Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, kuruluşuyla birlikte çökmüş bir imparatorluğun harabelerini miras olarak devralmıştı. Cumhuriyet değerlerinin benimsenmesi, toplumsal, kültürel ve iktisadi gelişimin sağlanması ve halkın uygarlık düzeyine erişmesi hedefi, köye ve köylüye yönelik eğitim politikalarına verilen önemin artmasını sağladı. Çünkü halkın çok büyük bir kısmı köylerde yaşamakla birlikte buralarda okuma yazma oranı çok düşüktü. Temel geçim kaynağı olan tarımsal üretim ise ilkel yöntemlerle yapılıyordu ve çiftçi emeğinin ürününü verimli hale getirecek bilgi ve birikimden yoksundu. Köyün ve köylünün kalkınmasına yönelik eğitim faaliyetleri köy muallim mekteplerinin açılması, Köyişleri Komisyonu'nun toplanması, halkevlerinin, eğitmen kurslarının açılması ve nihayet 1937-38'de açılmaya başlanan köy öğretmen okullarının 1940'da köy enstitülerine dönüşmesiyle sonuçlandı. 1945-46 öğretim yılına gelindiğinde ülke çapında açılan köy enstitülerinin sayısı 21'e ulaşmıştı. Bu enstitülerden biri de Aksu Köy Enstitüsü'ydü. Bu çalışmada "Karanlık Sokağı Aydınlatan" Aksu Köy Enstitüsü'nün kaynaklardan elde edilen verilere ek olarak Aksu Köy Enstitüsü 1948 mezunu bir (Melek Doruk Atçakarlar), 1946 mezunu ve şu anda hayatta olmayan iki (Mustafa Avcı ve İbrahim Güldal) öğretmen ile yapılmış görüşmelerden elde edilen verilerle, enstitü yaşamının çeşitli boyutlarına kişisel örnekler sunularak ışık tutulması planlanmıştır

By its establishment, Turkish Republic took over the ruins of a collapsed empire as heritage. The aim of the adoption of Republican values, ensuring social, cultural and economic development led to an increased importance given to educational policies for villages and villagers. Besides the majority of the people were living in villages, the rate of literacy was low there. Agricultural production as the main livelihood was done using primitive methods and farmers lacked information and knowledge to make their product of labor efficient. Training activities for the development of the village and the villagers resulted in opening Village Teacher Schools (Köy Muallim Mektepleri), aggregation of Village Affairs Committee, Foundation of People’s Houses, Village Educator Courses, and finally transforming Village Teacher Schools (Köy Öğretmen Okulları) which began to be opened in 1937-38, to Village Institutes in 1940. In 1945-46 academic year the number of nationwide village institutes opened had reached 21. One of these institutes was Aksu Village Institute. In this study, it is aimed to evaluate various dimensions of generally all village institutes and particularly Aksu Village Institute like establishment phase, student admission to school, difficulties experienced in the institutes, educational activities, personal relationships and daily life, health conditions, the relationship with villages around the institute and other village institutions, requirements after graduation, closure process of institutes. In the study the information was obtained from the witnesses in addition to first and second hand-written sources. Applying to personal memories is frequent in the studies about village institutes. Indeed in historical researches, it is a common situation to apply witnesses in addition to written sources to enlighten the historical facts. Thus, in this study personal examples about various dimensions of the village institutes were presented by the data obtained from interviews with three retired teachers graduated from Aksu Village Institute in addition to the written sources. Document analyze method was used to analyze written sources and content analyze method was used to analyze interview data. After the approval of Village Institutes Law on 17th April 1940, Aksu Village Institute was founded in the place called “Dark Street” next to the ruins of Perge, 16 kilometers east of Antalya province. Educational activities began in 8 barracks which were made at first by a team from Eskişehir Çifteler Village Institute. Then the main buildings were made by the teachers and students. According to the law, every village institute could admit students only from the villages that it was responsible for. So Aksu Village Institute admitted students from the villages of Antalya, Muğla and Mersin. Because of the financial problems, students even came to school difficultly. Whereas the number of students remained below the quota in early years, in the following years, the number of students applied and were accepted to the schoolhas increased. Between 1940-1953 (except 1942-1943 academic year) 1062 students were enrolled in the Aksu Village Institute. 373 of these students left school before completing their education because of death, disease, truancy, flunk, expulsion and etc. and 749 of them graduated. During this period, because of the World War II, insufficient portion of the country’s budget was allocated to the education. Therefore in the early years there had been problems in meeting some of the needs of students in Aksu as in other institutes. But in the following years these problems were solved. For example at the beginning bread and some other foods were inadequate. But then a bakery was built in Aksu Village Institute. Moreover the institute began to produce its own food by agricultural activities. The first curriculum of the village institute was established in 1943. During the 5 years of this education, students attended three types of courses. The first group consisted of culture, science and teaching courses (totally 114 weeks), second group consisted of agricultural courses and studies (totally 58 weeks) and third group consisted of technical courses and studies (totally 58 weeks). As the teachers interviewed told great importance was given to practical works at the institute. Arithmetic, geometry, nature, physics and chemistry lessons were given in the fields, workshop, barn, and hencoops with the methods based on practice. History, geography and Turkish courses were also taught with sightseeing which based on researching and observing. Students participated in the activities like farming, blacksmithing, carpentry, and sewing. In the institutes courses such as painting, music and physical education had an important place as well. Besides an intensive educational and work pace time was left for leisure and recreational activities. Despite their large population healthy job sharing, work discipline and human relations were sustained in the institutes. The teacherstudent relationships in the institutes were based on love and respect. Democratic internal functioning and family life style were dominant. When there was a problem instead of disciplining students by force, they were provided to internalize the rules. The interviewed teachers gave examples showing the existence of a democratic understanding and tolerance approach to the students. In the institutes health services were provided in a specific order. Aksu Village Institute had a doctor just after its foundation. The doctor of the institute was concerning with the health of all the members of the Institute and their families. As well as she was dealing with the health of the surrounding villagers through visits, health controls, audits and conferences. The support of the institute to the village and villagers that the institute was responsible for was not limited with health issues. In solving the literacy problems of the villagers and educating them, in the revitalization of cultural wealth, folk dances and arts, institute teachers had important tasks. In Ulus newspaper important information about the interaction of Aksu Village Institute with the surrounding villages was given. In this article it was stated that the institute doctor was looking after the patients of 25 villages without stopping day and night, so the institute was known as “our school” in surrounding villages. In the same article the writer says that in just one years old institute students not only made their own works but also repaired the villagers’ cars and plows in workshops and thought the people of 14 villages weaving under the mainstream of teachers and masters. After graduation teachers were given a fee of 3 months, enough land in villages they work to make living and use for course exercises. School buildings and houses of the teachers in villages were made by village elders. Whereas they were expected to work for 20 years in the villages they were appointed. Tasks of the teachers in villages were laid down by the Law of Village Schools and Institutes Organization in 1942. According to this as well as educating village children, they were responsible for educating adults. Accordingly the teachers graduated from village institutes engaged in many works to provide the village develop culturally, socially and economically. Interviewed teachers said that they were well met by the people in the villages they worked after graduation, easily communicated with them, but had some problems related with physical conditions. They added that the knowledge they had acquired at the institute provided convenience. The opposition from within the political party against institutes during the establishment phase showed the reflections together with criticisms occurred in later stages and caused to the termination of the project in a short period of time (14 years). The criticisms against the institutes can be classified in three groups as criticisms about opening goal, functioning and the success of them. But there are many opposing views against these criticisms. Interviewed teachers also mentioned that they think so. Although the village institutes project is short-lived, it has set an example for the educational systems of many countries around the world. It also continues to be a matter still being researched and debated in Turkey. While some of the 21 village institutes have been studied by the researchers, there is not enough research about some others Archival and unexamined documents hosted by the Institutes expect researches to rake up new information.