Enabling the digital ‘makers’ of the future in Turkey
Providing access to technology is the first step towards digital inclusion. In Turkey, Turkcell has opened next-generation technology laboratories in Science and Art Centers (BİLSEM) across the country and is providing training for gifted children.
Whiz Kids, which was set up with the support of the Ministry of National Education, enables young people who show exceptional talent to realise their potential by giving them access to new technologies.
Whiz Kids gives many 8 to 16-year-olds the opportunity to learn about artificial intelligence, coding, space science, 3D printing, robotics and other technologies. With 33 laboratories in 27 provinces, Turkcell has reached more than 50,000 young people over the last three years. The face-to-face training is supported online and 220,000 hours of online courses have been taken. As Turkcell says, Whiz Kids takes Turkey’s greatest assets and helps them to use technology to shape the future.
Turkcell’s CEO, Murat Erkan, states: “The Whiz Kids project creates infrastructure for Turkey’s national technology move. We prepare our children according to the necessities of this era. With this understanding, Turkcell continues to establish Whiz Kids tech labs all around Turkey. To date, thousands of children have received tech education. According to surveys, 84% of these kids say their interest in technology has increased.”
