The Effect of Digital Documentary Production through Field Work on Geography Students’ Problem-Solving Skills

Abstract

In this study, views of students about the applicability of the digital documentary production through fieldwork model and the effect of it on their problem-solving skills were examined. The study was conducted in Turkey, in 2016-2017 spring term with 15 geography teacher candidates who chosen by convenience sampling method. In this study, within producing student digital documentary via fieldwork (FwDD) which is the outcome of the project-based learning (PBL) process, students were asked to carry out field works and to reflect their observations through a digital documentary, on Cultural Geography subjects. The data was collected through Problem-Solving Inventory and focus group interviews, in this case study. Paired Samples Test and content analysis were used for analysis of the data. The findings showed that FwDD-PBL lead to a significant difference regarding the students’ problem-solving skills since the effect size is 0.61. Students stated that they learned to use the technology for educational and reflective purposes, that the project increased their motivations and enterprisingness besides their creative thinking and decision-making skills. The study is important to provide the students effective instruction and teaching skills. It is expected that the results will be useful to encourage the use of FwDD-PBL model in geography education.