An Investigation of Secondary School 7th Grade Students’ Awareness for Intangible Cultural Heritage

Abstract

The aim of this study is to determine the secondary school students’ views about the intangible cultural heritage (ICH) elements, which are in the social studies curriculum, and to raise awareness of these elements if there is any intangible cultural heritage in their neighbourhood. This study, which is based on the qualitative research method, was conducted in phenomenology design. The study group of the research consists of 25 students studying in schools in Bartın Province centre and its villages. In the study, data were obtained from semi-structured interview forms. Content analysis was used in the analysis of the data. According to the results of the research, students are confused about the concept of ICH elements. It is seen that students’ attention toward cultural events could not be transferred to practice, were negatively affected by technological developments and the experience of families about ICH elements are effective on students’ attitudes toward cultural heritage elements. According to another result obtained in the research, the students who participated in the study gave more examples about social rituals, festivals and children's games for ICH. When the given examples are examined, it is seen that there are examples for the ICH elements from the immediate surroundings of the students. In addition, students stated that the protection of cultural heritage is necessary for the protection of the national identity.

Keywords: intangible cultural heritage, secondary school students, cultural awareness, social studies