Who is Responsible and for How Much? An Analysis of the Responsibility Value by Student- and School-Related Factors

Value education is one of the basic elements of the Turkish national education system. Therefore, values have been the focal point of curricula in Türkiye. Responsibility is one of the common values aimed to be acquired in the curricula in Türkiye. Also, responsibility is a value that has long been a focus of the social studies curriculum in Türkiye, and its significance continues to grow. In this study, the effect of the student- and school-related variables on secondary school students’ responsibility value was examined. The study was designed as a correlational survey. The study group of the research consisted of 1007 students (girl = 53%; boy = 47%) and 48 social studies teachers (female = 45.8%; male = 54.2%) working in these schools selected by random sampling who were studying at 28 secondary schools a region of Türkiye. The research data were collected face-to-face by the authors. The Hierarchical Linear Modeling (HLM) 8.2 statistical program (trial version) was used to analyze the data. Drawing on the relevant literature, eight student-related and six school-related variables were selected. At the student level, the most significant effect on students' responsibility scores is self-control. At the school level, the only significant effect with an increase of half a point was the social studies teachers' organizing activities and assigning homework related to values. The results of the research were evaluated together with the studies found in the related literature. It was concluded that in addition to personal factors, both social studies teachers and parents influence secondary school students’ responsibility.