Feedback from French students

Feedback from French students

1/ Quiterie Landèche-1ES3

I had an opportunity to spend one wonderful week in Turkey. Thanks to the Comenius project I met students from Poland, Romania, Germany, Italy and of course Turkey. I am convinced that these meetings are the best way to get to know each other, to discover new cultures and to eliminate sterile stereotypes. For me, Turkey was, for sure, one of the countries I knew the least about. What I did know about Turkey was what is broadcast by the media, what is said by politicians and teachers. I knew that Turkey had problems joining the European Union, I also knew that Turkey had a very rich history with the Ottoman Empire and that, once, Turkey had been the cultural center of the world. This was what I had heard about, so I realized that I actually really knew very little.
After spending six days in Turkey, after visiting Bursa and Istanbul, after meeting Turkish families, Turkish students and teachers I now have a completely different idea. Since coming back to France I keep sharing with others what I discovered in only six days. What I will always remember is the way we were welcomed and hosted. I do not have enough English vocabulary to describe how amazing and how extraordinary Turkish people were. They showed us a different image of Turkey; a country with an impressive culture, a country where dancing and singing is part of every day life, a country where History is in every street, bazaar and mosque… Visiting Bursa with our Turkish hosts was very important for me because they told us their story, a story we had sometimes never heard about. All Turkish people were very kind and friendly toward us, we were received by the Governor and the Mayor and we actually felt important for a few hours! I really want to finish this very short report by saying that these meetings and projects do change mentalities. Thanks to the internet we continue to keep in touch with other students who were in Turkey with us, and the words that we exchange help us understand different cultures than ours and I am sure these relations will last !
I really want to thank each person who contributed to and participated in this project.
‘Immigrants Past and Present - Towards Greater Integration?’ This project was a step in the right direction, towards a change in mentalities. Today I hope that I will be able to go back once to Turkey and I also hope that other students will have the chance to participate in this kind of project.
çok teşekkür ederim


2/ Ines Fresko 1ES3

Thanks to the Comenius project, we had the opportunity to spend six wonderful days in Turkey, that we’ll never forget.
Before going to Turkey, we had worked on the issue of immigration: we met a French ‘pied noir’, an immigrant who moved to mainland France from Algeria in 1961 during the war of independence. We made a film about her story and her integration into French society. This preparation helped us to understand some interesting things about immigration and integration in France, before going to Turkey. Then, after presenting our film and by listening to the other students, I realised that immigration was a very important topic in our society, and that migrants had lots of things to teach us. It opened my mind and made me more tolerant.
I had never been to Turkey before and in my mind, the Muslim religion was very important there. In reality, it wasn’t what I thought: lots of Turkish women don’t wear a veil, Turkish people don’t pray as much as I had imagined …
But finally, I changed my mind : I saw a country which looks like mine in some respects and I discovered a new language, new customs (such as having tea ten times a day… !) : a new culture.
But especially, I discovered Turkish people, and I think I will never forget that. Turkish people are very friendly, they always take care of you, they always smile, they always joke ! We were treated like Very Important People : we were impressed but also very happy to be there and to meet students from the Police College.
That’s why I would thank all the Turkish people for this wonderful week. It was such a fantastic experience, and be sure I will never forget that!


3/ Louison Muller

I was very happy to spend one week with you in Turkey. This comenius project was a great success. It was very pleasant to present our movie and our project to all the other students from all the other European countries. During the Comenius project we had learned a lot of things about immigration and integration. We also discovered Turkey which is a fabulous country.
For me Turkey was a new country I had never visited it before. Before visiting this country I thought Turkey was a country where the religion was very important and that Turks were more radical on this issue, especially on the womens’ rights issue. Thanks to this project visit I have changed my mind, I see Turkey as a very modern country where some cities look like some Western European cities.
I was very impressed by the way Turkish people welcomed us; they really are very friendly and kind. Thanks to them we had the opportunity to visit amazing places and to understand a different but a wonderful culture. Students of “Polis Koleji” were extraordinary and they hosted us in a way I had never experienced before. I will always remember the show they prepared; I just loved their performances. This evening was awesome!
The meetings with students from different countries helped me to improve my English, it made me realize some things about immigration and integration.

I’d like to thank everyone for everything! I spent amazing moments in Turkey!









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