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More than 1 billion students, whose schools were closed during the COVID-19 pandemic, were also deprived of socializing during the period when classes were held online. However, out-of-school social activities have an impact on the multi-faceted development of individuals from an early age, at least as much as the curriculum and activities in school.

*** This release is originally published in Turkish.
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ISTANBUL (TR) - According to the pandemic conditions, children, some of whom could go to school, and some, who were content with online lessons from home for almost 1.5 years, also stayed away from social activities. The Extra-Curricular Education and Development Report, implemented by the SosyalBen Foundation in cooperation with Koç University Gender and Women's Studies Research and Application Center and UNESCO Chair on Gender Equality and Sustainable Development, reveals that extra-curricular activities have significant contributions to the education and development of children and young people.

Pointing out that extra-curricular activities are important for children to get to know themselves, discover their talents and develop socially, YÖM Family Interaction Center Coordinator Bülent Aslan said, “There is a prejudice that especially in our country, participating in social activities will negatively affect children's academic performance and reduce their success by reducing their study time. As the research of the SosyalBen Foundation shows; Social activities such as dance, music, games, creative writing, painting, short films, sports, inventions, photography, which children can participate in after school or on weekends, also contribute positively to children's academic success and grades by supporting creative thinking and mental development. The activities, which started to be carried out again by maintaining the social distance rules, bring children together with their peers and connect them to life, while also having a positive effect on their academic success.”

Social activities create positive psychological effects on children and young people.

Bülent Aslan said, “Extracurricular activities not only enable the development of skills and competencies that are extremely important for social life, but also help students to realize themselves with positive psychological effects such as self-esteem and self-control.” Within the framework of the Activities Regulation, in addition to the curriculum, all activities carried out within the scope of student clubs and community services in scientific, social, cultural, artistic and sports fields aiming to develop self-confidence and sense of responsibility in students, to create new areas of interest, to bring them national, spiritual, moral, humanitarian and cultural values. activities constitute the content of extracurricular activities. We also contribute to the development of both students and their families with the workshops we organize under the roof of YÖM Family.”

Workshops for children and students in Istanbul and Izmir

Bülent Aslan, Coordinator of YÖM Family Interaction Center, said that experienced educators Göknur and Kayhan Karlı, who founded the Innovative Learning Center (YÖM) in 2013 and YÖM Schools in 2016, plan everything they do in a way that will leave a social mark and benefit the society. We carried the philosophy adopted by YÖM Schools, which is a social enterprise, out of school under the umbrella of YÖM Family, with activities focused on skills and art outside the curriculum. Thus, we have made quality contents prepared in the kitchen of YÖM accessible to those who are not YÖM students.” Stating that they appeal to both children and parents with workshops focused on art, sports, technology, ecology, psychology and mindfulness, Bülent Aslan said, “We meet with children and their families in a pleasant learning environment in Istanbul Kadıköy and Izmir Güzelbahçe. We organize our workshops mainly on weekends. We also have parent-only sessions on weekday evenings. We aim to enable primary and secondary school children to reach the intellectual level they need to catch the spirit of the time, and to reach the equipment to realize themselves, with the workshops we designed by considering their cognitive, social and emotional well-being.”

Observes the principle of lifelong learning

Bülent Aslan, who said, “We plan a significant part of the workshops as family-child workshops in a way that will positively affect the parent-child relationship and enable them to have fun while spending quality time,” said some examples of the workshops they designed by considering the principle of lifelong learning: There are many different workshops centered on life, from chess to creative drama, from rhythm to yoga. As we make designs from clay, we also learn how to design digitally. We learn how to prepare a healthy lunch box and how to recycle our waste with the compost method. With our activities where children and parents come together, we offer environments where both parties learn by observing each other, and the bond between parents and children is constantly strengthened.”