Tweet
ARMENIAN SCHOOLS IN TURKEY: 'STUDENT ENROLLMENT HALF WHAT IT WAS 30 YEARS AGO'
01.27.2014 13:44 epress.am
Armenian schools in Turkey face significant financial, legal and
logistical difficulties. Another major obstacle is the fear of
reprisal for openly discussing these issues with the press. Armenian
educators see discrimination against non-Muslim communities and their
institutions to still be deeply ingrained in the state apparatus.
Sunday's Zaman was able to visit two schools and talk to several
teachers and principals, most of whom requested that their names
not be printed. They explained that they feared investigation by the
Ministry of Education if they consult with the media without obtaining
official permission.
"We are in an odd position, as we are considered neither a private
nor a state school," said one middle school principal. Minority
schools indeed occupy a murky status. Armenians, Greeks and Jews,
who comprise the three "official" minorities of Turkey, are allowed
to maintain their own religious and educational facilities, but with
major caveats. Only Turkish citizens who have at least one parent of
Armenian origin are allowed to attend Armenian schools. The status of
the schools falls in a bizarre grey area that seems to maximize state
intrusion and control. The state appoints the deputy principal as well
as teachers of Turkish history, language, literature and geography.
Their salaries are paid by the state, while the remainder of the
operational costs fall on the shoulders of the parents, private
donors and foundations. The schools are required to admit students
regardless of their ability to pay for the costs of education,
a source of continual tension and financial strain.
Nowadays there are just 16 schools and 3,000 students. All of these
schools are in Istanbul, where the majority of Turkey's 60,000
Armenians lives. Student enrollment today is half of what it was 30
years ago. The situation was entirely different in the late Ottoman
period, when there were nearly 2,000 Armenian schools throughout
Anatolia, comprising over 170,000 students.
To read the article in full, please click here.
http://www.todayszaman.com/news-337592-istanbuls-armenian-schools-face-no-shortage-of-troubles.html
http://www.epress.am/en/2014/01/27/armenian-schools-in-turkey-student-enrollment-half-what-it-was-30-years-ago.html
From: A. Papazian
01.27.2014 13:44 epress.am
Armenian schools in Turkey face significant financial, legal and
logistical difficulties. Another major obstacle is the fear of
reprisal for openly discussing these issues with the press. Armenian
educators see discrimination against non-Muslim communities and their
institutions to still be deeply ingrained in the state apparatus.
Sunday's Zaman was able to visit two schools and talk to several
teachers and principals, most of whom requested that their names
not be printed. They explained that they feared investigation by the
Ministry of Education if they consult with the media without obtaining
official permission.
"We are in an odd position, as we are considered neither a private
nor a state school," said one middle school principal. Minority
schools indeed occupy a murky status. Armenians, Greeks and Jews,
who comprise the three "official" minorities of Turkey, are allowed
to maintain their own religious and educational facilities, but with
major caveats. Only Turkish citizens who have at least one parent of
Armenian origin are allowed to attend Armenian schools. The status of
the schools falls in a bizarre grey area that seems to maximize state
intrusion and control. The state appoints the deputy principal as well
as teachers of Turkish history, language, literature and geography.
Their salaries are paid by the state, while the remainder of the
operational costs fall on the shoulders of the parents, private
donors and foundations. The schools are required to admit students
regardless of their ability to pay for the costs of education,
a source of continual tension and financial strain.
Nowadays there are just 16 schools and 3,000 students. All of these
schools are in Istanbul, where the majority of Turkey's 60,000
Armenians lives. Student enrollment today is half of what it was 30
years ago. The situation was entirely different in the late Ottoman
period, when there were nearly 2,000 Armenian schools throughout
Anatolia, comprising over 170,000 students.
To read the article in full, please click here.
http://www.todayszaman.com/news-337592-istanbuls-armenian-schools-face-no-shortage-of-troubles.html
http://www.epress.am/en/2014/01/27/armenian-schools-in-turkey-student-enrollment-half-what-it-was-30-years-ago.html
From: A. Papazian