10th International Conference at the Graduate School of Education Explores Technology in Education

Photographs by: Aydın Ramazanoğlu

Between April 11 and 13, the Graduate School of Education brought together educators from Turkey and the United Kingdom to share thoughts, ideas and innovations in education. The conference was entitled "Technology in Education: New Horizons for Learning," focusing on the ways of teaching
and learning in a digital age.

School leaders from throughout Turkey joined school heads and program directors from the University of Cambridge, The King's School Canterbury, Bishop's Stortford College, Eton College and Oakham School in the UK.

This is the 10th international conference planned and run by the Graduate School of Education, aiming to foster links between the graduate school at Bilkent and its partner schools in Ankara, İstanbul, İzmir and England.

Bilkent's trainee teachers in the MA-with-thesis program spend three weeks at Cambridge University each January, followed by two weeks' observation and teaching at one of these prestigious English schools.

Children to Celebrate April 23rd

BY EMİRHAN KAYA (IR/III)

Next Monday, Turkey will celebrate Children's Day, as it does every April 23. On this joyful occasion, everyone is reminded that a country's children represent its hopes for the future. On April 23rd, the Bilkent Symphony Orchestra and Bilkent Music and Ballet Primary School student soloists will perform a special National Independence and Children’s Day Concert.

Saturday, April 28 at 8 p.m.
Bilkent Concert Hall
National Independence and Children's Holiday Concert
Conductor: Ilyich Rivas
Bilkent Music and Ballet Primary School Student Soloists
Piano: Eylül Esme Bölücek
W. A. Mozart | Concerto for Piano No. 23 in A major KV. 488
I. Stravinsky | Firebird Suite, 1919

Let Girls Be Girls: ICC Campaign Against Early Marriage

Unfortunately, for some children, hopes and dreams are replaced too soon by the harsh realities of adult life. This is especially so for those young girls who are forced into marriage at an early age. The International Children's Center (ICC), headquartered on the Bilkent campus, is spearheading a campaign to raise awareness regarding this issue.

On April 5, 24 posters on the topic of child brides, created by third-year students of the Department of Graphic Design, were exhibited in the Art Gallery of the Main Campus Library. Prof. Ali Doğramacı, president of the Board of Trustees, announced that Ecem Ekinci's poster had been chosen for use as the logo of the ICC project to combat the practice of early or forced marriage.

The poster exhibit accompanied a lecture on the subject of "Child Brides" by Prof. Tomris Türmen, president of the International Children's Center (ICC), as part of the Library Lunchtime Lecture series. Speaking to the large audience present on the occasion, Prof. Türmen related how ICC had started its project on child brides. She also mentioned the ICC's move from Paris -- its location until 1999 -- to the Bilkent Library, saying: “I've learned from Prof. İhsan Doğramacı that everything is feasible.”

Prof. Türmen then briefly outlined the mission and functions of the ICC, emphasizing the outreach efforts that link teaching and research to social participation. It was in this context that the "child brides" project was initiated. Calling early/forced marriage a reality that we must constantly remind ourselves of, she explained its causes -- weak legislative enforcement, gender inequality and traditional/religious practices -- and described its consequences: violence, lack of education and maternal health issues. Prof. Türmen lastly discussed the legal and global dimensions of the issue.

Humboldt Award Goes to Law Faculty Member

Ece Göztepe Çelebi, an associate professor in the Faculty of Law, has recently been awarded a research grant from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation. The foundation is one of the most important nonprofit organizations funding foreign scholars to carry out long-term research projects in Germany.

Each year, up to 100 Humboldt Research Awards are granted to scholars outside Germany "whose fundamental discoveries, new theories, or insights have had a significant impact on their own discipline and who are expected to continue producing cutting-edge achievements in the future." Recipients, who may be from any discipline, are invited to spend a period of up to one year collaborating on a long-term research project with specialist colleagues at a research institution in Germany.

Assoc. Prof. Göztepe Çelebi received her PhD from Westfälische Wilhelms Universität Münster/Germany in German and European public law. She joined the Bilkent University Faculty of Law in 2005 as an assistant professor, and was promoted to associate professor in March 2012.
Her research areas include interpretation in constitutional law, fundamental rights, comparative constitutional law (the subject of a long-term book project in Turkish), European public law, and state theory and state philosophy within the EU.

Spring Fest Is Coming

There's only a little time left until the 2012 Spring Fest. This year, Spring Fest will be held May 7-12 on the Main Alley, at the Marmara Restaurant, in the Main Campus Festival Area and at the Odeon. The program will be announced soon.