TEACHER TRAINING

TEACHER TRAINING

Prospective teachers are becoming self-aware about violence against women. 47 prospective teachers are getting trained on how to use language that supports gender equality as part of the project initiated by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nesrin Oruç Ertürk, Director of IUE Continuous Education Center (IUECEC).

The project, prepared by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ertürk within the scope of American Embassy’s 2015 Fulbright Graduate Scholarship Program in Ankara, intends to strengthen women.

Ertürk stated that they worked with the approval of Balçova District of National Education Directorate and Balçova District Governorship, and the language, used by teachers who shape the society, had a tremendous effect on youth.

‘One word is enough’

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ertürk said, “In our first part of the training, we trained 80 young girls about ways to protect from violence and how to speak about their experience once they became a victim. We taught them to express their feelings and not to feel shame or guilt. Our purpose was to instill self-recognition, self-confidence, and create social-awareness. Now, we are teaching about the language and gender equality to 47 prospective teachers. Teachers, with one word they use, may create either negative or positive effect on students throughout their learning process. They may have an effect on a student’s life with a simple behavior sometimes. So, it is very important for teachers to use a language that supports gender equality at school environment especially.”

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ertürk pointed that teachers needed to know their students, and that prospective teachers were taught how to handle students’ sexist attitudes and behaviors. Ertürk, who pointed that teachers would make a difference among students about gender equality, stated the following:   

"Male and female students need equal amount of support to improve their academic performances. Teachers need to take precautions to provide equal participation of boys and girls when determining the class rules. Both genders should be given equal opportunities when it comes to division of labor in classroom. If a female student is always assigned to clean the board or the class, and male student is assigned as the class president, then there is a major problem. The teacher should be able to leave aside the classic social norms, and let both genders take turns when doing these assignments.”