Village Institutes: The Pioneer of the Republic Revolution

ABSTRACT With the establishment of the new Turkish Republic, there were revolutions that created great changes in the social, cultural, economic and social structure. Many public institutions and organizations were established for the young Republic people who aimed to integrate these revolutions into the social structure. Village Institutes can be considered as the most important among these institutions. The establishment purpose of Village Institutes is to support economical, social and cultural development and to contribute to the maturation proccess of the republican revolutions. The young Republic's transition to a modern education system and the deep-rooted experience which was formed during this process is represented by the Village Institutes. The educational policies of the period and the efforts to raise a contemporary new generation is also reflected by these institutions. Village Institutes achieved a rather unprecedented success in the enlightenment process and in the field of education. They trained not only village teachers, but also health workers and professionals who would benefit the rural areas in many fields. In this article, we examined the contributions of the Village Institutes to social development, their philosophies, original educational processes and construction styles. The study was created using document analysis and literature review as research methods. We made evaluations and inferences based on the data obtained. We have demonstrated the contributions of the Village Institutes to the social development of the country and their leadership in modernization in their period.