The narratives of 1970s’ primary schools’ children in Turkey: Childhood and remembering the past

Abstract

In this study, I am trying to display the narratives about the 1970’s primary school childrens including
their childhood and their past through using the center-periphery and gender variables. The article aims
to indicate the students’ childhood, their primary school education passing in poverty, their games and
memories. I have made interviews with the people who used to be students in the primary school in the
1970s. Their experiences are to be put into context by taking into account the center-periphery and
gender variables which become decisive in understanding and evaluating their narratives. Remembering
their childhood, their poor life conditions, the games they played and their memories in the school is
very important for us to understand their past. Thus, these narratives help us see not only how their
school experiences reappear now but also in what circumstances their childhood was. I believe that
center-periphery and gender as significant variables reveal how different their childhood and past.