Turkey’s Education Ministry prepares ‘Quran program’ for private schools

ANKARA – Anadolu Agency

Turkey’s Education Ministry has prepared a special “Quran Education Program” designed for private schools in the country.

The program, prepared according to various ages and grades of students, is said to have been prepared for implementation “in line with the willingness of private schools,” meaning that the schools are not obliged to use the program.

It is divided into five general courses. In the first three courses, education will be given for all 30 sections of the Quran while in the last two courses education will be given for Quran recitation practice.

Ministry officials state that students’ “visual and aural learning abilities, concrete conception perception ability, personal and group learning abilities, common action and cooperation abilities” were taken into consideration as part of the program designed for private schools.

Pre-school and primary school students will be supported in the program with games, while for memorizing the Arabic alphabet similar Turkish words will be used as part of the process.

All content has been crafted according to “national, moral and domestic values,” the ministry stated.

In Turkey, “Religious Culture and Morals” classes are obligatory at all public and private high schools. Optional extra religion classes are also available for students who wish to take them.

At present neither public or private pre-schools and primary schools are obliged to provide religious classes.