Textbooks in Turkey*

This study examines the extent to which fourth and fifth grade primary school Social Studies textbooks published by the Ministry of National Education in Turkey between 1980 and 2009 represent neoliberal ideology. In an examination of changes following the restructuring of Turkish primary school education in 2004, this analysis compares pre- and post-reform textbooks according to the ways in which they communicate neoliberal discourse. Quantitative and qualitative content analyses of the textbooks show that the representation of neoliberal ideology in Social Studies textbooks has significantly increased since the implementation of the Turkish Primary School Education Reform of 2004. This paper argues that the content of the new textbooks has the potential to encourage students to think within the framework of neoliberalism