Examination of Postgraduate Studies on Values Education Conducted Between 1999-2017 in Turkey

Values education is described as a life-long education given for the individuals to acquire and adopt values, make them as a fundamental element of their character and thus turn them into behaviors. The need and increasing interest for values education in the society have also drawn attention in the academic field, and scientists have tried to handle the concepts of value and values education in various ways. When considering examination of these concepts with an academic approach and the effect of values education in human development and social structure, the importance of studies on values education comes to light. For this purpose, a descriptive study was conducted by conducting document analysis process. Theses and dissertations conducted in Turkey up till today and recorded in the website of Council of Higher Education National Thesis Center were included in the study. Within this framework, all postgraduate theses and dissertations, which included the keyword “values education”, have been conducted at universities in Turkey until today, and had accessible abstract and full texts, were transferred to computer environment by coding. Studies with the keyword “values education” mentioned in the sample group were reviewed through CoHE National Thesis Center database. The obtained data were evaluated descriptively using frequency and percentage. As a result of the examinations made, it was determined that the studies of the graduate studies on the subject of values education were insufficient and most of the studies were carried out within the last 10 years and they were generally working for the sense of value in literary works. In this respect, the more academic study of values education will contribute to the elimination of deficiencies in this area