Turkey's New Education Reforms Spark Islamisation Concerns

An ongoing controversy surrounds Turkey's new curriculum for compulsory primary and secondary education, currently undergoing public consultation. The opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) has vehemently rejected the proposed curriculum, alleging a shift towards religious and reactionary ideologies.

In a protest march from the Turkish National Assembly to the Ministry of National Education, senior CHP official Suat Özçağdaş and MPs voiced their concerns, denouncing what they perceive as an attempt to impose an ideological agenda on the education system.

Central to the controversy is the inclusion of the "Blue Homeland" doctrine in the curriculum, a move criticised as an effort to Islamise education and undermine the secular principles of the Kemalist educational model. Critics argue that the curriculum favours religious studies and Arabic learning over core subjects such as Turkish, mathematics, physics, and social sciences.

Critics also raise concerns about the reduced emphasis on topics such as the theory of evolution in biology, while religious content, including lessons on the life of the Prophet and the Qur'an, receives greater prominence. Furthermore, the curriculum introduces lessons on individuals who shaped Turkish culture and on ethics and civics, prompting accusations of favouritism towards religious teachings.

Opponents of the government's education reforms caution against what they perceive as a growing influence of religious orders in the education system, likening the curriculum to vocational high schools for imams. They call for the abolition of the new curriculum, emphasising the importance of preserving Turkey's secular educational heritage amidst ongoing reforms.

(Source: To Vima)