Who Are the Turks?: A Manual for Teachers

0/5 ( ratings)

In 1992, The American Forum, Inc. developed a curriculum guide primarily designed to assist secondary school teachers and students better understand Turkey. We worked closely with three eminent scholars in the field: Professor Justin McCarthy from University of Louisville, Professor Talat Halman, then at New York University and Professor Ülkü Bates from Hunter College in New York City. The resulting publication was very well received from educators, as well as from Americans of Turkish descent, indicated the great need for this material to redress some of the material written about Turkey and the Turks in current textbooks. Moreover, many Turkish-Americans especially commended the guide because of our efforts to present a fairer portrait of the Turks and Turkish history.

In the ten years since the original publication, Turkey commands a much larger role in world affairs. The secular state remains different from its Middle Eastern neighbors, as well as as a strong ally of the United States. On a national level, educators have come to realize that the teaching about Turkey in all our curricula has been biased or totally ignored. The development of National Standards in social studies areas now includes a good deal of Turkish history, again proving the importance of the area geographically and historically. We began to comprehend that what was a small project had far greater significance and there was the need to revise and updage the original publication.

Teaching about Tureky is currently a major priority in world and global history courses. There has been a re-examination of this region, a re-emphasis on the “contribution” of the peoples of the area to history and a re-evaluation of the role of the Turks not only in Turkish history but also in Central Asia, Western China, Eastern Europe and Russia. The Turks cannot be relegated to the backwash of history, especially in the current political climate. This is a particularly significant moment for Americans to learn about Turkey, as well as her neighbors.

The material in this guide is developed with a humanities perspective. We are interested in class-rooms which explore the Turks from the viewpoints of their history, their geography, their myths and stories, their literature, their art and architecture and their cultural heritage. In each of these areas, we have provided lessons and materials for teachers which can easily be included into their existing curriculum. Although we have provided “lessons,” we do not feel that teachers cannot be more creative in developing strategies for this material. Our primary objective is to help supplement the material currently available and help enrich the classroom with wonderful readings and visuals. We hope this guide will be useful to American teachers and help inform our young citizens about other regions of the globe.