2024

Preparation of the Century of Türkiye Education Model Curriculum

The Century of Türkiye Education Model is the product of a ten-year long-term study and many steps have been taken in this process to develop skill-based education programs. The first concrete study in this direction is the National Education Quality Framework conducted in 2014. In this framework, the skills that students should have were defined. The second concrete step taken for a skill-based education approach is the Regulation on the Procedures and Principles Regarding the Implementation of the Turkish Qualifications Framework, which was published in the Official Gazette dated 19 November 2015 and numbered 29537 with the decision numbered 2015/8213 of the Council of Ministers and entered into force. The 8 key competencies defined within this framework have been included in the education programs.

The first phase of the program development process, which is based on the Century of Türkiye Education Model and started with full-time commission studies in 2023, was the needs analysis. In this context, problems and needs regarding the current curriculum were identified as basic questions were asked on how these problems could be resolved and how the needs could be met, and data was collected from various sources in order to create a scientific, need-based roadmap.

Program evaluation committees were established in 81 Provincial Directorates of National Education and the evaluation of existing programs was made and the reporting process was carried out. Since 2013, the opinions and suggestions received for the curriculum and textbooks have been archived by our Ministry and the studies have been reported by conducting content analysis on these opinions. Situation determination studies have been conducted regarding the countries implementing skill-based curriculum. Studies regarding the skill sets decided to be used in the Century of Türkiye Education Model curriculum have been sent to civil society organizations and their opinions and suggestions have been received.

Current developments related to international organizations such as the OECD and the World Bank were constantly monitored and academic publications abroad were examined and commissions were formed to report on these. Analysis reports were created in which the 2017 Curriculum was compared with the curricula of many different countries in terms of subjects and achievements. Curriculums of countries that achieved above average success in international exams were examined and reported in terms of program development.

During the preparation process of the skill-based curriculum, student opinions were received from 81 provinces and a survey to which seventeen thousand students responded was conducted to determine the expectations and needs of the students. In addition, teachers’ opinions were received from 81 provinces and a comprehensive data collection study was conducted on the difficulties teachers encountered in the process, the deficiencies and needs of the current curriculum. All academic studies conducted since the implementation of the 2013 Curriculum have been analyzed and reported.

In the needs analysis process, strategic plans, action plans and national and international research reports were used. As a result of the needs analysis, it was determined that the cognitive load of the current curriculum was too heavy for students and this situation constituted the main justification for the program development studies. In addition, when the results obtained from international reports and global exams were evaluated, it was seen that the education systems of the countries were moving towards an understanding that was skill-oriented and served holistic development areas.

The elements that paved the way for the emergence of the Century of Türkiye Education Model are as follows:

1. The growing need to use information effectively and transform it into a skill in today's world where access to information has increased,

2. The understanding that program development should be in line with the changes in science, technology, economy, art and culture as well as the requirements of the age,

3. The need to concretely integrate social-emotional learning skills into the structure of curriculum,

4. Making national and spiritual values concrete, understandable and visible in the curriculum in order to raise students who are moral, competent and virtuous and who have adopted the ideal of doing what is good, right, useful and nice for the nation and humanity,

5. Developing system thinking skills in the learning process with system literacy and achieving the basic goals of literacy skills in a holistic manner,

6. Creating valid, reliable and refined content by ensuring the horizontal consistency of complex and comprehensive information sets with other subjects and vertical consistency within themselves,

7. Establishing interdisciplinary relationships and providing students with a holistic perspective by moving curricula beyond discipline-focused knowledge transfer, and supporting the realization of permanent learning.

8. Focusing on experiential, contextual, inquiry-based, collaborative and project-based learning approaches in teaching-learning experiences in a learning process where students are active and interact with their environment and take responsibility for their own learning.

9. Preventing learner differences from disappearing within the normal distribution through “differentiation” activities that are free from competitive and discriminatory approaches, thus ensuring social justice in the learning process.

10. Determining the level of students' achievement of learning objectives objectively and clearly by prioritizing learning evidence, process and situation-based approaches, and developmental measurement and evaluation approaches,

11. Enabling school-based planning that takes into account contextual and environmental characteristics in line with students' interests, needs and expectations, and strengthening teacher autonomy,

12. Ensuring that teachers evaluate their own strengths and the aspects of their curriculum that need improvement through teacher reflections.

The Century of Türkiye Education Model Curriculum prepared for the purposes above was approved by the Board of Education and Training Presidency with the decision numbered 20, dated 23/05/2024. The said curriculums will be implemented in kindergarten, 1st and 5th grades in the 2024-2025 academic year. A gradual transition will be made in the following academic years. (Source: tymm.meb.gov.tr)

Updating Curriculums Within the Scope of the Century of Türkiye Education Model

The Century of Türkiye Education Model is a holistic model consisting of the basic approach of the curriculum, student profile, Virtue-Value-Action Framework, and skills framework components. The human being, who is at the center of the Century of Türkiye Education Model, is addressed holistically in terms of mental, emotional, physical, social and spiritual development. Accordingly, a rights and development-based learning process where people are given the opportunity to know and discover themselves and flexible and free learning environments are spread according to the interests and abilities of individuals has been structured.   

Education is seen as a fundamental right that everyone can access throughout their lives in the Century of Türkiye Education Model. For this reason, all policies and practices are implemented to ensure the use of the right to education and equality of opportunity. Based on this perspective, the Century of Türkiye Education Model designs a learning process where students are not disadvantaged due to their beliefs, identities or socioeconomic status and aims to strengthen a fair education process for everyone by taking into account these differences and measures to eliminate possible disadvantages.       

The aim of the Century of Türkiye Education Model is to provide a holistic understanding of the individual's cognitive, social, emotional, physical and moral development. In this context, curriculums in which knowledge and skills are synthesized, abstract mental processes are concretized, national, spiritual and universal values are infused into the curriculum and imparted to the student, students are active and interact with their environment, and objective and open measurement and evaluation are possible have been prepared. 

The ultimate goal of the Century of Türkiye Education Model is to raise competent and virtuous people. In the Education Model student profile, where competence and virtue are at the center, the knowledge, skills, tendencies and values of the students are taken into consideration. In the Century of Türkiye Education Model, the multi-faceted development of the students and their acquisition of knowledge and skills in different areas are aimed, and interdisciplinary relations are also included. With interdisciplinary relations, the curriculum has been moved beyond the transfer of knowledge focused on disciplines, and students have been provided with a holistic perspective and permanent learning has been achieved. In the new curriculum, skills have been modeled as a part of the learning process with their relationships and meaning characteristics. With the associations among skills, the skill development process has been given a dynamic structure, thus contributing to the increase in the quality of the process.

Through school-based planning, contextual and environmental features were taken into consideration for the first time and these features were included in the new curriculum. With school-based planning, which refers to the time allocated to studies such as research and observation, social activities, project work, local studies, reading activities to be carried out within the scope of the course by the group teachers' board, teachers have been given the opportunity to adapt the curriculum.

In the new curriculum, a process and situation-based measurement and evaluation approach has been adopted and this approach has been included in practice. With the aim of monitoring student development and improving teaching methods by basing measurement and evaluation practices on a process-based approach, an important role has been given to the measurement and evaluation process in reaching learning outcomes. One of the most important innovations brought by the Century of Türkiye Education Model is the differentiation section. With differentiation practices, ignoring student differences has been prevented and it has been aimed to create activities that provide social justice and are far from a discriminatory and competitive mindset.

The aim of the extracurricular activities provided by the Century of Türkiye Education Model is to support mental, social-emotional, physical and moral development, to enable the application of acquired skills in real life, to enrich academic studies carried out in schools, to use time effectively, and to increase aesthetic sensitivity. For this purpose, a social responsibility program and lifelong learning were added to the curriculum. As a result of the needs analysis, it was aimed to reduce the intensity of the curriculum, which emerged as an important expectation and an average of 35% content simplification was made by removing content from the curriculum that was of no use other than being a cognitive burden on the student, that did not serve meaningful learning and that did not contribute to the development of life skills. 

The Development of Curriculum and Textbooks Within the Scope of the Century of Türkiye Education Model

Today, the rapid changes and transformations taking place in social, cultural, economic, and technological fields require the differentiation of the knowledge and skills that people should have, the different application of tendencies, and the natural acquisition of values. In this process of change, it was necessary to define change and transformation as a whole in order for mental activities to be understood and used by people. Accordingly, as a reflection of the transformations in question, it was aimed to implement various innovative policies and practices through teaching programs in order to equip students with the knowledge and skills required by the age. In this context, the Century of Türkiye Education Model addresses the knowledge clusters belonging to the field with a holistic approach based on the skill network in a way that will appeal to all behavioral patterns of the individual. Within the scope of the model, higher-order thinking skills, conceptual skills, social emotional learning skills, field skills, literacy skills, and tendencies that have a triggering function in the use of these skills have been defined. In this context, the developed curriculums have been prepared in a spiral structure from preschool to the end of secondary education, taking into account all the components defined in the model. While it is seen that skills were included in the previous curriculums, guidance was provided in the renewed curriculums on how and at what stage of the process the skills would be given. In the curriculums prepared within the scope of the Century of Türkiye Education Model, the knowledge clusters belonging to the field are structured on the basis of a skill network in each learning outcome, and concrete experiences are included in the learning-teaching practices regarding how these skills will be acquired by students. In addition, the virtue-value-action framework, which is one of the basic components of the model based on physical and spiritual integrity, has been reflected in the programs. Thus, values are processed naturally within the flow of the program, not separately from other elements of the program, skills and field content. Similarly, as a requirement of a holistic academic approach, the curriculums are designed based on supra-disciplinary and trans-disciplinary approaches in addition to their interdisciplinary nature in order to enrich the teaching processes on the basis of a skill network.

Within the scope of the Century of Türkiye Education Model, the General Directorate of Secondary Education presented the curriculum of 9 subjects with the Century of Türkiye Education Model Common Text, the curriculum of 10 subjects by the General Directorate of Basic Education, and the curriculum of 7 subjects by the General Directorate of Religious Education to the public on April 26, 2024. The opinions and suggestions were evaluated as required by the principles of transparency, scientificness and participation and were reflected in the curriculum. The Century of Türkiye Education Model curriculums of 26 subjects related to the new curriculum were discussed on the agenda on May 16-22, 2024, and the new curriculum, which was discussed again, was approved by the Board of Education and Training.

In addition to conceptual skills and field skills included in the curriculum, social emotional skills, literacy skills and the Virtue-Value-Action model are included in our textbooks. The textbook aims to provide students with these skills and values through individual and group work methods, educational games and in-class and out-of-class activities. In this way, it is aimed to raise honorable and virtuous individuals and to raise generations that can think critically, question, research, and have responsibility and ideals.

The activities in our textbooks direct students to collaborative learning rather than individual studies. The prepared textbooks include activities, animations, simulations, digital history, augmented reality and artificial intelligence-supported applications within QR codes. In this way, it is aimed for our students to learn without needing any auxiliary resources.

In the prepared textbooks, the correct and effective use of Turkish has been particularly emphasized in a way that will develop students' vocabulary. The correct use and development of Turkish has been addressed as an important policy in our textbooks. In our textbooks, rather than an approach that focuses only on the result, developmental (formative) measurement and evaluation practices have been used to follow the students' learning levels in the process. In addition, process and situation-based measurement and evaluation approaches have been included with the aim of making measurement and evaluation processes more objective and clear with concrete and observable learning evidence. Forms designed in accordance with this measurement and evaluation approach have been included in our textbooks. These forms have contributed to the development of students' self-regulation skills.

Technology-Focused Learning Scenarios

The study of technology-focused learning scenarios aims to support the effective use of technology in learning environments and to provide interactive lesson flows by developing teachers' digital skills. For this purpose, innovative scenarios compatible with the curriculum are being developed at the primary and secondary school levels. In this way, more effective and efficient use of interactive boards will be provided. A workshop was organized with the participation of teachers on May 8, 2024 to ensure the effective use of technology in learning environments, to develop teachers' scenario preparation skills, to produce innovative scenarios in this field, to evaluate the produced scenarios, and to develop existing scenarios. Along with the design process of the 200 pilot scenarios, the scenario writing process is also ongoing. In-service training is planned to publish the scenarios in the design process on EBA and to inform teachers about innovative applications and technology use.

School and Teacher Networks

 eTwinning is a secure, web-based social school network where all teachers in Europe include their students, enable them to share experiences and knowledge, and develop projects with a pedagogical basis together. The aim of this network, where 46 countries take part in project activities, is to develop teachers' and students' communication skills in European languages, especially English, by improving their use of information technologies, integrating technology into the curriculum they implement, and encouraging them to use innovative teaching methods and techniques. In order to increase teachers' connection with the project, 13 online trainings were held with the participation of a total of 8,500 teachers. The "Digital Teacher Network Workshop" was held on May 6-8, 2024 with the participation of academicians, teachers, and institution representatives.

The Scientix Project

The Scientix project, which our country is also involved in and aims to ensure that all of Europe is informed about projects related to science, mathematics, engineering and technology (STEM) education aimed at solving real-life problems throughout Europe, has a total of 637 Scientix ambassadors to facilitate the dissemination and sharing of produced learning materials and tools. Workshops and face-to-face / distance trainings were held in order to share experiences in the Scientix project and STEM education. Workshops were held in a total of 6 provinces, namely Kastamonu, Ordu, Şanlıurfa, Batman, Tunceli and Istanbul, and 600 teachers participated. In order to increase interaction and sharing experiences, 3 STEM In-Service Training Courses were organized and approximately 117 STEM Provincial Coordinators and Scientix ambassadors received STEM Trainer training in these courses. 34 were held online and a total of 2900 teachers participated.

Innovative Classrooms

In line with the vision of the Century of Türkiye included in the 2024-2028 Strategic Plan of our Ministry, the strategy indicating that "innovative classrooms will be established in schools" has been determined. In line with this purpose, as of the 2023-2024 academic year, studies have been initiated to transform 500 classrooms in 81 provinces as innovative learning environments that all branch teachers can use for active learning at the middle and high school levels for the transformation of computer technologies (IT) laboratories and the establishment of innovative classrooms. So far, studies have been carried out for school determination, area design, IT infrastructure and technology equipment-hardware determination for 500 Innovative Classrooms. In this direction, 12 laptops, 8 desktop computers, robotic kits, 3D printers, and mind and intelligence games will be included in the innovative classrooms, and the classrooms will be organized with flexible and collaborative design and modular furniture. In this context,

• An online information meeting was held on January 17, 2024 regarding the IT classroom and the Innovative classroom setup.

• Training on Designing the Classroom of the Future was given to teachers in Ankara on January 15-17, 2024.

• A “Participant Handbook” has been prepared for the “Innovative Classrooms Trainer Training”.

• “Innovative Learning Environments Education” has been published on the Teacher Information Network.

• “Designing Innovative Learning Environments” workshops were held on May 9 and May 16, 2024.

• Introductory training was given in the STEM Trainer Training course between August 5-9.

Digital Citizenship Education Project

The dissemination of the 10 impact areas of Digital Citizenship Education determined by the Council of Europe regarding the Digital Citizenship Education Supporters Network has been continuing since November 2019. Teachers, administrators, students and parents are included in 13 schools including kindergarten, primary school, secondary school, high school, vocational high school and BİLSEM in the provinces of Ankara, Kayseri, Giresun, Kırıkkale, Manisa, Kütahya, Balıkesir, Mersin, Antalya, İzmir and İstanbul. Periodic online meetings are organized to share good examples on Digital Citizenship Education with the participation of country representatives in the member countries of the working group and good examples are shared. In this context;

• A seminar titled 'The Fight Against Cyber Crimes' was held on May 28, 2024.

• In the e-Twinning project called Digitable, students created a story about the threats we may encounter online, such as cyberbullying, fake news, phishing scams and identity fraud.

• Studies on internet safety, well-being and digital bullying have been carried out through Erasmus + Accreditation projects.

• Within the scope of TÜBİTAK 4006 Science Talks, a project was prepared by the institution and submitted to TÜBİTAK and with the project supported by a grant, a seminar study on Healthy Living and Digital Life was completed for students who were competent lecturers in their fields from İzmir Economic University, and in this context, logo designs, sample case studies, and parent briefing seminars were held.

The Educational Technologies Incubation and Innovation Center (ETKİM)

The Education Technologies Incubation and Innovation Center (ETKİM) was opened by the Ministry of National Education in 2023 at METU Technopolis. In ETKİM, where intensive activities are carried out to recognize, promote, direct and strengthen the education technologies sector, our Ministry continues to support the implementation of digital education strategies for schools, presenting examples of technology-supported good practices and capacity building activities by developing a strong cooperation model for the active use of education technologies with the activities to be carried out within the scope of the digital education and innovation ecosystem.

In the Professional Learning Laboratory located in the center, professional development studies, pilot applications, R&D studies and technology development activities are carried out in order to use educational technology investments in the most powerful way. The interactions among companies, academicians, educators and students in the educational technology ecosystem are increased with the events organized in ETKİM. While teacher and student trainings and workshops are organized within the scope of the events in ETKİM, innovative learning scenarios that will serve the effective use of educational technologies and active learning are developed. Information on the activities carried out in ETKİM is presented to stakeholders at www.etkim.gov.tr .

Educational Project for Sustainable Living

In order to create a climate change-resistant society, the project activities initiated in cooperation with our Ministry and UNICEF continue with the aim of updating preschool, primary school and secondary school education and training programs with an educational perspective for sustainable life, developing materials suitable for the updated curriculums and increasing awareness among school stakeholders. Within the scope of the project, a School Climate Change Action Plan Preparation Guide, Story books for preschools, primary schools and secondary schools, teacher activity books, teacher guide book, sustainable life and climate change club directive and activity plan have been prepared. Preparations for the printing and distribution of the created materials are ongoing. In this context, trainer trainings were provided to 260 teachers from 81 provinces. Teachers who received the Education for Sustainable Life program will implement the project in their schools by providing local training to teachers in their own provinces.

The Project on the Elimination of Learning Losses and Strengthening of Teaching in Basic Education

The formation and continuity of strong societies depend on the training of qualified human resources. The place of education in the training of qualified human resources is extremely critical. However, any social, economic and environmental reasons experienced by the society or the interests and abilities of individuals can affect educational services and cause disruptions in the learning of individuals. For these reasons, the main purpose of the project is to identify learning losses at the basic education level, eliminate learning losses and strengthen teaching. 

The third and fourth phases of the Project on the Elimination of Learning Loss and Strengthening of Teaching in Basic Education will be carried out in 20 provinces selected from 7 regions that can be representative of the country. The project provinces were determined from among earthquake provinces, where learning losses may be widespread, disaster regions, provinces where migration is intense and provinces where learning losses may be extensive due to reasons other than disasters under standard conditions. In the previous two phases, a pilot application was carried out with provinces selected from earthquake regions and provinces where migration from earthquake regions is high and the application outputs showed that the study was successful. In the third and fourth phases that will continue, this scope was expanded and the number of project provinces was increased to 20; thus, a step was taken to disseminate the project outputs. Pilot provinces were selected from among the provinces that receive and emit intense migration to represent the Turkish sample. Therefore, a sample group where learning losses will be experienced due to different reasons in addition to the earthquake factor was created.    

Within the scope of the third and fourth phase studies of the project, detection, intervention, prevention and reinforcement activities will be carried out in life sciences, mathematics, Turkish, science, and social studies for our primary and secondary school students. In the first two phases, the application results in Turkish and mathematics courses were reported as successful. In addition to these subjects, in the 2024-2025 Academic Year, life sciences, science, and social studies will be added, and evaluation batteries and intervention programs will be prepared for the first and second academic terms at the level of basic subjects. The documents to be prepared in the third and fourth phases will be prepared within the scope of the Turkish Education Model. In addition, the second term educational materials for Turkish and mathematics prepared in the first and second phases will be updated and revised within the scope of the Turkish Education Model. In order to ensure the visibility of the project in society, it is planned to implement an effective communication strategy aimed at students, teachers and families. It is expected that the project results will affect primary and secondary school students, teachers, school administrators and parents. The number of students targeted to be reached during the project is expected to be eighty thousand and the number of teachers is expected to be six thousand.

Project for Determining, Developing and Monitoring Students' Vocabulary

The Project for Determining, Developing and Monitoring Students' Vocabulary is a project to be carried out within the scope of the Century of Türkiye Education Model. This project, prepared within the scope of developing Turkish field skills, aims to expand students' vocabulary and enrich the vocabulary included in textbooks. The project will continue for 3 years, from 2024 to 2026, and 18 work packages have been created within the scope of the project. The target audience is preschool, primary and secondary school students, and within this scope, it is aimed to identify and develop students' vocabulary, develop students' conceptual knowledge, identify and enrich the vocabulary in textbooks, support students' Turkish language development and strengthen their commitment to national, spiritual and cultural values, and carry out studies to create a reading culture.

National Culture and Values Education Project

The National Culture and Values Education Research and Development Center is a center established within our Ministry in order to contribute to the education of students as sensitive, conscious and responsible individuals who have national, spiritual, humanitarian, moral and cultural values. The operation period of this center is foreseen as 4 years and studies on national culture and values education will be carried out for monitoring, research, awareness and competence development for all employees of our Ministry, especially students, teachers and school administrators, and our parents. The center to be established will carry out educational and developmental activities aimed at increasing social sensitivity with National Culture and values education and raising students as responsible and good people. It will carry out its studies to follow the studies carried out at national and international levels regarding the activities in question and to establish collaborations with institutions and organizations working in the field of National Culture and values.

A conference will be held to present good examples of successful projects and collaborations in the context of national culture and values education. In this conference, under various titles, children's cultural, sports, artistic activities, reading habits and other similar out-of-school support activities carried out by governorates or municipalities in cooperation with the Ministry of National Education in each province will be determined. Good examples will be exhibited at the conference by making selections from these out-of-school practices.

The Project on Children's Rights and Education in Disasters and Emergencies 

In order to prevent the loss of rights of our children affected by disasters, it is important to increase the knowledge and awareness of the Ministry of National Education personnel on children's rights in disaster situations and to establish a disaster management approach with a child rights-based approach. The child rights-based approach to disaster situations provides a comprehensive framework for the protection of children in all stages of disaster management, from pre-disaster risk reduction and preparation to intervention and recovery activities during and after the disaster, by recognizing the full scope of children's rights.

“The Project on Children's Rights and Education in Disasters and Emergencies”, prepared by our Ministry with the aim of protecting and strengthening children's rights in disaster situations (before, during and after the disaster) in Türkiye within the framework of the International Conventions on the Rights of the Child, is among the programs to be carried out in 2024 with the MEB-UNICEF partnership.

The Research Application Permits Circular (2024)

The Research Implementation Permits Circular (2024/41), which regulates the procedures and principles regarding requests for permission for national and international research practices to be conducted by universities, public institutions and organizations, non-governmental organizations, and individual researchers in all kinds of organizations affiliated to the Ministry of National Education (central, provincial and overseas organizations), was published on June 14, 2024.

https://ttkb.meb.gov.tr/www/arastirma-uygulama-izinleri/icerik/615 

The Application and Evaluation Module for Research Application Permits 

Applications to be made within the scope of the Research Application Permits Circular (2024/41) and the evaluation of applications have been carried out through the "Application and Evaluation Module for Research Application Permits" at https://arastirmaizinleri.meb.gov.tr/ as of July 16, 2024.

Monitoring and Evaluating Academic Skills Project

The ABİDE research, which was first implemented in 2016 and conducted in two-year cycles, has had its fourth cycle this year. The 2024 Research was completed with the participation of approximately one hundred and thirty thousand students in 2,722 schools in 81 provinces. Scoring studies for the open-ended items used in the research were completed in workshops held in July and August 2024.

The Four Skills Turkish Language Exam

The 2024 application of The Four Skills Turkish Language Exam, the first application of which was held in 2022, was carried out between April 24 and May 10, 2024, with the participation of 653 schools and 10,665 students from 40 provinces determined as a sample. In order to determine the factors affecting the students' level of language skills acquisition, administrator, teacher and student surveys were applied after the exam. The report preparation process of the 2024 application is ongoing.

The following studies are planned to be carried out regarding The Four Skills Turkish Language Exam:

• Due to the change in the curriculum, competencies compatible with new learning outcomes will be determined.

• Questions in the system will be reviewed based on the updated qualifications.

• New questions will be written and the question pool will be expanded.

• Pilot studies for the 2026 application will be conducted.

• Scoring studies will be carried out based on application results.

• The number of headsets used in speaking and listening/watching sessions will be increased.

In-Service Training Activities of Teachers

In 2024, 1,127,526 teachers and school administrators participated in 29,785 in-service training activities organized centrally and locally. The number of hours of training per teacher was 15 hours (as of August 2024).

2023

Symposium on Education in the 100th Anniversary of the Republic Through the Eyes of Teachers

In order to get the opinions of our teachers, who have a say in the construction and survival of education in the 100th anniversary of the Republic, on the present and future of our cause for education and to reveal how they can best contribute to the Century of Türkiye in education, the “Symposium on Education in the 100th Anniversary of the Republic Through the Eyes of Teachers” was organized at Ankara Hacı Bayram Veli University on December 26-27, 2023. The aim of this symposium was to better understand the strengths and opportunities of education today through the eyes of teachers, the role of teachers in the education and training process, their experiences and expectations for the future, and to contribute to the steps to be taken to make improvements in education through the evaluations to be obtained about the current status of the education system and possible changes in the future.

In the Symposium on Education in the 100th Anniversary of the Republic Through the Eyes of Teachers, seven main themes and nineteen sub-themes were determined as “Teaching and Professional Development, Cultural Heritage and Values ​​Education in Education, Education and Teaching Process, Impact of Technological Developments on Education, Inclusivity and Guidance in Education, Turkish Schools Abroad and International Schools, Role and Participation of Stakeholders in Education”. Within the scope of these themes, 250 papers from 78 provinces and five countries (Germany, Azerbaijan, Mali, Romania, Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus) were entitled to be presented. At the end of the symposium, the videos, abstract book and full text of the 250 papers were made available to the relevant parties through the online platforms of our Ministry and the “Program and Abstracts Book for the Symposium on the Education in the 100th Anniversary of the Republic Through the Eyes of Teachers” was published.

Multiple Foreign Language Education Model

The Multiple Foreign Language Education Model aims to ensure that our students develop a positive attitude towards learning a new language by making their exposure to the target language effective and efficient and to use the language effectively by making the four basic language skills permanent in line with the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR). In order to increase our students' proficiency and competence in foreign languages, the pilot application for the Multiple Foreign Language Education Model was launched by our Ministry in 32 schools in 26 provinces in the 2023-2024 academic year. Positive feedback was received from the field as a result of the monitoring and evaluation studies carried out during the process. In the 2024-2025 academic year, the Multiple Foreign Language Education Model will be implemented in 300 schools in 81 provinces, including the 5th and 6th grades of 32 schools where the pilot application was conducted and the 5th grades of 268 schools newly included in the application. The Multiple Foreign Language Education Model is included in the MEB 2024-2028 Strategic Plan and will be implemented starting from the 5th grade in secondary school and gradually in the 6th, 7th and 8th grades.

The Project for Improving the Quality of Foreign Language Education in Türkiye

The aim of the project for "Improving the Quality of Foreign Language Education in Türkiye", which is being carried out with the joint financing of the European Union and the Council of Europe and in cooperation with the Council of Europe and the Ministry of National Education of the Republic of Türkiye, is to increase the quality of foreign language education in Türkiye in line with international and data-based standards, especially the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (D-AOBM) implemented in the foreign language teaching programs of our Ministry. The project covers the years between 2024 and 2029. This project aims to develop evidence-based policy recommendations regarding foreign language education and to increase the quality of the foreign language teaching process by developing foreign language proficiency tests and digital teaching materials.

2023-2024 Academic Year Education and Training Support

The Communiqué on Providing Education and Training Support for Students Who Are/Will Be Educated in Private Schools in the Provinces of Adıyaman, Hatay, Kahramanmaraş and Malatya and in the Districts of İslahiye and Nurdağı of Gaziantep in the 2023-2024 Academic Year has been published in the Official Gazette. In this context, the "e-Guide on Providing Education and Training Support for Students Who Are/Will Be Educated in Private Schools in the Provinces of Adıyaman, Hatay, Kahramanmaraş and Malatya and in the Districts of İslahiye and Nurdağı of Gaziantep in the 2023-2024 Academic Year" has been prepared regarding the education and training support to be provided to students who are/will be educating in private schools and has been published on the internet address "http://ookgm.meb.gov.tr". The number of students who received the said 2023-2024 Academic Year Education and Training Support within the scope of the February 6 earthquake was 22,982.

Teacher Information Network (ÖBA)

Due to global changes and the pandemic affecting the whole world, the need to use information technologies in supporting the professional development of teachers and administrators has emerged, and the Teacher Information Network (ÖBA) was established on January 23, 2022. ÖBA is a platform created to support the professional development of teachers and school administrators through distance education. ÖBA is designed to be a meeting point for professional development as well as to host the sharing of good practices. The Teacher Information Network platform includes applications such as ÖBA Central in-service training application and distance education activities, synchronous and asynchronous in-service trainings organized through distance education, virtual library, professional development communities, teacher-administrator mobility programs, and the introduction of good practices carried out by our teachers. In 2022, 37,543 centrally and locally organized training activities were conducted using the Teacher Information Network platform for the Professional Development of Teachers, and 9,457,591 documents were issued, and all teachers were reached through in-service training. In-service training hours per teacher were 210.44.

Applications of Digitalization in Education

By developing an artificial intelligence-supported individual learning platform (MEB Digital School Platform),  it is aimed to enable students to plan and develop their own learning processes, personalize learning processes, realize learning independent of time, space and teacher, provide real-time feedback and evaluation, identify and eliminate learning deficiencies, increase learning motivation, operate the data-driven decision-making process, conduct counselling and vocational guidance activities, and eliminate problems such as parents' need for additional resources and enduring financial burden.

The Teacher Guidebook to Web-Based Digital Education Tools has been prepared to enable our teachers to use web tools more effectively in educational environments. It is aimed to increase students' motivation regarding the subject with these web tools that can be used during classes and during the preparation process for the class. Prepared within this context, the guidebook introduces 175 web 2.0 tools in 15 categories in order to improve teachers' competencies in recognizing and using web 2.0 tools. 

Monitoring and Evaluating Academic Skills Project

The Monitoring and Evaluating Academic Skills (ABİDE) survey was developed by our Ministry to measure how effectively students can use the knowledge and skills they have learned in their daily lives and their higher-level mental skills. This survey aims to evaluate the reflections of the formal education received by students in the 4th grade of primary school, the 8th grade of middle school and the 10th grade of secondary school on their daily life skills. Different types of items are used in the ABİDE survey, which is designed to measure students' higher-level skills such as problem solving, critical thinking and analysis. The survey represents an important step towards evaluating and improving the effectiveness of the education system by focusing on the real-life use of the knowledge and skills students acquire during their education.

The ABIDE research is carried out by taking samples at the 4th, 8th and 10th grades. The sample used in this research is designed to represent every province of Türkiye. Thus, comprehensive and representative data can be obtained about the factors affecting the academic skills and success of students throughout the country. Within the scope of this study, which is conducted by taking into account the different socio-economic and cultural structures in each province, the status of the education system throughout Türkiye can be evaluated comprehensively with the surveys applied to students, teachers and administrators.       

The Four Skills Turkish Language Exam

The Turkish Language Exam in Four is a monitoring exam conducted by the General Directorate of Measurement, Evaluation and Examination Services to measure the language skills of reading, listening/watching, speaking and writing that students gain during their education processes at primary, middle and high school levels in order to protect and develop the Turkish language in accordance with Article 10 of the National Education Basic Law No. 1739. This exam was started to be developed in December 2019 in order to determine the proficiency of students studying at different levels of education in four basic language skills.

The Four Skills Turkish Language Exam is conducted entirely electronically in e-Exam halls, on computers assigned to the student, and consists of reading, listening/watching, speaking and writing sessions. Headphones that do not transmit ambient noise are used in speaking and listening/watching sessions. The aim is to measure students' proficiency in four skills in Turkish through multiple choice and open-ended questions and tasks. In order to prepare and score these questions, training is provided for classroom teachers, Turkish teachers, and Turkish language and literature teachers, and contributions are made to the professional development of teachers in this regard.

The Four Skills Turkish Language Exam has gained the status of a national monitoring research with the "Ministry of National Education Measurement and Evaluation Regulation" prepared by the Ministry of National Education and published in the Official Gazette numbered 32304 on September 9, 2023. With this exam, which is held in two-year cycles, it is planned to systematically determine the students' language skills and thus develop effective policy recommendations in this field with findings regarding the Turkish and Turkish language and literature subject curriculum, teacher competencies and course materials.

Electronic Contents

The Textbook Electronic Education Content Table has been prepared for the more widespread use of electronic education content in enriching draft textbooks. The work on updating and improving the content in question will continue. Thus, it is aimed to prepare the draft textbooks to be applied for, enriched with different e-content that supports the learning process.

The Development of National Vocational Interest Inventory Supported by Artificial Intelligence

Within the scope of vocational guidance services, studies are being carried out to develop a measurement tool to determine the vocational interests of our high school and middle school students. After the vocational interest inventory development process is completed, it will be put into service based on artificial intelligence.

Addiction Research in Youth Between the Ages of 14-19 Continuing Education in Turkiye

Since addiction has a broad meaning that includes substance addiction and behavioral disorders, it is important to investigate addictions such as cigarettes, alcohol, drugs and behavioral addictions that are not based on a physical substance, such as food, game, computer, television, shopping, gambling and internet addiction. For this reason, the “Addiction Research Survey” prepared by the Ministry of National Education in 2023 was implemented within the scope of the “Study on Cigarette-Alcohol-Substance and Technology Use among 16-Year-Old High School Students in Turkiye”. This research was conducted to protect our youth from risks and strengthen their coping skills against risk factors, to protect our youth from addiction and to develop effective policies in the fight against addiction. The data is in the reporting process.

The Project on Strengthening Special Education Services at the Basic Education Level

An early intervention model was developed to identify children with developmental disabilities or at risk, to provide referral services and to provide educational services. An “Action Plan” was created within the scope of the prepared model.

Digital Content Development Studies

A study has been initiated to produce e-content suitable for the educational purposes of science and art centers and to make these e-contents available to students and teachers via the EBA platform.

BİLSEM Teacher Academy

In-service trainings have been planned on a subject basis for teachers working in science and art centers to increase their knowledge and skills in areas such as the characteristics of specially gifted students, cognitive, affective, social and physical development of these students, talent detection and development, differentiation in education, enrichment practices, research methods, and projects.

ÖBA Teacher Training

In order for gifted students who continue their formal education to benefit from educational environments at a higher level and for mainstreaming/integration practices for gifted students to be carried out with purpose, it is planned to prepare educational content on topics such as the characteristics of gifted students, special education services offered to gifted students, services for identifying and diagnosing gifted students, program differentiation, and enrichment practices through the ÖBA platform for classroom teachers working in primary schools.

In-Service Training Activities of Teachers

In 2023, 6,810,684 teachers and school administrators participated in 48,207 centrally and locally organized in-service training activities. The number of hours of training per teacher was 74.5 hours. (In 2023, 634,778 school administrators participated in in-service training activities.)

2022

Project on Increasing Attendance and Schooling Rates in Secondary Education (IPA II)

Considering that secondary education is within the scope of compulsory education, it is important to provide students with activities that will contribute to their self-realization inside and outside of school and the necessary environments for these activities and to prevent academic failure from decreasing attendance rates by paving the way for students to learn at their own pace with individualized learning, and remedial and training courses.

In this context, the project prepared within the scope of the European Union Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (IPA II) aims to increase education and skill levels by ensuring access to education for everyone at secondary education grades and combating early school drop-out/absenteeism. The general objectives of the project are to increase attendance and enrollment rates by working on increasing the students' sense of belonging to school in secondary education, making school environments attractive, improving their motivation in school and increasing teacher-student interaction. 

The project will be implemented in 50 schools in 14 provinces with the highest grade repetition and absenteeism rates at the NUTS-I level according to the statistics of the Ministry of National Education for 2017-2018. Pilot provinces represent 14 NUTS-II regions (Afyonkarahisar, Ağrı, Ankara, Bingöl, Çankırı, Hakkari, Hatay, İstanbul, Nevşehir, Sakarya, Şanlıurfa, Şırnak, Tekirdağ, Trabzon). Accordingly, during the project implementation process, students and teachers in secondary education, parents and relevant Ministry of National Education central organization personnel are the target groups of the project and are expected to benefit from it to the maximum extent.

Teaching Materials and e-Content Studies

With the Opinion of the Board dated 19.10.2022 and numbered 61372661, it has been made mandatory to provide electronic education content in various areas such as unit covers, measurement and evaluation of draft textbooks.

Dormitory Improvement and Progress Project (PİGEP)

In order to offer the warmth of a home environment to our students staying in the school dormitories affiliated to our General Directorate, to create new living spaces, to introduce our students to art and science, and to meet the equipment and repair needs by taking into account student needs, the Dormitory Improvement and Progress Project (PİGEP) has been prepared by the Dormitories and Scholarship Department of our Directorate General. Within the scope of the project, the existing areas in school dormitories (dormitories, dining halls and study halls) will be standardized and it is aimed to create new areas where students can spend their time outside of class, such as art and music workshops, science workshops and common living areas called open address corners in school dormitories with suitable areas. The Dormitory Improvement and Progress Project (PİGEP) has been implemented to cover the years 2022-2024.

Interactive Textbooks

In the 2021-2022 academic year, the textbooks prepared by the General Directorate of Secondary Education and approved by the Board of Education and Training have been adapted to the interactive board. The books have been enriched with different e-content. E-content development and addition to the interactive book are ongoing. In addition, updates made to the books by the Board of Education and Training are being monitored and each change is reflected in the books. In addition, the enrichment studies of printed textbooks through lesson videos, lesson presentations, topic summaries and QR codes are ongoing. In this context, relevant content has been added to the textbooks in cooperation with the Department of Programs and Textbooks. The updating and enrichment studies of the said content will continue.

Mobile Question Bank Application

The OGMMATERYAL QUESTION BANK mobile application has been opened for free access on the appstore and playstore to help 9th, 10th, 11th and 12th grade students with their studies. The mobile application includes questions prepared in a way that covers the entire curriculum consisting of units belonging to Turkish Language and Literature, History, Geography, Philosophy group, Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology and English subjects and also measures the ability of students to use the information they have acquired in their daily lives.

YKS Camp

For students studying at the 12th grade and graduates, starting from February 14, 2022, YKS question solutions for Biology, Geography, Philosophy, Physics, English, Chemistry, Mathematics, History, Turkish Language and Literature subjects for the 2021-2022 academic year will continue to be broadcasted live on the Youtube channel of the General Directorate of Secondary Education until the first week of June.In addition, question tests with solutions and videos, subject explanation videos, and mini-trials for students preparing for YKS can be accessed from the “OGMMATERYAL” website.

Workbooks

In order to increase the variety of resources in all classes and levels to support students and teachers, workbooks for basic courses have been prepared and presented to students and teachers at the beginning of each month from "yardimcikaynaklar.meb.gov.tr" and "OGMMATERYAL" e-Content warehouse. Workbooks are prepared by enriching them with gamified subject summaries, matching, fill-in-the-blanks, puzzles, open-ended questions, and multiple choice questions. Work continues on the workbooks prepared for basic subjects (Turkish Language and Literature, History, Geography, Philosophy, Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, and English) and renewed at the beginning of each month in accordance with the annual plan.

Research and Learning Opportunities of the Digital World: “Digital Learning Bridge”

One of the advantages of the digital world is that it brings research areas and opportunities to our fingertips and allows us to reach them with a single click. Digital data environments, which offer opportunities such as wide resource access, speed and convenience, up-to-dateness, data analysis tools and diversity to the research and studies conducted, make significant contributions to these studies. In this context, the “Digital Learning Bridge”, which includes useful links that our students and teachers can benefit from in their lessons, research and project studies, has been prepared by our Ministry and offered to our students and teachers. The “Digital Learning Bridge”, consisting of 4 sections, consists of a total of 29 useful links that our students and teachers can benefit from in their studies and projects in different fields. The “Digital Learning Bridge” is aimed to be enriched as new useful links are identified.

Education and Development Support Packages for Children in Rural Areas by the Children Safe Teams of the Ministry of Family and Social Services

Within the scope of the 180-Day Action Plans of the Presidential Implementation Program, efforts are being made to increase access to preventive services and ensure equal opportunities for children living in rural areas. In order to support the psychosocial and academic development of children of needy families in rural areas who are continuing their primary education within the scope of preparations for the 2022-2023 academic year, “Education and Development Support Packages” were prepared to be distributed in 22 provinces and delivered to those in need. In addition to materials such as backpacks, pencil cases, lunch boxes, paints, notebooks, and pens, the Education and Development Support Packages also include books from the Child-Friendly Book List prepared by our Ministry. https://www.aile.gov.tr/haberler/aile-ve-sosyal-hizmetler-bakanligindan-cocuklara-egitim-paketi/ 

In-Service Training Activities of Teachers

In 2022, there were 9,457,519 participants in 37,543 in-service training activities organized centrally and locally. All teachers were reached through in-service training. The number of hours of training per teacher is 210.44 hours.