History

The beginning of providing systematic education services to children affected by disability in our country was initiated in the 1950s by Assoc. Dr. It started with the contributions of Mithat ENÇ. In the 1953-1954 academic year, the Department of Special Education was opened within the body of the Gazi Education Institute in order to train instructors who would provide systematic education and training services to children affected by disability. It is known that teachers were chosen as students among those who graduated from teacher schools that train teachers for primary school, that is, those who have earned the right to teach and teach. In the conditions of that day, the schools and classes in which the children affected by disability were educated were at the primary school level, and the graduates returned to primary schools after receiving higher education, resulting in difficulties. It resulted in the closure of the department due to the inability of graduates to provide education and training services to children directly affected by disability and bringing additional problems to the bureaucracy.

After 32 years, it was reopened as a Special Education Teaching Department within the Gazi Educational Sciences Department in order to train special education teachers within the body of Gazi Education Institute, which became a faculty in 1986. The special education teacher training program of this department focuses on training teachers who will provide education and training services for children affected by disability. After the following two years, the program was reviewed and the teacher training program was updated. The Department had its first graduates in the 1990-1991 academic year.