1
Amasya University, Faculty of Education, Amasya, Turkiye
Abstract
This quantitative relational survey study, anchored in the instructional value of design thinking and digital material design, analysed data from 400 pre-service teachers randomly selected from various programmes in Türkiye. Information gathered via a Demographic Form, the Design Thinking in Instruction Scale (DTIS) and the Digital Material Design Competency Scale (DMDCS) was first tested for normality with Kolmogorov–Smirnov and Shapiro–Wilk procedures. Subsequent analyses employed independent-samples t-tests and one-way ANOVA; significant effects were probed with Tukey HSD, and effect sizes were calculated using eta-squared (η²). Pearson correlations examined inter-variable relationships. Results showed that participants’ design-thinking levels were moderate to high, whereas their digital material design competencies were moderate. DTIS scores did not differ by gender, age, year of study or internet use, yet DMDCS total and technical-competence scores revealed small but significant male advantages; digital competencies increased among those aged 22 and above, and the department variable reached significance only in the ethical dimension. A positive, significant association emerged between DTIS and DMDCS scores, especially across ethical, process and individual dimensions, highlighting the pivotal role of pedagogical and ethical awareness in digital material development.
Keywords
Design thinking,digital material design,educational technology,preservice teachers,teacher competencies
How to Cite
Guney Turkeç, A. (2025). An investigation of the relationship between preservice teachers’ design thinking skills and their digital material design competencies. International Journal of Eurasia Social Sciences, 16(61), 1863–1888. https://doi.org/10.70736/ijoess.1978
📄Ally, M. (2019). Competency profile of the digital and online teacher in future education. International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning, 20(2), 302-318. https://doi.org/10.19173/irrodl.v20i2.4206
📄Avsec, S. (2023). Design thinking in STEM teacher education: Age and experience effects. International Journal of Technology and Design Education, 33, 451-470. https://doi.org/10.3390/su15021163
📄Betancur-Chicué, F., Vilchez-Guizado, F., & Gallego-Joya, J. (2023). Development and strengthening of teachers’ digital competence: Systematic review. Contemporary Educational Technology, 17(1), e555. https://doi.org/10.30935/cedtech/15744
📄Creswell, J. W. (2014). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches (4th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications.
📄Çeliker Ercan, G., Akın Demircan, Z., & Kaşarcı, İ. (2022). Öğretmen adaylarının dijital materyal tasarımı yeterlikleri: Bölümler arası karşılaştırma. 13. Uluslararası Sosyal, Beşeri ve Eğitim Bilimleri Kongresi Bildiri Kitabı, 89-95.
📄George, D., & Mallery, P. (2010). SPSS for Windows step by step: A simple guide and reference (10th ed.). Boston: Pearson.
📄Getenet, S., Haeusler, C., Redmond, P., Cantle, R., & Crouch, V. (2024). Bridging the digital divide: gender and learning mode impacts on pre-service teacher digital competence and online engagement. Irish Educational Studies, 1–17. https://doi.org/10.1080/03323315.2024.2359694.
📄Girgin, D. (2021). A sustainable learning approach: Design thinking in teacher education. International Journal of Curriculum and Instruction, 13(1), 359–382. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/356835324
📄Guillén-Gámez, F. D., Mayorga-Fernández, M. J., & Contreras-Rosado, J. A. (2021). Incidence of gender in the digital competence of higher education teachers in research work. Education Sciences, 11(3), 98. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci11030098.
📄Güven, İ., & Sak Yalmanoğlu, M. (2024). Tasarım odaklı düşünmeye dayalı öğretim materyali geliştirilmesi. Ankara: BİDGE Yayınları. https://doi.org/10.70269/EWJHVE4BQRKB
📄Henderson, M., Selwyn, N., & Aston, R. (2017). What works and why? Student perceptions of ‘useful’ digital technology in university teaching and learning. Studies in Higher Education, 42, (8), 1567- 1579. https://doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2015.1007946
📄Kabaran, G. G., & Uşun, S. (2021). Dijital materyal tasarımı yeterlikleri ölçeği (DMTYÖ): Bir ölçek geliştirme çalışması. Eğitim Teknolojisi Kuram ve Uygulama, 11(2), 281-307. https://doi.org/10.17943/etku.864296
📄Kocaman-Karoğlu, A., Bal-Çetinkaya, K., & Çimşir, E. (2020). Toplum 5.0 sürecinde Türkiye’de eğitimde dijital dönüşüm. Üniversite Araştırmaları Dergisi, 3(3), 147–158. https://doi.org/10.32329/uad.815428
📄Koehler, M. J., & Mishra, P. (2005). What happens when teachers design educational technology?. Journal of Educational Computing Research, 32(2), 131–152. https://doi.org/10.2190/0EW7-01WB-BKHL-QDYV
📄Lázaro-Cantabrana, M., Usart-Rodríguez, M., & Gisbert-Cervera, M. (2024). Digital competence of training teachers: Results of a teaching innovation project. Education Sciences, 14(2), 162. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci13020162
📄Llorent-Vaquero, M., & Ortega-Tudela, J. M. (2021). Digital creativity through design thinking in teacher training. CEUR Workshop Proceedings, 3265, 1-6.
📄Lin, R., Yang, J., Jiang, F., & Li, X. (2023). Does teacher’s data literacy and digital teaching competence influence empowering students in the classroom? Evidence from China. Education and Information Technologies, 28, 2845–2867. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-022-11274-3
📄Ning, Y., & Danso, S. D. (2025, 17 Şubat). Assessing pedagogical readiness for digital innovation: A mixed-methods study (Version 1). https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2502.15781.
📄Oberer, B., & Erkollar, A. (2024). Education 5.0: Using the Design Thinking Process-An. Journal of Systemics, Cybernetics and Informatics, 22(1), 1-17. https://doi.org/10.54808/JSCI.22.01.1
📄Ocak, G., & Karakuş, G. (2019). Öğretmen adaylarının dijital okuryazarlık öz-yeterlilik becerilerinin farklı değişkenler açısından incelenmesi. Afyon Kocatepe Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Dergisi, 21(1), 129–147. https://doi.org/10.32709/akusosbil.466549
📄Rauth, I., Köppen, E., & Jobst, B. (2010). Design thinking: An educational model towards creative confidence. In DS 66-2: Proceedings of the 1st International Conference on Design Creativity (pp. 1–8). The Design Society. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11528-021-00671-z
📄Rice, M. F., & Ortiz, K. R. (2021). Evaluating digital instructional materials for K-12 online and blended learning. TechTrends, 65(6), 977-992. http://doi.org/10.1007/s11528-021-00671-z
📄Suzer, E., Koc, M. Teachers’ digital competency level according to various variables: A study based on the European DigCompEdu framework in a large Turkish city. Education and Information Technologies 29 (16), 22057–22083 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-024-12711-1
📄Sürmelioğlu, Y., & Erdem, M. (2021). Öğretimde tasarım odaklı düşünme ölçeğinin geliştirilmesi. OPUS International Journal of Society Researches, 18(39), 223-254. https://doi.org/10.26466/opus.833362.
📄Swallow, D., & Tomalin, B. (2024). Design thinking in education: A paradigm shift in language learning. Training, Language and Culture, 8(4), 86-94. https://doi.org/10.22363/2521-442X-2024-8-4-86-94
📄Türk, M. (2017). Öğretmen adaylarının dijital bilgeliğe ilişkin yeterlik algıları (Yüksek lisans tezi, Anadolu Üniversitesi).
