The Problems That Social Studies Teachers Encounter in Teaching Process

This study, which aims to determine the problems experienced by Social Studies teachers in the teaching process, was carried out with 14 Social Studies teachers working at middle schools at Kars city center. The study adopted qualitative research method in which researcher actively participates in collecting data and observing in a realistic and holistic perspective, and perceptions and events are expressed in an unwritten or oral form. The data were gathered with semi-structured interview form which was created to provide a thorough information about the research topic. Explanatory and inferential codes were used to analyze the qualitative data and to find out the correlations. The interview analysis were separately coded by two different experts in order to ensure reliability. When looking at the results of what are the student-related problems, which are one of the sub-findings in the research, social studies teachers stated that they experienced problems of readiness, motivation and distraction. Some of the teachers also stated that they had problems with lack of experience, not being able to follow developments and renewing themselves. Teachers also stated that they experienced some management-related problems such as material supply, improving the physical conditions of the school and the classroom.Other problems experienced by teachers are insufficient class hours and parents' indifference. Teachers suggest to diminish course content in course books, to increase the number of lessons and parents’ caring so as to solve the issues surrounding the mentioned above.