Turkey School

THE SCHOOL

OUR VISION: To raise “self-confident” and “independent“ individuals who continuously develop themselves and the community.

OUR MISSION: To strive for excellence and success within an environment of mutual admiration, respect and trust; to be responsible for shaping the future and to be the leader within the educational sector through continuous development.

Yüzyıl Işıl Schools were founded in 1990 in response to the growing demand for private schools that match the high academic standards of educational institutions in Europe and the US, emphasizing English language education, and offering a wide variety of extra-curricular activities. The Primary School moved to its purpose-built Bahçeköy campus in 1992 and the High School was founded in 1995 on the same campus. Yüzyıl Işıl Primary School and High School were then officially united under the umbrella of the Yüzyıl Işıl Educational Foundation in March 2000.

Yüzyıl Işıl is a co-educational, private, selective day school offering the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma within the Turkish system of education and is fully accredited by the Turkish Ministry of Education. It is governed by the rules and regulations of the Ministry and is subject to inspection by the Ministry.

Yüzyıl Işıl is a very young institution that has pioneered a new and universal vision in education in Turkey. It is Turkey's first school to be administered by TQM (Total Quality Management) philosophy and to hold the ISO 9001 certificate.

Yüzyıl Işıl is committed to providing its students with an educational environment where they can develop not only a strong analytical mind but also the necessary skills, values and self-confidence to become tomorrow’s leaders. The positive academic and caring social environment strongly emphasizes the development of the whole child by encouraging all students to reach their full potential, so that they mature with a strong sense of self worth and respect for each other.

Our school prides itself on providing a harmonious learning environment, where students are motivated to put in the extra effort to ensure their success. Yüzyıl Işıl High School’s first graduating class received their diplomas in the summer of 2001. Of these graduates, approximately half chose to apply and were admitted to prestigious US colleges. The other half participated in Turkey’s highly competitive national placement exam and was successfully placed in top Turkish universities.

At the beginning of the new millennium, the Turkish Ministry of Education approved a program to increase the senior high school to a four-year course of study, an increase from the old three-year system. This change applied to all schools, public and private that instruct Turkish nationals. Since Yüzyıl Işıl commenced its four-year program in 2005, there will be no graduating class of 2008. This extra year added to our program has provided our school with a number of valuable opportunities. Not only have we made enhancements to our academic curricula but we also have incorporated a pre-IB year 10 program in which 15 year-olds will study in an atmosphere and support system that will ideally prepare them for the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program.

THE SCHOOL CAMPUS

The campus is situated in beautiful, wooded surroundings, on the northern outskirts of Istanbul, on the European side of the Bosphorus. Bordering Istanbul’s Belgrade Forest, Yüzyıl Işıl’s campus spans 14 acres with 8500 m² of outdoor and 19000 m² of indoor space. Besides the executive, administrative and recreational areas, the campus encompasses 64 classrooms, 5 science labs, 5 computer labs, a media studio and social science laboratories. In addition to arts, crafts and music rooms, there are 2 libraries with more than 30000 books, an audio-visual center and computer facilities under the supervision of 4 librarians, 2 infirmaries, 2 cafés and a mini bookstore also serve the students. An additional building embodies a gymnasium and 2 dining halls. There is also a 350-seat auditorium for students’ use. Playgrounds, tennis and football courts are available. The Observatory is available for the use of students and all interested parties from both within and out of the school.

OUR STUDENTS

Total: 747
Preschool : 82
Elementary: 555
High School: 110

OUR FACULTY

Total: 133
Turkish: 120
Foreign: 13

ADMINISTRATION

School Founder: Lale Unaldı
General Director: Okan Dilik
High School Principal: Murat Dizdar
Primary School Principal: Erdem Seçmen
Preschool Principal : Nilgün Binışık
IB Coordinator: Patrick Swann
Director of College Guidance: Patrick Swann

ACADEMICS AT YUZYIL IŞIL

Academic Accreditation

The school satisfies the membership requirements of the European Council of International Schools (ECIS) and is authorized by the International Baccalaureate Organization to offer the IB Diploma. The Elementary School also holds the ISO 9001 certificate.

The Academic Program

Yüzyıl Işıl Schools aim for academic excellence through a commitment to continuous educational and professional development. We provide a learning environment where global, contemporary and scientific disciplines interact with concern for human values. The bilingual education offered integrates the best of Turkish, the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program and other overseas systems.

Turkish, Turkish Language and Literature, Social Studies subjects, Physical Education, Art and Music are taught in Turkish; English, Mathematics, Science, Information Technology and Theory of Knowledge are taught in English and in Turkish (at younger years) by both Turkish and expatriate staff. The atmosphere provided and the academic organization in the High School is based on the principle of “bilingualism and multiculturalism”. As an extension of this principle, we also encourage students to master a second foreign language other than English, namely French or German.

THE INTERNATIONAL BACCALAUREATE (IB) DIPLOMA

Yüzyıl Işıl offers its students the opportunity to obtain the internationally recognized and acclaimed International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma. Within the two-year IB program that students complete, in order to receive the IB diploma, there is engagement in a challenging curriculum in an interactive way. Students, far from being passive recipients of information, become responsible for their own learning and develop an inquiring, critical and analytical mind as well as the ability to make sound and informed judgments.

The school also encourages prospective IB students to undertake the pre-IB course in Grade 9. This one preparatory year allows students to become aware of the educational philosophy of the IB Diploma and of the educational standards required.

Extra-curricular Activities

A wide range of extra-curricular activities is offered under the supervision and the guidance of both teaching staff and other professionals. The aim is to educate the “whole person”, to foster an environment by which enjoyment is gained through learning, experiencing and sharing. We offer academically based activities such as Information Technology, Mathematics and Library, artistic activities such as Painting, Music, Drama, Clay Modeling, sports activities such as Basketball, Volleyball, Football, Trekking and Table Tennis and social service activities such as projects to produce solutions for the social problems of the nation and the global society.

In addition to our regular activities, students within our IB program participate in CAS activities. CAS stands for Creativity, Action and Service and through the many activities students choose they are given an opportunity to develop all three of these critical areas.

The following are just a sample of the many CAS activities students may participate in: teaching computer studies to underprivileged students at our sister school, helping our sister school prepare a website, finding donations of books, pens and reading material as well as helping to set up a library at our sister school, working with orphans and students affected by the 1999 earthquake in Gölcük, visiting a home for the elderly, Model United Nations, playing on various sports teams, working as an assistant coach for sports teams, teaching underprivileged students how to play the piano, drums or guitar, participating in the school band, participating in photography, drawing and art courses or activities, being a member of the school drama group.