Commitment to Education in Action: The Mother Child Center in Diyarbakir
Situated on the banks of the river Tigris in southeastern Turkey, Diyarbakır is a historic town where women's roles have remained largely traditional. AÇEV has been mindful of the region's particular circumstances, and its activities there have focused on educating women and children. The AÇEV Alipaşa Center, a mother-child education facility in Diyarbakır, exemplifies these efforts. Since its opening in 2003, the center has trained 105 women and 105 children each year. Focusing on the mother and her child, the program allows mothers to receive lessons while their children are playing in the colorful playroom or the center's gorgeous garden.
Given women's low education levels, their training materials are mostly pictures. "Once a week, mothers come together in a room at the center and learn about healthy child rearing, nutrition, how to protect their children from accidents, and how to best prepare them for school. Fathers can also take part in the Father Support Program," explains Hediye, a trainer. Mothers are recommended activities to do with their children at home.
At a group gathering of program graduates, the women seem very grateful for what they've learned. "Before the program, the children were not listening to me, and I was not listening to them. I used to beat them when they didn't listen. Now our dialogue is much better," says Birja Mircan, a program graduate. The women have found that their husbands are becoming more respectful, too. "We are just sad that our other children, the older ones, are not that lucky and couldn't benefit from what we learned earlier," says Sabiha, another training recipient.
