ALTERNATIVE TEACHER CERTIFICATION IN TURKEY: PROBLEMS AND ISSUES

Ali Yildirim and Ahmet Ok

An assessment of current teacher education in Turkey reveals a mixed picture in recruitment of teachers. Four-year university-based teacher education programs integrate subject matter courses with pedagogical courses to train teachers for the primary level.  In addition, 1.5 year non-thesis master’s programs offer university graduates training for teaching at the secondary level.  Alternative route to teaching represents even greater variety.  They may take place through certification programs of varied duration at the university level and/or the Ministry of National Education.  Rapid population growth, increased awareness of education and anticipated teacher shortages have historically contributed to the development of alternative teacher certification programs.  These programs represent a radical departure from university-based teacher education programs in content, approach, and strategies.  Alternative route programs and policies have gone through various changes recently in response to teacher quality and quantity concerns in schools.  This paper defines alternative certification, and describes the history and present status of alternative certification policies and implementation in Turkey.  Current issues including program quality and potential outcomes of alternative routes are examined.