Abstract:

Citizenship is a concept in which acquisitions such as belonging to a nation, assuming certain duties and responsibilities are obtained and giving status to individuals in the face of the state. States aim to raise citizens who are aware of such duties and responsibilities, connected to them with a sense of belonging, and who have the skills to realize the requirements of the political system and expectations of society. Education programs play important roles in helping individuals acquire such duties and responsibilities. In the present study, the understanding of citizenship that was reflected in the “Information on Civilization with Questions and Answers” textbook, which was published in 1908 and taught in primary schools, and the “Information on Homeland” textbook, which was published in 1927 and was decided to be taught in primary schools for five years, was examined. The citizenship concept reflected in the textbooks was discussed by creating categories such as the ideal citizen, duties of citizens, responsibilities of the state, citizenship acquisitions, and complementary elements of citizenship. The data of the study were collected based on the Document Analysis Technique, which is one of the qualitative research methods, and the collected data were analyzed with the Content Analysis Technique. According to the data obtained in the study, it was determined that there were some differences in the understanding of citizenship reflected in the “Information on Civilization with Questions and Answers” and “Information on Homeland” textbooks taught after the proclamation of the Republic. Although there were common values that would keep citizens together as a reflection of the multinational structure in the Ottoman Empire, which was governed by the constitutional government system, in the textbook, after the proclamation of the Republic, the consciousness of being a Turk was created as a result of the understanding of the nation-state.

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