Educational buildings in rural architectural tradition: The case of Akseki-Ibradi basin

Educational buildings have been an important area that reflects the social, economic and cultural accumulation of societies throughout history. With the settled life of the Turks in the Uyghurs Period, cultural accumulation began to form and the understanding of education began to develop. With the acceptance of Islam by the Turks, education became religiously based, and madrasahs were at the center of the education system in the Seljuk and Ottoman Periods. However, until the Tanzimat Period, education policies were always directed towards the centers and could not reach the provinces. Tanzimat Period and During the Second Constitutional Era, ideas for the dissemination of education in rural areas emerged. In this direction, some educational institutions have started to be opened in rural settlements. In the Republican Period, education in rural settlements was among the most important issues of the state. Considering that a large part of the population lives in rural settlements, village schools were given importance in order to ensure that the republican policies were adopted by the public. With the establishment of Village Institutes in the 1940s, the construction of village schools became widespread. Akseki – İbradı Basin has been an important center in the field of education both in the Ottoman Period and the Republican Period. Many educational institutions were opened and important personalities were trained. In this study, educational buildings built with tradition of rural architecture in the Akseki – İbradı Basin were examined. Educational buildings that have survived or not have been evaluated in terms of historical features, architectural features and structural-functional problems. It has been determined that the educational buildings examined within the scope of the study are structures that reflect the characteristics of the period in which they were built. Educational buildings in rural settlements have lost their function with the increase in migration from rural to urban areas. Therefore, it is necessary to register and protect the structures and to re-function by repairing them. It has been evaluated that it is possible to transfer these structures, which are concrete examples of the history of education in rural settlements, to future generations.