Diyanet İlmi Dergi

Öz

This study examines alifbas prepared for use in teaching the reading and recitation of the Qur’an. The primary aim is to analyze the alifbas published from Kur’an Okumaya Giriş - the first official alifba issued by the Presidency of Religious Affair - up to the year 2012; to evaluate the changes observed in the writing and instructional structuring of alifbas, to identify the pedagogical principles and methods adopted in their use, and to provide suggestions for the design of future alifbas in light of historical experience. The study begins in 1972, as previous scholarship had already addressed alifbas published before this date. It is limited to the year 2012 to deliberately exclude from its scope the effects of the abolition of age restrictions previously imposed on Qurʾan courses, which are believed to have significantly influenced alifba instruction. The research is significant in that it represents one of the few studies focused specifically on alifba teaching. Adopting a qualitative research design, the study employs document analysis, and the data are interpreted using descriptive analysis methods. Within the examined period, three main instructional methods were identified in Qurʾanic alphabet instruction: the letter-based method, the syllable-based method, and the sound-based method. While the two methods reveal the common teaching approaches of the period analyzed, the sound-based method was introduced in 2010. The study also found that since the early 2000s, specially designed handbooks for children, which include the relationships between letters and object sounds, have started to be prepared.