The launch meeting of the "Enhancing Foreign Language Education Project" carried out by the Turkish and Language Education Research and Development Centre of the Board of Education was held in the conference hall of the Board.

The Turkish and Language Education Research and Development Centre was established under the responsibility of the Board of Education in order to contribute to the development of language education in our country by taking into account the principles of quality, equality, effectiveness, and national and moral values. At the Centre, activities related to the teaching of Turkish as a first, second and foreign language will be carried out.

In addition, research and development activities related to the teaching of English, French, German, Arabic, Spanish and Russian languages in our country have been included in the activities of the Centre.

Prof. Dr. Cihad DEMİRLİ, the President of the Board, underlined that the Centre has been proceeding on the way to become an effective centre where activities are carried out at both national and international levels.

Prof. Dr. Cihad DEMİRLİ said:

"Like in many countries of the world, language education and teaching in Turkey had been carried out in a low efficient way until recently. Developments and changes in economic, political, military, social and cultural fields among European Union countries have also affected language teaching radically. These developments have laid the groundwork for the determination of common strategies and standards in language teaching. Language learning strategies and standards determined and developed by the Council of Europe have begun to be taken into account by institutions and organizations interested in teaching languages. As a result, the 'Common European Framework of Reference for Languages 2020 Companion Volume' has become a significant building block for internationally recognized standard language learning, teaching and assessment for measuring language proficiency, which is becoming increasingly common around the world."

The downloadable format of this work will be available on the website of the Board of Education for the benefit of institutions and organizations operating in the field of language teaching, and anyone who is individually interested in this field, especially our teachers.

The President of the Board said:

"This guidebook will be distributed to the libraries in our country, relevant academicians and you, our esteemed guests, together with the relevant institutions and organizations."

Pointing out the importance of translating this book into Turkish, the President of the Board noted, "Teaching of Turkish as a foreign language is an investment in Turkey's future. We have started our activities with great care to teach Turkish and to use programs which have national and international accreditation standards at international validity and quality while teaching it."

Prof. Dr. Cihad DEMİRLİ also stated that within the scope of these activities, they have been preparing a conference about the teaching of Turkish, in which the challenges and suggestions will be discussed by bringing together academicians and practitioners from Turkey and the world.

Prof. Dr. Cihad DEMİRLİ expressed gratitude to President Recep Tayyip ERDOĞAN, Minister of National Education Mahmut ÖZER and everyone who contributed to the project for their support.