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The politics of education in Turkey: Islam, neoliberalism and gender: by Zühre Emanet, London, I. B. Tauris, 2023, 224 pp., $28.76 (eBook PDF), ISBN: 9780755636693.

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Title: The politics of education in Turkey: Islam, neoliberalism and gender: by Zühre Emanet, London, I. B. Tauris, 2023, 224 pp., $28.76 (eBook PDF), ISBN: 9780755636693.
Authors: Yin, Cherlyn Xiaolin (AUTHOR), Lin, Jason Cong (AUTHOR)
Source: Compare: A Journal of Comparative & International Education. May2026, Vol. 56 Issue 4, p621-623. 3p.
Subjects: ISLAMIZATION, NEOLIBERALISM, TURKISH history, EDUCATION policy, SCHOOL-based management, PRIMARY schools, GENDER, DECENTRALIZATION in government
Geographic Terms: TURKIYE
Abstract: This text focuses on the political dynamics shaping Turkey’s education system, particularly the interplay of Islamisation, neoliberalism, and gender within state primary schools. Based on ethnographic fieldwork in two schools in Bahçelik, Turkey, it examines how national policies—especially school-based management (SBM), a decentralization approach—have been adapted to promote ideological loyalty rather than genuine local autonomy. The study highlights how education serves as a site for political contestation, gender socialization, and disciplinary control, revealing shifts from republican secularism toward political Islamisation. It also contributes to comparative education by illustrating how policy borrowing can fundamentally change in meaning when transferred across contexts, while offering insights into the lived experiences of teachers, pupils, and parents under these reforms. [Extracted from the article]
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Database: Teacher Reference Center
Description
Abstract:This text focuses on the political dynamics shaping Turkey’s education system, particularly the interplay of Islamisation, neoliberalism, and gender within state primary schools. Based on ethnographic fieldwork in two schools in Bahçelik, Turkey, it examines how national policies—especially school-based management (SBM), a decentralization approach—have been adapted to promote ideological loyalty rather than genuine local autonomy. The study highlights how education serves as a site for political contestation, gender socialization, and disciplinary control, revealing shifts from republican secularism toward political Islamisation. It also contributes to comparative education by illustrating how policy borrowing can fundamentally change in meaning when transferred across contexts, while offering insights into the lived experiences of teachers, pupils, and parents under these reforms. [Extracted from the article]
ISSN:03057925
DOI:10.1080/03057925.2026.2620348