Exploring social justice education in Türkiye: Unveiling the impact on university students' social justice perspectives

Abstract

The significance of social justice in education has become increasingly important, as education plays a crucial role in empowering individuals and fostering a dynamic environment that promotes awareness of social justice issues. This study focuses on exploring social justice education (SJE) within the context of Türkiye, where research in this area is relatively limited, particularly in terms of classroom‐based investigations. This qualitative study adopted the case study design and facilitates as an extracurricular activity focusing on sustainable development goals, given the absence of a predefined curriculum or specific lesson plans for SJE. The study involved 15 students from a state university preparatory English class and utilized diverse online resources. The study's results indicated a significant transformative influence, specifically in enhancing the comprehension of the scope of social justice and fostering critical thinking abilities. The implications of the study are discussed in detail.