Vocational high school students are observed to experience various difficulties in terms of academic readiness, motivation, self-efficacy, and school perception. Teachers working in vocational high schools are required to undertake multifaceted roles, not only in transferring knowledge but also in motivating, guiding, providing socio-emotional support, and shaping students' career orientations. Therefore, defining the characteristics expected of teachers working in vocational high schools is important. In this context, the main aim of the research is to reveal who the ideal teacher is from the perspective of vocational high school students and to define the personal and professional characteristics expected of an ideal teacher. The research was conducted using a basic qualitative research design based on a qualitative research approach. The population of the research consists of students studying in public vocational high schools in the central districts of Ankara during the 2024-2025 academic year. Using maximum diversity sampling, a purposeful sampling method, a total of 105 male and female students studying in the 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th grades of vocational high schools in four different districts were included in the study group. Data were collected through a semi-structured interview form consisting of two open-ended questions. The data obtained were analyzed using content analysis; codes were created by reading the data, similar codes were grouped under categories, and these categories were linked to higher-level themes. The research results reveal that vocational high school students' perception of the ideal teacher consists of a holistic combination of pedagogical competence, human sensitivity, and ethical-professional attitude. In line with these findings, it is recommended that relational competencies such as empathy and communication skills, positive classroom interaction, and emotional regulation be given more prominence in teacher training programs; and that in-service training focusing on student motivation, classroom management, positive discipline, and adolescent psychology be expanded for vocational high school teachers.

This study examines the negative effects of social media influencers on the imagination and aspirational capacity of young people, with a specific focus on influencer-generated content on Instagram and YouTube. Drawing on a qualitative content analysis of 200 posts produced by 10 prominent influencers, the research investigates how recurring representational patterns shape adolescents’ perceptions of success, materialism, and realistic life expectations. Three dominant themes—materialistic display, unrealistic success narratives, and idealized lifestyles—were identified and analyzed through the theoretical lenses of Cultivation Theory, Social Learning Theory, and Social Comparison Theory. The findings suggest that influencer content systematically promotes consumption-oriented values, visibility-based success, and idealized representations of everyday life, while largely obscuring structural constraints, sustained effort, and failure experiences. Such representations appear to weaken adolescents’ value systems by normalizing unrealistic aspirations, intensifying upward social comparison, and fostering dissatisfaction and diminished self-esteem. Over time, these dynamics may narrow young people’s capacity to formulate realistic, intrinsically motivated goals and to imagine diverse future trajectories beyond influencer-centered success models. By clearly delimiting its analytical scope to Instagram and YouTube, this study contributes a methodologically transparent and theoretically grounded account of how contemporary influencer culture may constrain youths’ imaginative and aspirational development. The findings underscore the importance of media literacy education, the promotion of diverse and attainable role models, and the support of healthy goal-setting processes among adolescents. Future research should empirically investigate moderating factors—such as age, media literacy levels, and social support—that shape youths’ susceptibility to influencer content, as well as evaluate intervention strategies aimed at mitigating its negative developmental effects.

The study examined veterinary students' metaphorical perceptions of the distance education process they experienced during the pandemic. In this context, students' cognitive, affective, and practice-based perspectives on the process were revealed. The research was grounded in a phenomenological design. The research participants were a total of 254 veterinary students from 17 different universities. Data collected via an online open-ended form were analyzed using content analysis. The study identified 188 metaphors, which were grouped into three main categories: ‘educational process’, ‘educational gains’, and ‘student status’. Some students described the process as supportive, comforting, or inclusive. However, the majority of students mentioned a lack of practice, inefficiency, and wasted effort, and stated that they felt helpless, trapped, anxious, and alone. All these results highlight the need to strengthen the pedagogical context in online education planning, especially for applied disciplines, to increase virtual clinical simulations, and to develop psycho-social support processes for students.

The purpose of this study is to examine how teacher enthusiasm is evaluated from the perspective of pre-service teachers. Based on a qualitative research design, this study was conducted with 20 pre-service teachers studying at the faculty of education of a state university. The students were selected as five from each grade level (1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th grade) and maximum diversity sampling was used. A semi-structured interview form structured around three main themes was used as a data collection tool. The data obtained after the interviews were analysed by descriptive analysis method. The research findings were organized around three main themes: description, experience and inference. Pre-service teachers stated that enthusiastic teachers establish a strong bond with their students, are enthusiastic about learning and create a positive energy in the classroom environment. Enthusiasm was defined by the pre-service teachers as teachers' ability to motivate their students, create a positive atmosphere in the classroom and their love for the content of the lesson. The pre-service teachers stated that lecturing to students especially during teaching practices, feedback during the process of developing teaching skills and positive interactions with students were among the experiences that created enthusiasm. Students emphasized that an enthusiastic teacher positively shaped their attitudes towards the course, increased their desire to learn and strengthened their interactions in the classroom. They also stated that enthusiastic teachers contribute to students' lives outside of school, give them a zest for life, strengthen their family and friend ties, and increase their motivation. The findings of the research show that teacher enthusiasm positively affects students' attitudes towards the course and their general behaviours, and that enthusiastic teachers also contribute to students' lives outside of school. In this context, it was concluded that enthusiastic teacher behaviours should be emphasized more in teacher training programs.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming the field of language learning and teaching. Building on decades of Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL), contemporary AI technologies such as natural language processing, machine learning, automated speech recognition and large language models are enabling more adaptive, interactive and data-rich learning environments than were previously possible. Drawing on recent systematic reviews, bibliometric analyses and empirical studies, this article synthesizes evidence on how AI supports language learners through intelligent tutoring systems, conversational agents, automated feedback on writing and speech, adaptive learning platforms and immersive AR/VR environments. It also examines how AI assists teachers with assessment, content creation and learning analytics. Reported benefits include greater personalization, increased opportunities for low-anxiety practice, more frequent and fine-grained feedback, and gains in motivation and engagement. At the same time, the review highlights major challenges and ethical concerns around algorithmic bias, data privacy, digital inequality, over-reliance on automation, teacher readiness and the limits of AI’s contextual understanding. The article argues that AI is most productive when framed as an augmenting partner rather than a replacement for human educators and concludes with recommendations for responsible integration and future research.

This paper explores the pivotal role of T. S. Eliot (1888–1965) as the primary architect and leading practitioner of the Modernist movement in English poetry. His contributions stem from a radical redefinition of poetic expression and critical standards, specifically his call for poetic depersonalization. Moving past the subjective emotionalism of the nineteenth-century Romantics, Eliot claims that “poetry is not a turning loose of emotion, but an escape from emotion”. This critical stance is functionally realized through his concept of the “objective correlative” which demands that internal emotion be expressed indirectly via a precise, externalized “set of objects, a situation, or a chain of events”. Eliot avoids merely stating despair; instead, he constructs an external, sensory world that compels the reader to experience the desolation themselves. This emphasis on indirect, sensory, and intellectualized expression is the cornerstone of his Modernist legacy. By analyzing the “objective correlative” as a sophisticated extension of Imagist principles in his two renowned poems, this study reveals how Eliot uses concrete sensory formulas to achieve a depersonalized but profoundly resonant aesthetic. While Eliot’s “The Waste Land” relies on a “heap of broken images” and an array of symbolic personae to mediate emotion, his “Four Quartets” adopts a more direct, meditative voice, allowing Eliot to portray society through a lens that is simultaneously realistic and deeply religious. Consequently, this paper concludes that Eliot’s mastery of intertextuality and stylistic evolution ensures his continued relevance as the preeminent figure in the Modernist literary tradition.