Oslo, 2-5 September
2004 - The Oslo Coalition on Freedom of Religion or Belief
Public Authority Report On Teaching For
Tolerance And Freedom Of Religion Or Belief In Turkey
General Director of Religious Education
Turkish Ministry of Education
Religion is a part of identity of human individual. It is one of the basic value resources that make human life significant. It is impossible to imagine a society without religion in history, and human beings have had different religions throughout the history. Teaching religious faiths to people and especially young generations at schools and presenting it in the way that it promotes tolerance and respect to “the other” is important for modern and pluralistic societies. Religious education must have a special role to contribute to the world peace and to shape a world that people respect and understand each other. Considering these facts, education of religion is required to support for embracing the freedom of religion and belief in the society at every level. Turkey, as a secular and democratic state, guarantees the freedom of religion and belief on the basis of its Constitution. Turkey has completed an important advance in both the protection and the expansion of boundaries of the freedom of religion and belief in the progression of entering the European Union as a full member. In this report, after providing general information about religious education in Turkey, the evaluations of problems, recent developments, present conditions and possible improvements pertaining to education of freedom of religion and belief as well as tolerance will be explained.
Turkey is a secular state. According to the definition of laicism religious education is run with the auspices of state at all kinds of schools. Moreover, to provide the service of religious education is one of responsibilities of state. It is, therefore, lawfully impossible for individual religious groups to give religious education. According to the “Act of ‘Tevhid-i Tedrisat” (The Act of Unification of Religion), passed in 3rd March 1924, separation of religious and secular education was eliminated and it was accepted that all kinds of education is to be offered by Ministry of National Education. Hence, religious education, general education, professional education etc. are to be given at schools governed by the Ministry of National Education in Turkey
1) Religious Education is a compulsory subject on the basis of the Turkish Constitution. From time to time compulsory religious education is criticized as far as freedom of faith is concerned. When the content of the subject is studied accurately it will be perceived that the purpose of this subject is not to grow up devoted Muslims but to supply student a common religious culture of the society. Besides it is well known that the majority of Turkish people do not have any inconveniences with the religious education given by the state.
2) New curriculum developed out of the old
Religious and Ethic Culture Education course programme for primary schools was
implemented by the Ministry of National Education in 2000. New textbooks and
supplementary materials were prepared according to the new curriculum of the
course. It was claimed that old curriculum had a traditional understanding
towards religious education and it had contained prejudices and negative
approaches regarding the other. New curriculum, however, has more positive
developments comparing to the old one. In order to implement the pedagogical
approach that consider tolerance to “the other” in classroom and to structure
this consciousness within the minds of students special education courses are
organized for the teachers of the subject by the Ministry of Education.
3) Imam
Hatip High Schools have been frequently on the agenda in Turkey in the context
of religion-state relations. Discussions over these schools form the agenda on
the matters such as the definition of laicism and freedom of religion etc. in
Turkey. Currently whether graduates of Imam-Hatip schools can enter university
with equal conditions to the other students graduated from other high schools
has been discussed at universities, media etc. In fact, the concept of Imam
Hatip High School is a part of Atatürk’s project of new Republic of Turkey and
it can be seen as the Turkish way of solution for the issue of religious education in modern age. There is no any
similar type of school that teaches not only positive sciences but also
religious education in Islamic Countries. These schools give education for both profession and
higher education. One third of the curriculum of Imam Hatip High Schools
comprises Islamic religious courses and the other two third consists of secular
lessons. Most of the families do not send their children to these schools since
they want their children to grow as Muslim priest etc., whereas families send
their children to the schools because they want their children to take more
religious education and culture alongside the secular lessons. Considering the
non-existence of church school type of option in Turkey, it is easily
understood the reason for public demand
to these schools. Discussions between the people who understand laicism as the
separation of religion and state affairs, provision of freedom of religion and
conscience, prevention people who have different beliefs from any oppression
and the people who understand laicism as an anti-religious attitude
transforming laicism into and ideology appear as the problem that hinders the
reasonable discussion of religious education. It seems that the ones who regard
religious education as something against laicism have inaccurate information
about the nature of religious knowledge. They are also unaware that the
religious education can contribute the education of tolerance. Avoiding the
demand of religious education and the endeavours of restricting it appears in
different ways in the society. Those who want to avert the religious education,
however, pave the way to the people who want to misuse religion for their
personal ambitions and interest. When religious education is not given
appropriately the correct interpretation of religion cannot be taught and some
people develop opinions and beliefs that are against the main purposes of
religion and, therefore, religion can be
a source of social polarization. Normalization of religious education,
which is a democratic demand, is possible only by means of providing it legal
ground in a democratic society. For this reason, religious education that has
already Constitutional and legal ground should be normalized without any
hindrances.
4) Curricula of Imam Hatip High Schools were changed completely in 1999. Important changes were realized in the content of the course “Comparative History of Religions”, which was in the curriculum, regarding both its content and its pedagogical approach. Christianity and Judaism e.g. are defined and taught as objective as possible instead of interpreting them with Islamic perspective. It can be held that this type of change is an important step to develop more tolerant attitudes to “the other” in the school education.
5) Turkey pays attention to the human rights education that aims at developing the conscience of tolerance to the “other” and preventing discrimination. In line with the decision of the United Nations Turkey was one of the first countries that founded “ the Ten Years National Committee for Human Rights Education” in 1998 and consequently issued the national plan of action in 1999. In this context, “Citizenship and Human Rights Education” course is given as compulsory subjects in primary schools at 7th and 8th grades.
General Director of Religious Education
Turkish Ministry of Education