Leisure time is defined as the period remaining after sleep, eating, drinking, fulfilling essential needs, studying, work hours, and social visits. It is time that an individual can use freely, in line with their own interests and talents.
While the material aspects of society develop rapidly, the development of its spiritual dimensions lags. This gap results in cultural lag. The material aspect involves schools training the workforce required by industry. Meanwhile, the spiritual aspect, constituted by leisure education, is also delayed within the school system.
EDUCATION is the process of modifying an individual’s abilities, attitudes, and values in a positive direction within the society they live in. The purpose of education is long-term, and many of its elements are obligatory.
In leisure, voluntarism is fundamental, and individuality is paramount. It is a tool for engagement after school. While education represents a program for acquiring skills, understanding, and evaluation, leisure represents the means of their application.
Leisure education is the training of an individual to utilize their free time intelligently. It is an education that helps the individual acquire aesthetic and moral values, express themselves creatively, and develop ideas. The constructive use of leisure time plays a significant role in the transmission and development of culture.
PURPOSE: From the perspective of social and personal welfare, leisure education is the use of free time for personal development and the enhancement of social order. It is a beneficial opportunity for preparing for a good life and developing one’s personality.
How an individual chooses to spend their leisure time depends on their interests, age, gender, education, and cultural and social status.
The unproductive use of leisure can lead to deteriorating health, disruption of family life, reduced professional effectiveness, and the erosion of civic consciousness.
General Aims of Leisure Education:
- To provide individuals with basic knowledge.
- The development of personality.
- Preparation for life situations such as career and social life.
Leisure education encompasses the enrichment of personal lives, the cultivation of interests, the development of skills, and the formation of a life philosophy. The individual should derive satisfaction and contribute to their personal growth.
THE ROLE OF THE FAMILY: Education in this area is often taught to the family in a sporadic and disorganized manner. Leisure activities are largely dependent on the family’s financial situation. Participation in these activities is often governed by parental authority. In urban areas, individuals can choose these activities more freely.
Leisure Education in Schools:
- Schools prepare individuals both to earn a living and to live life fully.
- To awaken and motivate interests in leisure. It develops attitudes and values in this regard.
- Certain skills develop the body, ensuring mobility and motor coordination. Examples include various games, athletics, sports, and folk dancing. Activities like running, archery, tennis, volleyball, and basketball provide pleasure and satisfaction by contributing to an individual’s safety and survival, such as swimming. Others enable the creative use of hands, like painting, sculpture, and woodworking. Some facilitate effective communication for the individual, such as literature, writing, and reading.
- To provide opportunities and services for leisure utilization.
- To develop and utilize physical resources for the evaluation of leisure. To prepare individuals for leisure leadership.
- To collaborate with other community institutions in terms of responsibilities, interests, and resources.
AVENUES FOR LEISURE EDUCATION
a) Formal Curriculum: Certain branches can be incorporated into the official curriculum. For example, physical education, languages, graphic arts, social studies, handicrafts, home economics… The approaches of different countries to leisure education also involve addressing social problems such as gambling, alcohol, crime, and drug addiction.
b) Informal Education: This is conducted outside of school hours and classroom work. Examples include flight training, skiing, diving, etc.
c) Community-Centered Leisure Centers: The school serves as a center meeting the needs of the entire community. Programs are prepared to serve all ages and genders and are open at all hours. The community-centered school model is child-oriented, helping them express themselves. Utilizing interests, program planning, and individual freedom are fundamental.
d) Fulfilling Community Leisure Opportunities Provided by Other Institutions: Schools prepare the program, but the responsibility belongs to the municipality.
e) Training Leaders: Schools prepare personnel and train leaders. Leadership has become a profession in developed countries, requiring a university-level education. Separate leaders are trained for children, youth, and adults.
- Emphasis is placed on schools mobilizing and coordinating all community resources, cooperating with institutions in planning, and conducting research on relevant topics. Schools are constructed to be suitable for leisure services.
- Besides schools, religious institutions, the state, voluntary organizations, and social welfare groups also have roles.
- Within the objectives of our education system, responsibilities have been assigned to our schools. However, this goal has not been realized due to the lack of a dedicated curriculum. The activities of school clubs are also insufficient. Most clubs cannot operate outside school hours. No separate class hours have been allocated, and the necessary facilities have not been prepared.
- There is a lack of leaders to manage and educate students in these activities outside school hours. Areas that could be present in our schools, such as physical education, art, music, and handicrafts, are either absent or limited to two hours per week. Due to the large number of students and limited capacity, not all interested students can participate.
- No specific time is allocated for school clubs, and most do not maintain continuous work.
- An afforestation club could also be established.
- The work of sports, art, and folklore clubs is conducted outside school hours.
- Most clubs are established merely to fulfill regulatory requirements, and their work is often superficial.
- Leisure education should also be considered for adults. Literacy and technical courses are examples. These courses are often more focused on teaching a profession.
- In developed countries, there are night schools, correspondence courses, citizenship education, parent education, and primary, secondary, and university-level courses. There are also educational programs for adults in literature, art appreciation, painting, sculpture, music, dance, sewing, and photography. There are also programs covering business and current topics. If a diploma is awarded, it becomes part of adult education.
- Some programs are planned and run by students themselves. Others involve collaboration with faculty and administrative members. Associations, clubs, religious organizations, and student unions play active roles in these studies.
LEISURE ACTIVITIES IN OUR COUNTRY: Men’s activities often involve non-effortful, non-constructive, non-creative characteristics such as watching, aimless wandering, and resting. Leisure education directs individuals toward constructive, active pursuits.
- Leisure activities are not well-organized. The establishment of both voluntary and official organizations is a goal.
- The distinction between men and women is more pronounced in the fields of leisure activities.
- Working hours are gradually shortening, and leisure time is increasing. Schools should be utilized as central hubs in this regard.
- Activities offered to groups should be programmed.
- Costs should be planned.
- Support from voluntary organizations should be secured.
- Teachers should be enrolled in leisure leadership courses according to their talents.
- All school personnel should participate in school-centered activities.
- Support should be obtained from public institutions, professional associations, unions, and religious organizations.
TYPOLOGIES OF LEISURE ACTIVITIES:
- Creative Participation: Model building, composing, writing, creating.
- Productive Participation: Copying a model (fulfills a role, plays basketball, sings, plays an instrument).
- Emotional Participation: The appreciator (listens to music, visits an art exhibition…).
- Passive Participation: Boredom, escapism, spectacle, causing harm or injury. Excesses, crime, guilt, killing time, escaping from reality.
GROUPING OF ACTIVITIES:
- Physical: Walking, travel, sports.
- Artistic: Engagement with various branches of fine arts.
- Practical Tasks: Handicrafts, manual work.
- Intellectual: Reading.
- Social: Entertainment, visiting.
A student who spends their leisure time as a participant develops a healthy, vigorous, and sound personality. It fosters integration; an individual who learns the folklore of different regions shares, adopts, and cherishes that culture, and its dissemination further promotes integration.
Churches have undertaken leisure education. By attracting active individuals through these means, they ensure broader participation in church life. They prepare special programs for youth and community members. The aim is to attract new members to religious life through camps, conferences, picnics, etc. Modern churches with leisure rooms, gyms, music festivals, and art galleries are sometimes subject to criticism.
In the Islamic religion, contributions have been made in providing religious education to the youth, developing religious music, and popularizing and developing calligraphy and architectural decoration.
The Turkish Red Crescent, by opening summer camps, provides opportunities for music, folklore, art, handicrafts, and making new friends.
Education that should be done in the classroom should be done there; education that should be done in nature should be done in nature. When such education is lacking, an unfillable gap remains in a person’s development. Alongside school life, every young person should undoubtedly have a camp life experience. France, for instance, has implemented a system of two-month summer camps and education.
In neighborhoods, workspaces for these activities should be established. Objectives can include: opening facilities for language and literature, fine arts, music, painting, decorative arts; organizing concerts, folklore events, and exhibitions; promoting photography; spreading all branches of sports; organizing competitions; preparing performances; publishing; providing aid; bringing in mobile doctors; and opening libraries.
Interests within schools should be identified, and contributions should be made to the development of sports like athletics, swimming, wrestling, and diving, in which many people can participate.
Out-of-school youth should also be addressed.
Summer camps should be organized.
Parents should be educated through short-term courses.
