An untold African story: Gulen Movement activities

 

I had the privilege of traveling to Africa recently. It was somewhat a whirlwind tour of 4 countries - South Africa, Tanzania (including Zanzibar), Kenya and Ethiopia. It was full of many surprises. I hope to share some of my thoughts and feelings over the course some words in this article.
The purpose of this journey was to discover and note the Hizmet activities (commonly referred to as the Gulen Movement in academic circles). For the uninitiated, Hizmet is a loosely connected group of individuals and NGOs inspired by the ideas and ideals of Fethullah Gulen - a Turkish Muslim scholar and thinker. The movement's activities span some 140 or so countries occupying an important place in the field of education, intercultural dialogue, health and relief activities. The main emphasis is a selfless approach to serving all others while personally gaining God's pleasure.

During my visit to Horizon International School in Johannesburg , which is privately funded, I met one of the teachers. He was a local young man who happened to also be a graduate of the same school to which he was now a teacher. His warm smile gleamed over his humble demeanor. He took me on a tour of the school. Many doors and windows were reinforced - unfortunately robbery was one of the common crimes in the area. Only the week before some new televisions were stolen. Like his peers this teacher was dedicated to his teaching, being a role model for each of his students - as were his teachers who only were teaching him a few years previously - now those same teachers were his colleagues. He had a great deal of respect for this school. It had taken him out of the slums of Soweto. Even more miraculous was his own personal family story.

He was kind enough to invite us to his home - now out of the slums. His mother was a pastor of a local 500 member Protestant church. What stood out in this household was the story of his missing siblings. He had fours brother. The two older were now in prison for murders, having received 40 year prison sentences . The two younger, (a sad irony) had been killed in gang fighting. He was the success story in the family. His mother, protective of her son, was the proudest mother in the neighborhood. And pleased to have her son associated with and teaching at this Hizmet school.

The essence of these schools is typified in the above story. Taking individuals and their associated families and being a catalyst for them to shine - to remove the despair of the communities they belong to and the gruesome social conditions they may find themselves in. The school communities that are formed do not only play a positive role in the lives of its students, but as part of the wider school family touch the lives of students’ families, their relatives and friends and the neighborhoods from which they come. Such Hizmet schools - and it’s becomes quite fitting and appropriate that the movement calls itself hizmet meaning ‘service’ - become beacons of hope as graduates play a role in giving something back through service. This can come in the form of volunteering time, financial support - or those that are so moved by the teaching vocation, come back to teach at the school.

The ripple effect these schools have is tremendous. They provide a safe haven, a kind of ‘peace island’ - a term coined by Gulen - for all those associated with the school. Those not directly associated with the school take comfort in knowing the school is a role model for other educational institutions. And just as important they show-case that no matter how adverse the conditions are that stories like the one above are possible and with time probable and expected. Given the conditions, the teachers of these hizmet schools have outdone themselves,. They should be proud of their achievements but yet resilient to the excesses of immodesty. Such success breeds success and in an area that can be barrain of ‘good news’ this school stands out and needs to be applauded.

And the moral to the story ? These schools are doing fantastics things in many remote places under very difficult circumstances servicing students and families that are also in great need. And this and other stories need to be both understood and told.

Kudos to them !
by Emre Celik
President of the Rumi Forum

Published on www.fethullahgulen.org, 05 October 2012, Friday

The Gulen Movement-Inspired Schools Effect: Muslims and Christians connect for peace

Fountain Magazine held a conference recently, titled "Peacebuilding Through Education", in New York in cooperation with the Peace Islands Institute. Some institutions were honored with the best practice award, as they have served the peacebuilding under difficult conditions. Among the honorees was The Filipino–Turkish Tolerance School (FTTS), Zamboanga, The Philippines. Below is an article about this school serve peacebuilding. The article also includes a story about some Kurdish youth in South Eastern Turkey.

Filipino-Turkish Tolerance School

By Suat Erguvan for Silent Heroes, Invisible Bridge

Most children of the picturesque city of Zamboanga in the Philippines' troubled south are groomed to be cautious in making friends believing in a different religion.

Zamboanga Peninsula, the sixth most populous region and the third geographically largest in the Philippines, is home to 70 percent Christians and 30 percent Buddhist and Muslim people.

The peninsula has been in the headlines for Moro Islamic Liberation Front's militancy against security agencies. The Muslim outfit brands its actions as 'freedom struggle' which has taken heavy toll on civilian lives over the past two decades.

The Christian and Muslim communities have adapted to live in a tense equilibrium, with fire fights and bomb blasts claiming precious lives on one hand, and soaring number of unconstitutional disappearances on the other.

Wherever the two enraged communities live side by side, traffic on the roads dividing them becomes litmus test for peace or unrest in the vicinity.

While compatriot tourists visit the country's southern peninsula exercising caution, some foreigners are seen calmly working in a Zamboanga school.

Since 1997, Turk educationists are sowing the seeds of tolerance and co-existence through the Filipino-Turkish Tolerance High School located in the heart strife-torn region.

With humble beginning of 89 students, the institution today has boarding and teaching facilities for over 1,000 students. The school gets equal attention of Christian and Muslims parents and their offsprings.

"It also has one of the best dormitories not only in Zamboanga, but in Mindanao. The Filipino-Turkish Tolerance School, considered one of the best in the region, has produced a number of students that topped in many international competitions and were even cited for their excellent educational skills," noted The Mindanao Examiner newspaper in one of its story in 2007.

Encouraged by the vision of a Turkish Muslim scholar, M. Fethullah Gülen, over 1,500 non-governmental Turkish educational institutions have spread to almost 115 countries worldwide.

The schools, also working in collaboration with local businessmen, strive to provide students with a learning environment to "make them acquire solid competencies in critical thinking, creative problem solving, consensus building, informed decision making and technical literacy."

Fr. Thomas Michel, Ph.D, Secretary General of Interfaith Dialogue Council in Rome, Italy, visited the Turkish tolerance schools in 1995, in Zamboanga.

"The Turkish and Filipino staff's proud claim was a stunning reality for me as Muslims and Christian students were getting education with true spirit of a culture of dialogue and tolerance," Fr. Michel shared these remarks with gatherings around the world.

He noted that children befriended their class fellows regardless of religious divides, thus their parents not only started communicating with each other but also eventually cooperate for children and community's future both.

During a visit to Turkey in September 2009, Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroy expressed need for increase in the number of Turkish schools to help "strengthen mutual relations". She vowed to learn from Turkey's experience "in helping the people of different faiths in our nation to accept one another."

Last October, Philippines' Ambassador to Turkey Pedro Chan said his country wanted to open honorary consulates in Turkey's northern province of Samsun and northwestern province of Bursa.

The Philippines is not an exception in strengthening bilateral relations with Turkey after fruitful contribution of schools. Many African nations saw following the Turkish embassy years after the voluntary Turkish schools made their mark.

Recollecting his experiences in the Philippines, Ahmet Yamakoglu, former Principal of the Phillipines-Turkish Tolerance School, recalls a meeting of Kayseri philanthropist businessmen with Governor of Zamboanga Mrs Maria Clara Lobregat.

Ahmet quotes the governor as saying, "You have changed the misconceptions formed in our minds owing to the unfortunate clashes between the Muslims and Christians, and you made us love Muslims and Islam."

On occasion of the Philippines National Day, Ahmet recollects, "When our students were parading before her, she stood up and announced to the public: And now my new children are passing out before us!"

This success did not come in platter for the Turkish educationists. Long after submitting papers for opening schools in Manila, the Turks received no results owing to the deep-seated suspicions of the central government about Muslims.

Only in 2001, the final decision for opening the school was passed; however then slow-moving bureaucracy still had question marks about presence of Muslims educationists in the conflict zone. Until Mrs Maria assigned her parliamentarian son Celso Lobregat to facilitate her Turkish friends with the processes, hopes were dim.

Celso Lobregat told his politician colleagues, "We fought with Muslims for many years in the Mindanao region. There might have been no bloodshed in the south if we had them many years ago."

Thus, the Turkish NGO got permission in style to open more branches back then.

Before dying Mrs Maria bequeathed her wish to Celso Lobregat to be the beneficiary of the Turkish schools in the Philippines. Lobregat became the Governor of Zamboanga and Turkish school quietly spread their message of co-existence and tolerance.

Such experiences have borne fruit in Turkey as well where Kurdish militants are attacking civilian and security personnel indiscriminately, alleged at the behest of external factors.

Abdullah Aymaz, a Turkish educationist, recalls a touching incident involving two Kurdish-speaking students who went on rampage in school 15 days after enrolling and lodging in the school.

Realising sensitive nature of the region, the principal treated the students with affection.

One of the students, whose name has been kept anonymous, is quoted as saying: "We were told so many negative things about you that we hated you and we came to burn the school, but we couldn't."

In another incident, a student from Cizre - a Turkish town near the Syrian border - wrote to the principal, "Until recently, I used to see Turks as our sworn enemies but now I loved you all. If you had come here earlier, terrorism might not have been here." The youngster regretted about his uncle who has adopted Kurdish guerilla lifestyle in the mountains.

The bar of expectations from the Turkish schools' peacebuilding role is rising world over as many Muslim and non-Muslim geographies, too, long for tranquility and peaceful coexistence.


Published on Silent Heroes, 04 October 2012, Thursday

Related Acticles:
New York conference highlights Turkish schools' contribution to world peace
Fethullah Gulen's message to the conference entitled "Peacebuilding through Education"
Fethullah Gulen schools or Gulen-inspired schools?

Video Source: http://www.youtube.com/gulenmovement

Charter school opens with exorbitant waiting list

Six hundred children are on waiting list for Thomas Edison EnergySmart Charter School

After three years of planning and paperwork, the Thomas Edison EnergySmart Charter School (TEECS) opened its doors in September for children in kindergarten through fourth grade.

The school, located in Franklin but serving children from North and South Brunswick as well, focuses on technology and energy resources in addition to the New Jersey core curriculum.

“We want the children to understand nature and the resources available to us,” Raja Govindaraju, curriculum supervisor and special education supervisor, told the Sentinel. “We are taking our children back to nature and to understand the implications if we don’t take care of Mother Earth.”

“We want to focus on solar cell energy, hydropower, and those sort of energies that we are using through everyday life,” said Head Person Yildiz Oguz.

For September and October, the curriculum will focus on recycling, incorporating it into lessons across the disciplines.

“The children will talk about how trees are important to us, why it’s important to recycle, and how we protect the environment and make the earth a better place to live in,” Govindaraju said. “There is non-fiction text and articles about recycling. We also integrate [the other subjects] with recycling, and we will take field trips to recycling centers in the community.”

Charter schools are primary or secondary schools that are part of the public school system and receive public funds, but frequently put a strong focus on a particular field in addition to the state’s core curriculum. They are often toted as an alternative to public schools and are attended by choice.

TEECS filed its application to start a charter school in 2009 and their charter was granted in 2010. After its awarding, charter schools need to re-file for permission each year until the school starts, unless the application is denied or not renewed. Typically, finding a space zoned for a school is the most difficult step, and is one that often ends the charter process for many would-be institutions.

TEECS found space in the same building as Central Jersey College Prep, an unaffiliated charter school, Oguz said. He explained that TEECS received $500,000 of federal funding over three years, money used to purchase basic necessities to start the school.

“We were granted a federal starter budget, and over the summer we started using the first budgeted payment,” Oguz, said. “We’re only allowed to use it for starting the school, such as for furniture, books, and computers.”

Charter schools receive money from the state in accordance with the amount of children enrolled. Public education is calculated by a certain cost per child, and that amount of paid to TEECS for operational costs.

Enrollment for the 2012-13 school is at its maximum capacity of 210 children, with a waiting list of an additional 669 seeking a spot for the current school year.

Without advertising, Oguz said, the school received over 100 applications just for kindergarten.

TEECS relies heavily on the use of technology, both in the classroom and out. Teachers have access to iPads to give interactive lessons using “smart” classroom boards, and an iPad cart is stocked with enough devices so that each student in a class averaging from 18 to 24 students can use an iPad for an interactive lesson. A smartphone application for Android and iPhone gives children and parents a new way to keep track of homework, assignments, grades, and behavior marks, as well of use of the Dropbox program to submit assignments. Miniature robotics called Little Bits will be incorporated into technology classes, and additional technologies, such as robotics, are in the works for later in the school year. Lunches are swiped for with student IDs with the parents paying the bill online.

Even with the strong focus on technology, education consultant Lynette Tannis explained that the emphasis on language arts, handwriting, and other “non-technical” subjects is strong.

“Implementing a balanced literacy bloc within the school allows for creativity,” Tannis said. “Even when there’s a mini-lesson when students are in smaller groups and working together, there’s still a focus on the core literacy instruction.”

Students are divided into two classes, “gifted” and “talented.” The “gifted” class has 22 to 24 children, and moves at a faster pace to challenge the students. The “talented” class has 18 students for individualized attention and moves at a slower pace. The purpose, Oguz said, is to level out the playing field in each classroom, both for the teacher and the students.

Parents are also highly involved with their children’s education. Instead of parentteacher conferences being held at school, teachers make visits to the home, which Govindaraju said is key in order to understand the child better.

“I believe that a home and school connection is extremely important because there are the two major groups where the child spends most of her life,” Govindaraju said. “In order to make a connection to the child, you need to know where he or she is coming from and talk to the parents to understand their philosophy and values.”

“Without this connection, a student may come home and say one thing to mom and may go back and say another thing to the teacher,” Tannis said. “This allows the students to see that mom and teacher are on the same team and will help contribute to the child’s success as a student.”

Govindaraju said that parents and children alike have been receptive to home visits.

“Most parents are thrilled, and even the child is surprised to see the teacher really care for her,” Govindaraju said.

However, with each charter school that opens its doors in September, there are several who are not able to take the final decisive steps to becoming a school. The Princeton International Academy Charter School (PIACS), which intended to serve South Brunswick children, went through the same process as TEECS, but was unable to acquire a building and its charter renewal was rejected for the 2012-13 school year.

“This charter is, for lack of a better word, dead,” said Kristin Epstein, vice chair of the school’s board. “The board is in the middle of dissolving.”

PIACS’s theme would have been a Mandarin Chinese language immersion program, led by Dr. Bonnie Liao, who started language programs and private schools in Bergen County and Princeton.

“She heard from some parents who had one child in the private school, and by the time their second child came around, they didn’t think they could afford to send them there,” Epstein explained. “She noticed that people were doing excessive things to teach their children Chinese, like sending their kids to camp in Beijing, and she noticed a need for a charter school in the area.”

PIACS applied in 2009 but delayed the start date for three years in an ultimately failed attempt to find a building. PIACS faced intense opposition from the public schools, which Epstein believed eventually led to its rejection. There are no intentions to re-apply for PIACS.

“As a charter school, we can adapt faster and try more pilot programs,” Epstein said. “We need to have the right to be able to fail — if one program didn’t work out, we will learn from the next one.”

That spirit of open communication and flexibility is something that TEECS is carrying on in its curriculum.

“Education has long been criticized as being a mile long and only an inch deep, so we want children to find ways to really delve into a subject,” Govindaraju said. “We want to get input, see how teachers are responding and building into every aspect, and then we will change it.”


BY STELLA MORRISON
Staff Writer


Contact Stella Morrison at smorrison@gmnews.com.

Source: http://ns.gmnews.com/news/2012-09-27/Schools/Charter_school_opens_with_exorbitant_waiting_list.html

Turkish school opens in Kigali

The premises of Hope Kids Academy, which opens on October 8. The New Times / Timothy Kisambira.

Hope Kids Academy, an international Turkish school, has opened its branch in the country under a Rwandan-Turkish framework.

The school is located in Nyarutarama, Gasabo District.

Speaking with The New Times yesterday, Isa Gokturk Yilmaz, the Headmaster of the school, said studies will commence on October 8, adding that from Nursery one to two, each kid will be paying a registration fee of Rwf125, 000, and tuition of Rwf1.3 million per term.

Foreign students will pay a tuition fee of Rwf1.136, 000, he added.

He added that Rwandan pupils, from Primary one to three, will be paying Rwf1.4 million per term in tuition, while foreign pupils will pay Rwf1, 460,000.

“The idea is to give Rwandan children an international exposure, but ensure they retain their culture,” Yilmaz said.

He said the school will be offering Cambridge primary International programme with a strong emphasis on science, Mathematics, ICT teaching with smart boards.

The school, which will use English as a medium of instruction, has already recruited 11 teachers, will also teach several languages including French and Turkish.

According to the schools administration, each nursery and primary class will have between eight and 12 pupils.

Yilmaz the decision to open the school came after a visit to Turkey by President Paul Kagame earlier this year. “The two countries enjoy a brotherly relation”.

Rwanda and Turkey last month signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that provides for a cooperation framework between the two countries.

The MOU was signed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation,

Louise Mushikiwabo and the Deputy Prime Minister of Turkey, Besir

Atalay, during the latter’s visit to Rwanda.

Although its tuition means the school will be out of reach for the overwhelming majority of Rwandans, ordinary people have welcomed the development.

Albert Ndemezo, a resident of Kacyiru in Kigali, said the new school will contribute to the development of the country’s education sector.

He said more international businesses should invest in the country.

Source: The New Times

More news: http://www.charteradvocate.org