Participation is optional 'but': Quran education is free, English education is paid

The administration of Beylerbeyi Primary School in Istanbul has announced that Quran and English courses will be organized for children. Parents were informed that Quran education would be free of charge, while English education would cost 2,000 TL.

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Participation is optional 'but': Quran education is free, English education is paid

The government's reactionary education policies continue. At Beylerbeyi Primary School in Istanbul, a document distributed to parents stated that children would be provided with "Quran and English education" under the guise of social activities, but that Quran education would be free while English education would be paid.

According to a report by İsmail Arı from Birgün newspaper, the document provided to parents by the school administration stated: "In the 2023-2024 academic year, Quran and English education will be provided at our school as social activity studies in line with the interests, requests, and talents of our students. These studies will be conducted under the guidance of their own teachers and by experts. These activities will be carried out in the design and skill workshops envisioned by our ministry. The most requested activities in the classroom will be implemented as a group. Quran education is free. English education is 2,000 TL per year. Payment will be collected in two equal installments in October and January."

Parents were asked to choose between the free Quran education and the paid English education.

THE SCHOOL HAS BECOME A PLAYTHING FOR SECTS AND FOUNDATIONS

Çayan Çalık, Head of the Education and Science Workers' Union (Eğitim Sen) Istanbul Branch No. 2, reacted to the practice. Çalık said, "These are not studies that can be planned within the scope of the social activities they offer. While money is demanded from parents for English education, no money is requested for Quran education. In other words, parents who favor secular education are being forced to pay; this is discrimination. It is stated that a sect-community formation called the Hacı Ahmet Ünal Foundation is influential in the school. Now, they want to form the School Parent-Teacher Association management with names associated with this foundation. We are talking about a school that has become a plaything for sects and foundations here. Children should not be left at the mercy of sects and communities."

Stating that "this practice at the school and the school principal's actions show that he is associated with sects and communities and is making a special effort," Çalık continued his words as follows: "The school principal's attitudes and behaviors have disrupted the peace at the school. It is understood that the principal is engaged in work that pits parents against each other. This practice should be abandoned immediately, and social activities should be chosen according to the age and development of the children and should be provided free of charge. This practice is a pillar of the attack on secular education, which is being carried out today by the Ministry of National Education. There is a need for a method of struggle that parents and educators will not allow and will oppose."

News Source: 12punto