Dilek Acer

The Arts in Turkish Preschool Education.

One of the most important factors determining a nations level of development in the modern world is preschool education. When preschool education is perceived as an entity that affects every aspect of childhood development, this fact is undeniable. Several aspects of preschool education, including art education, play a significant role in a childs development. This article explores the arts in Turkish preschool education from the Ottoman Empire to the present. A framework of how art is included in preschool education has been created, and an attempt has been made to develop a critical, but also solution-oriented, perspective on the Turkish education system as it relates to preschool art education. This perspective can shed light on issues related to the importance placed on preschool art education curricula in the Republic of Turkey in hopes of developing standards comparable to those in place in Western countries.

Cross-Cultural Practices in Art Education: The Art Lunch Project in Turkey.

One of the many important functions of art is to encourage people to see different cultural perspectives and enable them to better understand and appreciate themselves and others. Engagement with art from other cultures may help us transform our understanding of learning (Joseph & Southcott, 2009). Art has the tremendous potential to develop children’s cross-cultural competence and experience, and it can reveal the values and beliefs of a culture, while helping children view the world from new perspectives (Graham, 2009). Cross-cultural Practices in Art Education

Children and Architecture: Architectural Design Education for Young Children in Turkey

No discipline exists in a vacuum. Science education involves aspects of language, literacy, math, and even music. Language arts education includes explorations of concepts and ideas from history, science, the arts, and more. A holistic education takes a systems approach in which individual parts—science education, math education, etc.—are combined to build a stronger and more integrated curriculum, in which students and teachers are encouraged to make connections and draw correlations among diverse disciplines. With some creativity, arts education can be easily integrated into any lesson plan. Representing concepts through visual and musical forms can reinforce and augment learning in all subjects. In this article, the author examines an architecture education program in Turkish elementary schools, and its effect on overall learning and student engagement.