Evaluating Inclusivity in the Preschool Curriculum in Turkey: A Qualitative Analysis

Abstract

The Turkish population has a structure that encompasses different origins, races, and religious beliefs. This structure has expanded to a broader spectrum with immigrants and refugees coming to the country for various reasons. This diversity that constitutes society is also observed in early childhood education, which is the first level of education. In this context, starting from preschool education and developing an inclusive curriculum that caters to the diversity of students is highly important in terms of reducing discrimination, increasing inclusivity, and providing suitable learning environments for students’ educational needs. The purpose of this study is to determine the nature of the preschool curriculum from an inclusive education perspective. Through the document analysis method, the present qualitative study addressed the preschool curriculum updated and published in 2013 by the Turkish Ministry of National Education. While the objectives and descriptions in the curriculum were examined through content analysis, the learning outcomes were examined using a rubric. It was determined that only one of the objectives in the preschool curriculum was related to inclusive education. Of the 63 learning outcomes examined, 29 were completely unrelated to inclusive education, 21 had very little relevance, 7 had moderate relevance, and 6 had high relevance. As a result, it was determined that while the inclusive education approach was considered and adopted in the general objectives and descriptions of the preschool curriculum, there was no emphasis on children with refugee, asylum seeker, immigrant, or similar status, and there were shortcomings in the evaluation dimension of the instruction process.