The Turkish Language Department’s priority is to raise individuals with a reading culture and excellent communication skills; students who can interpret the texts they read by associating them with the time period in which they were written; students who are masters of their mother tongue and who can express themselves verbally and in written language.
One of its fundamental principles is to raise our students as individuals that are equipped with 21st-century competencies, are curious, innovative researchers and explicators who care about national and universal values, and are loyal to Atatürk’s principles and reforms.
We use technology to deliver course content and activities that allow our students to reinforce what they have learned and improve their written and oral expression skills as well as interpretation- and idea-generation skills.
Throughout the semester, students are required to perform a variety of tasks such as examining different genres of texts, producing content in different genres, doing research, preparing presentations, and writing reviews about the books they read.
In line with the national curriculum determined by MEB (Ministry of Education), the Turkish Language Department teachers guide the students in improving their reading, listening/watching, speaking, and writing skills through diverse materials and activities and getting to know Turkish and foreign poets and writers by way of the books they read.
In classes, teachers draw attention to the subtleties of the Turkish language, its rules, and its features relating to the types of writing, thereby allowing our students to create their own products in light of that knowledge; and each year, students are encouraged to read and review at least four books from among the distinguished works of Turkish and world literature. In order to create cooperative learning environments with different subjects (art, etc.), many learning materials such as national and foreign works of literature (a selection of eight), worksheets, videos, and listening texts are enriched with different web 2.0 tools and thus presented to our students every year.
Other than the in-class activities, we organize trips to enrich students’ learning environment within the framework of the learning outcomes of the curriculum and offer them guidance in going to events such as exhibitions, plays, conferences, etc. to ensure they make the best of the culture and art scene of İstanbul.
To honor the memory of Ahmet Rasim, a well-known Darüşşafaka graduate, we have been organizing a nationwide annual column writing competition titled “Ahmet Rasim Is Alive” for secondary schools in Türkiye since 2008.
Under the supervision of our teachers, students are encouraged to participate in writing (composition, story, poetry, essay, etc.) competitions, poetry recitations, radio theater, and cartoon drawing workshops organized at school and across the country.
Our students’ success is assessed via written exams, book reports/exams/writing activities, homework, and projects based on outcomes of the curriculum.
