Re-Educating Turkey: AKP Efforts to Promote Religious Values in Turkish Schools

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Re-Educating Turkey

AKP Efforts to Promote Religious Values in Turkish Schools

By Alan Makovsky December 2015

WWWAMERICANPROGRESSO



Re-Educating TurkeyAKP Efforts to Promote Religious Values

in Turkish Schools




1 Introduction and summary

2 Secularism vs religious conservatism

A fulcrum of Turkish politics

5 Growth of Imam-Hatip schools

14 Religious electives in secular schools

20 Implications for the United States

21 Conclusion

23 Endnotes

Contents



1 Center for American Progress | Re-Educating Turkey

Introduction and summary

Alhough he issue o educaion played litle role in urkeyrsquos recen parliamenary

elecions ew areas o urkish public lie generae more hea in public discourse

han educaion Ye he mos inense conroversies regarding educaional poli-

cies are no abou issues such as suden achievemen or eacher-suden raios

Raher like so many oher conroversies in urkey991252paricularly over he pas wo

decades991252hey are ocused on he proper role o Islam in urkish sociey

For he ruling Jusice and Developmen Pary known by is urkish acronym AKP and is de aco leader urkish Presiden Recep ayyip Erdoğan increas-

ing boh he reach o sae-sponsored parochial schools and he religious conen

o curricula in radiional sae secular schools is vial o achieving Erdoğanrsquos

saed vision o raising a ldquodindar nesilrdquo or pious generaion1 Tis in urn serves

Erdoğanrsquos larger goal o achieving a new urkey ha is less in une wih he radi-

cally secular values o Aaurkrsquos republic and more consonan wih he religious

values o is Otoman predecessor sae

Less grandly bu jus as imporanly he AKP considers he expansion o paro-

chial schools known as Imam-Haips as he righing o a hisorical wrong he

near-evisceraion o hose schools ollowing he miliaryrsquos 1997 inervenion in

domesic poliics Te AKP also has a poliical moive or providing significan

religious conen in urkish educaion urks who are commited o Islam or a

leas appreciaive o is role in urkish sociey are generally more likely o voe

or he AKP o urkish seculariss hese AKP effors o increase he religious

conen o educaion are par o a broader campaign o impose religious values on

sociey wih he aims o eroding urkeyrsquos secular srucure loosening is ies wih

he Wes and ulimaely hreaening secular liesyles no o menion securing he

AKPrsquos poliical dominance




Secularism vs religious

conservatism A fulcrum

of Turkish politics

Conroversy over he religious conen o educaion is paricularly sharp among

parisans o urkeyrsquos wo leading paries he conservaive and religious AKP and

he srongly secularis Republican Peoplersquos Pary known by is urkish acronym

CHP In ac disagreemens over educaional policy were reporedly among he

major impedimens ha conribued o he ailed negoiaions o esablish an

AKP-CHP coaliion ollowing he parliamenary elecion in June 20152

Te AKP-majoriy governmen which has ruled urkey since lae 2002 sharp-

ened is ocus on recasing urkeyrsquos educaional policy during is hird erm rom

2011 o 2015 During his period he AKP was buoyed by a 498 percen voe in

he 2011 parliamenary elecions and liberaed by he poliical sidelining o an

uncompromisingly secularis miliary Tis allowed he AKP o more assiduously

implemen is vision o ldquoraising a pious generaionrdquo3

Te cenerpiece o his effor was he passage o wo major educaion bills in 2012

and 2014 Te firs vasly expanded he sae-sponsored Imam-Haip religious

school sysem while he second sough o ensure he dominance o religiously

conservaive pro-AKP personnel over urkeyrsquos educaional bureaucracy Many

seculariss viewed hese laws and oher similarly pro-religious measures as

evidence o gradual Islamizaion o he urkish educaional sysem For is par

he AKP says is religion-oriened educaional reorms are inended o broaden

democracy o righ pas wrongs infliced on he religious communiy and

unapologeically o pursue he vision o a pious generaion

Wih he AKP having recapured a solid parliamenary majoriy in November 1

2015 elecions Presiden Erdoğanrsquos and he AKPrsquos projec o expanding reli-gious educaion and providing a more religious amosphere in schools will likely

coninue Bu even i he AKP had los he elecion some o is religion-oriened

educaional reorms991252paricularly he expansion o he Imam-Haip school sys-

em and he liberalizaion o dress codes o allow girls o cover heir heads991252are

now sufficienly rooed in he educaional landscape ha hey probably would no

be rolled back even by a CHP governmen




For he Unied Saes and he Wes i is unclear wha significance i any an

increased ocus on religious educaion in urkey could hold A reflexive reacion

migh be ha a urkey wih more emphasis on religious educaion will produce a

more religiously conscious urkey which in urn is a urkey more likely o iden-

iy wih is Middle Easern neighbors han wih is long-ime Wesern allies991252all

o which are overwhelmingly Chrisian Tis ransiion would imply a urkeyha is less likely o ac as a reliable ally4 Bu ha could be alse reasoning More

religious educaion will no necessarily make urkey a more religiously conscious

naion Even i i were o have ha effec urkey could sill emerge as a srongly

democraic counry which in urn could srenghen urkeyrsquos ideniy and com-

mimen o is Wesern allies5

Te Republic o urkey has been searching or he righ blend o religion and

secularism almos since is birh On he one hand many o is ciizens are deeply

religious on he oher i is inimaely ied o he Wes hrough economic and

securiy relaions Te lae scholar Samuel Huningon amously called urkey aldquoorn counryrdquo sharply divided beween he secular and religious componens o

is populace6 Te AKP governmenrsquos effor o swing he social pendulum urher

oward he religious side han i has been in nearly a cenury991252in par hrough

educaional policies991252may or may no have a proound effec on urkeyrsquos uure

ideniy sabiliy and regional poliics Te possibiliy ha i could have a power-

ul effec however bears waching Te purpose o his repor is o review ha

effor991252alhough i is oo early o render a judgmen as o is effec

Educaion is likely o remain a cenral batlefield in urkeyrsquos poliical sruggle

beween hose who consider hemselves secular and wan Islam o be a sricly pri-

vae mater and hose who avor a prominen public role or Islam For shorhand

his paper will reer o his clash o worldviews as ldquosecularisrdquo versus ldquoreligiousrdquo7 I

should be kep in mind however ha some religious urks avor a minimal public

role or religion and ha some secular ie non-religious urks are comorable

wih a larger role or religion in public lie

Tis repor will avoid use o he erm ldquoIslamisrdquo as applied o he AKP and is ol-

lowers Te reason is ha as undersood in mos o he Islamic world an Islamis

is an advocae or governance according o sharia or Islamic law Alhough manyurkish seculariss ear Erdoğanrsquos and he AKPrsquos long-erm inenion may indeed

be a sharia-based sae he AKP has hus ar neiher advocaed or applicaion o

sharia law nor made any effor o apply i Nor has i o his wrierrsquos knowledge




sough o promoe Islamism in he educaional sysem he curriculum o he

Imam-Haip sae-sponsored parochial schools on which much o his repor is

ocused does no promoe poliical Islam religious radicalism or sharia as a basis

or sae law991252even hough individual eachers reporedly have done so a imes8

During his final erm as prime miniser rom 2011 o 2015 Presiden Erdoğanpursued a our-pronged approach o his ldquopious generaionrdquo projec firs expand-

ing he sae-sponsored religious school sysem second broadening religious

educaion in secular schools hird enrenching religiously conservaive pro-AKP

personnel in schools and in he proessional educaion bureaucracy and ourh

providing a more conservaive culural environmen or sudens He has made

headway in all our areas991252paricularly in he firs






In urkey he ho-buton issue o religion in educaion is someimes oddly

masked by he blandness o an arihmeical equaion When a miliary-influenced

civilian governmen under Prime Miniser Mesu Yilmaz passed he eigh-year

schooling requiremen in 1997 he proposal was known as 5+3 meaning five

years o primary school plus hree years o secondary school wih high school

being opional18

Wha i acually mean was ha eigh years o sricly secularschooling would be required necessiaing he closing o he Imam-Haip junior

high schools which hen served grades six hrough eigh19

When he AKP governmen el isel sufficienly independen o miliary conrol

o reverse he earlier legislaion closing Imam-Haip junior high schools is reorm

was dubbed ldquo4+4+4rdquo20 Specifically he ormula means our years each o primary

middle991252now grades five hrough eigh991252and high schools An ousider migh look

a he model primarily as an exension o mandaory schooling For many urks

however he prolonging o mandaory schooling was seen as a secondary aspec

o 4+4+4 raher hey see he 4+4+4 plan oremos as code or he re-opening oImam-Haip middle schools he mos significan recen developmen in urkeyrsquos

ongoing ug-o-war beween secular and religious influences in educaion21

As imporan as he subsance o he 4+4+4 reorm was991252providing ready access

o more religious educaion or more urkish children991252is symbolism was prob-

ably a leas as imporan as is subsance or he AKP and is supporers Te

closure o he Imam-Haip middle schools had been among he op prioriies o

he miliary and is Aaurkis supporers when he ormer saged is so-called

pos-modern coup o February 28 1997 which sough o orce urkeyrsquos firs

Islamis-oriened prime miniser Necemetin Erbakan rom office Te miliary

and is supporers saw he growh o he Imam-Haip school sysem as boh symp-

om and cause o urkeyrsquos drif away rom Aaurkrsquos secular vision hey viewed

Erbakan he leader o he AKPrsquos predecessor pary he Reah or Welare Pary

as a primary driver and beneficiary o his process Among he 18 ldquoFebruary 28rdquo

demands closure o Imam-Haip junior high schools was he firs sep aken by

he pos-February 28 civilian governmen ha he miliary helped o insall22

By reversing his cenerpiece o he so-called February 28 process he AKP

governmen avenged Erbakanrsquos humiliaion23

and signaled decisively ha he AKPcivilian governmen was now running he show in urkey In he wake o passage

o 4+4+4 Presiden Erdoğan gloaed ha ldquo[]ascis pressures have been correced

hrough democracyrdquo underscoring ha he new law ldquoshowed once again who he

rue owners o naional sovereigny arerdquo24




By re-opening Imam-Haip middle schools he AKP governmen vasly expanded

he number o Imam-Haip schools and he sudens ha hey educae Aside rom

he 4+4+4 legislaion a leas our oher acors have played a role in his expansion

1 Revived mission for Imam-Hatip schools

When he miliary-influenced civilian governmen closed Imam-Haip junior high

schools in 1997 i also insised ha uure admission o Imam-Haip high schools

be limied o hose sudens seeking o join he clergy and ha he number o

admissions be limied based on likely uure employabiliy as a religious official

Imam-Haip schools were o be reaed sricly as vocaional schools Tus he

number o Imam-Haip high school sudens was seadily rimmed over he nex

five years rom 193000 in he 1998ndash1999 school year o 65000 in 2002ndash2003

school year991252a decrease o nearly 70 percen (see able 1)

Afer he AKP was eleced or he firs ime in November 2002 i reversed ha

policy a leas inormally25 Imam-haip high schools once more began welcoming

more sudens han could possibly enjoy uure employmen as clerics991252meaning

ha parens could once more enroll heir children in Imam-Haip high schools

simply because hey liked wha Imam-Haips offered religious educaion in a

conservaive environmen Te Imam-Haip high school populaion once again

mushroomed rom 65000 in he 2002ndash2003 school year which began shorly

beore he AKP came o power o 85000 in he 2003ndash2004 school year he firs

ull school year afer he AKP came o power and finally o 268000 in he 2011ndash

2012 school year he final school year beginning beore passage o 4+4+4 and he

re-opening o Imam-Haip middle schools All old he Imam-Haip high school

populaion increased more han our-old over he firs nine years o AKP rule






2 Enhanced standing for university admission

A 2011 AKP governmen decision o accord Imam-Haip graduaes sanding

equal o ha o secular graduaes in college applicaions made Imam-Haips a

more atracive opion or college-bound sudens Prior o ha decision Imam-

Haip graduaes were disadvanaged in applying o all aculies oher han heol-ogy In effec he 2011 decision ended a poin sysem ha disinguished beween

graduaes o regular secular schools and all oher vocaional schools including

Imam-Haips in college applicaions26

3 Rebranding and closing secular schools

Since 2010 he number o Imam-Haip schools has surged In addiion o he

need or new buildings o accommodae he revived Imam-Haip middle schools

ollowing 4+4+4 and he ever-rising Imam-Haip high school populaion here were wo oher reasons or he surge One semmed rom a decision by he

Minisry o Naional Educaion or MNE in academic year 2010ndash2011 o close an

enire caegory o secular public high schools he so-called general schools which

were deemed educaionally inadequae Beween he 2010ndash2011 and 2013ndash2014

school years all 1477 general high schools were phased ou and convered ino

oher ypes o schools Many perhaps mos o hem became Imam-Haips bu

he exac number o general schools convered ino Imam-Haips is unclear27

Anoher reason or he surge was ha many oher secular and vocaional schools

were simply convered ino Imam-Haips on he decision o MNE officials Again

here are no available figures o show precisely how many schools were convered

One educaor inerviewed or his repor said ha MNE-appoined local school

superinendens are empowered o decide when o ransorm secular schools

ino Imam-Haips28 Osensibly his educaor said such decisions are made when

he superinenden judges ha mos o he neighborhood wans an Imam-Haip

school alhough he claimed no ormal survey o opinion is conduced29 An

MNE spokesperson however claimed ha he opening o new imam-haips

and he conversion o oher schools ino Imam-Haips are ldquobased on analyicsderived rom couny and provincial needs surveysrdquo30 I so such surveys have no

been made publicly available urkish educaion scholar Isik uzun noes ha i

is ldquodifficul o obain inormaionrdquo abou how decisions are made o creae new

Imam-Haip schools or conver secular public schools ino Imam-Haips bu she

believes he process o be ldquoraher arbiraryrdquo31




Te conversion o some public schools ino Imam-Haips lef many sudens wih-

ou a neighborhood secular public school orcing hem o choose beween a nearby

Imam-Haip and a more disan secular school32 Tus an increased number o su-

dens chose Imam-Haips ou o convenience raher han convicion or career pah

Whaever he reasons he ballooning number o Imam-Haip schools has been welldocumened (see able 1) During he 1997ndash1998 school year991252he final year o

Imam-Haip middle schools prior o heir closure by he Yilmaz governmen991252here

were 604 such schools When Imam-Haip middle schools were revived in he

2012ndash2013 school year hey reopened wih 1099 schools Teir number increased

o 1361 during he 2013-14 school year and o 1597 schools991252accommodaing

385830 sudens991252during he 2014ndash2015 school year (see able 1)

Tere were 605 Imam-Haip high schools in he 1997ndash1998 school year As he

Imam-Haip suden populaion decreased he number o Imam-Haip high schools

declined o 450 by he 2002ndash2003 school year Bu even as Imam-Haip high schoolsuden enrollmen more han quadrupled during he nine years o AKP rule beore

he passage o 4+4+4 he number o Imam-Haip high schools increased only o

537 during he 2011ndash2012 school year991252ewer han during he 1997ndash1998 school

year Afer he passage o 4+4+4 he number o Imam-Haip high schools soared

almos doubling wihin hree years 708 in he 2012ndash2013 school year 854 in he

2013ndash2014 school year and 1017 in he 2014ndash2015 school year (see able 1)

Te ne effec is ha an increased number o Imam-Haips schools are more acces-

sible o more sudens urkish educaion officials and AKP parisans say hey are

simply meeing he desires o communiies Bu Bauhan Aydagul he execuive

direcor o a prominen Isanbul-based Educaion Research Insiue or ERI sees

he expansion o Imam-Haip schools no as a mater o supply meeing demand

bu o supply creaing demand ldquoTey say i is based due o demand bu i you

increase he capaciy and supply o hese schools hen you are proacively increas-

ing demandrdquo said Aydagul33 Lacking meaningul survey daa i is impossible o

know which view is more accurae

4 New exam and arbitrary assignments

Te ourh acor supporing an enrollmen boom in Imam-Haip schools was

he inroducion in he 2013ndash2014 school year o a naional exam aken dur-

ing eighh grade he final year o middle school34 Tis exam is inended o help

deermine sudensrsquo placemen ino a caegory o high school sandard academic

specialized academic or vocaional he caegory ha includes Imam-Haips




Along wih he exam sudens were asked o lis heir op 15 school preerences

wih he undersanding ha hey would only be assigned o a school or which

heir es scores and grades qualified hem Tis gave he governmen wider

laiude han ever beore o assign sudens o high schools Prior o enacmen o

4+4+4 sudens did no have o atend grades 9 hrough 12 A number o secular-

iss charge ha his governmen discreion resuled in arbirary assignmens oImam-Haip high schools

As is he case wih oher urkish vocaional schools he es-score hreshold or

admission o Imam-Haip high schools is lower han ha required or admission

o secular academic schools As a resul many sudens were presumably assigned

o Imam-Haips conrary o heir preerence because heir scores did no meri

admission o radiional secular academic schools

In general urkish policy seems o be ocused on increasing vocaional school-

ing including Imam-Haips a he expense o secular academic schoolingDuring he 2010ndash2011 school year a which ime high school enrollmen was

volunary 53 percen o newly enrolled high school sudens atended secular

academic schools and 47 percen atended vocaional schools By he ollow-

ing year vocaional school enrollees were a sligh majoriy among he newly

enrolled By he 2013ndash2014 school year991252a which ime he 4+4+4 law had

made high-school atendance mandaory991252he figures were 63 percen voca-

ional and 37 percen academic35

Many sudens were reporedly assigned o Imam-Haips arbirarily however

wihou regard o heir es resuls One urkish columnis complained ha

his daugher had been assigned o a disan Imam-Haip school agains her will

afer she did no submi her 15 school preerences She had been misakenly

old ha i was unnecessary o provide preerences i one waned simply o go o

onersquos neighborhood secular public school he columnis wroe36 Among oher

widely cied examples o he arbirariness o he assignmens he grandson o

he chie rabbi o urkey also was assigned o an Imam-Haip school as were

many Chrisians37 Tere is no daa on how many sudens were simply assigned

o Imam-Haips as a resul o an arbirary decision or a misake raher han

es scores991252nor is here inormaion on wheher such misakes were recifiedalhough he MNE pledged ha hey would be




In ac here is no clear daa on how many sudens were assigned o Imam-Haip

schools agains heir preerence or any reason alhough one CHP parliamenar-

ian pu he number a 4000038 Te MNE acknowledged ha 9802 sudens had

been inadverenly assigned o schools ar rom heir homes bu i did no say how

many o hese sudens had been assigned o Imam-Haips In a February 2015

inerview Miniser o Naional Educaion Nabi Avci suggesed ha inappropriaeschool assignmens were ound only among a pool o 130000 sudens who pre-

sumably as a resul o conusion991252as in he case o he columnisrsquos daugher991252did

no fill ou heir preerence shee39

As a resul o all hese acors here has been a massive increase in he number o

Imam-Haip schools and sudens In he 2014ndash2015 school year some 932000

sudens atended Imam-Haip schools a roughly 40 percen increase rom he

previous school year Te number o Imam-Haip high school sudens alone more

han doubled afer passage o 4+4+4 rom 268000 sudens in he 2011ndash2012

school year o 546000 in he 2014ndash2015 school year (see able 1) Figures or2015-16 are currenly unavailable

Imam-Haip sudens now consiue 105 percen o all middle school sudens

and 129 percen o all high school sudens By way o comparison Imam-Haip

high school sudens consiued only 26 percen o all urkish high school

sudens when he AKP came o power in 2002 (see able 1) Ta low figure cor-

responded o he apex o urkish secularis effors o reurn Imam-Haips o heir

original narrow mission o simply raining clerics wih he world o higher educa-

ion welcoming is graduaes or he mos par only ino heology aculies

Te Imam-Haip enrollmen numbers in absolue erms now go ar beyond heir

pre-February 28 1997 level991252surely a source o grea saisacion no only o

Presiden Erdoğan bu also o much o he religious communiy in urkey A heir

pre-1997 peak991252he 1996ndash1997 school year991252511502 sudens atended 1202

Imam-Haip middle and high schools As previously noed in he 2014ndash2015

school year here were 932273 sudens in 2614 Imam-Haip middle and high

schools an increase o more han 80 percen in sudens and more han 100 per-

cen in school buildings over he pre-1997 peak40 Ye as a percenage o he overall

suden body Imam-Haip enrollmen is no much differen han i was a is pre-February 28 1997 peak in he 1995ndash1996 and 1996ndash1997 school years41 In boh

eras he percenage o sudens enrolled in Imam-Haips was seadily on he rise In

1997 he miliary sepped in o pu a sop o ha increase and roll i back Tere is

no prospec ha he poliically weakened miliary or any oher nondemocraic orce




would or could do such a hing oday Even were a secularis governmen o come o

power i migh well seek o find ways o slow or cap he increase bu rolling back he

Imam-Haip sysem o is vocaional-only days991252wih limied universiy prospecs

or is sudens991252would be ou o he quesion Wih he AKP having won anoher

srong mandae o rule in he November 1 2015 parliamenary elecion here is

every reason o believe he expansion o Imam-Haips will coninue

Seculariss believe soaring Imam-Haip enrollmen is a leas in par a resul o

he governmenrsquos channeling sudens ino he religious school sysem hrough

sleigh-o-hand mehods such as he eliminaion o secular neighborhood

schools Religious conservaives however believe ha Imam-Haips are simply

he peoplersquos choice In a June 28 2015 speech beore a nongovernmenal organi-

zaion devoed o promoing religious educaion Presiden Erdoğan991252himsel an

Imam-Haip graduae991252exuled ha he had succeeded in removing he ldquounjus

lawless and grievousrdquo measures o he February 28 period ldquoTe number o su-

dens in our Imam-Haip schools which ell rom 600000 o 60000 [as a resulo February 28] is now one million Tis shows one hing ha our naion in is

own spiriual world is deermined o send is kids o Imam-Haip schoolsrdquo42

In a February 2015 inerview Miniser o Naional Educaion Avci claimed ha

94000 sudens lised Imam-Haip schools as heir op high school preerence

bu ha only 54000 o hese sudens qualified43 Avci was rying o reue he

claim ha he sae was arbirarily assigning sudens o Imam-Haips in order o

fill hem quie he conrary he implied here are no enough places or all he

sudens clamoring o ge in




Religious electives

in secular schools

Te expansion o Imam-Haip schools was he mos dramaic developmen in

advancing Presiden Erdoğanrsquos goal o raising a pious generaion bu i was no

he only one In ac here was anoher aspec o 4+4+4 ha arouses he con-

cern o some seculariss mandaing he availabiliy o elecive courses on ldquohe

Holy Quranrdquo and ldquohe lie o our Propherdquo in secular middle and high schools

boh public and privae44

Mandaing he availabiliy o hese elecives which are required courses in Imam-Haip schools eeds secularis ears ha he AKPrsquos long-erm goal is o impose

an Imam-Haip-ype curriculum in all urkish schools45 Aside rom his concern

over ldquoImam-Haip-ificaionrdquo o secular schools many seculariss worry ha given

he prominen role Islam plays in urkish sociey sudens will eel social pressure

o ake he religious elecives Tus ar he MNE has no issued saisics on how

many sudens are aking he religious elecives

I should be noed ha he new religion elecives are in addiion o a required

course on religion called ldquoReligious Culure and Moral Knowledgerdquo a mandaory

par o he curriculum in grades our hrough welve in all schools991252public and

privae991252since 198246 Course presenaion generally accords wih he preceps

o Sunni Islam as well as he Hanafi legal school ha predominaes in urkey Ye

unlike he religious elecives which have an unvarnished Sunni Islamic conen

he required course also blends ehical issues and a limied amoun o comparaive

religion ino he curriculum47

ldquoReligious Culure and Moral Knowledgerdquo has come under fire rom he European

Cour o Human Righs in recen years as Alevis991252adherens o a heerodox

Islamic sec ha generally has no official recogniion in urkey 991252have proesed boh he overwhelming ocus on Sunni Islam in he course curriculum and he

saersquos reusal o exemp Alevi children rom he requiremen o ake he course

In conras Chrisian and Jewish children are excused rom he course i heir

parens so reques since unlike Alevism Chrisianiy and Judaism are recognized

by he sae as official religions 48




On wo occasions in 2007 and 2014 he European Cour o Human Righs or

ECHR ruled ha urkey should excuse any sudens who so desire rom he

mandaory religion course wihou heir parensrsquo having o reveal heir religion

or belies When he ECHR ruling was issued in 2014 Prime Miniser Ahme

Davuoğlu ook excepion He said i was imporan even or aheiss o learn

abou religion ldquojus like I should know abou Marxism even hough I am no aMarxisrdquo Te prime miniser suggesed i is imporan or everyone o undersand

religion991252clearly meaning Sunni Islam991252in order o undersand evens in urkey

he Middle Eas and he Balkans49

Davuoglu hen added a hough rarely invoked by religious urks991252bu one ha

migh be heir sronges argumen in jusiying sae-sponsored religious educa-

ion o secular audiences ldquoYou can see he developmens [in he region] I a

proper religious culure had been augh [a schools] in counries surrounding us

cerain developmens would never have aken placerdquo50 In indirecly suggesing

ha compulsory religion courses are a criical measure in fighing radicalism hissocial-engineering approach was no so differen rom ha o he secular generals

who insised on he course in he firs place or rom ha o Aaurk himsel who

firs insised on unetered sae conrol o religious messaging51

o be persuaded by Davuoğlursquos presumed logic o course seculariss would have

o be convinced o he saersquos moderae inenions As long as he saersquos religious

and educaional insiuions remain under he AKPrsquos sway ew seculariss will be

so convinced52 Ye or now no evidence suggess ha he Islam promoed in he

compulsory course is anyhing oher han moderae

Cleansing the bureaucracy

On March 7 2014 almos precisely wo years afer passage o 4+4+4 he AKP-

majoriy parliamen passed anoher major educaion law no 6528 his one seting

ou an 18-monh imerame or closing dershanes or privae-uoring and exam-

preparaion insiues53 Te primary purpose o he law was presumably o inflic

damage on he Gulen religious movemen which reporedly derives significan

income rom dershanes Guleniss991252ollowers o religious philosopher FehullahGulen991252who or many years were a poliical ally o AKP emerged as Presiden

Erdoğanrsquos public-enemy number-one afer a major corrupion scandal rocked his

adminisraion in lae 2013 Erdoğan was convinced ha Guleniss in he bureau-

cracy had produced charges aimed a his amily officials and riends or he sole

purpose o oppling he AKP governmen As prime miniser and laer as presiden




Erdoğan denounced Guleniss as erroriss and raiors who had ormed a ldquoparallel

saerdquo wihin he sae bureaucracy For ha reason i was widely assumed ha he

new law which came o be known as he dershane-closing law was conceived or

he specific purpose o diminishing he Gulenissrsquo revenue

Tere was less media ocus on a second equally imporan aspec o he law ha wasaimed no only a punishing Guleniss bu also a ighening he AKPrsquos grip on he

educaion bureaucracy I mandaed he removal o senior managers a he cenral

and local offices o he Minisry o Naional Educaion and also opened he way or

he dismissal o 8403 school principals and depuy principals naionwide mos o

hem reporedly Guleniss54 Virually all o he replacemen principals and depuy

principals were reporedly pro-AKP and mos o hem were recruied rom among

members o an influenial pro-AKP eachers union called Egiim Bir-Sen55

In mid-2015 boh he dershanes and he dismissed employees seemingly received

a reprieve In a surprising 12-5 decision on July 13 2015 he Consiuional Couro urkey overurned he enire law affecing boh he dershanes and he school

officials Te cour assered ha law no 6528 was conrary o consiuional provi-

sions on reedom o enerprise he righ o an educaion and he righ o work56

Te success o he appeal by he secular opposiion991252CHP991252was surprising in

ligh o he ac ha he overwhelming majoriy o he courrsquos judges had been

appoined by Presiden Erdoğan and his predecessor Abdullah Gul boh co-

ounders o AKP57 Afer all he law was passed by hen-Prime Miniser Erdoğanrsquos

AKP-majoriy governmen and signed ino law by hen-Presiden Gul A leas

symbolically he Consiuional Cour ruling overurning he dershane-closing

law was he firs significan deea or991252and a singing legal rebuke o991252Erdoğanrsquos

effors o rid he urkish bureaucracy o Guleniss

A presen however he governmen appears o be circumvening he

Consiuional Cour ruling in a manner ha will sill resul in he closure o he

Gulenis-owned dershanes58 Given he governmenrsquos deerminaion o crush he

Guleniss here seems litle likelihood o ull compliance wih he Consiuional

Cour ruling Likewise he principals depuy principals and MNE bureaucras

who were fired hus ar have been unable o recover heir posiions

Te dershane-closing law was inended o serve hree relaed purposes deprive

Guleniss o revenue hrough closure o heir dershanes remove Gulenis influence

in he educaional sysem hrough firing principals depuy principals and oher

bureaucras and more deeply implan AKP influence hrough he appoinmen o

pro-AKP personnel hroughou he educaional bureaucracy and in he schools




More han our monhs afer he Consiuional Courrsquos ruling negaed he law i

appears likely ha he governmen will be able o accomplish hose goals Legal

appeals may well ollow bu or now he nonimplemenaion o he cour ruling

sands as a powerul commenary on he sae o rule o law in urkey

Altering the educational environment

Te AKP-majoriy governmen ook oher measures as well o creae an educaional

environmen more hospiable o religion Culurally and in erms o imporance

o he AKPrsquos religious base he mos significan o hese measures was he removal

o he ban on womenrsquos wearing a head covering991252usually a scar991252in schools and

universiies For years his ban991252which was ormalized by he miliary governmen

in 1982991252was one o he hotes issues and a imes dominaed he poliical land-

scape in urkey Tree governmen atemps o remove he ban991252in 1988 1990

and 200859991252were overruled by Aaurkis-dominaed Consiuional Cour deci-sions As prime miniser Erdoğan had ofen complained ha he had o send his wo

daughers abroad o he Wes or heir higher educaion so ha hey could maricu-

lae a a campus ha respeced heir righ o wear he headscar 60

Prior o 2010 urkish law acually banned he wearing o religious dress no only

in universiies bu also in schools and in he perormance o official duies mean-

ing ha he ban also applied o civil servans61 Te ban in universiies atraced

he mos atenion however and was cerainly he mos emoional issue or he

religious communiy62 Te universiy ban conroned religious girls wih a paric-

ularly difficul choice wheher o remove he headscar or he sake o a universiy

educaion adhere o heir principles regarding he headscar and orgo a univer-

siy educaion or or hose ew who could afford i wheher o leave urkey and

pursue a universiy educaion abroad as Erdoğanrsquos daughers did

By 2010 he AKP governmen was saring o asser is grip on sae insiu-

ions Following a Sepember 2010 reerendum ha amended he consiuion

o srenghen he eleced governmenrsquos influence over he judiciary he Erdoğan

governmen announced ha i would henceorh deend any universiy suden

who was expelled or disciplined or wearing a headscar Tis was ollowed by adirecive rom urkeyrsquos Higher Educaion Council or HEC insrucing universi-

ies o ake no urher acion agains headscarved sudens nowihsanding a

2008 Consiuional Cour decision affirming he ban63




Wih he passage o he reerendum and he issuance o he HEC direcive secu-

laris desire o figh or he ban wiled including wihin he CHP whose appeal

had led o he 2008 Consiuional Cour decision ha upheld he ban64 Once

he headscar issue was decided a number o oher headscar-relaed issues were

decided and implemened by he urkish governmen wih surprisingly litle

anare or resisance all in avor o he righ o wear he headscar

In 2012 he governmen ruled ha girls in Imam-Haip schools could wear heads-

carves in all classes65 Previously Imam-Haip girls officially had only been allowed

o wear heir headscarves in Quran classes In 2013 a ban on headscarves applied

o employees o sae insiuions was lifed allowing headscarved women o fill

civil service posiions including eaching66 In Sepember 2014 he governmen

ruled ha girls could wear headscarves in all schools saring in he fifh grade67

Tis represened a subsanial leap orward in he legiimaion o he headscar in

educaional setings and he culminaion o a our-year process during which he

headscar wen rom nearly enirely aboo o nearly universally acceped in univer-siies schools and oher sae insiuions68

While he passage o 4+4+4 he closing o he dershanes and he broad-scale

replacemen o principals and MNE officials by AKP loyaliss and he accepance

o he hijab were he mos significan religiously inged educaional reorms o he

later Erdoğan era here were oher less high-profile measures as well In 2014 or

example volunary preschool Quran courses or 4- o 6-year-olds were organized

by he Religious Affairs Direcorae or Diyane Isleri Baskanligi he sae agency

ha regulaes mosques sermons he hiring o clergy and mos oher religious

maters Te esablishmen o he course meshes wih Presiden Erdoğanrsquos

December 2014 pledge o ldquooffering a new liesyle saring rom kindergarenrdquo69

Somewha similarly in Ocober 2015 MNE officials announced ha beginning

in he 2016-17 academic year second graders will be allowed o choose Arabic

o ulfill heir mandaory oreign language requiremen Currenly hey choose

among English French and German70

Oher AKP governmen decisions also refleced religiously based social concerns

In 2012 he governmen banned he sale and consumpion o alcoholic beverages

on universiy campuses Te decision reporedly was jusified in erms o personaland communal healh alhough seculariss suspeced ha991252in combinaion wih

limis on alcohol consumpion in many AKP-ruled owns and on urkish domes-

ic airlines flighs991252he moivaing impulse was Islamic law71 In November 2013

hen-Prime Miniser Erdoğan hreaened o close co-ed dormiories and even




off-campus privae coed housing He was quoed as saying ldquoas a conservaive

democraic governmen we need o inervenerdquo and called on provincial gover-

nors o invesigae he siuaion Tere was no meaningul ollow-up however and

Erdoğan soon dropped he issue72

National Education Council Harbinger of reform

A number o conroversial recommendaions emanaed rom a December 2014

meeing o he Naional Educaion Council or NEC whose 600-srong religiously

conservaive membership mees quadrennially and influenially advises he MNE73

urkish seculariss end o see NEC proposals as a harbinger o hings o come

paricularly since he NEC advocaed 4+4+4 well beore he AKP governmen

promoed i74 Among proposals suppored by he NEC a is December 2014 mee-

ing were mandaory religious insrucion saring in he firs grade991252raher han in

ourh grade as is currenly he case991252and he eaching o religious values in kinder-garen including he conceps o ldquoparadise and hellrdquo and ldquolove or Allahrdquo 75

Among proposals considered bu no endorsed by he NEC were gender segrega-

ion o all classes and mandaory inclusion o Otoman urkish991252or urkish in he

Arabic scrip which was abolished by Aaurk and replaced wih he curren Lain-

leter alphabe in 1928991252as an elecive in all schools Te proposal on Otoman

urkish ouched off a media firesorm ueled by Presiden Erdoğanrsquos asserion

ha ldquowheher hey [criics] like i or no Otoman will be augh and learned in

his counryrdquo76 In he end he NEC apparenly recommended only ha Otoman

urkish be made compulsory in advanced or Anadolu Imam-Haip schools77




Implications for the United States

Te issue o religion in urkish educaion is a sricly inernal mater and no one

ha he Unied Saes should ry o or even could affec I is plausible bu by

no means cerain ha a urkey ha emphasizes religious educaion is likely o

become a more religious urkey and a more religious urkey is likely o be more

involved in he Islamic world paricularly wih nearby Middle Easern naions

A more religious urkey could be ully democraic and pro-Wesern is greaer

religious consciousness and is deepened involvemen wih is neighboring co-

religioniss having no effec on is basic poliical and sraegic orienaion

Alernaively such a urkey could progressively ideniy more closely wih Middle

Easern counries and less so wih is long-ime Wesern allies Because o urkeyrsquos

locaion a he hear o so many issues o imporance o US ineress991252wheher he

Islamic Sae or ISIS Iranian regional aggression broader Middle Easern sabil-

iy he Cyprus dispue or Russian maneuvers in Ukraine and Syria o name jus

a ew991252he Unied Saes will likely coninue o place high value on is sraegic

relaionship wih urkey urkeyrsquos sabiliy and is atiude oward he Wes have

an inheren imporance or he Unied Saes and educaional policies could have

a long-erm effec on urkish sabiliy and ideniy Educaional policies are also a

baromeer o he values o a naionrsquos rulers I is useul or he Unied Saes o remain

mindul o educaional policies recognizing ha i is by no means clear how hese

policies migh bear on urkish oreign policies or US ineress a any given ime




Conclusion

Many urks find he religious-secular dispue as played ou in he educaional

arena a worrisome disracion rom a needed ocus on qualiy o educaion Tey

argue ha here are many more pressing educaional issues ha should concern

urks such as low suden achievemen in mah and sciences socioeconomic

inequaliies in educaion eacher and classroom shorages he inererence o he

sae in higher educaion hrough he HEC78 and he like79

I is clear however ha urkeyrsquos secular-religious dispue in he educaional arena will no easily be cas aside Virually every naion uses is educaional sysem o

promoe is naional principles However in urkey his process is complicaed

by he ac ha he counry is deeply divided ino opposing camps regarding hose

principles so he echoes o he religious-secular dispue are no likely o disap-

pear rom he classroom any ime soon CHP has cerainly mellowed on religious

issues991252on he headscar mater or example991252bu i remains a highly secularis

pary and is grassroos remain deeply suspicious ha Presiden Erdoğanrsquos and

AKPrsquos goal is o undo all o Aaurkrsquos Wesernizing reorms and o horoughly

Islamize urkey80 Te AKPrsquos grassroos in urn see CHP as aheis eliiss who

rejec991252in ac are conempuous o991252he values o he God-earing masses

Educaion o which he promoion o values is such an indelible par ineviably

will remain a key batlefield in his clash o worldviews

Te AKP emerged rom November 1 2015 elecions wih nearly 50 percen o he

popular voe991252a level rarely atained in urkish hisory991252and a srong parliamenary

majoriy ha should keep i in power a leas unil regularly-scheduled elecions in

2019 Wih he wind a is back and he ireless Erdoğan likely o remain is mos

powerul figure AKP is virually cerain o coninue o push or an enhancemen o

religious educaion in urkey Ta push could ake he orm o urher expansion oImam-Haip schools enhanced and earlier religious sudy in secular schools promo-

ion o more advanced religious raining or oher programs




I would behoove he Unied Saes o closely monior his process urkey is an

imporan US ally and issues o urkish ideniy and sabiliy can affec he qualiy

o ha alliance urkeyrsquos commimen o ha alliance was susained over he years in

significan par because urkish leadership idenified more wih he Wes han wih

is Muslim-majoriy Middle Easern neighbors Should he new AKP governmen

aggressively pursue Presiden Erdoğanrsquos vision o raising a pious generaion in he years ahead hose equaions migh change A deepening o he secular-religious spli

in urkey could hreaen urkeyrsquos sabiliy making i a less reliable ally I urkey

comes o ideniy increasingly wih is Muslim-majoriy neighbors is bonds wih

he Wes may ray Only ime and urkish leaders and voers will ell

Alan Makovsky is a Senior Fellow a he Cener for American Progress Makovsky

previously covered Turkish and Middle Easern issues a he US Sae Deparmen and

on he saff of he US House of Represenaives Commitee on Foreign Affairs




Endnotes

1 Hurriyet ldquoDindar genclik yetistirecegizrdquo February 22012 available at httpwwwhurriyetcomtrgun-dem19825231asp Kadri Gursel ldquoErdogan Islamizeseducation system to raise lsquodevout youthrsquordquo Al-MonitorDecember 9 2014 available at httpwwwal-monitorcompulseoriginals201412turkey-islamize-edu-cation-religionhtml Erdoğan used the term ldquopiousgenerationrdquo on February 1 2012 at a meeting of AKPofficials in response to criticism from CHP leader KemalKilicdaroglu who had accused him of exploiting reli-gion for political gain The context of Erdoğanrsquos quotesuggests he had used the term previously Erdoğancan also be heard in a YouTube clip using the term at aFebruary 6 2012 education-related ceremony in whichhe emphasizes his conviction that a ldquopious generationrdquocan also be professionally accomplished and ldquomodern(cagdas)rdquo See The Tecessumrsquos channel ldquoRecep TayyipErdogan Dindar Nesil Aciklamasirdquo YouTube February6 2012 available at httpswwwyoutubecomwatchv=EuN55EL71_k

2 Sputnik News ldquoCHP koalisyonda lsquoindirimrsquoe gittirdquo July30 2015 available at httptrsputniknewscomturkiye201507301016850461html

3 Gursel ldquoErdogan Islamizes education system to raiselsquodevout youthrsquordquo

4 Albania the only other Muslim-majority country inNATO joined the alliance in 2009

5 For an argument that Turkish society is becoming moresecular even as the government takes measures tomake it more religious see the comments of scholarVolkan Ertit in a recent interview with journalist AhmetHakan Ahmet Hakan ldquoTurkiye dindarlasmiyor aksinedinden uzaklasiyorrdquo Hurriyet September 16 2015available at httpsosyalhurriyetcomtryazarahmet-hakan_131turkiye-dindarlasmiyor-aksine-dinden-uzaklasiyor_30083737

6 Samuel Huntington ldquoThe Clash of Civilizationsrdquo Foreign Affairs 72 (3) (1993) 22ndash49 p 42

7 Turkey can be fairly described as a religious country

with a significant nonreligious minority According to a2012 Pew Research Center sur vey 88 percent of Turkssaid religion is either very importantmdash67 percentmdashorsomewhat importantmdash21 percentmdashto them Onthe other hand 38 percent of Turks say they attendmosque seldommdash15 percentmdashor nevermdash23 percentSee Pew Research Center ldquoThe Worldrsquos Muslims Unityand Diversityrdquo (2012) available at httpwwwpewfo-rumorg20120809the-worlds-muslims-unity-and-diversity-executive-summary

8 Iren Ozgur Islamic Schools in Modern Turkey FaithPolitics and Education (New York Cambridge UniversityPress 2012) pp 69 79 97ndash100 The Iman-Hatip websiteseeks to project the schools as forward-looking aswell as religion-oriented For example it says the basicgoal of Imam-Hatip schools is ldquoto develop youth whoare knowledgeable about society and themselvescultured successful self-confident and believing

(in God) to prepare them for life as individuals whocan provide answers to the needs of the twenty-firstcentury and to develop them as distinctive individu-als who value others can solve problems and whoprotect and develop national and spiritual valuesrdquo SeeImam Hatip ldquoİmam Hatip Okullarirdquo available at httpwwwimamhatipokullariorg20-soruda-ihlhtml(lastaccessed June 2015) See also Rusen Cakir Irfan Bozanand Balkan Talu ldquoImam Hatip Liseleri Efsaneler veGerceklerrdquo (Istanbul Tesev Yayinlari 2004) pp 39ndash53available at httpwwwtesevorgtrUploadPublica-tionb12fbad8-6b04-4b4c-a987-021487dafae0IH20Efsaneler-Gerceklerpdf

9 Imams are prayer leaders hatips are preachers Imam-Hatips were founded in 1924 as strictly vocationalschools They began teaching secular subjectsmdashthustaking on their current look of a national parochialschool systemmdashand broadening their student basemainly under center-right governments of the 1950sthrough 1970s The most significant expansion ofstudent population in this period and the establishmentof Imam-Hatips unalterably as part of the educationallandscape took place in the 1970s The admission ofgirls in 1976 was a particularly important develop-ment signaling that Imam-Hatips could not de facto beconsidered simply vocational schools whatever theirofficial designation since the Islamic clergy (with rareexception) is all-male For a good historical overviewof Imam-Hatip schools see Cakir Bozan and TaluldquoImam Hatip Liseleri Efsaneler ve Gerceklerrdquo pp 39ndash53available at httpwwwtesevorgtrUploadPublica-tionb12fbad8-6b04-4b4c-a987-021487dafae0IH20Efsaneler-Gerceklerpdf Also see Ozgur Islamic Schools in Modern Turkey Faith Politics and Education pp 26ndash55

10 Imam-Hatip students generally spend about one-quarter to one-third of their time in religious instruc-tion Specifically they receive the following amounts ofreligious versus secular instruction per week In gradesfive through seven 26 hours secular 8 hours religiousin grade eight 26 secular 9 religious in grade nine 31secular 9 religious in grades 10 and 12 26 secular 14religious in grade 11 28 secular 12 religious Secularhigh school students generally attend 32 hours of classper week Personal email communications from scholarIsik Tuzun Education Reform Initiative July 15 2015ERI is an education think-tank affiliated with SabanciUniversity Istanbul In Turkish it is known as EgitimReformu Girisimi or ERG For a full listing in English bycourse of the weekly curriculum in I mam-Hatip highschools as of 2009 see Ozgur Islamic Schools in ModernTurkey Faith Politics and Education pp 194-195

11 For example teacher-student ratios are far better inImam-Hatip schools than in the public secular schoolsaccording to Ozgur See Ibid p 143 Additionally by thelate 1990s Imam-Hatip graduates were achieving farhigher rates of admission to university than were gradu-

ates of public secular schools See Ibid pp 50ndash51

12 In Turkish ldquoHanefirdquo

13 Including non-Sunnis mainly Alevis perhaps up to athird of Turks can be said to be non-Hanafi as mostKurdish Sunnis follow the Shafii legal tradition Census-es in Turkey generally do not include information aboutethnicity or about religious preferences within IslamEstimates of the Alevi portion of the Turkish populationgenerally fall into the 15 to 20 percent range but somerun much higher According to a 2014 survey con-ducted by the Turkish Statistics Institute on behalf ofthe Religious Affairs Directorate 775 percent of Turkswho believe in Islam identify themselves as Hanafi and115 percent as Shafii See Haberler ldquoTuumlrkiyersquode HalkınYuumlzde 834rsquouuml Oruccedil Tutuyorrdquo July 15 2014 available athttpwwwhaberlercomturkiye-de-halkin-yuzde-83-4-u-oruc-tutuyor-6262450-haberi The percentage

of Hanafis is likely over-stated many Alevis are reticentto openly declare themselves as such and may havetold pollsters they are part of the Sunni Hanafi majority

14 Many aspects of Imam-Hatips arouse controversyamong Turkish secularists but the issue of state fund-ing jarring to foreigners accustomed to separation ofchurch and state is rarely raised The oft-stated claimthat Ataturkist Turkey separated religion and state isincorrect Rather Ataturk and his followers institutedstate control of Islam under which the various instru-ments of that control primarily the Religious AffairsDirectorate were and remain state-funded




15 The official title of the law as passed in parliament wasthe nondescriptive ldquoİLKOumlĞRETİM VE EĞİTİM KANUNUİLE BAZI KANUNLARDA DEĞİŞİKLİK YAPILMASINA DAİRKANUNrdquo which translates roughly to The Law Concern-ing Modification of the Primary and General EducationLaw and of Some Other L awsrdquo public law 6287

16 At the time only roughly two-thirds of Turkish studentsattended high school or vocational school followingeighth grade See Sedat Ergin ldquoThe rise of the lsquoImam-Hatiprsquo religious high schools ldquo Hurriyet Daily News June9 2012 available at httpwwwhurriyetdailynews

comthe-rise-of-the-imam-hatip-religious-high-schools--aspxpageID=449ampnID=22747ampNewsCatID=428

17 4+4+4 passed by a vote of 295 to 91 with one absten-tion The majority of the votes in favor came from AKPthe majority in opposition came from CHP MHP did notparticipate in the vote despite its traditionalist baseperhaps in acknowledgement of the fact that it hadbeen part of the 1997 post-Erbakan government thatoriginally closed the Imam-Hatip junior high schoolsA senior MHP official claimed that MHP had not beenopposed to re-opening the Imam-Hatip junior highschools or to the expansion of mandatory schooling to12 years but that MHP considered the bill to have beenintroduced and passed too hastily and without properdiscussion Personal phone communication with seniorMHP official July 9 2015 The pro-Kurdish and secularBDP also eschewed participation rather than join

CHP in voting no perhaps to avoid alienating an AKPgovernment with which it then still hoped to negotiatean end to Turkeyrsquos Kurdish problem and perhaps also toavoid further alienating the many Kurdish traditional-ists who generally voted for AKP but which BDP hopedultimately to attract In its Peoplesrsquo Democratic PartyHDP incarnation the BDP did so to a significant extentin June 2015 elections and to a somewhat lesserextent in the November 2015 elections According toa poll commissioned by an association of Imam-Hatipalumni or TIMAV in mid-2012 MHP voters actually op-posed the 4+4+4 bill by 41 percent to 28 percent withthe remainder undecided BDP voters slightly favoredit 32 percent to 30 percent with the remainder unde-cided If the poll is accurate perhaps the nonparticipa-tion of MHP and BDP in the vote is best explained as aneffort to avoid alienating a significant portion of theirrespective supporters According to the poll AKP voterssupported the bill 68 percent to 7 percent and CHP

voters opposed it 69 percent to 13 percent See ErtanOzensel Mahmut Hakki Akin and Mehmet Ali AydemirldquoTurkiyersquode Imam Hatip Liseleri ve Imam HatiplilerAl-gisirdquo (TIMAV 2012) p133 available at httpwwwimamhatipokullariorg

18 Iren Ozgur Islamic Schools in Modern Turkey FaithPolitics and Education (New York Cambridge UniversityPress 2012) For an analysis of the n on-Imam-Hatip-related aspects of the 1997 reform which were alsosignificant see Ilhan Dulger Turkey Rapid Coveragefor Compulsory EducationmdashThe 1997 Basic Educa-tion Program (Ankara The International Bank forReconstruction and Development The World Bank2004) available at httpsiteresourcesworldbankorgINTTURKEYResources361616-1142415001082Com-pulsory_Education_by_Dulgerpdf

19 Niyazi Gunay ldquoImplementing the lsquoFebruary 28rsquo

Recommendations A Scorecardrdquo (Washington TheWashington Institute for Near East Policy 2001) pp7ndash8 available at httpwwwwashingtoninstituteorguploadsDocumentspubsResearchNote10-smpdf

20 Ministry of National Education ldquo12 Yil Zorunlu EgitimSorularmdashCevaplarrdquo (2012) available at httpwwwmebgovtrduyurularduyurular201212Yil_Soru_Ceva-plarpdf

21 In its 2015 election platform statement the secular CHPalso calls for a mandatory 12 years of education mdashoneyear of preschool eight years of ldquobasicrdquo education andfour years of high schoolmdashwhich it dubs ldquo1+8+4rdquo Theldquo1rdquo refers to pre-school The platformrsquos use of ldquo8rdquo ratherthan ldquo4+4rdquo signals consecutive years of required secularschooling which would entail closing the I mam-Hatipmiddle schools See Secim Bildirgesi 2015 CHP p 109

22 Gunay ldquoImplementing the lsquoFebruary 28rsquo Recommen-dations A Scorecardrdquo This marked the second time amilitary government closed Imam-Hatip junior high

schools Following the so-called coup by memorandumof March 12 1971 the military-backed technocraticgovernment also closed the Imam-Hatip junior highschools In some ways that was a more dramatic deci-sion since more than 80 percent of the then 48475Imam-Hatip students were in junior high school at thattime However in that era Imam-Hatips were morenarrowly vocational boys-only and focused on trainingfuture religious officials They did not yet have thesociety-wide resonance they were later to achieve The

junior high schools were re-opened in 1974 by the firstpost-coup elected government composed of one ofTurkeyrsquos most un likely coalitions Bulent Ecevitrsquos center-left CHP and Erbakanrsquos religious-oriented NationalSalvation Party which was later banned only to re-emerge as the RP The Imam-Hatip junior high schoolsthen remained open until 1997 Ozgur Islamic Schoolsin Modern Turkey Faith Politics and Education p 42

23 Erbakan was a highly significant figure not only in thedevelopment of religious politics in Turkey but specifi-cally in the development of Imam-Hatips His NationalReligious Party or MSP participated in three govern-ments in the 1970s that oversaw a vast expansion ofthe Imam-Hatip system for which he is widely creditedby both admirers and critics

24 Jody Sabral ldquoNew Education Bill Revives Koran Studiesin Turkish Schoolsrdquo Al-Monitor May 16 2012 availableat httpwwwal-monitorcompulseoriginals2012al-monitorturkish-education-reform-passedhtml Twoyears later reflecting on the post-February 28 1997 pe-riod Erdogan observed that ldquo(t)hose were truly hur tfuldays I hope God never makes us live through days likethose againrdquo See Dasha Afanasieva and Can Sezer ldquoRiseof Turkish Islamic schooling upsets secular parentsrdquoReuters December 2 2014 available at httpwwwreuterscomarticle20141202us-turkey-education-

idUSKCN0JG0CK20141202

25 The change in policy can be inferred from the increasein Imam-Hatip students after years of steady decline(see Table 1)

26 Afanasieva and Sezer ldquoRise of Turkish Islamic schoolingupsets secular parentsrdquo In 2012 the AKP governmentreportedly planned to open military academies toImam-Hatip graduates but the military seems to havefended off the effort Military academies now areapparently the only higher educational institutionsoff-limits to I mam-Hatip graduates See Todayrsquos ZamanldquoImam-Hatip graduates to be accepted into militaryacademiesrdquo September 17 2012 available at httpwwwtodayszamancomnational_imam-hatip-gradu-ates-to-be-accepted-into-military-academies_292604html For an article from the religious and pro-AKPnewspaper Yeni Akit which harshly criticizes the

military for this policy see Muhammet Kutlu ldquoAskeriokullarda IHLrsquoye ambargo suruyorrdquo Yeni Akit March 272015 available at httpwwwyeniakitcomtrhaberaskeri-okullarda-ihlye-ambargo-suruyor-58762html




27 Education Reform Initiative ldquoEducation Monitoring Re-port 2013 Executive Summaryrdquo (2014) p 12 availableat httpergsabanciunivedusitesergsabanciunivedufilesERG_EMR2013web_0pdf Figure 7 shows theincrease in the number of An atolian or secular publichigh schools vocational high schools and Imam-Hatiphigh schools The 1477 ldquogeneralrdquo high schools graduallywere closed over a three-year period The total increasein the number of other types of schools appears tobe significantly greater than 1477 suggesting thatthe increase in each category of high school does notderive solely from the closure of the general schools

Imam-Hatip schools are still formally considered voca-tional schools Because of their importance howeverthey are oftenmdashbut not alwaysmdashseparated from othervocational schools in official MNE statistics They arealso separated bureaucratically from other vocationalschools in the MNE bureaucracy administered bythe MNE directorate general of religious instructionwhich also oversees the teaching of constitutionallymandated religious instruction throughout the schoolsystem Personal email communication from Isik TuzunEducation Reform Initiative July 20 2015

28 Interview with anonymous Turkish educator July 82015

29 Ibid

30 Lauren Williams ldquoTurkey education reforms fuelcontroversyrdquo Al Jazeera October 29 2014 avail-

able at httpwwwaljazeeracomnewsmiddlee-ast201410turkey-education-reforms-fuel-controver-sy-20141013103317146282html

31 Isik Tuzun ldquoRising discrimination in educationrdquo Perspec-tives 12 (2015) 40ndash44 p 41 See also Afanasieva andSezer ldquoRise of Turkish Islamic schooling upsets secularparentsrdquo According to the latter surveys were con-ducted in three provinces onlymdashErzerum Kayseri andKonyamdashall known to be religiously conservative

32 Interview with anonymous Turkish educator July8 2015 authorrsquos personal communications withanonymous Turkish parents The latter source providedanecdotal evidence from parents whose childrenexperienced this

33 Williams ldquoTurkey education reforms fuel controversyrdquo

34 See for example Nasil Kolay ldquoTEOG Nedirrdquo available athttpnasilkolaycomteog-nedir

35 Education Reform Initiative ldquoEducation MonitoringReport 2013 Executive Summaryrdquo p 13 figure 8 Ofcourse the overall number of students increaseddramatically with mandatory high school attendanceAt least in part the 63 percent figure probably reflectsthe fact that fewer academically oriented students whopreviously would not have gone to high school arequalifying only for vocational schools

36 Tulay Cetingulec ldquoHands off my child Turks tell govern-mentrdquo Al-Monitor September 5 2014 available athttpwwwal-monitorcompulseoriginals201409turkey-education-system-non-muslims-islamic-schoolshtml For journalist Fatih Altaylirsquos originalcolumn about his daughterrsquos alleged assignment to anImam-Hatip school see Fatih Altayli ldquoBirisi Milli Egitim

Bakanligirsquona harita yollasinrdquo Haberturk August 262014 available at httpwwwhaberturkcomyazarlarfatih-altayli983802-birisi-milli-egitim-bakanligina-harita-yollasin

37 Tulay Cetingulec ldquoHands off my child Turks tell govern-mentrdquo

38 Ibid

39 Ministry of National Education ldquoMinister Avci speaksto Haberturk T Vrdquo February 4 2015 available at httpwwwmebgovtrbakan-avci-haberturk-tvye-konuk-olduhaber7947en

40 See Table 1 Also see Tuzun ldquoRising discrimination ineducationrdquo p 40 Todayrsquos Zaman ldquoTop school convertedinto Imam-Hatip amid increase in religious schoolsrdquoJuly 7 2015 available at httpwwwtodayszamancomnational_top-school-converted-into-Imam-Hatip-amid-increase-in-religious-schools_393081html

41 See Table 1 In 1995-96 116 percent of Turkish middleschool (grades 6-8) students and 109 percent ofTurkish high school students attended Imam-Hatips In1996-97 those figures were 122 percent and 93 per-cent respectively In 2014-15 105 percent of studentsin grades five through seven and 129 percent of highschool students attended Imam-Hatips

42 Hurriyet ldquoCumhurbaskani Recep Tayyip Erdogan lsquoBun-lar bizim n eslimiz olamazrsquordquo June 29 2015 available athttpwwwhurriyetcomtrcumhurbaskani-recep-tayy-ip-erdogan-bunlar-bizim-neslimiz-olamaz-29406127

43 Ministry of National Education ldquoMinister Avci speaks toHaberturk Tv (sic)rdquo available at httpwwwmebgovtrminister-avci-speaks-to-haberturk-tvhaber7947en

44 Although the law seems to require that the two coursesbe taught (okutulur ) the situation in reality affords

more flexibility MNE guidelines require the courses tobe given only if at least 10 students request them SeeMinistry of National Education ldquo12 Yil Zorunlu EgitimSorular-Cevaplarrdquo (2012) available at httpwwwmebgovtrduyurularduyurular201212Yil_Soru_Cevaplarpdf Thus far the MNE has not issued statistics on howmany schools are offering the religious electives or howmany students are taking them

45 This concern was stoked by at least one AKP parlia-mentarian an Imam-Hatip alumnus who declared ldquoWehave the chance to turn all schools into Imam Hatipschoolsrdquo See Dorian Jones ldquoIn Turkey Religious SchoolsGain a Footholdrdquo Voice of America September 252012 available at httpwwwvoanewscomcontentturkey-controversial-education-reform-imam-hatip-schools1514915html In fact Erdogan then mayor ofIstanbul said in 1994 ldquoWe will assign Imam-Hatip curri-cula to all the schools in the countryrdquo See Ozgur Islamic

Schools in Modern Turkey Faith Politics and Educationp 143

46 The course is taught two hours per week in the fourthgrade through the eighth grade and one hour per weekthereafter through the completion of high school

47 Hadi Adanali ldquoThe Many Dimensions of ReligiousInstruction in Turkeyrdquo (Ankara Turkey InternationalAssociation for Religious Freedom) available at httpswwwiarfnetREBookletTurkeyhtm Ironically theorigin of the required religion course lies in an ostensi-bly strongly secular military government The militaryseized control of the Turkish government in September1980 in the wake of widespread political violence thatmainly reflected a deep right-left divide in the nationPersuaded that communism and disintegrating socialvalues were the real culprits of the violence Turkeyrsquosmilitary leaders sought to inoculate Turkish students

against these problems through education in Islam andethics Thus article 24 of the 1982 constitutionmdashpro-duced under military rule but still today the law of theland in Turkeymdashstates ldquoInstruction in religious cultureand morals shall be one of the compulsory lessons inthe curricula of primary and secondary schoolsrdquo






57 Eight of the 12 votes in favor of overturning werecast by Gul appointees 2 of his appointees votedto sustain the law Erdoganrsquos 4 appointees split 2-2See HaberlerldquoAYMrsquonin Dershane Kararinda Abdul-lah Gul Damgasirdquo July 15 2015 available at httpwwwhaberlercomaym-nin-dershane-kararinda-abdullah-gul-damgasi-7510493-haberi The appealto the Constitutional Court was made by the secularcenter-left CHP primarily on the basis of freedom ofenterprisemdashsomewhat ironically for a center-left partythat long defended Turkeyrsquos formerly statist economy

58 Todayrsquos Zaman ldquoTurkeyrsquos top administrative courtannuls controversial prep school circularrdquo September18 2015 available at httpwwwtodayszamancomanasayfa_turkeys-top-administrative-court-annuls-controversial-prep-school-circular_399541html

59 Kerime Sule Akoglu ldquoPiecemeal Freedom Why theHeadscarf Ban Remains in Place in Turkeyrdquo BostonCollege International amp Comparative Law Review 38 (2)(2015) 277ndash304 available at httpiclrbclawrevieworgfiles20150504_akoglupdf Specific cite pp 286290-91

60 The Journal of Turkish Weekly ldquoErdoganrsquos daughtersstudying in US to escape headscarf banrdquo October25 2004 available at httpwwwturkishweeklynet20041025newserdogan-s-daughters-studying-in-us-to-escape-headscarf-ban

61 Akoglu ldquoPiecemeal Freedom Why the Headscarf BanRemains in Place in Turkeyrdquo pp 277-8

62 Ozgur Islamic Schools in Modern Turkey Faith Politicsand Education p 95 This was probably because maleand female students meet in relatively uncontrolled cir-cumstances on university campuses Religious parentsseemed to object less to the ban as applied in middleand high schools perhaps because of stricter teachersupervision of student behavior at those levels Also inImam-Hatip schoolsmdashwhere many religious studentsattended high schoolmdashadministrators often did notenforce the ban

63 Akoglu ldquoPiecemeal Freedom Why the Headscarf BanRemains in Place in Turkeyrdquo p 293 Jonathan HeadldquoQuiet end to Turkeyrsquos college headscarf banrdquo BBCNews December 31 2010 available at httpwwwbbccomnewsworld-europe-11880622 The HECmdashper-

haps better known by its Turkish acronym YOKmdashwasalready at this time dominated by pro-AKP figuresincluding its powerful chairman Yusuf Ziya Ozcan Thekey turning-point for the HECrsquos rapid evolution from anAtaturkist to a pro-AKP institution was the ascension ofAKP co-founder Abullah Gul to the Presidency of Turkeyin August 2007 For a useful reference-point regardingthis evolution see Nuran Cakmakci ldquoDersimiz YOKuyelerini taniyalimrdquo Hurriyet March 2 2008 accessedat httpwwwhurriyetcomtrdersimiz-yok-uyelerini-taniyalim-8348259

64 This was probably the result of three somewhat inter-related factors the ascent to party leadership of KemalKilicdaroglu who was somewhat more liberal on theissue than was his predecessor Deniz Baykal the re-peated thrashing of CHP at the polls in part because ofAKPrsquos success branding the secularists as anti-religionand CHPrsquos recognition that traditional secular forces

had lost control of the bureaucracy and judiciary andthat the secularist military no longer was willing or ableto intimidate the civilian government or even to jaw-bone it effectively regarding domestic political matters

65 Reuters ldquoTurkey lifts headscarf ban in religious schoolsrdquoNovember 28 2012 available at httpwwwreuterscomarticle20121128us-turkey-headscarf-idUS-BRE8AR0JW20121128 This marked the culminationof an effort that began shortly after AKP took officeSee ldquoTurbana vize taslagildquo Cumhuriyet February 232003 available at httpwwwcumhuriyetcomtrcumhuriyetwc0119html

66 Akoglu ldquoPiecemeal Freedom Why the Headscarf BanRemains in Place in Turkeyrdquo p 278

67 Al Arabiya News ldquoTurkey lifts ban on headscarvesat high schoolsrdquo September 23 2014 available athttpenglishalarabiyanetenlife-styleart-and-culture20140923Turkey-lifts-ban-on-headscarves-at-high-schools-html

68 Three institutions remain off-limits for headscarvedwomen seeking employment the judiciary the mili-tary and the police Akoglu ldquoPiecemeal Freedom Why

the Headscarf Ban Remains in Place in Turkeyrdquo p 277

69 Murat Aksoy ldquoDecisions leading to raising pro-AKPnot religious generationsrdquo Todayrsquos Zaman December8 2014 available at httpwwwtodayszamancomop-ed_decisions-leading-to-raising-pro-akp-not-religious-generations_366403html Diyanet IsleriBaskanligi ldquoYaz Kurrsquoan kursları 22 Haziran Pazartesiguumlnuuml başlıyorhelliprdquo available at httpwwwdiyanetgovtrtricerikyaz-kurrsquoan-kurslari-22-haziran-pazartesi-gunu-basliyorhellip26931 (last accessed November 2015)Radikal ldquoOkul oncesi ogrencileri Kurrsquoan ogreniyor (Pre-school students are l earning the Quran)rdquo July 13 2015available at httpwwwradikalcomtrsiirt_haberokul_oncesi_ogrencileri_kuran_ogreniyor-1396747 The curriculum for the course in Turkish is available athttpwww2diyanetgovtrEgitimHizmetleriGenelMu-durluguKuranKursuOgretimProgramiKURrsquoAN20KURSLARI20OumlĞRETİM20PROGRAMI(04-0620YAŞ)-

2014pdf

70 Hurriyet Daily News ldquoArabic to be offered as 2ndlanguage in primary s choolsrdquo October 24-25 2015available at httpwwwhurriyetdailynewscomarabic-to-be-offered-as-second-language-in-turkish-elemen-tary-schools-aspxpageID=238ampnID=90244ampNewsCatID=341 Regarding secularist criticisms and suspicionsregarding this decision see Tulay Cetingulec ldquoTurksdivided over plans to introduce Arabic-language teach-ingrdquo Al-Monitor November 2 2015 available at httpwwwal-monitorcompulseoriginals201511turkey-arabic-education-divides-countryhtml

71 Kadri Gursel ldquoTurkeyrsquos Creeping Alcohol Ban ReachesNew Heightsrdquo Al-Monitor February 19 2013 avail-able at httpwwwal-monitorcompulsearorigi-nals201302turkey-alcohol-ban-turkish-airlines-akp-islamisthtml

72 Tim Arango ldquoAfter a Break Turkeyrsquos Prime MinisterAgain Cour ts ControversyrdquoThe New York TimesNovember 7 2013 available at httpwwwnytimescom20131108worldeuropeturkey-coed-dormi-tories-html_r=0 Yavuz Bayda ldquoErdogan stirs contro-versy on women in university housingrdquo Al-MonitorNovember 6 2013 available at httpwwwal-monitorcompulseoriginals201311erdogan-state-role-turks-lives-losing-moderate-supportershtml TodayrsquosZaman ldquoErdogan sets national agenda with remarkson studentsrsquo housesrdquo November 6 2013 available athttpwwwtodayszamancomnational_erdogan-sets-national-agenda-with-remarks-on-students-houses_330786html

73 Kadri Gursel ldquoErdogan Islamizes education system toraise lsquodevout youthrsquordquo Al-Monitor December 9 2014available at httpwwwal-monitorcompulseorigi-

nals201412turkey-islamize-education-religionhtmlAli Unal ldquoMinister Ottoman not compulsory for allAlevism can also be taughtrdquo Daily Sabah December 112014 available at httpwwwdailysabahcompoli-tics20141211minister-ottoman-not-compulsory-for-all-alevism-can-also-be-taught

74 In 2010 Bekir S Gur and others ldquo2012rsquode EgitimrdquoSETA Analiz December 2012 p 3 available at httpfilesetavorgFilesPdf20130104114533_seta_analiz_2012egitimpdf




75 Hurriyet Daily News ldquoReligion courses for primaryschools on agenda of Turkish education councilrdquoDecember 4 2014 available at httpwwwhurriyetdai-lynewscomreligion-courses-for-primary-schools-on-agenda-of-turkish-education-councilaspxPageID=238ampNID=75225ampNewsCatID=338

76 Tulin Daloglu ldquoErdogan wants youth to learn Ottoman-era Turkishrdquo Al-Monitor December 9 2014 available athttpwwwal-monitorcompulseoriginals201412erdogan-ottoman-turkish-mandatory-language-instructionhtml

77 Unal ldquoMinister Ottoman not compulsory for allAlevism can also be taughtrdquo In another decision thatdrew considerable press attention the NEC also recom-mended that tourism-management high schools ceaseteaching courses in cocktail-mixing See TC Millicirc EğitimBakanliği ldquo19 Milli Egitim Surasi S ona Erdirdquo (2014)available at httpwwwmebgovtr19-mill-egitim-srasi-sona-erdihaber7594tr

78 The government recently gave the HEC authority toclose private universities that ldquohave become a focalpoint for activities against the statersquos indivisible integ-rityrdquo The move is almost certainly aimed at Gulenistuniversities See Todayrsquos Zaman ldquoNew regulation al-lowing YOumlK to shut down private universities goes intoeffectrdquo November 19 2015 available at httpwwwtodayszamancomnational_new-regulation-allowing-yok-to-shut-down-private-universities-goes-into-

effect_404791html

79 In the most recent OECD Programme for InternationalStudent Assessment or PISA survey conducted in2012 Turkish 15-year-olds ranked below average inreading math and science literacy See Organisationfor Economic Co-operation and Development ldquoCountryProfiles Turkeyrdquo (2012) available at httpgpseduca-tionoecdorgCountryProfileprimaryCountry=TURamptreshold=10amptopic=PI

80 An example of the deep concern that the AKPrsquosreligious educational reforms arouse in secularists

justifiably or not can be found in Gursel ldquoErdogan

Islamizes education system to raise lsquodevout youthrsquordquoAccording to Gursel ldquo[t]hese steps by the ruling Justiceand Development Party are not only reshaping theeducation system according to the Sunni faith but theyincreasingly render the countryrsquos lsquoconstitutional secular-ismrsquo a principle existing only on paper hellip The genera-tion to be raised under an Islamized education systemis seen [by AKP and its supporters] as the guarantor ofthe regime political Islam is building in Turkeyrdquo



Our Mission

The Center for American

Progress is an independent

nonpartisan policy institute

that is dedicated to improving

the lives of all Americans

through bold progressive

ideas as well as strongleadership and concerted

action Our aim is not just to

change the conversation but

to change the country

Our Values

As progressives we believe

America should be a land of

boundless opportunity where

people can climb the ladder

of economic mobility We

believe we owe it to future

generations to protect theplanet and promote peace

and shared global prosperity

And we believe an effective

government can earn the

trust of the American people

champion the common

good over narrow self-interest

and harness the strength ofour diversity

Our Approach

We develop new policy ideas

challenge the media to cover

the issues that truly matter

and shape the national debat

With policy teams in major

issue areas American Progres

can think creatively at thecross-section of traditional

boundaries to develop ideas

for policymakers that lead to

real change By employing an

extensive communications

and outreach effort that we

adapt to a rapidly changing

media landscape we move

our ideas aggressively in thenational policy debate



Re-Educating TurkeyAKP Efforts to Promote Religious Values

in Turkish Schools










21 Conclusion

23 Endnotes

Contents


































of Turkish politics























































































being opional18


































































































































































































































Religious electives

in secular schools






























































































































































































































Conclusion












































Endnotes
















































29 Ibid











38 Ibid


































2014pdf














effect_404791html







Our Mission











Our Values












champion the common



Our Approach
























21 Conclusion

23 Endnotes

Contents


































of Turkish politics























































































being opional18


































































































































































































































Religious electives

in secular schools






























































































































































































































Conclusion












































Endnotes
















































29 Ibid











38 Ibid


































2014pdf














effect_404791html







Our Mission











Our Values












champion the common



Our Approach

















































of Turkish politics























































































being opional18


































































































































































































































Religious electives

in secular schools






























































































































































































































Conclusion












































Endnotes
















































29 Ibid











38 Ibid


































2014pdf














effect_404791html







Our Mission











Our Values












champion the common



Our Approach





















of Turkish politics























































































being opional18


































































































































































































































Religious electives

in secular schools






























































































































































































































Conclusion












































Endnotes
















































29 Ibid











38 Ibid


































2014pdf














effect_404791html







Our Mission











Our Values












champion the common



Our Approach










































































being opional18


































































































































































































































Religious electives

in secular schools






























































































































































































































Conclusion












































Endnotes
















































29 Ibid











38 Ibid


































2014pdf














effect_404791html







Our Mission











Our Values












champion the common



Our Approach







































being opional18


































































































































































































































Religious electives

in secular schools






























































































































































































































Conclusion












































Endnotes
















































29 Ibid











38 Ibid


































2014pdf














effect_404791html







Our Mission











Our Values












champion the common



Our Approach


























being opional18


































































































































































































































Religious electives

in secular schools






























































































































































































































Conclusion












































Endnotes
















































29 Ibid











38 Ibid


































2014pdf














effect_404791html







Our Mission











Our Values












champion the common



Our Approach
























being opional18


































































































































































































































Religious electives

in secular schools






























































































































































































































Conclusion












































Endnotes
















































29 Ibid











38 Ibid


































2014pdf














effect_404791html







Our Mission











Our Values












champion the common



Our Approach




















































































































































































































Religious electives

in secular schools






























































































































































































































Conclusion












































Endnotes
















































29 Ibid











38 Ibid


































2014pdf














effect_404791html







Our Mission











Our Values












champion the common



Our Approach

























































































































































































Religious electives

in secular schools






























































































































































































































Conclusion












































Endnotes
















































29 Ibid











38 Ibid


































2014pdf














effect_404791html







Our Mission











Our Values












champion the common



Our Approach























































































































































































Religious electives

in secular schools






























































































































































































































Conclusion












































Endnotes
















































29 Ibid











38 Ibid


































2014pdf














effect_404791html







Our Mission











Our Values












champion the common



Our Approach





















































































































































Religious electives

in secular schools






























































































































































































































Conclusion












































Endnotes
















































29 Ibid











38 Ibid


































2014pdf














effect_404791html







Our Mission











Our Values












champion the common



Our Approach

















































































































Religious electives

in secular schools






























































































































































































































Conclusion












































Endnotes
















































29 Ibid











38 Ibid


































2014pdf














effect_404791html







Our Mission











Our Values












champion the common



Our Approach
















































































Religious electives

in secular schools






























































































































































































































Conclusion












































Endnotes
















































29 Ibid











38 Ibid


































2014pdf














effect_404791html







Our Mission











Our Values












champion the common



Our Approach












































Religious electives

in secular schools






























































































































































































































Conclusion












































Endnotes
















































29 Ibid











38 Ibid


































2014pdf














effect_404791html







Our Mission











Our Values












champion the common



Our Approach



















Religious electives

in secular schools






























































































































































































































Conclusion












































Endnotes
















































29 Ibid











38 Ibid


































2014pdf














effect_404791html







Our Mission











Our Values












champion the common



Our Approach


















































































































































































































Conclusion












































Endnotes
















































29 Ibid











38 Ibid


































2014pdf














effect_404791html







Our Mission











Our Values












champion the common



Our Approach















































































































































































Conclusion












































Endnotes
















































29 Ibid











38 Ibid


































2014pdf














effect_404791html







Our Mission











Our Values












champion the common



Our Approach










































































































































Conclusion












































Endnotes
















































29 Ibid











38 Ibid


































2014pdf














effect_404791html







Our Mission











Our Values












champion the common



Our Approach








































































































Conclusion












































Endnotes
















































29 Ibid











38 Ibid


































2014pdf














effect_404791html







Our Mission











Our Values












champion the common



Our Approach



































































Conclusion












































Endnotes
















































29 Ibid











38 Ibid


































2014pdf














effect_404791html







Our Mission











Our Values












champion the common



Our Approach











































Conclusion












































Endnotes
















































29 Ibid











38 Ibid


































2014pdf














effect_404791html







Our Mission











Our Values












champion the common



Our Approach



















Conclusion












































Endnotes
















































29 Ibid











38 Ibid


































2014pdf














effect_404791html







Our Mission











Our Values












champion the common



Our Approach


































Endnotes
















































29 Ibid











38 Ibid


































2014pdf














effect_404791html







Our Mission











Our Values












champion the common



Our Approach



















Endnotes
















































29 Ibid











38 Ibid


































2014pdf














effect_404791html







Our Mission











Our Values












champion the common



Our Approach













































29 Ibid











38 Ibid


































2014pdf














effect_404791html







Our Mission











Our Values












champion the common



Our Approach






















29 Ibid











38 Ibid


































2014pdf














effect_404791html







Our Mission











Our Values












champion the common



Our Approach





































2014pdf














effect_404791html







Our Mission











Our Values












champion the common



Our Approach



































2014pdf














effect_404791html







Our Mission











Our Values












champion the common



Our Approach























effect_404791html







Our Mission











Our Values












champion the common



Our Approach


















Our Mission











Our Values












champion the common



Our Approach














