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Journal of Turkish Weekly
Aug 28 2014
Turkey's education row deepens as thousands placed in religious
schools `against their will'
28 August 2014
Turkey's secondary education examination row has deepened, amid
reports that thousands of students, including some non-Muslims, have
been placed in Islamic vocational schools for the upcoming school
year.
After the results for the national primary to secondary education
(TEOG) examination were announced earlier this month, there were a
number of reports that around 40,000 students had been placed in
religious `imam-hatip' schools against the will of their families.
Education Ministry Deputy Undersecretary Muhterem Kurt confirmed that
a total of 9,802 students had been placed in schools far away from the
districts where they live, but stressed that there was `no need to
panic.' Kurt told daily Milliyet that there would be an opportunity
for re-allocation in mid-September.
According to the new system, students failing to get into their
top-preferred school as a result of the exam are placed in schools
nearest to their area. However, many claim that too many regular
schools have been turned into imam-hatip schools in recent years,
making it difficult for some children to avoid a religion-focused
education even if they do not want it.
EÄ?itim-Sen, an education union, released a statement last week,
calling on the Education Ministry to `take the objections into
consideration' and to `not force any student to study in a type of
school that they do not want.'
The chairman of Parliament's Education Commission, ruling Justice and
Development Party (AKP) deputy Mehmet Naci Bostancı was quoted on the
BBC Turkish website as saying that students and their families had
`options.'
`There is nothing against the people's will. Everybody can get an
education in the way they want,' he said.
Main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) deputy Namık Havutça,
also a member of the commission, said the government was aiming to
convert more general schools into imam-hatip schools, thus making
religious schools the norm in Turkish education system. Havutça added
that options other than imam-hatip schools are particularly scare in
Central Anatolian provinces.
According to a recent report by Sabancı University's Education Reform
Initiative, the number of imam-hatip schools has increased by 73
percent since 2010, a remarkable rise compared to technical high
schools' 23 percent rise and general Anatolian high schools' 57
percent rise.
However, the Istanbul National Education Directorate claimed that only
13 general high schools had been turned into religious schools
nationwide.
The deputy chair of education syndicate EÄ?itim-Bir-Sen, Ahmet Ã-zer,
said he `understood the concerns' but also claimed that they were
`ideologically motivated.'
`When there is only one school in one area, I don't find it
appropriate to transform that school into another type. But if there
is demand and there are a couple of schools in a region, we support
one of them being changed into an imam-hatip,' Ã-zer said.
He added that the 40,000 students reported as being placed in
imam-hatips against their will was `not a big number' compared to the
1.25 million students who took the national test. He also insisted
that the path to change the schools of these 40,000 students was not
closed.
There are also reports that two Armenian students in Istanbul were
automatically assigned to imam-hatip schools. One of them, identified
as Arda Christof A., did not fill his preferences as he wanted to
study at a private school, and was therefore automatically assigned to
a Muslim school.
His father told daily Cumhuriyet that they believed it was simply a
bureaucratic error. `I believe this situation happened for
bureaucratic reasons. We laughed about it. I just believe the
Education Ministry has to be more sensitive about it,' he said.
The parent of another student in a similar situation said she was `not
surprised' by the situation. `My daughter has been registered in an
imam-hatip school. We will request a transfer. I am working in the
education business and I'm not surprised,' she said.
28 August 2014
Hürriyet Daily News
http://www.turkishweekly.net/news/171015/turkey-s-education-row-deepens-as-thousands-placed-in-religious-schools-against-their-will.html
Aug 28 2014
Turkey's education row deepens as thousands placed in religious
schools `against their will'
28 August 2014
Turkey's secondary education examination row has deepened, amid
reports that thousands of students, including some non-Muslims, have
been placed in Islamic vocational schools for the upcoming school
year.
After the results for the national primary to secondary education
(TEOG) examination were announced earlier this month, there were a
number of reports that around 40,000 students had been placed in
religious `imam-hatip' schools against the will of their families.
Education Ministry Deputy Undersecretary Muhterem Kurt confirmed that
a total of 9,802 students had been placed in schools far away from the
districts where they live, but stressed that there was `no need to
panic.' Kurt told daily Milliyet that there would be an opportunity
for re-allocation in mid-September.
According to the new system, students failing to get into their
top-preferred school as a result of the exam are placed in schools
nearest to their area. However, many claim that too many regular
schools have been turned into imam-hatip schools in recent years,
making it difficult for some children to avoid a religion-focused
education even if they do not want it.
EÄ?itim-Sen, an education union, released a statement last week,
calling on the Education Ministry to `take the objections into
consideration' and to `not force any student to study in a type of
school that they do not want.'
The chairman of Parliament's Education Commission, ruling Justice and
Development Party (AKP) deputy Mehmet Naci Bostancı was quoted on the
BBC Turkish website as saying that students and their families had
`options.'
`There is nothing against the people's will. Everybody can get an
education in the way they want,' he said.
Main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) deputy Namık Havutça,
also a member of the commission, said the government was aiming to
convert more general schools into imam-hatip schools, thus making
religious schools the norm in Turkish education system. Havutça added
that options other than imam-hatip schools are particularly scare in
Central Anatolian provinces.
According to a recent report by Sabancı University's Education Reform
Initiative, the number of imam-hatip schools has increased by 73
percent since 2010, a remarkable rise compared to technical high
schools' 23 percent rise and general Anatolian high schools' 57
percent rise.
However, the Istanbul National Education Directorate claimed that only
13 general high schools had been turned into religious schools
nationwide.
The deputy chair of education syndicate EÄ?itim-Bir-Sen, Ahmet Ã-zer,
said he `understood the concerns' but also claimed that they were
`ideologically motivated.'
`When there is only one school in one area, I don't find it
appropriate to transform that school into another type. But if there
is demand and there are a couple of schools in a region, we support
one of them being changed into an imam-hatip,' Ã-zer said.
He added that the 40,000 students reported as being placed in
imam-hatips against their will was `not a big number' compared to the
1.25 million students who took the national test. He also insisted
that the path to change the schools of these 40,000 students was not
closed.
There are also reports that two Armenian students in Istanbul were
automatically assigned to imam-hatip schools. One of them, identified
as Arda Christof A., did not fill his preferences as he wanted to
study at a private school, and was therefore automatically assigned to
a Muslim school.
His father told daily Cumhuriyet that they believed it was simply a
bureaucratic error. `I believe this situation happened for
bureaucratic reasons. We laughed about it. I just believe the
Education Ministry has to be more sensitive about it,' he said.
The parent of another student in a similar situation said she was `not
surprised' by the situation. `My daughter has been registered in an
imam-hatip school. We will request a transfer. I am working in the
education business and I'm not surprised,' she said.
28 August 2014
Hürriyet Daily News
http://www.turkishweekly.net/news/171015/turkey-s-education-row-deepens-as-thousands-placed-in-religious-schools-against-their-will.html