Autonomous School November 2017: Secularism in the schools of Cyprus across the dividing line: a historical perspective and current developments

Secularism in Cyprus has it's own history – or at least in a part of the country... The Greek – Cypriot community has been and still is one of the most religious societies in Europe. The Church's hegemony can be traced back in the ottoman times and it is still obvious and dominant in many fields, prime among them being education. On the other hand, whereas the Turkish- Cypriots have historically been one of the most secular communities in the so called muslim world, they face – especially during the last decade- an attempt of imposed religionisation through education.

Şener Elcil and Pavlos Pavlou will attempt to explain the historical and contemporary relations between organised religion, politics and education in Cyprus. Şener Elcil is the General Secretary of the Turkish Cypriot teachers' trade union KTÖS. Pavlos Pavlou teaches history in secondary education and at the European University.

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