Tunisian high school students Tunisian Minister of Education Abdellatif Abid announced on Sunday that for the first time, high schools are going to offer Turkish language studies starting from the upcoming academic year. The announcement was made during a “Reading Day” ceremony in Carthage. Hamida Hedfi, the director of secondary schools at the ministry, said teaching the Turkish language was currently only an introductory step, and that the language would just be taught in a few schools.
“This is just a preliminary experiment, and it will be offered only in some schools in Tunis, Bizerte, and Nabeul,” he said.
Hedfi explained that there have been a number of requests for Turkish to be taught in high schools.
This decision was made following a suggestion from a Turkish delegation visiting Tunisia with Turkish President Abdallah Gül two months ago. Aside from meeting with Tunisian president Moncef Marzouki and other high-ranking government officials, Gül also visited Sadiki secondary school – an institution that was originally constructed during the Ottoman era – located in downtown Tunis.
Hedfi clarified that Turkishs will not be mandatory. Other optional languages taught in Tunisian schools include Italian, German, Spanish, Chinese, and Russian. “Now Turkish will be added to the list,” Hedfi stated.
“The language will help those who plan on studying in Turkey, and it will open new horizons for our students,” Hedfi concluded.