Full metadata
Title
Developing inclusive education policies and practices in Turkey: a study of the roles of UNESCO and local educators
Description
According to UNESCO's 2010 survey results of 58 member countries, 34 of the countries had less than 1 percent of children enrolled in special education programs. Ten of these countries provided special education provision for less than .01 percent of children. However, the demand to educate students with disabilities in inclusive educational settings continues to grow. Thus, there are many national initiatives aimed at finding ways of creating forms of inclusive educational settings that can respond to children with special needs. In this study, the purpose was to better understand the processes of local adaptation and modification of UNESCO's inclusive education policies, the possible resistances to global forces in inclusive education in Turkey, and the consequences of the implications of those policies in Ankara, Turkey from local educators' views. With that goal in mind, recently adopted Turkish inclusive educational policies implemented after the Salamanca Statement in 1994 were reviewed on a selective basis. The discussion of the policy and document analysis section helped to make connections between the global inclusive education policy changes and local practices in the Turkish education system. In the second part of the study, semi-structured interviews were conducted with local educators in Ankara (teachers, administrators, and academic advisors) and policy makers from the Ministry of National Education. An analysis of the interview data highlighted the various complexities, tensions, and inadequacies in the conceptualization of inclusive education in Turkish public primary schools that study participants have observed and experienced. In light of the findings, possible reasons behind the gap between theory and practice and the discrepancies between Western and Turkish interpretations of inclusive education in Turkey are discussed. In the current inclusive education system in Turkey, the challenge of modifying deeply held attitudes at both personal and institutional levels, providing clearly constructed inclusive education policies and approaches, offering appropriate training to key stakeholders, and making adequate resources available appear to be the primary issues for moving forward with full inclusion initiatives.
Date Created
2010
Contributors
- Ciyer, Aysegul (Author)
- Swadener, Beth B (Thesis advisor)
- Artiles, Alfredo (Committee member)
- Tobin, Joseph (Committee member)
- Mathur, Sarup (Committee member)
- Arizona State University (Publisher)
Topical Subject
- Special Education
- Education Policy
- Early Childhood Education
- Globalism
- Inclusive
- Turkey
- UNESCO
- Education and globalization
- Inclusive education--Turkey.
- Inclusive education
- Children with disabilities--Education--Turkey.
- Children with disabilities
- Special education--Turkey.
- Special Education
- Education and state--Turkey.
- Educators--Turkey--Attitudes.
- Educators
Resource Type
Extent
xvi, 241 p. : ill, maps
Language
Copyright Statement
In Copyright
Primary Member of
Peer-reviewed
No
Open Access
No
Handle
https://hdl.handle.net/2286/R.I.8808
Statement of Responsibility
by Aysegul Ciyer
Description Source
Viewed on Feb. 21, 2012
Level of coding
full
Note
Partial requirement for: Ph. D., Arizona State University, 2010
Note type
thesis
Includes bibliographical references (p
Field of study: Curriculum and instruction (Special education)
System Created
- 2011-08-12 03:23:39
System Modified
- 2021-08-30 01:55:53
- 2 years 8 months ago
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