The Turkish Ministry of Education presented Education Vision 2023 yesterday at the Beştepe Presidential Complex at an event attended by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. The reform program is aimed to be achieved by the centenary of foundation of the Republic of Turkey will focus on a flexible curriculum with less school hours and more diversity.
Education Minister Ziya Selçuk said they would assign more authority and responsibility to school administrators and will set up design and skills workshops at every school as part of the program.
The education system has undergone countless changes in the brief history of modern Turkey and every new step has brought new challenges. In the past 15 years, the government managed to impose an overhaul of the system with relative success, especially in terms of university admission exams and better schools with the more classrooms and use of technology in education.
Selçuk said a key component of the program will be changes in education of teachers. He said they would cooperate with the Board of Higher Education (YÖK) that oversees universities for changes in teacher training. He said they set up a system to examine skills of students starting from primary school and to guide them to fields of education they would be most successful in. "Exams will be secondary for us. If we can ensure equality in terms of the quality of education at each school, there won't be exam pressure on students," he said.
Another key change will be in reducing the number of classes. "We have to change the mindset that causes children only to focus on exams and distance themselves from extracurricular activities," he said.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said at the event that he believed that with the 2023 Vision, they will be able to attain the level the are aiming for in the field of education.
Among other changes, Erdoğan said that kindergarten education would be compulsory in Turkey after necessary arrangements are completed. He also announced that additional financial support will be given to schools. "A number of measures will be taken to encourage our teachers working in underprivileged regions," he added.
The president also pledged a new law for teachers to improve their working conditions.
