A Thematic Analysis on the Visual Representations of Learning: A Qualitative Study Based on the Drawings of Teacher Candidates in Theology Education
A Thematic Analysis on the Visual Representations of Learning: A Qualitative Study Based on the Drawings of Teacher Candidates in Theology Education

Summary/Abstract: This study aims to reveal the pedagogical thinking patterns, intuitive orientations toward learning theories, and professional identity formation of prospective Religious Culture and Moral Knowledge (RCMK) teachers by analyzing their cognitive representations of the concept of “learning” through drawing-based visual data. The research is grounded in the assumption that learning is a multilayered experience intertwined with meaning-making, value construction, and identity formation, extending beyond the acquisition of knowledge. In this respect, it is assumed that visual representations, similar to verbal narratives, offer rich and often implicit indicators of how individuals conceptualize learning; therefore, the drawings produced by the participants in response to the prompt “Can you draw learning?” were treated as a qualitative data source for uncovering their mental models. The research was designed qualitatively, employing participant drawings as the data collection tool and applying thematic analysis based on document analysis. The study group consists of first-year prospective RCMK teachers enrolled at the Faculty of Theology, Kırşehir Ahi Evran University. At the beginning of the 2024–2025 academic year, each participant was asked to produce a single drawing representing “learning,” resulting in 70 visual artifacts. Sixteen drawings that did not meet eligibility and interpretability criteria were excluded, and the final analysis was conducted on 54 drawings (analytical dataset, n=54). Following preliminary coding, the coding framework was refined, and thematic classifications were structured under three overarching categories: “Traditional,” “Modern,” and “Hybrid,” with all percentages reported based on the analytical dataset. Bruner’s cognitive representation theory and Kolb’s experiential learning cycle jointly informed the interpretive framework. The findings show that 59.3% of the participants conceptualize learning within a traditional teacher-centered and knowledge-transmission-oriented paradigm; 31.5% adopt hybrid patterns that combine traditional and contemporary indicators; and 9.3% demonstrate a modern approach emphasizing experience, interaction, and contextual sensitivity. Traditional representations predominantly included books, libraries, classroom-board arrangements, and teacher figures, visualizing learning as an accumulative and transmissive process. Modern representations highlighted nature/environment, social interaction, play/collaboration, and everyday life contexts, positioning learning as a multiactor, affective process that transcends classroom boundaries. Hybrid representations reflected a transitional mindset wherein classical elements such as classrooms and books coexist with technology, collaboration, and experiential motifs, indicating the gradual evolution of pedagogical cognition. The study integrates visual data with descriptive quantitative indicators (frequency– percentage) and in-depth content-symbol analyses, thereby presenting an intensive mixedqualitative thematic approach. Codes, themes, and decision rules were connected to an audit trail; boundary cases and operational definitions were refined through peer debriefing, thus enhancing credibility, dependability, and confirmability. Ethical approvals were secured, informed consent was obtained, and all visual materials were anonymized and used solely for scientific purposes. Overall, the results demonstrate that while text- and teacher-centered assumptions remain dominant in the mental learning maps of prospective teachers, hybrid representations indicate a meaningful potential for renewal through the incorporation of interaction, nature/context, collaboration, and technology. The findings emphasize the need to systematically structure experiential, visual, and creative activities (e.g., metaphor/drawing workshops, rubric-based drawing analysis, micro-teaching modules aligned with Kolb’s cycle) within teacher education. The study acknowledges its limitations, including a homogeneous sample from a single institution and context-dependent interpretations of visual data; transferability rather than generalizability is emphasized. The research ultimately contributes to strengthening the use of visual data in religious education studies, offering both theoretical implications and practical insights for future teacher education design.

• Details
• Contents