A better world is possible with healing power of education: Turkish education minister

By Kanyshai Butun

ISTANBUL (AA) - Turkish National Education Minister Yusuf Tekin expressed hope that the 5th Istanbul Education Summit held on Dec. 5-6 will make a positive contribution to the future of children around the world.

"A better world is possible with the healing power of education," Tekin wrote on his social media on Saturday.

The second day of the summit held in Istanbul was opened with a panel, "Beyond the Curriculum: The Art of Humanity," where experts discussed how wisdom-based learning approaches can be integrated into education systems.

Speakers focused on the importance of social-emotional skills learning, not just academic performance.

Maida Pasic, regional education adviser for UNICEF Europe and Central Asia, underlined that in order to "touch children’s hearts," education must go beyond the curriculum and exam culture.

"I think the way to touch the heart is when a child is being seen, heard, and cared for," she said, adding that teachers have to "humanize" the classroom and learning environment through connection with students and care.

The second session, held under "From Schools to Society: The Collaboration Ecosystem," provided expert discussion about contributions of strong collaboration models built around the school-family-community axis to students’ social and cultural development.

Marie Garnier, coordinator at Dialagoun Island School, gave an example of her school, where the learning environment goes beyond the classroom walls. "In this fishing community located along the Niger River, we hold workshops and classes on collecting river plastics, repairing fishing nets, and exploring the resources found beneath the river," she said.

Meanwhile, Paolo Marchi, UNICEF representative to Türkiye, outlined that schools have to develop diversity education through different programs and promote collaborative learning.

He gave an example of Türkiye, where education brought together children from different communities despite their differences.

"Türkiye has been one of, probably the most, generous and welcoming countries in the past 20 years, because it has welcomed an unprecedented number of friends and families from Syria during the Syrian crisis," he said.

Panel speakers also focused on how individuals can strengthen their cultural belonging while preserving their unique identities and actively contributing to a global culture of cooperation.

The closing session, titled "A Call from Youth to Tomorrow: From Idea to Action," was dedicated to young people to present their ideas and share their contributions to the future.