The way to encourage students toward higher education
is to introduce them to the “university” at an early age. Especially, the
situation becomes more important for the students who are disadvantaged in
terms of socio-economic and cultural aspects. In fact, according to a survey
conducted by SIS Catalyst, 8 out of 10 children attend a higher education in a
socio-economically good region, while only 8 out of 100 children can continue
their education in a non-socio-economically good region. When we look at the
reasons for this situation, it is possible to list many reasons such as the
place of residence, family income, gender, and parental education level. But
from a psychological point of view, we can show the "Attitude" as the
fact that all of these reasons actually form. If we cannot create a healthy
attitude towards the lessons, science and university in individuals up to the
age of 11, the motivation we try to create with external factors unfortunately
either has little effect or does not go beyond creating an external oriented
attitude. Perhaps for this reason, Nobel prizes and the world's most elite
concepts are nothing more than a utopia for us. The survey which has been done
by Independent Educators Union in order to find answers to the questions of
"Are we able to understand the young population well and prepare them well
for the future?" showed us that the young people feel that their self-confidence
is heavily related to "financial power", 19.1 percent of the youth
said "material power", 15.15 percent said "knowledge",
12.94 percent said "strong family", and 12.06 percent said
"leadership" to the question of "What does a person need the
most to have a strong self-confidence?".
As it can be understood from here, individuals in our
country put external resources such as material power and capital in the first
place at every stage of life and keep the importance of their internal and
individual development less than financial power. This and many other studies
reveal that the life goals of young people are mostly associated with material
characteristics.
Because of all these, "science and
knowledge" should find a more place in the society. Regarding the subject,
Peter Gray (2014) from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology
emphasizes that science should not be perceived as only Mathematics and
Science, it should proceed based on more research, and that universities should
no longer educate science aristocrats, but real scientists. It underlines the
need to create a capacity and find innovative ways to bring science and society
together. However, by advancing in science, industrial and social difficulties
can be overcome.
"Children Universities" are the most
important mechanisms in this matter. The color and sound of each child is
special in children's universities that introduce children to science and art
at an early age to help them gain a positive attitude towards science, to make
them embody the concept of university, to contribute to their thinking more
effectively and creatively and raise them as individuals not only know how to
learn how to do but also practice what they know in life. Academicians can
guide their children in the most fun way, and they arouse curiosity against
science and art in children. When we look at the state of this structuring in
the world, it is seen that the first school established under the title of
children's university was in Birmingham in the 1990s by two educators, Sir Tim
Brighouse and Sir David Winkley, with the name of "Saturday Schools".
During 2011, children's universities were established in 70 regions in the UK
as well as in Scotland, Wales, Germany, Belgium, Italy, Canada, Cyprus and
Turkey.
When we look at the situation in our country, it is
possible to talk about the existence of 20 Children's Universities. Our
children's universities, all of which boast of being the first in one aspect,
differ from each other in terms of structure and operation. While some of them
open 5-day programs with periodic periods and project contributions, some of
them continue their activities only during the summer and fifteen holidays, and
some continue their activities throughout the year. Unfortunately, some of them
has not been sustained and they have been closed after a few cycles. While the
conditions for participation in each program are different, everyone who
volunteers in general can participate in these trainings. These trainings can
be paid and free of charge, which may vary depending on project support. Some
of the Children's universities, which are generally supported by project
support, have difficulties in ensuring sustainability, so most of the time,
they are seeking sponsors. Apart from these, the most remarkable event in our
country is to include special programs for gifted and talented children. The
reason why gifted and special children are assigned a special place is the
strategic plan and the project support given to the gifted students, although
the main reason is that these students usually need different learning
environments and mentally challenging activities. University academics can be a
natural mentor for them, that is, an experienced guide in their areas of
interest, as well as university environments provide these students with
different and satisfying environments and effective areas for them to reveal
their creativity. Although the concept of children's university is not used
especially in America, the USA started such education much earlier in the 1980s
with gifted children in the form of Talented Child Education Centers or
Enrichment Schools, Saturday Schools, and continues to this day. When we look
at the differences between children's universities and such events and
activities aforementioned, we see that the models in USA are more
systematically and academically prepared with longer periods of education plans
and based more on knowledge and skill; On the other hand, we can mention that
the children's universities are structures that focus more on forming an
attitude, aim to reach more children and encourage more science and higher
education.
When we consider the structures in our country, it is
possible to talk about the existence of mixed structures that include both the
US model and the European model, although all of them are named as Children's
University. As a matter of fact, this also varies according to the structure,
facilities and needs of the local region. Regardless of its structure and
model, children's universities, whose aim is to "make science love and
popularize science activities in the society", will develop and become
stronger in the coming years by creating common mind platforms.
In this context, our vision as a Child Education Application
and Research Center is;
1- To ensure that all students reach the university by
removing the boundaries on a voluntary basis,
2- To include disadvantaged groups and enable them to
benefit from universities,
3-To provide students with a respectful atmosphere
without pressure and to provide performance.