Report Presentation on Access to Religious Education in Primary Schools in Türkiye Held at ILKE Foundation

The report titled The Issue of Access to Religious Education in Primary Schools in Türkiye, prepared by Prof. Recep Kaymakcan under the Education Policy Research Center (EPAM) of the ILKE Foundation, was presented at the ILKE Foundation. Introduced to the public with the participation of academics, educators, graduate students, and representatives of civil society organizations, the report examines access to religious education at the early childhood and primary school levels in Türkiye from both academic and policy perspectives, offering a multidimensional analysis of the current situation.The program began with opening remarks by Atty. Ahmet Sait Öner, Chairman of the Board of the ILKE Foundation. It continued with speeches by Ömer Avcı, Deputy Director of the Istanbul Provincial Directorate of National Education, and Hasan Özarslan, Head of the Department of Curricula and Educational Materials at the Directorate General for Religious Education. Following these remarks, EPAM Director Prof. Ayhan Öz and the report’s author, Prof. Recep Kaymakcan, delivered the presentation of the report.“Discussions on religious education in early childhood are often conducted on ideological grounds rather than on the basis of data.”In his presentation, Kaymakcan stated that criticisms of religious education in early childhood are largely based on ideological approaches rather than data-driven perspectives. From the standpoint of comparative education policies, he noted that religious education is systematically provided from an early age in many countries. Kaymakcan emphasized that Türkiye’s divergence from global trends in this field points to a significant policy gap.“The most fundamental issue in early childhood is ensuring institutional access to religious education.”Kaymakcan underlined the need to distinguish between the issues of “access” and “quality” in discussions on religious education. He stated that, in early childhood, the primary concern is first and foremost to ensure access to institutional religious education. Noting that Türkiye has achieved significant institutional progress in the field of religious education in recent years, Kaymakcan nevertheless stressed that the lack of access at the early childhood level remains one of the most critical structural challenges of the system.“Early childhood is a critical stage in which the foundations of personality and value systems are formed.”Emphasizing that religious education in early childhood should be delivered through content and methods appropriate to children’s developmental levels, Kaymakcan stated that this period is a critical developmental stage during which the foundations of personality and value systems are laid. He noted that the knowledge and values acquired during this period are known to be lasting and functional, adding that qualified religious education can make long-term and positive contributions to an individual’s moral and spiritual development.“Children’s natural curiosity about existential questions should be supported pedagogically.”Kaymakcan highlighted that children develop a natural curiosity about this field at an early age and that supporting this curiosity pedagogically is critical for lasting learning. He stated that religious education policies should be developed on a data-driven basis, curricula should be shaped according to children’s interests and needs, and teacher training processes should be strengthened.The program concluded with an evaluation session during which participants’ questions were addressed.