"Different Approaches in Preschool Education" Discussed

In collaboration with Uğur Schools, Bahçeşehir University is holding the "Symposium on Different Approaches in Preschool Education" in 3 different provinces across Türkiye. Having held its first session in İzmir, the symposium will also meet teachers in Kayseri and Antalya. The goal is to take steps to rebuild the education of the future with nearly a thousand teachers.

At the conference held at the Uğur Schools İzmir Narlıdere Campus, Bahçeşehir University academics and the Uğur Schools academic staff shared with preschool teachers working in public and private schools the different approaches at these levels and the importance of preschool education. Participants received certificates after the conference.

Speaking at the conference, Dean of the Bahçeşehir University (BAU) Faculty of Educational Sciences Prof. Dr. Şirin Karadeniz stated that the aim of the conference was to examine the changes brought by the 21st century and different educational methods in the light of preschool education. She said that they shared their experiences so that all teachers could pass on more up-to-date approaches to their students and prepare a better future for them.

"INVESTING IN PRESCHOOL IS INVESTING IN THE FUTURE"

Delivering the opening speech of the program, Nil Çiçek, Deputy General Manager for Education at Uğur Schools, noted that they organized this conference so that all teachers in preschool and primary education could prepare a better future for their students. Çiçek said: "We believe that investing in preschool is one of the most important investments in the future. That is why, as an institution that values preschool education, we are here to share different perspectives with our teachers. In preschool education, we attach great importance to child-friendly school environments, and in this context we design age-appropriate education programs, in-service training for our teachers and our curriculum. We also believe in the impact of the physical environment on learning and create all our environments accordingly. In our child-friendly schools, our curriculum and physical environment support our students' development. Every child is an individual to us, and their needs and abilities are very important to us."

"TRANSFORMATION IS INEVITABLE FOR OUR COUNTRY"

BAU Faculty of Educational Sciences Dean Prof. Dr. Şirin Karadeniz addressed development and change in educational processes and the resulting transformations. Şirin Karadeniz said: "All countries have launched transformation processes in their education. In the first stages of this process, academics and teachers carried out pilot implementations with all segments of society, gained experience and then moved on to the redesign stage. The curriculum is part of the system, but teachers, infrastructure and the new competencies you need to give students must also be included in this process. If you do not include them, you have no chance of strengthening your country's human resource capacity. Therefore, when answering the question of where Türkiye should start in this process of change and transformation in education, we must address preschool education. Investing at all levels of education is important, but investing in preschool is even more important. Research shows that investment in preschool education increases an individual's future quality of life. Worldwide, priority for investment in education is given to the preschool level."

In the symposium program, Dr. Seda Saraç, Head of the Department of Preschool Education at the BAU Faculty of Educational Sciences, addressed different educational approaches in preschool education such as Montessori, Waldorf and Reggio Emilia. BAU Faculty of Educational Sciences faculty member Assoc. Prof. Dr. Hülya Gülay Ogelman met teachers at the symposium with group activities based on role-play, expression and discussion as examples of creative drama.

As part of the program, teachers also took part in workshops organized by the Uğur Schools academic staff. Experiences were shared in workshops held in many areas, from earlySTEM to art therapy and from philosophy to coding.

The Symposium on Different Approaches in Preschool Education will be held, free of charge and open to all teachers, on 27 April at the Uğur Schools Kayseri Campus and on 11 May at the Uğur Schools Antalya Çallı Campus.