Problem

When the Republic of Turkey was created in 1923, education was mandatory for only the primary grades, but over the years the amount of schooling required of students has gradually increased. From 2012, 12 years of education became mandatory: four years of elementary school, four years of middle school and four years of high school. This division is notable for the creation of a distinct period of middle school, from fifth grade to eighth grade.

A number of schools in Turkey aim to improve their academic programming by integrating international programs that have notably high standards. One of these programs is available through the International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO). For the mid-grades, they offer the Middle School Program (MYP). The MYP helps students gain an understanding of who they are and develop an appreciation for their potential role in the community. Integral to the programme is the IB learner profile.

MYP is currently offered in nine private schools in Turkey. One issue with MYP implementation is that grade range for the MYP (6-10) is not the same as the middle school years in Turkey (5-8). Therefore, there are adjustments need to be made that may affect learner outcomes.

The main challenge to implementation is that schools are required to simultaneously meet the requirements of MoNEP and the MYP. The curriculum framework of the MYP includes eight subject groups, with a minimum requirement of 50 hours of teaching time per group for each year of the programme. Another challenge facing the MYP implementation is that all eighth grade students in Turkey take the national Transition from Primary to Secondary Education (TPSE) exam. The results of this exam affect student eligibility for high school enrollment: higher scores qualify students to enroll in higher-ranking schools. Teachers are often pressured by parents, students, and administration to focus on rote memorization and test-taking skills rather than more holistic, student-centered strategies.

Conceptual framework

For this study, the guiding framework was the IBO learner profile attributes. The organization emphasizes these ten attributes (Inquirers, Knowledgeable, Thinkers, Communicators, Principled, Open-minded, Caring, Risk-takers, Balanced, Reflective) are valued by IB World Schools to help learners become responsible members of regional and international communities. All the research tools designed for this study included items that analyzed to what extent these attributes were manifested in the school programming. One area that was investigated to assess outcomes of implementation was school culture, the values, shared beliefs, behaviors, and ways in which teachers and other staff members work together (ASCD, 2016). They study also investigated the climate of the classroom, including the learning environments created by the teacher, student responsiveness to learning, and interactions among students and teachers (Ambrose, et al., 2010). The mixed-method evaluation design framework presented by Greene, Caracelli, & Graham (1989) also framed the study as it included qualitative and quantitative aspects that were triangulated, compared, and analyzed to gain insights into the data.

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