A comparison of religious education in secondary schools in Turkey and England : with special reference to the teaching of Islam

This study is concerned with the comparison of religious education in Turkey and England with special reference to the teaching of Islam in secondary state schools. It aims to realise the following two main objectives in terms of secondary school textbooks: 1. To indicate to what extent the adoption of a confessional or non-confessional approach in religious education makes an impact on the teaching of religion. 2. To describe and compare the similarities and differences in the teaching of Islam in state schools and their connection with broader educational policy in Turkey and England. . It begins with an investigation of historical developments in religious education in Turkey and England, then turns to examine different aspects of the presentation of Islam in terms of selected textbooks from the two countries. The thesis concludes with a presentation of the findings and contribution of this research. It is observed that having a confessional or non-confessional approach in religious education made different impacts on the teaching of Islam. In England, mostly because of a non-confessional presentation of Islam, historic western prejudices and distortions, particularly with regard to the doctrinal dimension of Islam, largely disappeared. An attempt was made to present Islam as far as possible in its own terms. However, the creation of new prejudices and distortion about the portrayal of Islam could not be precluded in the English textbooks selected, particularly over some issues such as women and use of force in Islam. It should also be noted that compared to Turkey Islam has relatively been presented in its contemporary forms, as well as consideration of pupils' educational development. Due to the adaptation of a confessional approach in religious education Islam is presented as a possible and desirable way of life in the Turkish textbooks selected. A certain degree of indoctrination and promotion of Islam, and a more sympathetic mode of expression with reference to Islam were observed, while exhibiting limited adaptability to complying with the changing conditions of Turkish society from the point of view of religious education and of pupils' educational necessities. Moreover, as far as possible, writers of Turkish textbooks tried to present Islam as an individualistic religion in line with the secular understanding of the Turkish state. Non-Islamic religions were generally externalised as religions. With respect to this, Christianity was treated in terms of the Islamic understanding of religion, and the dominant influence of the Qur' an and the traditional Islamic viewpoint about ahl al-kitab (possessor of the holy texts) was noted