Teaching Turkish as a Foreign Language Certificate Program

PROGRAM CONTENT AND OBJECTIVES

As interest in the Turkish language and culture continues to grow around the world, teaching Turkish as a foreign language has developed into an increasingly important academic field. This growing interest has led to an increase in the number of Turkish language teaching centers both in Türkiye and abroad, creating a new area of employment.

The Certificate Program for Teaching Turkish as a Foreign Language aims to enhance the knowledge, expertise, and professional skills of individuals who are considering working or are already working in the field of teaching Turkish as a foreign language, in response to the growing demand for qualified professionals.

To achieve this goal, our Certificate Program is organized by a team of experts consisting of faculty members from both Hitit University and other institutions, who have many years of experience in teaching Turkish as a foreign language.

Within the TÖMER Certificate Program, participants are expected to acquire the following knowledge and skills:

• -Gain knowledge about the Turkish Republic's Turkish language teaching activities abroad.
• -Gain knowledge of the fundamental concepts of language teaching.
• -Understand the relationship between language teaching and culture.
• -Develop competence in teaching Turkish as a foreign language.
• -Learn and apply current approaches, methods, and techniques in teaching Turkish as a foreign language.
• -Carry out activities targeting the four fundamental language skills—reading, speaking, listening, and writing—in teaching Turkish as a foreign language.
• -Select, develop, and use appropriate resources and materials for teaching Turkish as a foreign language.
• -Understand valid assessment, evaluation, and examination techniques used in teaching Turkish as a foreign language.
• -Interact effectively with students from different geographical backgrounds and with different learning practices, and implement appropriate teaching and learning activities for these students.
• -Develop solutions to problems encountered in language teaching.
• -Select and create texts appropriate for different language levels.

APPLICATION AND PARTICIPATION REQUIREMENTS

Applications to the program are opened during specific dates and periods throughout the academic year.

For applications and detailed information, applicants should follow the “Announcements” section at tomer@hitit.edu.edu.tr.

The program is open to senior undergraduate students, graduate students, and graduates of universities in Türkiye or abroad who are studying or have graduated from the following departments:

• -Turkish Language Teaching
• -Turkish Language and Literature Teaching
• -Primary School Teaching
• -Turkish Language and Literature
• -Turkish Folklore
• -Contemporary Turkish Dialects
• -Linguistics
• -Departments of Foreign Language Education

• In addition:
• Teachers who teach Turkish as a foreign language may participate in order to improve their professional qualifications.
• Foreign nationals who have graduated from a Turcology department in Türkiye or abroad and wish to teach Turkish may also participate.

NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS

The program accepts between 30 and 50 participants.

PROGRAM DURATION AND DELIVERY

The program consists of a total of 80 lesson hours, including 50 hours of theoretical instruction and 30 hours of practical training.

Theoretical and practical classes are delivered online by qualified academics and experts in the field on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays from 17:00 to 21:00.

PROGRAM FEE

The program fee is ……….

MODE AND LOCATION OF EDUCATION

The program is conducted online by the Hitit University Turkish Language Teaching Application and Research Center (HİTİT-TÖMER).

PROGRAM SCHEDULE

Class Days and Hours

Theoretical classes are held for three weeks, on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays from 17:00 to 21:00, with a total of 60 hours of theoretical instruction throughout the program.

Starting from the second week, lesson observation and classroom observation are conducted on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays from 10:00 to 13:30, with a total of 20 hours of observation and classroom practice.

After completing the program, each candidate is required to deliver a 25-minute sample lesson.

Participants are required to attend at least 80% of the program.

ATTENDANCE REQUIREMENTS

• -The program lasts 3 weeks, consisting of 50 hours of theoretical instruction and 30 hours of practical training, for a total of 80 hours.
• -Participants are required to attend at least 32 hours of theoretical instruction.
• -The practical training consists of 30 hours, and no absence is permitted during the practical sessions.

ASSESSMENT AND CERTIFICATION

Before the program begins, a mentor instructor is assigned to each candidate. The mentor instructor is provided with a file containing the candidate's personal information, assessment forms, and monitoring forms required for guidance and counseling.

Throughout the program, mentor instructors evaluate the candidates they supervise in areas such as attendance, completion of assignments, and teaching performance. They record their evaluations on assessment forms and prepare reports containing their overall observations and evaluations. These reports are taken into consideration when determining the candidates' overall achievement.

After the completion of all theoretical and practical components of the Certificate Program, an online examination is administered.

Candidates who successfully complete both the examination and the sample lesson, achieving a score of 70 or above, receive the “Certificate for Teaching Turkish as a Foreign Language”, signed by the Rector of Hitit University and the Director of TÖMER.

Candidates who do not achieve the required level of success receive a Certificate of Participation.

Participants may collect their certificates in person from the Center or request that the certificate be sent by cash-on-delivery courier service.