting to note that the interest in technology and technological developments increases by age among secondary school students, but decreases by age among high school students. Students from Anatolian high schools stand out in terms of e-book reading attitudes. The highest e-book reading attitudes scores were found to be among the students from Anatolian high schools while the students from science high schools tended to demonstrate the lowest e-book reading attitudes scores. A study by Metin, Birişçi and Coşkun (2013) underlined that the prospective teachers who graduated from Anatolian high schools had more positive attitudes toward teaching technologies compared to the graduates of other schools. The lower levels of attitudes toward technology or reading among the students who were entitled to attend science high schools after getting high scores at entrance exams deserve further study. It is thought-provoking to see that the attitudes of high school students for e-books which are considered as one of the major technological tools for disseminating knowledge remain low despite huge investments are being made in education technologies in our country. Reading frequency and social media participation frequency were found to be ineffective on the e-book reading attitudes. The choice of reading environment was found to affect the e-book reading attitudes. Conclusion and Recommendations: The ninth graders had highest e-book reading attitudes and the e-book reading attitude scores tended to decrease by grade level. Reading online differentiates students' e-book reading attitudes compared to reading from the printed materials. Another conclusion of the study is that the e-book reading attitude scores are highest for students from Anatolia high schools and lowest for students from science schools. It is essential that students are equipped with reading e-books or printed books so that they can become productive individuals of critical, questioning and innovative societies. To this end, course contents, course materials and classroom activities employed by teachers should be revised.