Abidin Özmen’in Maarif Vekilligi ve Faaliyetleri (1934-1935)

Abstract

Abidin Özmen, çöken bir devletin son yillarinda dogmus olup egitim ve bürokrasi hayatinin ilk evresini bu kaotik süre zarfinda yasamistir. Milli Mücadele ve Cumhuriyet dönemlerinde gerçeklesen askeri, siyasi, ulusal, laik ve modernlesmeye yönelik gelismeler onun tutum ve düsünce dünyasi üzerinde yeni ve kalici etkiler birakmistir. Özmen’in, Osmanli’dan Cumhuriyet’e geçiste önemli görevlerde bulunmus olmasinin yani sira birçok toplumsal ve siyasal olaya da sahitlik etmis olmasi onu yakin dönem Türkiye’sinin önemli bir profili kilmaktadir. Ayrica görevleri icabiyla farkli bölge, sehir ve tasrada bulunup buralarin toplumsal, kültürel ve yerel yasantilarina tanik olmasi bir kez daha onun geride biraktiklarini önemli kilmaktadir. Özellikle tek partili yillarda ismi siklikla anilan, çaliskan bir siyasetçi ve bürokrat olmasinin ötesinde devrin egemen ideolojisi olan Kemalist inkilâplara sadik birisi oldugu bir gerçektir. Kaymakamlik, mebusluk, umumi müfettislik, valilik, maarif vekilligi ve Türk Dil Kurumu Baskanligi gibi önemli vazifeleri üstlenmistir. Özmen ile ilgili akademik ve genel çalismalarda genis bir literatür ortaya çikarilmasina karsin bilhassa 1934-1935 yillari arasinda gerçeklesen Maarif Vekilligi süresince egitim ve ögretimin yayginlasmasi ve sorunlarinin giderilmesi ile ilgili yürütmüs oldugu çalismalarin yeterince ele alinmadigi tespit edilmistir. Bu çalismada, Özmen’in hayati, düsünce dünyasi, bürokrasi ve siyasi hayati bir bütün halinde kisaca ele alinmistir. Ancak çalismanin daha fazla odaklanacagi konu ise siyasi ve bürokratik hayati içerisinde erken cumhuriyet yillarinin ilk yillarinda Türk maarifinin gelismesine ve sorunlarinin çözümünde yapmis oldugu çalismalar üzerinedir.Abidin Ozmen was born in the last years of a collapsed state and lived the first phase of his education and bureaucracy during this chaotic period. Military, political, national, secular and modernization developments that took place during the National Struggle and the Republic had new and lasting effects on his attitudes and thoughts. Ozmen had important roles in the transition from the Ottoman Empire to the Republic, as well as being a witness to many social and political events, which makes him an important profile of recent Turkey. In addition, being in different regions, cities and provinces due to his duties and witnessing the social, cultural and local life of these places once again makes what he left behind important. It is a fact that besides being a hardworking politician and bureaucrat, whose name is frequently mentioned especially in the single-party years, he was loyal to the Kemalist reforms, which was the dominant ideology of the period. He undertook important duties such as district governor, deputy, general inspector, governor, deputy of education and the Presidency of the Turkish Language Institution. Although a wide literature has been revealed in academic and general studies about Ozmen, it has been determined that the studies he carried out on the dissemination of education and training and the elimination of its problems during the Ministry of Education which took place between 1934-1935, were not adequately addressed. In this study, Ozmen's life, world of thought, bureaucracy and political life will be briefly discussed. However, the subject that the study will focus more on will be on the development of Turkish education in the first years of the early republican years in his political and bureaucratic life and the studies he made in solving its problems.