Causes and Effects of 4+4+4 Education System

       Education is one of the significant factors in today’s world.  The citizens’ education levels affect the government in terms of progress.  In other words, individuals live in comfortable circumstances if they are well-trained.  Due to this, the government tries its best to enable its citizens efficient education opportunities.  In Turkey, the government has enforced a new education system which is 4+4+4.  This recent system consists of three stages until university. There are some causes which are making the students be aware of their abilities at an earlier age than before, and making religious education more expansive, and effects, which are lack of motivation that stems from four-year highschool education system, and unwillingness towards school, of 4+4+4 system.

       The first cause of 4+4+4 education system is to guide the students taking into account their abilities.  According to the previous system, the students were separated into groups for their branches at the age of fifteen.  Nevertheless, it was quite late for the children to choose their branches.  They could make wrong decisions and feel regretful.  Thanks to 4+4+4 system, pupils have a chance to realize their abilities at an earlier age and determine their future according to their skills.  As a result, the recent education system seems like adventageous since it aims to shape the students at an early age.

       The second cause of 4+4+4 system is to make religious education more extensive at schools.  When the new system is compared with the old one, it is obvious that it enables the students to have more sufficient religious education.  After fourth grade, the students are able to choose Arabic lessons and Koran lessons as an elective course.  4+4+4 education system has also given an opportunity to the parents who want their children to have well religious education in school.  

       After looking at the causes of 4+4+4 education system which are guiding the students taking into account their abilities, and making religious system more extensive at schools, now let’s examine the effects of the recent education system which are lack of motivation among students, and unwillingness.

       The first effect of 4+4+4 education system is lack of motivation among students. According to this education system, highschool education consists of four years (Başaran, 1984).  Therefore, the students spend a lot of time in highschool.  In addition, they feel nervous and anxious because of the university exam when they reach the last grade.  They both do not want to come to school and studying.  They have a difficulty being adapted to the lessons.  As a result, their success levels start to decrease.

       The second effect of 4+4+4 education system is being unwillingness.  The children who are totally six years old have to start to primary school according to this regulation.  However, it is open to question whether the children who are at the age of six are mature enough in terms of the cognitive and logical ways (Başaran, 1984).  Since they are quite young, they are more interested in playing games rather than school and lessons.  In this case, the students come to school unwillingly.  The teachers may also have difficulty in teaching how to read and write to these children because they cannot adapt to the lessons.

       To conclude, there are some causes and effects of 4+4+4 education system.  This system aims to guide the students taking into account their abilities, and make religious education more expansive.  There are also some indispensible effects which are lack of motivation among students, and unwillingness of 4+4+4 system.  It is obvious that there are radical changes in 4+4+4 education system.  Some certain problems may occur in education system, which is multi-directional, in any time.  The most significant point is to deal with these issues according to universal standards. 

Reference        

 Başaran, İ.E. (1984) Temel Eğitim ve Yönetimi, AÜEBFY. No. 112, Ankara: Ankara Üniversitesi Basımevi, 1984.

Foreign Language Instruction in Kindergarten

       In today’s world, knowing a foreign language is quite significant in terms of having efficient education, finding a well-paid job or having international friends all over the world.  Additionally, speaking a foreign language becomes important because of globalization.  That is, people need to know at least English, which is commonly spoken all over the world, to be understood by others when they go to a different country.  Thereby, a foreign language education is given beginning from kindergarten.  Most people send their children to kindergarten to learn a foreign language at an early age.  They spend their time and money for their children to make them successful in foreign language acquisition.  However, while some people believe that children should spend their time by having fun in kindergarten instead of studying a foreign language, there are some others supporting the idea which is learning a foreign language in kindergarten.

       People who do not believe that foreign language instruction should begin in kindergarten share the view that children should spend their time by playing games instead of learning a foreign language at an early age.  They think that since children are not mature enough in terms of making decisions, they have to obey what their parents and teachers decide for them.  In other words, learning a foreign language at an early age may not be their own decision.  Due to this, these people state that children should enjoy their chilhood instead of making efforts to acquire a foreign language in kindergarten. When they become older, they realize which language they want to learn, and start to educate themselves according to their own interests.

       Furthermore, people who are not favour of learning a foreign language in kindergarten think that foreign language instruction may cause a problem. In other words, children start to make a comparison between their native language and the second language that they learn.  This leads them to feel confused since each language has different rules and structures.  When they feel that they have difficulty in learning a foreign language, they tend to suffer from lack of motivation in the lesson or completely stop foreign language instruction.  As a consequence, they may approach foreign language instruction in a negative mood, and this affect their future.

         Although some people do not support that foreign language instruction should begin in kindergarten, it is an undeniable fact that children’s brains are more active in learning a foreign language until 14 years old (Petrides, 2006).  That is, their brains are like a sponge and absorbs every single detail.  In addition, since children are more curious, and tend to ask questions to learn rather than adults, they can acquire a foreign language easily.  When children start to learn a foreign language in kindergarten, their accent also improves like a native speaker.  Specifically, a child born in Germany is able to speak German fluently besides his native language.  As a result, this is the positive effect of learning a foreign language at an early age.  Therefore, kindergartens are quite beneficial for children to acquire a foreign language well.

       Thereto, while there are some individuals who do not believe that foreign language instruction should begin in kindergarten, there are some people who corroborate that foreign language instruction should begin in kindergarten bencause children have an opportunity to attend foreign language schools in abroad at an early age.  Put another way, their parents can send them to abroad to improve their language skills in summer holiday.  Thereby, children are able to improve their language skills well, and besides this, they also learn about variant traditions and cultures of countries.  Moreover, they make international friends in abroad. When they returned to their hometowns, they keep in touch with their international friends via e-mail.  Thanks to this way, they learn to be open to different viewpoints.  As a result, children grow up as both knowledgable and open-minded individuals, and they prepare a good future for themselves.

       To conclude, nobody can deny the significance of foreign language instruction on our lives.  Especially with globalization, knowing at least one foreign language has gained more importance than before. Thereby, foreign language education has been started to given beginning from kindergarten.   I personally believe that children’s brains are more active than the adults, and they are more willing to learn a new language.  For example, they immediately tell their parents what they have just learned at school.  Their parents feel happy, and encourage their children.  This situation makes children more hungery for learning.  Finally, if children acquire a foreign language in kindergarten, they have a chance to study in abroad.  As a result, they have a great education there, and prepare a bright future for themselves.

        Reference

Petrides, J.R. (2006). Attitudes and motivation and their impact on the performance of

        young English as a foreign language learners.  Journal of Language and

        Learning, 5(1)1-20. 

The Effects of Visuals in EFL Classes

       There are various types of teaching methods which are applied in schools.  Teachers try to make the courses attractive for the learners.  Thus, they apply a number of effective strategies so that the pupils can focus on the lessons, and perceive the information well.  Benefiting from visual aids is one of the effective methods which is preferred by most teachers.  That is, visuals are good and useful tools for the lessons.  Particularly, visuals play a major role in EFL classes in terms of facilitating the learning process, making the lessons more catchy for the students, and making the students creative.

       To begin with, visuals facilitate the learning process for pupils in EFL classes.  In other words, visul aids make the lessons more vivid, and attract the students’ attention. Specifically, language learners have a chance to see, hear or touch the objects while learning. Thus, visual aids make the information permanent in students’ minds (Carrales, 2008).  For instance, if teachers prepare a presentation related to the topic, students perceive the information in a  better way thanks to coloured pictures or diagrams. That is, the illustrations or diagrams which are used in presentations help students clarify the gist of the topic.  Due to this, the learners do not have difficulty in recalling the subjects.  In addition to this, if teachers give an opportunity to foreign language learners to watch videos related to their recent subjects, the students can improve their listening skills (Herron, 1994).

       In addition to facilitating the learning process for pupils and making the information more permanent in their minds, visuals lead foreign language learners to be more active in class. Thanks to viusal aids, learners estimate, deduce and comprehend the information easily because illustrations make even the most complex situations more real and genuine (Dhabi, 1999).  Due to this, they participate in the lessons in a willing mood, and they become more eager to learn new information because they do not get bored while acquiring.  For instance, watching sub-titled movies related to the subject or solving online tests on the Internet in EFL classes makes the foreign language learner more enthusiastic towards the learning process (Mueller, 1980).

       Additionally, the information takes shape clearly in the students’ minds thanks to visual aids used in EFL classes.  Visuals are quite significant for the students in terms of using their imagination while learning.  That is, they make the information concrete by thinking about it.  Due to this, they easily recall what they have learned. It is obvious that visual aids help the students to perceive the information well instead of causing memorization.  Since there is no memorization, the learners can think in a free way and use their imagination.  As a result, they become creative individuals thanks to acquiring the information via visuals. 

       All in all, the significance of using visual aids in EFL classes is an undeniable fact. They both make the topic more simple, and attract the students' attention during the lessons. When teachers benefit from coloured pictures, illustrations, videos or diagrams, students do not have difficulty in perceiving the subject (Bailey, 2001). Visual aids also make the information more permanent in learners’ minds. In addition, since the students find the lessons interesting due to visuals, they become more active in class. Benefiting from visual aids in the EFL classrooms is not a traditional method. So, it takes attention. For effective foreign language instruction, teachers should use visual aids in order to make all students acquire at least one foreign language in an easy way.

Reference
Adelson-Goldstein, (2006). Curtis & Bailey (2001). Wright & Haleem, (1991). Wright (1989).
Carrales, K. (2008). Getting Your Hands on Learning: Manipulative Tools in Content ESL / EFL InstructionLatin Americans Journal of CLIL.
Dhabi, A. (1999, June), Current Trends in English Language Testing Conference, United Arab Emirates.
              Herron, C. An investigation of the effectiveness of using an advance organizer
              to introduce video in the foreign language classroom. Modern Language
              Journal, 78, (1994): 190-198.
Mueller, G. Visual Contextual Clues and Listening Comprehension: An experiment.
              Modern Language Journal 64 (1980): 335-40.