Opportunity of formal religious education according to Religious Culture and Moral Knowledge course teachers and its problems (Example of Aegean Region)

The subject of this study is the opportunities and problems of formal religious education in primary, secondary and high schools within the borders of the Aegean Region. The aim of the research is to identify and evaluate the opportunities and problems of formal religious education, which is included in the National Education System as Religious Culture and Moral Knowledge, in relation to the general education system, the opportunities and problems of formal religious education related to its own field, and to put forward solution suggestions. In this context, the position of the DKAB course in the National Education system, its most encountered problems, curriculum, content, education-training process and achievements were discussed and evaluated. The teacher factor in formal religious education, the meaning that students and families attach to the DKAB course and religious education, their expectations from the DKAB course and the level of realization of their expectations are discussed. The effects of the sociocultural structure of the Aegean Region on formal religious education and the differences in expectations, achievements and the transformation of knowledge into behavior from the DKAB course in the region were investigated and evaluated. A qualitative study was preferred in order to investigate the subject on-site and in depth. The research was conducted in line with the opinions of the participants who currently work as DKAB teachers at primary, secondary and high school levels in the provinces, districts, towns and villages in the Aegean Region. One-on-one interviews were held with sixty-four participants, determined on a voluntary basis, through open-ended, semi-structured questions prepared for the research. The data obtained from the interviews were analyzed using the content analysis method. As a result of the research, it was determined that formal religious education has problems related to the education system. It is related to the field of formal religious education; It has been observed that there are problems regarding expectations from this field, curriculum, content, curriculum, method, education-training process and teachers, and that the course can partially achieve the determined objectives. It has been concluded that some opportunities and problems of formal religious education differ in the Inner Aegean, Western Aegean and Coastal Aegean regions, depending on the social, cultural, geographical and economic structure of the region. It has been determined that the level of realization of expectations and goals from religious education has decreased due to the prevalence of secular lifestyle in the Western Aegean, especially in the Coastal Aegean regions, and the prioritization of academic education. In the Coastal Aegean regions, which have a cosmopolitan structure, in addition to these problems, it is concluded that this region is not preferred by DKAB teachers due to the lifestyle and economic structure of the region, and that the teacher shortage is tried to be filled with paid teachers, non-branch teachers and religious officials, and this situation creates new problems. has been reached.