Teaching Turkish as a Second Language

Prof. Dr. Abdurrahman GÜZEL

Teacher

Teachers are the most basic and important element

of teaching.

Qualities of teachers are very important in

language teaching.

Expertise

Teaching Turkish as a second language is among his applied linguistics activities.

Teaching Turkish as a second language requires expertise all by itself.

MoNE Workshop

Back in 2010 in Marmaris, MoNE held:

"Workshop on Teaching Turkish as a Foreign Language"

Workshop Result Report mentions the following;

Existing undergraduate programmes (Turkish Language and Literature, Turkish Language Teaching etc.) were not established for the purpose of teaching Turkish to foreigners, Turks living abroad and people of Turkish descent.

In our country, there is no independent undergraduate programme for teaching Turkish as a foreign language and the few postgraduate programmes in this field differ from each other in terms of content and scope

In-service programmes for teachers assigned by the Ministry to teach Turkish abroad are inadequate and institutions providing services in this field lack cooperation and coordination. (MEB,2010:152).

Turkish Language Teaching Department

We established it in 1989, in Gazi University, Gazi Education Faculty.

In this department, the following were planned as divisions:

Divisions 1. (For the 1st-5th grades of primary

schools) ‘Division of Basic Turkish Education’

2. . (For the 6th-8th grades of primary schools) Division of Turkish Teaching

3. Division of Teaching Turkish to Foreigners

4. Division of Teaching Turkish to Bilingual Turkish Children

Present Day

Education Faculties of our universities today provide a course called ‘Teaching Turkish to Foreigners’

Moreover, Başkent University, Faculty of Education’s undergraduate and post-gradaute programmes offer the course of ‘Teaching Turkish to the Bilingual’

Challenges

When this course was first introduced, there were no academics qualified in this field other than ourselves, so, there had been some difficulties and it had turned into a course that academics unqualified in this field taught.

 

The Bright Side

When this course became compulsory, academics who were preparing their post-graduate or doctorate theses started to teach this course.

This is a step in the right direction.  

What Needs to be Done

It is very important that such a course is included in programmes of Turkish Language Education Deparments. These type of courses in which studies in this field are to be adressed and evaluated need to be increased.

Deficiency

The deficiency about this course in the current programme is that the course may be replaced with another if there are no experts in Turkish Language Education Department to teach the course.

Need

Academics who are not experts in the field and who teach this course fail to move from theory to practice

That is why there is need for ‘Division of Teaching Turkish as a Foreign Language’ under Turkish Language Education Departments.

 

Our Proposal

Since 1986, we have been proposing the establishment of ‘Division of Basic Turkish Language Education and Division of Turkish Language Education for Foreigners’. within the Ministry of National Education and CoHE.

We will pursue this until we get a positive outcome.

Undergraduate Programme/Division There are people who want undergraduate

programmes of ‘Turkish Language Teaching to Foreigners’ or ‘Teaching Turkish as a Foreign Language’ opened. 

However, it will not be possible for teachers who graduated from these departments to be appointed as teachers in primary or secondary education under the Ministry of National Education

Foreign Language Teaching Academics

Another group looking for the opening of undergraduate programmes of ‘Teaching Turkish as a Foreign Language’ are academics working in schools or departments of foreign language.

Foreign language teaching academics claim that they are well-versed in language teaching methods, that they can carry out ‘Teaching Turkish as a Foreign Language’.

This no different than foreign language speaking Turkish language teachers teaching a foreign language.

Turkish Language Teachers

Turkish language teachers must be well-versed in Turkish literature, convey accurately the metaphors in poems and prose and have good elocution.

Turkish language teachers who know well the basic meaning of language, try to teach the language, not grammar

Respect for Expertise

Therefore, expertise should be respected and every teacher should work in the discipline he/she has been trained in.

That is also what scientific ethics dictate.

Teaching Turkish to Foreigners

One semester long course of 2 hours a week in Turkish Language Education Departments is surely not enough.

Division of Teaching Turkish as a Foreign Language should be established.

Programme

‘Division of Teaching Turkish as a Foreign Language’ should provide courses that teach approaches, methods, techniques, competences, outcomes and curriculum programmes necessary for teaching Turkish as a second language.

In addition to these, there is also need for a culture course that will deal with cultures from all around the world and make candidate teachers aware in terms of respecting differences between peoples.

Programme

The first two years of this division should be the same as the one in Turkish Language Education Departments. Graduates of this division should teach in Turkish Language Teaching Centres (TÖMERs).

Sending Teachers Abroad

Ministry of National Education sends teachers abroad to teach Turkish language to bilingual Turkish children and foreigners.

It is common knowledge that these teachers fail to attain the desired level of success in teaching Turkish as a second language.

Difference of Branch

It is because these teachers come from branches other than Turkish language. The problem is that teachers who have graduated from foreign language departments are appointed for this work.

Turkish Language Teachers Who Know Methodology

It is crucial to train Turkish language teachers who are well-versed in the finer points of Turkish language; modern language teaching approaches, methods and techniques; planning language teaching for target audiences and who have very good command of the methodology of teaching Turkish as a foreign language.

 

Certificate Programmes

Certificate programmes for teaching Turkish as a foreign language are important for in-service training of Turkish language educators.

Certificate programmes should be provided by experts in the field. Certificate programme courses should be given in cooperation with TÖMERs.

Our Proposals

Since 1989 (2010: 378), we have been stressing that for different target audences; in addition to ‘Division of Basic Turkish Language Teaching’ and ‘Division of Turkish Language Teaching’, there need to be ‘Divisions of Teaching Turkish Language to Foreigners’ in Turkish Language Education Departments

Our Proposals

Inıtiatives under the supervision of CoHE should be launched as soon as possible and ‘Divisions of Teaching Turkish as a Foreign Language’ should be established under Turkish Language Education Departments of Education Faculties.

our Proposals

Turkish language teachers graduated from these divisions can both work as teachers under the Ministry of National Education and as experts of ‘Teaching Turkish as a Second Language’ our country sorely needs at home and abroad.

Thank you for listening to me attentively and patiently.