Multicultural Experiences of Teacher Candidates and Thoughts about the Cultural and Social Groups That Exist Within Turkey

The aim of this study is to assess teacher candidates’ multicultural experiences and examine their thoughts about the cultural and social groups that exist within Turkey. The study employed quantitative research methods. Narvaez, Endicott and Hill (2010) developed the Multicultural Experiences Questionnaire (MEQ), which was used as the data collection instrument. The questionnaire was adapted to Turkish, and two questions were rearranged. This questionnaire was given to 189 teacher candidates in an education facility located in the Central Anatolia Region of Turkey. According to the results of the research, the teacher candidates' multicultural experiences are inadequate and the study participants don’t really have any positive or negative thoughts about most of the groups. Their points of view regarding the cultural and social groups that exist within the country are neutral. In addition, while the teacher candidates who participated in the study often think that society tends to discriminate against some groups living within Turkey, they have concluded that most cultural and social groups within Turkey do not face discrimination. The study concludes with proposals aimed at assisting teacher candidates to improve their multicultural experiences and develop positive attitudes regarding the cultural and social groups that exist within in Turkey