Şen further states that the curriculum fails in respect of critically examining on discrepancies about claims made in Turkish textbooks vis-à-vis realities of human rights; and has scope to improve the curriculum encouraging learners to explore transformative powers of Human Rights Education.
[1] Since the early twentieth century, under the leadership of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, Turkey attempted to modernize and secularize its public life and education.
[2][3] According to Fatma Müge Göçek, in Turkey, the Education Ministry controlled the entire system ranging from textbooks, teacher training, course content, and even the questions asked at graduation examinations.
The proofs of Turkish history textbooks were also continually reviewed with a similar intention, one memoir writer noted, “to correct the mistakes...of many of the history books published in our country... [that] had either consciously or unknowingly minimized the role of Turks in world history.” [5] Göçek explains that as a consequence, instead of promoting critical thinking, the information contained in the textbooks ended up regurgitating the official Turkish nationalist rhetoric.
[9] In 2009, the Turkish government agency Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TÜBİTAK), publisher of the popular Turkish science magazine Bilim ve Teknik (Science and Technology), was accused of stripping a cover story about the life and work of Charles Darwin from the March 2009 issue of the Council's publication just before it went to press.
[15] Ateizm Derneği (Association of Atheism of Turkey) evaluated a course textbook called Din Kültürü ve Ahlâk Bilgisi dersi kitabında (Religious Culture and Moral Knowledge) which was mandated as a part of the syllabus from 9th grade until graduation since 2014.
The Association of Atheism believes that the mandatory course on Islamic education encourages students to otherize non-Muslims and divide Turkish society on religious lines.
[16] In 2017, Turkey announced plans to end the teaching of evolution in Turkish schools, with the chairman of the Board of Education, Alpaslan Durmuş, claiming it was a complicated and "controversial" topic for students.
[18] Opponents of Erdoğan's new education policy carried out two sizable protests to say No to an outdated curriculum that bans science in the 21st Century; while hashtags such as #NoToSexistCurriculum, #SayNoToNonScientificCurriculum and #DefendSecularEducation trended on social media in Turkey.
While Turkish text books talk of human rights, depict enslavement as inhuman but only western slavery is singled out for the purpose in negative role.
The textbooks highlight the supposed benevolence of Ottoman and Turkish leaders towards all ethnic groups and refer to a "so-called Assyrian genocide".
Turkish textbooks squeeze history of 18th and 19th century since Ottomans faced uprisings in occupied territories lost hold blaming the same on 'interference from European great powers' and mentions of Greek independence struggle are omitted.
In practice, this means that the Turkish government is directly responsible for what textbooks are taught in all schools, even private education or those that are dedicated to ethnic minorities.
[34] In 2014, Taner Akçam, writing for the Armenian Weekly, discussed 2014–2015 Turkish elementary and middle school textbooks that the MEB had made available on the internet.
He found that Turkish history textbooks are filled with the message that Armenians are people "who are incited by foreigners, who aim to break apart the state and the country, and who murdered Turks and Muslims."
They created obstacles for the operations of the Ottoman units by cutting off their supply routes and destroying bridges and roads.
Explain that the Ottoman State took certain measures following these developments, and in May 1915 implemented the ‘Tehcir Kanunu’ [Displacement Law] regarding the migration and settlement of Armenians in the battleground.
"[28] In 2012, history and literature teachers of Istanbul’s Kartal district high schools in Istanbul’s distributed a controversial book titled “Bu Dosyayı Kaldırıyorum: Ermeni Meselesi” (“Closing this File: The Armenian Issue” authored by Yunus Zeyrek) among students, as sent by the education directorate.
The book defined Armenians as “dishonorable and treacherous” also vilified novelists such as Nobel Prize Laureate Orhan Pamuk and writer Elif Şafak.
Education Minister Ömer Dinçer defended book and author as “written with the sense of national reflex and humorous criticism.”[35] In 2013, there was a proposal to ban some official Turkish textbooks in Germany because they were perceived as too nationalistic and falsifying history.
[39] Stereotyping of Jews as traitorous in their exchanges with Muslims during the early history of Islam also continues in the textbooks under AKP regime.
[18] In 2018 a textbook controversy arose over appropriateness of a text book Keloğlan Ak Ülke for 3rd standard attempted to deal with topic of sexual exploitation of children.