Early Education in Turkey

Years ago, kindergarten was seen as completely unnecessary. Children simply started primary school when they were six. More recently, primary schools have developed their own kindergartens (anaokulu). Turkish kindergartens prepare students for regular school days, and teach some basic lessons. Like older children kindergarten students are required to wear uniforms. Kindergarten usually costs around YTL 800 per year – the fee offsets the cost of uniforms, foods, and other supplies.Primary school:At 6, children begin compulsory education regardless of whether they have attended kindergarten or not. The Turkish school year runs from September to June, with a three-month vacation in summer and numerous holidays for Muslim feasts and religious observances.Primary students´ uniforms are plain blue up until the age of 11, at which point students switch to uniforms specific to their school. Parents must purchase their students´ uniforms themselves, though they are usually available in local shops.Primary students are taught the basics of most subjects, and even learn foreign languages. English is the most commonly taught, though French and German are often taught as well. Native-speaking foreign language teachers are a luxury uncommon to most public schools, however.Public primary schools are plagued with major weaknesses, however. Traditionally, the curriculum has been based on memorization and examination, with certain exercises bordering on the bizarre (in one, students would copy pages of information about Atatürk, the founder of the Turkish Republic, from books to paper by hand). In addition, public schools in major cities struggle with overcrowding. Class sizes of 50-60 students are common in Istanbul, overwhelming teachers and making it nearly impossible for many students to learn much of anything. Education reform was recently introduced with the goal of modernising the curriculum, though it has yet to have a measurable effect.Secondary school:While many students leave school at 14 and enter the work force the following year, many do continue to secondary school (lise). Unlike primary school, Turkish secondary school is not free, and the cost can range from hundreds to thousands of lira per year.As with secondary schools in many countries, there are both technical/vocational and academic (pre-university) lise. Students´ scores on an entrance exam, the Ortaö?retim Kurumlar? S?nav? (OKS), determine their school eligibility. Students with high scores can choose between technical (meslek) or academic lise. Low-scoring students are restricted to technical lise.Within these broad categories, each lise specializes in different subjects: foreign languages, general studies, and various professional skills are taught at lise schools across Turkey. Therefore, lise curricula are not standardized. It is important for students to develop an idea of their future educational and career goals when choosing a lise. If not, they risk paying for what amounts to the “wrong” education! Prospective university students in particular may be better served by one lise than another, as they will be preparing for their university entrance exams throughout secondary school.

Secondary school students also wear uniforms, and these vary in cost (they are usually not more than YTL 150. Schools tell parents which uniforms they require and where to get them.Kindergarten education will be compulsory in 25 more Turkish provinces at the beginning of the next school year, the country’s education minister said, daily Milliyet reported Sunday.The Education Ministry had made kindergarten education compulsory in 32 provinces in a pilot program during the 2009-2010 school year. Because the pilot program was a success, more provinces will be added to the list, Education Minister Nimet Çubukçu said.“With the pilot program, we increased the schooling rates for kindergarten to 39 percent from 33 percent around Turkey,” Çubukçu said. “By adding 25 provinces, we aim to increase the rate to 70 percent.”Kindergarten education will be compulsory for the 5-year-old age group. Instead of fining parents who do not send their children to kindergarten, the ministry would encourage schools to try to persuade parents to enroll their children. Çubukçu also said the ministry appointed 16,000 kindergarten teachers, the biggest number of teachers appointed at one time in the ministry’s history.

The 8 years of primary school are compulsory in Turkey (covering ages 6-14), and the government funds its costs. Neither kindergarten nor secondary school are free in Turkey. Even though their costs are low, many poor families cannot afford to send their children. The end result is that many children do not attend kindergarten and end up leaving school at 14. In Turkey, they are allowed to begin work 15, and for many families the extra income can be a matter of survival.Before attending university (or any other institution of high education), Turkish students must take entrance exams. The results of these exams determine which schools (and sometimes which academic programs within those schools) they are eligible to attend. In some cases, 2 or 3 points on an entrance exam can mean the difference between eligibility for a four-year undergraduate degree or restriction to a two-year education program.The Turkish school day: Students usually begin school around 8:15 and end at 15:00. They take an hour for lunch in the middle of the day. Cafeterias are rare in Turkish schools, so most students either go home for lunch or bring lunches with them to school. Due to overcrowding, some city schools divide their student body into two parts, each of which attends a half day of school. You will find this mostly in major cities like Istanbul and Ankara.Until sixth grade, Turkish students have a single teacher. From sixth grade on they have different teachers for different subjects.Despite Turkey´s predominantly Muslim population, public schools do not allow prayer. Furthermore, headscarves (hijab) are strictly forbidden. Instead of  you can try praying at the beginning of the school day, Turkish students recite the national anthem (?stiklal Mar?i).A notably ironic exception to these these rules is religion class, which begins halfway through primary school. Turkish religion classes focus on Islam. Foreign students are not required to attend religion class, but their participation is welcome.If you would like your child to attend religion classes, check with the school and learn about the curriculum. Depending on your own religious beliefs, you might change your mind after learning the details. Conversely, you might decide that your child will gain a valuable cultural experience by attending, even if you and your family are not Muslim.Regardless, you should make your decision based on whether or not you think your child will be comfortable.Physical punishment: Speaking of your child´s comfort, be aware that physical punishment is not taboo in Turkish schools. If you are from a western country where putting a hand on a student will cost a teacher his job, remember that  revitol stretch mark cream at the very least, most Turkish teachers are allowed to give the ears of a misbehaving student a rough yank. This certainly doesn´t mean that your child will be beaten like a prison inmate, but it is worth remembering.Western girls should not expect the equality they are used to in their home countries while attending Turkish schools. There was a time in Turkey where boy-crazy girls could be forced to submit to “virginity tests,” and though this is no longer the case, rebellious girls will certainly be disciplined or expelled faster than boys.Note that this disciplinary culture is significantly different at private and international schools, where there are large concentrations of foreign students. Turkish students usually take two or four years to complete their undergraduate degrees. Length of studies varies by university and subject. Graduate degrees require additional years of study – two for a Master´s degree and more for a doctorate.Male bowtrol colon cleanse supplement students are allowed to pursue their studies without delays caused by compulsory military service. These students perform their military service after they complete their degrees, and their service requirements are reduced to 6 months as an army private or 12 months as a reserve officer (from the standard 15 months as an army private). Since most university courses are taught in English, however, many Turkish students (male and female) delay their studies for a year to improve their English skills. If you are not a native English speaker, you, too might want to brush up on your English in addition to your Turkish. Turkish university structure:Western students will be surprised by the rigid structure of most university courses. Original thinking is discouraged in favour of simple memorization, and even the best Turkish universities place little emphasis on student participation. If you do not do well studying in a lecture-based environment, you may want to consider an affiliate marketing blog Turkish language program instead of a term at a university.As in other Turkish schools, female students are not allowed to wear the hijab (headscarf) on university grounds. Similarly, male students are not allowed to grow beards. Both are seen as promoting fundamentalism in Turkey´s secular institutions. In recent years, these rules have been challenged legally with increasing frequency, though presently without success.?