Reflection of the idea of child education in Jean Jacques Rousseau's Emile on education programs

Purpose: The main purpose of the research is to evaluate Jean Jacques Rousseau's ideas about child education in his work Emile together with teachers' opinions and to determine whether there are overlapping aspects with today's education system. Methodology: Twenty teachers working at the primary and secondary school level of the Ministry of National Education participated in this study, which used a basic qualitative research design. Document analysis, one of the qualitative data collection techniques, and a semi-structured interview form prepared by the researcher were used in the study. Descriptive analysis and content analysis techniques were used to analyze the data obtained as a result of the research. Findings: In the study, it was determined that Rousseau's ideas about child education in his work Emile are mostly reflected in the education program used today. Another finding obtained from the teachers' opinions is that although the characteristics of today's education program overlap with Rousseau's views in his book, the program is not reflected in practice or reflected inadequately. Conclusion and suggestions: As a result of the research, it was found that teachers agreed with most of Rousseau's views on child education. At the same time, it was determined that teachers were of the opinion that most of Rousseau's ideas are reflected in today's curricula. However, it was concluded that Rousseau's views on child education did not find sufficient place in the implementation dimension of the programs. Rousseau's ideas about education can be used to reorganize the curricula by eliminating the deficiencies and defects affecting the implementation process.