Quran courses for the 4-6 age group affiliated with the Directorate of Religious Affairs and primary schools, some of which are legal and some of which are not, whose numbers have increased in recent years, raise the question of how religious education will affect children's mental health in this age period.
When we look at the developmental characteristics of the 4-6 year old period, which is called the pre-school period, this is a period when children cannot understand abstract concepts and concrete and intuitive thinking occurs. Children in this period cannot understand religious concepts such as religion, morality, sin, and prophet, as well as other abstract concepts such as conscience, mercy, republic, and freedom. Learning abstract concepts occurs after the age of 11-12. The child's ability to internalize these concepts and analyze and synthesize them begins after the age of 12.
At the end of the early education, memorized concepts emerge instead of real learning. This memorization, which seems like success to adults, is of no benefit in terms of the child's development and education. On the contrary, when evaluated in terms of mental health, it can create pressure, fear and anxiety.
With pre-school education, the child learns to share, socialize, become independent, as well as to ask questions, question, and express his thoughts. The use of the concepts of "sin" and "punishment" along with religious education given in the early years can create insecurity, discouragement and anxiety in the child. The child who receives the message that he will be punished for the questions he asks or does may experience intense anxiety.
As a result, a series of adaptations and adaptations can occur, including stuttering, introversion, nail biting, bedwetting, tantrums, not wanting to leave the mother, and sleep problems. Behavior problems may arise.
Preschool period is also a period in which children take their teachers as a model after their parents. The teacher's clothing, way of speaking, and words he uses are imitated by the child. While some families send their children knowing that the school they send to provides religious education, some families become aware of this approach of the school later. A child who spends most of the day with a teacher model different from his mother may become confused.
While his mother's head is uncovered, his teacher's head is covered. The knitting child may worry that his mother is "bad" and that he will be "punished" and may put pressure on his mother about this. Problems may occur that may even lead to disruption of mother-child communication. On the other hand, discourses and practices aimed at gender discrimination are also made in these institutions.
Warnings about dressing and covering for girls cause the value of women to decrease in the eyes of boys. The message that everything is allowed for men and everything is forbidden and sinful for women is given to both boys and girls. This message may cause violence against women to be seen as legitimate.
In pre-school institutions where religious education is provided, Arabic and Quran lessons are taught, girls are taught to perform ablution and prayer, girls are required to cover their heads, and the concept of obedience is taught with fear to children who are in the period of independence. Intimidating the child when he/she questions what he/she has learned causes anxiety and causes adaptation and behavioral problems. As the pressure builds, it can turn into a pathological anxiety disorder.
Every parent wants their child to be a compassionate, compassionate and good person. Some families may want to send their children to institutions that provide this education, thinking that the way to achieve this is through religious education. However, the qualifications, competencies of the educators in these institutions, the models they create and the messages they give may cause psychological problems in the child instead of meeting the expectations of the parents. It will be healthier for the child to live and experience by observing and imitating the elders.
Human and social values such as being compassionate, not lying, not taking someone else's property, helping each other and sharing are concepts that the child will learn by seeing and experiencing. p>
Attempts to teach these through fear and pressure, and the message that only praying, covering or fasting will make a person a "good person" are confusing in terms of all the human and social values that the child learns. It can create phases.
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