Reflections on a Local Educational Initiative: The Case of the KodlaManisa Project

The most strategic social role of educational systems within global modernization processes is to transform children from passive digital consumers into active individuals who produce technological value. In line with this vision, this research aims to reveal the experiences, challenges, and future expectations of teachers implementing the “KodlaManisa” project in Manisa. The study adopts a convergent parallel mixed-methods case study design, where quantitative and qualitative data were collected simultaneously and integrated for analysis with a qualitative-priority orientation. Data were gathered through surveys from 34 teachers, while semi-structured interviews were conducted with five teachers selected from this group. Qualitative data served as the primary unit of analysis, while quantitative data were utilized to support the resulting thematic structure and enhance the reliability of the findings. Results indicate that teachers position coding education as an important component of the modern system and a skill that should be acquired at an early age. The project process transformed teachers’ social status from “technical service staff” to a “productive and visionary educator.” In particular, the social approval created by the successes achieved in festivals has formed a strong source of motivation for both teachers and students. However, in a notable contrast, although 91.2% of the teachers actively participated in training of trainers’ programs, 70.6% still feel “partially competent,” also influenced by the rapid change in programming languages. This highlights the need for discipline-specific training and continuous professional development. Furthermore, high hardware costs, technical infrastructure inadequacies, and the status of the course were identified as the main structural barriers preventing the widespread implementation of the practice. In conclusion, the research emphasizes that the success of coding education is possible through a systematic structure strengthened by institutional incentive mechanisms. It is considered that the integration of activities into curricula, the improvement of physical infrastructure standards, and the continuous institutional support of teachers’ pedagogical competencies are critical factors for local projects to transform into permanent educational models.

Cite this article as: Aladağ, Y., & Ateş, Ö. (2026). Reflections on a local educational initiative: the case of the KodlaManisa project. HAYEF: Journal of Education, 23, 0095, doi:10.5152/hayef.2026.25140.