Türkiye Scholarships is a publicly funded scholarship program, which can be deemed as the equivalent of government-sponsored scholarships in the U.S., UK, and Australia. Systematic grants provided by Turkey’s publicly funded scholarships to international students dates back to 1992. Although a limited number of international students were able to receive scholarships due to bilateral agreements, the first initiative to have a set strategy and program was the Grand Student Project of 1992.

More concrete steps began to be taken with the efficient implementation of the scholarship program, which began to expand from Turkic republics to other regions. With the establishment of the Presidency for Turks Abroad and Related Communities (YTB) in 2010 and the structure that the scholarship program reached, competition with other contemporary initiatives became inevitable.

The first of these steps was to restructure all higher education scholarships under the name of “Türkiye Scholarships” in 2012. As part of Turkey’s changing foreign policy vision, a multidimensional beneficiary student policy was put into effect. Online applications were implemented, promotion campaigns were realized and the extent of the scholarship was expanded to attract more inclusive and qualified masses. Within the scope of this policy, scholarships were extended towards related communities in Central Asia and the Balkans, and Middle Eastern countries with strong religious and cultural ties. Turkey also began to focus on South America and Africa as a consequence of the developing relations with the two continents. While only 10% of the annual beneficiary students were from Africa before 2012, this figure now stands at more than 25%.

For this kind of program to transform into a utility that would support long-term policies, it is important to make it a brand in Turkey and abroad. In this respect, it could be asserted that Türkiye Scholarships is accepted by respondent institutions to a certain extent. However, time is needed for public institutions to truly adopt this program with its vision and strategy. When evaluated thoroughly, it can be observed that the scholarship program requires development and more recognition within the domestic Turkish polity. In order to address this issue, promoting the program and its achievements domestically is a must.

As part of Turkey’s changing foreign policy vision, a multidimensional beneficiary student policy was put into effect. Online applications were implemented, promotion campaigns were realized and the extent of the scholarship was expanded to attract more inclusive and qualified masses

Meanwhile, it can be stated that the program is recognized and closely observed by the official authorities of countries. In the past 6 years, strides were made in terms of becoming a brand through institutional identity. This was achieved by the increased program applications and amenities provided to students. The most important step of becoming a brand will be through the alumni of Türkiye Scholarships. 1000 alumni of Turkish universities who graduated with provided scholarships gathered at the “Turkey Again: Alumni Meeting” event held on 25 November, 2017, in Istanbul. This was an important promotional activity that showcased the amenities of Turkey in terms of scholarship and education. Alumni meetings across 30 different countries are expected to carry great weight as they are Turkey’s most profound initiative in the field of public diplomacy.

The most essential vision of Türkiye Scholarships is to provide scholarships to international students in order for these students to fulfill the human resources need of their home countries. It is observed that beneficiary students who graduated from Turkish educational institutions are also employed by Turkey’s public and private enterprises abroad. These very students have been employed by Turkey’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency, Maarif Foundation, Turkish Airlines, and Anadolu Agency, as an achievement for the country. The alumni make important contributions to both their own countries and Turkey by working for Turkish firms abroad.

Along with the brand of Türkiye Scholarships, reconnecting with international alumni and efforts to strengthen their ties with Turkey have taken place in recent years with the initiatives of YTB. Alumni attempts to form associations along with meetings that allow them to come together with Turkish institutions will create a new dimension in Turkey’s soft power.

Türkiye Scholarships have also created significant mobility within civil society. Cooperation with NGOs were achieved to provide academic support along with cultural and social guidance for beneficiary students and this led to the establishment of associations related to international students in many cities. While these associations will increase student awareness in many cities, they will also allow for international students to learn about Turkey, Turkish society, and culture, along with strengthening their ties with the country.

The most essential vision of Türkiye Scholarships is to provide scholarships to international students in order for these students to fulfill the human resources need of their home countries.

In terms of quantity, it can be observed that there is an increasing indirect interest towards Turkey via the scholarship program. There has also been in an increase in the number of international students studying in Turkey with their own means. Those who applied but were unable to benefit from the scholarships, approximately 100,000, still choose Turkey as a study location and usually come with the financial support of their families.

The academic benefits of attracting the greatest minds to Turkish universities through Türkiye Scholarships is one of the most prominent aspects of the program. These students enrich Turkey’s academic accumulation in terms of university environment, regional studies, international publications, comparative thesis, or theses on their own countries. Moreover, academics also become more experienced in different regions and countries through their joint researches with international students. It is now possible for visiting academics within the scope of Türkiye Scholarships to conduct joint research in various fields with Turkish academics. Articles written by these students are also published in international publications. There is no doubt that their academic endeavors and efforts lead to becoming more visible internationally.

In addition to this, Türkiye Scholarships also leads to the opening and prevalence of Turkish language centers at Turkish universities. Turkish language centers, which were present only in several universities have now opened at almost every university, and it is obligatory for universities with registered Türkiye Scholarships students to have their own Turkish language centers. Now, Turkish universities are first opening their own Turkish language centers before applying to be part of the Türkiye Scholarships scheme.

Türkiye Scholarships will eventually become the most important diplomacy tool of Turkey to widen its scope of influence and soft power in countries that it attracts students from.

Today, international student mobility across the world is closely related to the parameters of economic development, cultural interaction, production, and the transfer of information and public diplomacy. Many countries have been developing national policies in the context of political-cultural interaction and economic return. Developed countries are coordinating their planning policies for scholarship and self-funded students, and consider international students as a major instrument of public diplomacy.

Turkey has also recently began to show growing interest in the subject of international students. Turkey’s endeavors and support in this regard have concurred with the strained global political context due to the Trump effect, Brexit, and the rise of the far-right in Europe. Current political uncertainties and the rise in anti-immigrant discourses, particularly in the West, spur international students to look for new alternatives. The present conjuncture also affects the choices of international students to a great extent and presents Turkey significant opportunities to become the center of attraction for international students.

Current political uncertainties and the rise in anti-immigrant discourses, particularly in the West, spur international students to look for new alternatives.

When viewed from a broader perspective, it can be seen that international student mobility is open to larger masses now, which means that those who were unable to access international higher education in the past can now take part in this mobility. Among countries gaining or aspiring to gain economic strength, there is a rapidly growing demand in studying abroad. This mobility is obvious especially in countries such as China, India, and South Korea.

In countries that are prominent in the competition for drawing international students, the importance of the subject has been well known for a while and long-term strategic policies regarding this matter have been developed. It is believed that international students create added value in the countries they study in, including areas in academia and science, economic development, and the creation of a multi-cultural environment. More specifically, international students make great contributions in terms of skilled workforce, institutional improvement, inter-societal understanding, and diplomatic prestige.

Efforts exerted on international students also present the background and values of the host country to other societies. Therefore, multifaceted activities are carried out in the field of public diplomacy with the participation of state institutions and organizations, the private sector, and non-governmental organizations.

International student mobility is open to larger masses now, which means that those who were unable to access international higher education in the past can now take part in this mobility.

According to data presented by UNESCO, countries such as China, India, Germany, and South Korea are the biggest sources of international students. Looking at the topic generally, 52 percent of international students come from Asia, 25 percent from Europe, 8 percent from Africa, and 5 percent from Latin America. Currently, around 5 million students are studying outside of their home countries and this number is expected to exceed 8 million in a few years. Judging from the benefits that international students bring, it is likely that competition in this field will increase.

Specifically considering the economic dimension of the subject, the export of educational services is estimated to be a 60 to 100 billion dollar industry worldwide. As can be seen from the table presented below, in the U.S., which is home to 20% of international students, exporting educational services has contributed 39.4 billion dollars to the economy in 2016, and for Australia, educational services have contributed 28 billion Austrian dollars (roughly 20 billion U.S. dollars), as an export item. Including services such as consultation, travel, housing, guest expenditures etc., along with educational services, it can clearly be seen that this is a considerably important economic sector.

The education spending of international students has made international higher education the 3rd biggest export item in Australia. The contributions of immigrants and especially international students to innovation in the U.S. can also be seen to be at a non-negligible level if judged from the number of patents registered. Again, Canada has introduced regulations to its migration policy that make it possible for international students to stay after graduation, increasing their academic and economic contributions to the country.

International education projects in Turkey

Although Turkey is a country that has considerable experience in the field of international education, it can be seen that globally competitive and systematic policies and policies have only recently been implemented. Turkey receives international students mostly via scholarships and it can be observed that since the 1950s there has been an increase in scholarship opportunities for international students in Turkey via international agreements. The “Grand Student Project,” which began in 1992 is an example pf a systematic program that made it possible for many students, especially from Turkic countries, to study in Turkish universities via scholarships.

Since the 2000s, many important steps have been taken in the field of international education in Turkey. A couple of these are: The Turkish Council of Higher Education’s (CoHE) decision to allow flexibility in the admission and fee policies for international students in 2010, the decision of the Ministry of Economy in 2012 to provide incentives for universities participating in international education expos, the inclusion of international education projects in the 10th development plan in 2013, and in the same year, the launch of the Study in Turkey portal, along with the implementation of new regulations regarding visa and residency permits, health insurance, and work permits.

Currently, over 7 million students are receiving education in Turkish universities. Around 1.6 percent of them are international students (more specifically, the number of total students in higher education in Turkey is 7,560,371 and 125,138 of them are international students). Among OECD countries, this ratio is on average 6 percent. Needless to say, there are significant differences between countries. For example, while in the U.K. this ratio is 21 percent and in Australia 20 percent, in Germany it stands at 8 percent and in the U.S. around 5 percent.

Currently, over 7 million students are receiving education in Turkish universities. Around 1.6 percent of them are international students (more specifically, the number of total students in higher education in Turkey is 7,560,371 and 125,138 of them are international students).

With statistics provided by the CoHE, the graph below depicts the annual changes in the number of international students in Turkey.

Turkey’s goal for the number of international students in Turkey for 2022 is 200,000. This number is actually well below Turkey’s potential. In the Global Trends in International Student Recruitment Report published in 2017, according to a narrow study conducted among 1,623 students, Turkey ranked 11th among the first 25 countries in international student preference. This is important as it reflects the fact that policies pursued by the government are on the track of achieving their objectives, and if these policies are maintained or accelerated in this direction, Turkey really does have the potential to become the hub of international students in the near future.

The performances of the Occupational and Technical High Schools have been evaluated by the Occupational and Technical Education General Administration, which is part of the Ministry of Education.

In the preface of the report that was made public, the Minister of Education Ziya Selcuk emphasized the importance of “the necessity of creating our educational ecosystem in processes based on data and participation, in order to determine the areas that are required to be improved in Occupational and Technical Education, examine them with adequate research and understand them better, and then develop applicable and sustainable solutions with the involvement of stakeholders.”

The project was conducted by the deputy Education Minister Mahmut Ozer, and the report was prepared by Prof. Kemal Varim Numanoglu, head of the Occupational and Technical Administration, together with Dr. H. Eren Suna, Dr. Hande Tanberkan, Emine Eroglu, Umare Altun, Yusuf Cidem, Asli Demircan, Emel Bakirkaya and Aysim Secen.

2,489 Occupational and Technical Anatolian High Schools, 633 multi-program Anatolian High Schools and 372 Occupational Education Centers were evaluated with an external quality assessment.

A project is intended to bring the functional potentials of Occupational and Technical Schools and Institutions to the highest level in order to use public sources efficiently and productively, to improve the quality and productivity of educational services, and to highlight the success of schools and institutions. With this, according to the ministry, it will be possible to extend the number of schools that provide quality services with limited public resources.

The report states that “for those students, who are taking occupational education, to be able to take part in the global economy and to be part of the production process, are some of the most effective solutions to the problems of employment gaps and to find the ‘required’ human sources to various industries.”

The final goal of this project is to train qualified work forces who are productive, enterprising, innovative, and have occupational ‘values’ and work ‘ethics,’ and which add value to the economy.

*Written by Selahattin Emre Celebi 

Among many other projects conducted for international students, Türkiye Scholarships, run by the Presidency for Turks Abroad and Related Communities (YTB), has a significant function. Türkiye Scholarships, which came into effect as a more comprehensive version of the government’s scholarship program in terms of scope and geography after being revised with the foundation of YTB, was introduced in 2012 as a foreign policy instrument and a dynamic supporter of the works conducted in this field in line with government programs.

While scholarship opportunities in Turkey for higher education were hardly heard about before 2012, today, a whole slew of promising young people from Latin America, the Far East and disadvantaged regions of Africa choose Turkey in order to pursue their studies. This is all thanks to Türkiye Scholarships.

The most striking example of this can be given from Africa. In the “2017 Report on the International Mobility of African Students” published by Campus France, a French national agency for the promotion of higher education, Turkey ranked 34th in 2010 among the countries chosen by African students. In 2015, Turkey ranked 13th as the number of African students choosing Turkey for their studies increased nine times within these five years. Turkey’s comprehensive scholarship program is the leading factor that has caused such an increase.

While almost unheard before 2012, today, a whole slew of promising young people from Latin America, the Far East and Africa choose Turkey to pursue their studies. This is all thanks to Türkiye Scholarships.

Consequently, Türkiye Scholarships largely contributes to the internationalization of university education in Turkey and will obviously become of Turkey’s most influential soft power instruments in the long term. The success of individuals who benefited from this program when they return to their home countries will strengthen Turkey’s international lobbying power in the long-run.

In countries that welcome a large number of international students, scholarship programs are thorough and structured. Thanks to the renowned and dynamic scholarship programs that focus on success and offer diversity, many countries are able to increase their number of international students.

In the “2017 Report on the International Mobility of African Students” published by Campus France, Turkey ranked 34th in 2010 among the countries chosen by African students. In 2015, Turkey ranked 13th as the number of African students choosing Turkey for their studies increased nine times within these five years.

Along with countries that have remained the prominent choices of international students, including the UK and U.S., some new actors who have been able to employ an effective scholarship scheme have also emerged. Over the past three years, China has provided scholarships to over 30,000 African students and declared that it intends to increase this number to 50,000 in the upcoming years. Beijing also announced that it will provide short-term training for 50,000 Africans. While the scope and opportunities presented by scholarships vary, it is safe to say that Türkiye Scholarships offers various appealing opportunities to international students.

With the implementation of the Türkiye Scholarships program, monthly grants and facilities such as housing, health, and transportation provided to students have been improved. In addition, students are provided with academic, social, cultural, and professional guidance services, which help them to spend their study years more productively.

The enhancement of the scholarship program has contributed to the appeal of Turkish universities to a large audience in many regions. Parallel to this, Turkey’s share in the international market is one of the primary goals.

At this point, Türkiye Scholarships executed an effective publicity strategy as an international scholarship program that supports the new Turkey vision and foreign policy initiatives. As part of this effective strategy, various international education fairs have been attended, and publicity activities presenting information on schools and universities are organized in the targeted countries. Thanks to the application system that is available in eight languages, an open application possibility, which is accessible almost everywhere in the world has been presented. Thanks to that, alongside the Balkan and Central Asian countries, from which Turkey always draws a large number of international students, applications from the Middle East, Africa and Far East have also soared. 

As the importance of qualified students in terms of increasing the recognition level of scholarship programs is considered, it can be seen that Türkiye Scholarships are preferred mostly by the students ranking in the top levels in their countries. Another important aspect is the professionals who work in important positions in public or private sectors in their countries and prospective academics employed in universities also prefer Turkey and Türkiye Scholarships for graduate education. Parallel to this, the ratio of international students graduating with high achievements in due course of their study periods is increasing each year.

According to an unpublished report by the YTB, the overall number of applications filed between 2012 and 2018 was over than 600,000. In 2018 alone, over 132,000 applications were received from 156 countries.

The number of applications that are received can also be taken as an indication of the worldwide recognition of Türkiye Scholarships. Today, an average of 100,000 students from around 160 countries annually apply to Türkiye Scholarships. According to an unpublished report by the YTB, the overall number of applications filed between 2012 and 2018 was over than 600,000. In 2018 alone, over 132,000 applications were received from 156 countries. Each year around 4000-5000 students are selected for the scholarships. Currently, over 16,000 students receive education in Turkey thanks to Türkiye Scholarships. Among the total of 125,000 international students in Turkey, the ratio of students with Türkiye Scholarships is around 13 percent. At this point, it can be seen that the scholarship program makes substantial contributions to the international recognition of higher education opportunities in Turkey.

Throughout 2018, the majority of applications were received from the Middle East, North Africa, Central Asia, and Sub-Saharan Africa, followed by Far and South Asia, the Balkans, and European countries.

From the locations of applications, it can also be inferred that Türkiye Scholarships addresses a broad geography. Throughout 2018, the majority of applications were received from the Middle East, North Africa, Central Asia, and Sub-Saharan Africa, followed by Far and South Asia, the Balkans, and European countries. By this, it can be stated that Türkiye Scholarships appeals to students from almost all parts of the world. Students coming from less-developed countries are hosted in various cities of Turkey as potential envoys that will enable interaction between Turkey and their countries in cultural, political, and economic terms.

We are currently witnessing serious competition in the field related to hosting international students. Many countries engage in multi-sector cooperation and manage this realm as a strategic field in which public diplomacy, politics, and economy intertwine. In this sense, Turkey is required to manage and improve its international student policy and scholarship programs more dynamically. It is of critical importance to support the country’s policies o international students, which will render Turkey capable to compete with others across the world. A strategy that will effectively coordinate the cooperation between civil society, the public and private sectors will ramp up Turkey’s competitive power. As is the case in most fields in today’s rapidly changing world, ensuring dynamism and introducing novelties by targeting quality will guarantee more achievements in this field as well.

A protocol called ‘Cooperation on Occupational Education’ has been signed by the Minister of Education, Ziya Selcuk, and Minister of Justice, Abdulhamit Gul, which intends to re-integrate those who have been convicted and those on probation into society.

During the signing ceremony, Abdulhamit Gul highlighted the importance of education by stating that education will shape the future of societies. He added, “An effective education requires continuity nd the Justice Ministry has continued the education of convicts, those arrested and those on probation, in order to re-integrate these people into society with a profession.”

In his statement during the ceremony he further added: “As the result of our government’s approach, the right of education will not be prevented in any situation.”

35 thousand convicts have been given the right to education in prisons up to now. “Not only distant education in high school and university level, but there are also convicts who are continuing with their masters and PhD education,” Gul added.

The Justice Minister also added that there are 50,000 convicts and detainees who are currently working with insurance rights under the structure of the Job Offices Administration.

Gul, who has been the Minister of Justice since 2017, emphasized the humanitarian approach of the protocol by stating, “If you cannot provide an education that human honor entails, if you cannot protect their human rights, if you cannot provide healthy standards for people in prison, then there is a problem there.”

Ziya Selcuk also expressed that the protection of the right of education is a basic human right that needs to be ensured without any type of discrimination.

Selcuk further stressed that being a prisoner does not mean that these individuals can be stripped from the right to education. “In this regard, to provide all kinds of education to the convicts and detainees in penal institutions and those on probation and old convicts who are redirected by ‘Protection Councils,’ that allow them to attend both formal and informal education activities is very important.”

*Written by Selahattin Emre Celebi.

The Ministry of National Education organized a consultation meeting with the sector representatives for the design and manufacturing of wooden toys, which are highly needed and imported in large proportions by Turkey. Turkey’s National Education Minister Ziya Selcuk stated that they aim to maintain wooden toy manufacturing with the leading representatives of the sector and contribute to domestic production in this line of work. 

Along with the sector representatives, the Deputy Minister of Education Mahmut Ozer, Vocational and Technical Education Director-General Kemal Numanoglu, department heads and relevant experts attended the meeting chaired by Selcuk.

Anadolu Agency reported that the decisions taken in the meeting include co-organizing a curriculum for wooden toy manufacturing education, sharing the sector representatives’ experience with pilot schools, enabling the sector’s support to the on-the-job training of teachers who are to provide education on the subject and to the organization of student training in real production spaces.

During the meeting, the sector representatives demanded the Ministry to conduct informing and training activities regarding the developments in the field. Besides, it was decided to design wooden toys and other materials that support children’s development in pre-school education and to found R&D units for the use of these materials in skills workshops planned to be established in schools.

Supporting domestic production

National Education Minister Selcuk stated that they attach great importance to the project on wooden toy manufacturing, adding that they chose a number of schools enjoying strong infrastructure in various provinces of Turkey for the newly initiated pilot project.

Selcuk pointed out that the pilot schools chosen for the project include Altındag Siteler Vocational Training Center in Ankara, Bayrampasa Inonu Vocational and Technical Anatolian High School in Istanbul, Inegol Haiı Sevim Yildiz Vocational and Technical Anatolian High School in Bursa and Dursunbey Vocational and Technical Anatolian High School in Balikesir. He also emphasized that they will increase the number of pilot schools according to the sector’s position in the relevant provinces.

Selcuk went on to say that the domestic production of wooden toys is quite low, adding:

“We wish to maintain this process with the sector representatives and contribute to domestic production in this field. In doing so, we will be able to develop joint projects and support each other as well as raising and training qualified human resources needed by the sector on the level of high school education. Thanks to that, we will support our own market with domestic production and strengthen our position in the global market.”

Imported toys valued at more than $3 billion

Throughout the meeting, it was underscored that wooden toy manufacturing is a major market in the world and countries are in a cutthroat competition in this field. It was also noted that the toys imported by Turkey for the past five years cost more than $3 billion. Considering these figures, the National Education Ministry’s support to the manufacturing activities by means of training and cooperation with the sector engaging in domestic toy production are important steps towards increasing Turkey’s competitive power.

Previously, the National Education Ministry started the first pilot program for the manufacturing of wooden toys in vocational and technical schools, which engage in production in the fields of furniture and decoration.

After the vision document titled “Education in 2023” was shared by Minister of National Education, Ziya Selcuk, education has once again become a central topic on the Turkish political and public agenda. The document sets many goals for the year 2023 regarding education in all its levels and forms and offers a vision in subjects such as fundamental policies, administration of education, assessment and evaluation, improvement of public resources, guidance and counseling services, foreign language teaching.

While in his speech Ziya Selcuk tried to subdue expectations by saying “Do not expect me to pull a rabbit out of a hat,” the vision document received remarkable attention. Even though the field of education in Turkey has undergone many important changes and shifts, it has not yet reached a desirable point with regards to its qualitative aspects. The position of the minister of national education changing constantly has led to instability in the education system. The output of our education system still fails to produce results that are internationally competitive. These reasons have resulted in people treating the vision document as a much-awaited prescription to address these chronic problems.

As someone who has worked in the field of education for many years and who follows developments in the field closely, I can say that the matters contained in the vision document are not entirely new and they have long been voiced on many platforms. But what makes the vision document important is that it has turned the goals toward the solution of these subjects that have seen many discussions and studies over the years into a concrete text and strategical plan. Moreover, this document is important in bringing stability to the educational system and providing a roadmap regardless of individual actors.

Turkey’s 2023 Education Vision document is important as it has transformed debates on education in Turkey over many years into a concrete text and strategic plan.

Heavy emphasis on the human aspect and morals

The philosophical background that serves as the basis for the 2023 education vision is the subject of the first section of the vision document. The document emphasizes how education is not a mechanical system but a human one and the human aspect needs to be the central focal point of it. The main mission of the 2023 education vision is stated as preparing children for the world of tomorrow in a way that is ours but still is different from us, with a perspective that encompasses both meaning and matter. Moreover, the document emphasizes the necessity of imparting a moral character that seeks the benefit of humanity as a whole to the individuals who grow up within the envisioned educational system. To accomplish this, as Ziya Selcuk has expressed that all parts of the education system, including schools, curricula, administrators, teachers, and students, need to be parts of a process of transition in a synchronized way. In this manner, the process will evolve into a campaign to transform education.

The “betterment” of the education system not with huge and sudden reforms but with small and effective touches is the most prominent theme of the vision document. While everyone is favorable to the talk of reforming the education system, it is obvious that the education system is currently suffering from an overload of reforms. Thus, the most suitable way to reach the desired goals is to avoid tiring the system with huge reforms and seek improvements through targeted small changes. Obviously if these small changes are implemented in a healthy approach, gradually the sum of their effects will constitute a reform.

In the 2023 education vision document, the discourse on creating policies based on data is heavily emphasized. Basing every implemented policy on data will ensure that the policies proceed on a healthy ground and heavily contribute to achieving the intended goals. The fact that the preparation for the policies targeted in the vision document will consist of three steps, first small and medium level pilot studies and then nation-wide implementation, will allow careful examination and evaluation of each policy.

The 2023 Vision Document emphasizes how education is not a mechanical system but a human one, and that this aspect must be the central focal point of education.

Differences in opportunity

The vision document states that each school will be analyzed and through the analysis a data-driven development model will be created for every school. The schools in Turkey can greatly differ from each other in terms of geography and sociology, physical infrastructure, technological equipment, teacher, student and parent profiles, and these differences can have large effects on the quality of the education given in schools. Thus, evaluating the needs of each school individually, as if taking an x-ray and then creating a suitable development model specific to it, will reduce the differences in opportunities between schools. These gaps of differences between schools are the main reason of the demand for centralized exams in Turkey. Addressing these gaps of opportunity between schools will subsequently decrease the demand for these exams and reduce the pressure on students. Another important goal set in the vision document is the reduction of schools that admit students via exams. When too many schools admit students this way, they are associated with the “points” a student is required to score to be admitted, creating a hierarchy between schools. Due to this reason, the reduction of schools that admit students via exams as well as improvement of local schools are two critical goals included in the vision document. Also, the goal to review the academic and social development of children from early childhood to high school graduation through creating a unique e-portfolio for each student is another positive approach included in the document.

However, the document does not express what kind of mechanism will be created by the ministry to address students lacking behind in their academic and social developments.

Teachers are undoubtedly the most important aspect in determining the quality of educational systems. The “Improvement and administration of public resources” title of the vision document contains goals regarding the training and career developments of teachers and administrators. But in this context, we can say that teachers merit their own title in the vision document due to their critical role within the educational system.

The most striking goal in the document regarding teachers is that the adoption of a new “Occupational Law For Teachers” is planned. Along with this, some other goals included in the document are the creation of career steps for teachers and administrators that allow vertical and horizontal changes in position, incentivizing occupational expertise programs on the graduate level, creation of implementation-heavy models in the training and education of new teachers, creation of new incentive mechanisms for successful teachers such as sending them abroad, and reduction in the work period of contract teachers. Another matter that is often discussed in the public but is not well understood due to its ambiguity is the removal of the pedagogical formation process. The vision document does not state that the formation process will be removed but that graduate level occupational expertise programs for teachers will be opened. But for this program it is stated that priority will be given to teachers who are currently employed by the Ministry of National Education. However, the formation process previously meant a process that was targeted at people who did not graduate from a faculty of education seeking to become teachers. In this situation it is as of now unclear how this process will be conducted for those who have not graduated from a faculty of education. Announcements by the ministry state that the formation process will be conducted based on a new model designated by the ministry. Thus, the details of this subject needs to be elaborated on as soon as possible.

The vision document that sets goals for the educational system deals with matters that are too extensive and detailed to be resolved within three years. It should not be forgotten that each goal requires meticulous and long processes such as budget planning, infrastructure building, training and education of required public resources, administrative evaluation and data-based analysis of the stages of preparation and pilot studies. For example, one of the goals that received the most attention is the decision to include the age of 5 in the period of mandatory education. Within three years the quality of preschool education can be improved or it can be made more common. But making it mandatory will require extensive legal work, infrastructure planning, new teachers and a significant amount of funds. Similarly, goals such as the reduction of lecture hours and types, creation of design workshops in schools should also be planned to be implemented over a much longer time period. Thus, it will be for the best to evaluate and plan these goals in a more realistic basis.

The 2023 Education Vision document has placed teachers at the forefront of reform in the education system and has promised the adoption of a new “Occupational Law for Teachers.”

From goals to results

The 2023 education vision document can be considered a step in the positive direction for the improvement of the education system due to the subjects it includes and the goals it sets. However, to turn these goals into concrete policies requires well thought-out action plans, qualified people who will implement these plans and significant institutional capacity. In this process universities, educational researchers and non-governmental organization will have important responsibilities. Supporting the ministry through conducting studies and the ministry undertaking this process with an attitude that encourages participation is critical in achieving the goals set. Along with this, in this period where changes in the education system are being planned, it’s better to aim for steady improvements rather than attempt miracles.

Turkey’s Ministry of National Education lately announced its 2023 Education Vision document that it has been drafting for a while. The Vision document contains the primary objectives aimed to be reached by the end of 2023. The document begins with chapters titled education vision philosophy, guiding policies, school development models with contents and implementations that constitute the framework of the vision. The following 17 chapters are on the objectives that intend to be reached.

The first five chapters of these 17 are about education management, including creating a data-based management system, assessment and evaluation, developing human resources, funding of schools, and an audit system. The following five chapters are allocated to the leading challenges in our education system, related to learning and improvement, such as counselling services, education for special abilities, foreign language education, digital content, and skill-aided transformation.

The remaining chapters cover the targets determined for various educational levels, including pre-school education and life-long learning. In these chapters, the objectives are diversified beginning from secondary education as separate sub-chapters cover Science High Schools, Social Sciences High Schools, Vocational High Schools, and Imam Hatip High Schools.

Abstract expressions need concrete and robust route maps

Within the 17 chapters, the Vision document sets out a total of 44 targets for the education system. Varying numbers of secondary targets are also added in the scope of each primary target, which sums up to around 300 targets. The majority of these targets stated in the document comprise abstract expressions that frame policies such as they will “improved,” “enhanced,” or “supported,” whereas the remaining targets focus on creating new units or mechanisms, enhancing the present processes and documenting the quantitative developments in relevant fields. It’s highly likely that the Ministry will prioritize determining tangible steps and a route for the implementation of these abstract and generalized targets in the upcoming days. The 2023 Education Vision is quite a comprehensive reform package and it is pleasing that this package is expected to be put into practice step-by-step by encompassing preliminary phases, such as design and pilot implementations.

Devising an education system with a focus on human

It is underlined in the introduction and overall tone of the Vision document that the educational philosophy the ministry seeks to rely on affirms societal beliefs and cultural values, instills self-confidence and keep pace with global developments instead of a uniformist and positivist mentality that disregards societal values. It opposes the common global imposition that reduces education to a set of production and consumption relations, and adopts harmony between the mind and soul as its main approach. Education programs to be developed with this integrative and two-dimensional approach will surely contribute to the future of our education system.

As viewed from the perspective of management science, it is seen that vision documents generally tend to prefer handling processes encompassing a minimum of 10 years, since visions consist of long-term objectives that require comprehensive institutional changes. The Ministry’s vision text might have been formed as a shorter text and its action plans might have been presented in a separate file. With its current version, the vision text contains some unnecessary objectives and details. The redundancy of the objectives in the document causes the risk of posing some challenges in practice, which might lead to social dissatisfaction despite the progresses covered.

Effective school management

Upon examination of the prominent subjects regarding the management of education included in the vision document, we can see that it foresees an approach to management that is heavily based on data, gives more emphasis to schools as administrative units and intends to create a unique development model for each school, which will also be employed in its examination and evaluation. With this new system of examination and evaluation, the progress of education in schools is planned to be monitored in schools and feedback is planned to be given accordingly. Via this method, one of the bigger problems of the education system, the inequalities between schools, is intended to be addressed.

One of the important policies that comes with putting more emphasis on the schools’ role as an administrative units is the expansion of school administrator’s authorities, responsibilities, capabilities and employee rights. With regard to school administrations, we can foresee that these policies will result in more active and efficient processes. But, we can see that the document is missing revisions essential to a school-centered administrative approach that will be required in the Ministry’s central organization and the provincial organization.

In an approach to education that is human-oriented and responsive to the interests, skills and dispositions of its students, guidance and counseling is extremely important

Incrementally making pre-school education mandatory can be seen to be the most important goal regarding the stages of education. While some parts of the document suggest that changing the 4+4+4 system may be on the table, no concrete goals are set on this subject, and the document only states that primary education will be reviewed according to the stages of development. Guidance and counseling services are extremely important both in the creation of an approach to education that is people-oriented and responsive to the interests, skills and dispositions of its students and also in ensuring that the process of advancing from one stage to another is done in a healthy manner. It can be seen that the parts of the vision document regarding guidance and counseling contain goals towards the creation of a system based on this understanding.

While it’s good news that the pedagogical formation training is removed, the maintenance of the hourly paid teachers is worrisome

New training and education models for new teachers

We can see through the document that comprehensive actions regarding the education and training of new teachers are being considered and planned. Within this context, new training and education models for new teachers that put more emphasis on implementation are being planned to first be tested via pilot studies conducted in cooperation with education faculties and then possibly widely implemented. Some important articles of the document regarding teachers are the adoption of a new legal framework for teachers, career development programs for currently working teachers, incentivizing post-graduate studies for teachers, reduction of the contracted work period, increasing per-course pay for hourly paid teachers, and the creation of a new mechanism that will allow the ministry to directly provide the pedagogical training (one year teaching certificate training provided by universities for graduates with non-education degrees).  The articles regarding the education and training of teachers and their employee rights will have positive effects for the occupation and its overall quality.

Regulations in line with the vision are needed in subjects such as the structure of education faculties and the selection of candidates

However, regulations in line with the vision are needed in subjects such as the structure of education faculties, the selection of candidates that will start being employed as teachers and the replacement of teachers who are found to be unsuitable for the occupation in the process. While it is an important step in the positive direction that the period of contracted work is being reduced, the maintenance of hourly paid teachers, while improving their payments, shows that this subject will continue to be one of the problems that draw widespread public attention. The Ministry should stop the practice of employing hourly paid teachers.

The decision to directly implement the pedagogical formation process via the Ministry of National Education will make the heavy reform workload of the Ministry even heavier – it can be considered as a move that will create a new work item for the Ministry.

Envisaging a model for curricula

The 2023 Education Vision document envisages a model for curricula that are universal in content yet presented via an implementation based on local culture. The document sets many goals regarding education and training processes as well as curricula. Some example goals included in this framework are the reduction of types of courses as well as total lecture time, the development of a curriculum that is simpler, more dynamic and more modular, the adoption of a new scheduling structure that will allocate more time to non-academic classes in the afternoons especially for primary education, and allocating more time to recesses. The goals described in the document reflect all the expertise accumulated in the field through studies.

It can be seen that the 2023 Education Vision is a development plan that is well aware of the existing problems of the field. The goals that are set as solutions to well-identified problems have obviously raised excitement and curiosity.

It can be seen that the 2023 Education Vision is a development plan that is well aware of the existing problems of the field. The goals that are set as solutions to well-identified problems have obviously raised excitement and curiosity. However, the methods the Ministry will choose to follow regarding its organization and process management remain a subject of curiosity. Some goals of the Ministry, especially goals such as providing support for families, improving the guesthouses, preparing infrastructure for social, cultural and sports events and the pedagogical formation decision will likely be the cause a workload that is taxing in its management and sustainability aspects. While the subject of language education is an important focal point of attention, putting English into its center provides a limitation. The languages of countries that are expected to be prominent and important in the world of the future should also be a part of this planning.

This article has first appeared in Turkish on www.ilke.org.tr

The Ministry of National Education declared the eagerly anticipated ‘2023 Vision Document’ on 23 October 2018. Causing hope and disappointment at the same time, it ignited new debates in the field of education. It is true that, with its extensive and vague scope, education has never been an easy subject to reach a consensus on easily. It would be no more than an unrealistic dream to expect such a thing to happen. Yet, keeping this reality in mind, I have some words to say on behalf of teachers. There are many arguments to open, I am going to delve into only a couple of strong and weak points, though.

When I read the document through, it gives the impression that it’s a summary of idealistic thoughts about the education in Turkey. Well, for vision statements in general, they are compiled of high level aspirations, not bound to be down to earth. The whole document is a summary of what education should be like, not only in Turkey, but almost in any country in the world. Who could ever say that these are bad ideas? I review the document and it feels like ‘yeah, there could be no objection to many promises the vision document makes but what about the distance between vision and practicality?’ Is it helpful to leave the practicality of these ideas out of the vision document?

When it comes to foreign language teaching, the document does not again tell the practical aspect. There is hardly any information in the foreign language education chapter about the reforms that must be done in the pre-service education of foreign language teachers, and alternative ways of selecting and appointing them. Currently there are great disparities among the faculties of education across different universities, and specifically, among the foreign language education departments. Is it reasonable to build a revolutionary foreign language education system without doing revolutions at universities or public personnel selection examination or the teacher appointment interview, whose content is still vague?

Quality education cannot be built without providing quality pre-service education to foreign language teachers. In-service education is too late to acquire important skills required for foreign language itself and the teaching of it. In other words, while in-service training is indispensable, I believe that it is better to put much more effort and resources in the earlier stages of teacher education. The document should consider in its further revisions to state a more clear vision about the pre-service teaching of foreign language educators and the appointments of them.

Some of the central visions in the document are not novel but were already set as guiding principles for foreign language teachers. For example, the first subsidiary aim of the first main objective reads “foreign language education will be handled with a student-centered approach, using methodologies that suit the cognitive levels of students.” This vision is already a mission for foreign language educators. Especially since the curriculum reform of 2005, putting students at the center and teaching them according to their cognitive levels have been a primary mission for all teachers, let alone foreign language teachers. In other words, this vision seems like it has been blended with the very basic mission of teaching.

I’m not trying to say that the whole document is full of beyond reach ideals of re-written versions of missions. There are issues that have needed a complete make-over for a long time. The third subsidiary aim of the first main objective, which is to “provide different language teaching programs to different kinds and levels of schools,” offers a vision about what has been long necessary in the field. Implementing a single foreign language program and not taking care of the academic profile of students have always been problematic. That is to say, today in different schools across Turkey, no matter what student profile it addresses, the same program and material is used. Moreover, using the same book is compulsory, which forces teachers into the situation of giving students less than what they can learn. If we have different kinds of secondary and high schools, how on earth can we use the same teaching material? So, the third subsidiary aim under the first main objective endows fruitful arguments, more than idealistic thoughts.

Another strong point of the vision document is the development of digital content platforms by bringing national and international institutions together. It is a fact that foreign language learning materials, especially the high quality ones, are still costly and can hardly be afforded by many middle and lower class families. It is of great importance to provide free quality contents to students from lower socio-economic backgrounds. Addressing the generation that was born into a digital era is an approachable vision.

In fact, there is already a digital platform named Education and Information Technologies Network (EBA), which has a substantial amount of free sources and materials. Nonetheless, many children from lower socio-economic classes, who must be the primary target of free materials, don’t have internet access at home, and the public schools don’t have the sources to build ICT laboratories or provide free Wi-Fi connections for student use. The Fatih Project hasn’t visited many schools yet. In short, the visions about digital content are imperative, yet given the varying physical capacity of schools and inequality of household income, this has the potential to create further inequalities between students.

The 2023 Vision Document has really created a vision. However, I do strongly assert that we, as educators and administrators, should make a priority list and fulfill the responsibilities like providing each and every child with quality education.

President Erdoğan attended the Inauguration Ceremony of the New Higher Education Academic Year at the Beştepe National Congress and Culture Center and discussed the nature and scope of upcoming educational reforms that would be set in motion.

During his speech, President Erdoğan discussed the current state of national education and the agenda for educational reform. With over 100,000 international students being hosted in Turkey, Turkey has become a favorite among students worldwide. International students are able to obtain education at prestigious Turkish universities with the scholarship program. Turkey Scholarships is a unique international program including university placements. The program provides above standard monthly stipends to beneficiaries, and includes housing, health insurance, tuition fee, Turkish language course and transportation costs. President Erdoğan noted that “Turkey has reached a capacity surpassing its borders.”

Highlighting the importance and need for technological development, President Erdoğan stated that Turkey should be among the global pioneers in the usage and development of digital technologies and that currently there are steps being taken to achieve this objective and that Turkey is duly committed to this pursuit. Underscoring the dependence of economic and social welfare on this development, President Erdoğan added that government support and aid will be provided to projects geared to advance competitiveness and productivity.

Speaking of progress in the career prospects for university students and graduates, President Erdoğan stated that career centers will be established in all universities and “From the onset of their first year in university, these centers will provide career guidance to students and work in close collaboration with the real sector.”

Referring to the new Human Resources Office established in the Presidential Complex, President Erdoğan stated that the “Human Resources Office will work closely to implement projects important for the future of university students. In this aspect, one of the first action plans that we will implement is to shift to a ‘talent management’ system”.

Underscoring the importance of educational reform, President Erdoğan said that: “It is vain to think that we can make great advancements if our universities and academicians have fallen to a state of stagnancy,” and noted: “If we want to build a safe future, we need to start from education.”

The president of the Council of Higher Education, Prof. Dr. Yekta Saraç also delivered a speech and stated that the most important concept for the Council of Higher Education, is “to facilitate change on a scientific basis, thus: to change”. Prof. Saraç noted that in order to stay abreast of the digital age, “there will be a transformation and focus on studies carried out by leading global universities and ‘open access’ will be introduced.”

When the Syrian Civil War is discussed, the discussion tends to evolve around the number of refugees, the constant attacks conducted by the Assad regime and trilateral discussions between Turkey, Iran and Russia, who are the three guarantor states seeking to find an end to the years long conflict in Syria.

One very important aspect of society that has continuously been ignored in these discussions has been education. While education has become an asset difficult to sustain in Syria, following Operation Euphrates Shield, funds from the Turkish Ministry of Education and some partner countries have been able to re-provide education to 156,324 students, repair 472 schools and ensure over 5000 teachers were back in their profession. In regards to this initiative, the Turkish government has spent 250 million Turkish Liras since 2016.

A report written by Ipek Coskun and published by the Foundation for Political and Social Research (SETA), seeks to answer gaps in the education debate in Syria. In the introduction, the report provides a briefing about the general situation of education in Syria prior to the civil war. By issuing a comparison between figures prior to the beginning of the war and the current situation, in the report, Coskun highlights that the aim is to reflect the situation Syria has found itself in since the beginning of the conflict, the affect that this situation has had on education and to provide a perspective as to how education in Syria can be developed in the future. While the report highlights the facilities provided in areas freed by Operation Euphrates Shield, it maintains that these projects should be replicated across Syria.

In conformity with Article 51 of the United Nations Charter, Turkey exercised its ‘right of self-defense’ and launched Operation Euphrates Shield on August 24, 2016. In cooperation with the Free Syrian Army, OES cleared terrorism completely from the Kilis-Gaziantep corridor and secured the control of Azaz, Jarabulus, Al-Rai, and surrounding areas. In total, the military operation cleared 1,000 km from terrorist groups including the PKK/YPG and Daesh.

After concluding the operation on March 31, 2017, the Turkish government pursued many social projects in order to ensure that the lives of people living in the liberated areas were close to normal. The most important aspect in this regard was thus education. As graphed in the report, following the liberation of areas under OES, 156,324 students, 5,150 teachers and 472 schools were located. While the education in Jarabulus, Al-Bab, Kabassin and Bizaah are coordinated by the Gaziantep Directorate of National Education, education in Azaz, Al-Rai, Akhtarin, Mare’ and Souran are coordinated by the Kilis Directorate of National Education. In regards to the breakdown of these students, according to data obtained from the 2017-2018 statistics, there are currently 2,254 pre-school students, 120,653 in nursery, 27,340 in primary, 1,148 in Imam Hatip primary schools, 4,291 in high school and 638 students in Imam Hatip high schools. The report further break downs in detail the exact year group of these students.

Recommendations

While in the report Coskun details the facilities and education provided to Syrian students in liberated areas, in addition to this data, the conclusion section ‘Conclusion and Recommendations,’ is important to assess for the future of education in Syria.

Providing a comparison to the Bosnian War, in the conclusion it is clearly stated that as history shows us, if the conflict in Syria ends with the country breaking up into different sects, this will damage education the most. More, if one day a ceasefire and peace is secured in the country, there are two social factors that are going to struggle the most in the re-infrastructure of the failed state: 1) education and 2) human power. For these reasons, the recommendations provided in the report are important in order to lay a picture of what and how education in Syria could look like in the future.

Following the traumas of the war, whether children have had to migrate, been displaced or lost their families, it is most likely that they are going to need (and currently do need) psychological assistance. In fact, this is not only the case for children but for teachers too. Thus, for this reason, the report recommends for education facilities provided in the OES areas to be spread across Syria. This is because the system provided by Turkish authorities does not design education based on a specific ideological belief or sect of society. This is in comparison to education provided by Syria’s Ba’ath Party, which teaches children history as the party itself sees it.

In regards to providing and securing education facilities across Syria, the report calls for an independent international committee to be established with participation from Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan. This committee will be in charge of supervising the current situation in order to lay a future program. Second, the effects of terrorism on education cannot be denied. For that reason, the report recommends for operations to be conducted in order to release children from the hands of terrorist groups such as Daesh and the PKK/YPG by securing deals with their families. Third, emphasizing the need to support Syrian teachers and provide them training, the report calls for an atmosphere of assurance that Syrian teachers who are currently refugees will be able to return to their professions when they return to their country. Fourth, highlighting failures of international organizations – especially that of the United Nations – the report recommends for the UN to work with countries such as Turkey in order to conduct concise assessment needs reports.

In addition to this, considering the fact that the social system in Syria has collapsed, the report calls for a new structure in accountability, budget planning and the education of teachers. In relation to this, and within this new structure, the needs of schools should be assessed and provided in a short period of time. As we know the Syrian Civil War has destroyed cities such as Aleppo and Idlib the most. Thus, such cities should be prioritized in regards to any social facilities provided. Finally, the report calls for the education of future teachers with no ideological bias and concludes with the emphasis that the education facilities provided in OES areas should be replicated across Syria.

Three basic criteria appear as determinants regarding student selection and placement in high schools across the world: GPA, exit examinations and standardized tests. In this framework, the most commonly applied systems include referring students to the schools located in their neighborhood according to their GPA, placements according to their secondary school GPA and exit exam results, and placements based on the results of a standardized test.

In Turkey, standardized tests constitute the main element that determines student placement. Various examination models have so far been implemented in terms of structure, content, modes of application, target groups, score calculation methods, placements systems and so on. As the examination systems of the past 15 years are considered, it is seen that five different systems have been adopted within this period in high school placement. These are respectively the Entrance Examination for High School (LGS), the Secondary Education Institutions Entrance Exam (OKS), the Placement Examination (SBS) that spread out over three years, an updated version of the SBS exam that was implemented only for 8th graders, and finally the Transition from Primary to Secondary Education (TEOG[1]), which has also been implemented for 8th graders.

At the beginning of the 2017-2018 school year, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan suggested the removal of TEOG on the grounds that it lays a serious stress and financial burden on students and parents. In order to prepare for the exam, students were heavily attending private courses instead of attending extra-curricular activities provided at their schools. Shortly after Erdoğan’s statement, TEOG was abolished, leading to quests for a new system.

What is TEOG?

TEOG is a standardized test which applied to 8th grade students on six core subjects (Turkish, Mathematics, Science and Technology, Atatürk’s Principles and History of the Turkish Revolution, English, and Religion and Ethics). In addition to the test, the student’s GPA and class attendance were also taken into account in high school placement. The overall placement score was calculated by taking 70 percent of the scores of the standardized tests conducted by the National Education Ministry (MEB) and 30 percent of the student’s GPA.

Representing a new approach to the transition to secondary education, TEOG differs from its previous counterparts in terms of its mode of application and placement type. TEOG is considered a more student-friendly and positive implementation compared to the previous examination systems since it is based on holding a standardized test in each semester of 8th grade. The reason for this is due to the fact that students were able to sit their TEOG exam in their own schools, the content of the tests comply with the curriculum of the semester and in addition, due to class attendance contributing to the final grade, this developed a strong tie between the student and school. More, students were offered the chance to sit a make-up exam, which was an additional benefit. However, these positive traits of TEOG unfortunately do not follow its application when the school placement process begins.

Why was TEOG abolished?

TEOG’s placement system ranks all high schools across Turkey from highest to lowest according to the scores of the students that enroll. For instance, while admission to some high schools required 459 points, some accepted students with a score of 50, which consequences in the labelling of a “successful” and “unsuccessful” school depending on their base point. These labels whether directly or indirectly were affecting the decisions students and parents made when deciding which school to enter. To express more tangibly, students have preferred a school with 300 base points that is located far away from where they live to a school with 250 base points located in their vicinity. Or contrarily, students have had to move away from their neighborhood when their scores only suffice to enter a lower ranking school located away from their home.

Furthermore, by ranking schools in hierarchical order, this system widened the quality gap between schools. While successful students prefer science high schools, less successful ones are obliged to go to theology-focused İmam-Hatip high schools or vocational high schools. As a result, the İmam-Hatip and vocational schools, which used to have a more heterogeneous student profile, started to address solely the weaker students. This sheer difference between the types of schools becomes obvious when international exams and university placements are considered.

Of course, it cannot be asserted that TEOG is the only cause of all these problems. The education system confronts various structural problems that are interrelated. The defects in the examination systems constitute a major part of the problem yet they are not the only reason. Therefore, changing the exam system will not suffice to resolving all the problems. For years, Turkey has been tackling and discussing the issues of quality and equal education. President Erdoğan also occasionally makes self-criticism in that the goals in education could not be achieved. However, in an education system encompassing 18 million students, it is not easy to ensure justice and equality-based stability.

In particular, reforming the system by coping with deeply-rooted and long-standing problems is an arduous challenge. Despite that, some quantitative developments have been observed in recent years such as the rises in the budget allocated to education, schooling rates, the number of classrooms and teachers, and the decrease in class quotas. Also, it must be noted that some reformative changes to enable democratization in education were also made during this period. These changes include the abolishment of the headscarf ban and the coefficient system that violated principles of equality and justice, the introduction of the 4+4+4 system and the re-opening of İmam-Hatip secondary schools and the inclusion of religion and culture among elective courses.

Quests for a new system

Following the abolishment of TEOG, while a new examination system is yet to be announced, various scenarios regarding the possible system have taken their place within public discourse. It is known that the MEB has been exerting serious efforts on this subject. As the National Education Minister İsmet Yılmaz stated, several options are currently being evaluated. The first option is introducing a system in which each school will hold individual entrance exams. The second option suggests holding entrance exams only for certain schools while the rest of the schools will admit students based on their place of residence.

The first option does not seem very reasonable in terms of financial costs, logistics and applicability. If a total of 11.000 schools hold separate exams, we will be talking about 11.000 different exams. In such a case, students and parents will have to tour an array of cities to sit for the exams they choose. This option also leads to numerous problems and questions. Who will prepare and evaluate these exams? How will students be placed after the evaluation? How will schools handle the burden of these exams? How will schools cope with the pressure exerted on them by parents, bureaucrats and others, given that these aspects constitute major problems even in standardized systems? Consequently, in current conditions, it does not seem possible for each school to organize its own exam. Also, society has a strong trust in standardized tests. Standardized tests avert the doubts of unequal treatment and have a crucial role in offering important opportunities of vertical transfer although they cannot wipe out socio-economic injustice between students.

As underscored in several previous publications by SETA Foundation, the second option appears as the most reasonable system under present circumstances. Nevertheless, several aspects must be underlined while discussing this system. First of all, the quality of education in different neighborhoods can dramatically differ. With the school rankings shaped by TEOG, this hierarchy has become even stricter in the eyes of people. So, the first thing parents will do is to check the TEOG base points of the school in their place of residence while placing their children. Naturally, they will not wish to send their children to “less successful” schools.

Aside from that, success is not the only variant between schools. Environmental factors such as security in the school’s neighborhood, the socio-cultural structure of the area surrounding the school and typologies of people living in the neighborhood are all important criteria for parents along with the school’s teaching and administrative staff. Therefore, if placements will be based on place of residence, parents must be presented a certain degree of flexibility in order to ease their worries.

A system with several alternatives will relieve both parents and students in this sense. However, a set of distinct criteria must be laid down for the students who wish to enroll in a high school outside of their neighborhood in order to avoid exceeding student quotas and confusions – GPA again plays a major role at this point. Likewise, the quotas of schools that will admit students from other neighborhoods must be determined accordingly, and specific quotas must be allocated to these students. Of course, all these steps are required to maintain transparent.

Another contention regarding this option is the issue of trust in school GPAs, which stirred serious public discussions for some valid reasons. This situation worries both parents and students considering the parents who press on teachers for their children’s grades and the teachers who cannot endure this pressure. Such doubts especially revolve around private schools. However, it is not right to bring all the teachers under suspicion. Teachers receive assessment and evaluation formation and are authorized within this scope, so therefore we have to trust them in principle. The teachers who do not or cannot give fair grades constitute an exception. To resolve this problem, the new system must not be shaped through exceptions, and the MEB is required to implement control mechanisms that would erase doubts and establish trust. Also, any kind of misconduct must be penalized.

In this sense, the MEB is under a heavy burden and is required and expected to develop a new system in line with this responsibility. No preliminary works have evidently been conducted in this respect given the timing of TEOG’s removal. Therefore, this year is likely to become a transition period, where setbacks ought to be expected. Consequently, it is significant for experts, pedagogues, teachers, and other agents within the education system to pay regard to justice and equality and support the MEB in introducing the best system possible.

[1] Initially not being an official abbreviation, TEOG entered the literature due to its common use in public.

The GreenMetric World University Ranking is a university ranking platform established by the University of Indonesia in 2010. This ranking aims to evaluate and rank universities all over the world according to their current condition and policies related to green campus and sustainability activities.

The Ranking guides university leaders in their efforts to implement eco-friendly policies and manage behavioral change among the academic community at their respective institutions. Although it is new, the number of participating institutions is increasing rapidly each year. In 2010 when the ranking was first initiated, 95 universities participated. This number increased to 516 from 74 different countries in 2016.

GreenMetric aims to arouse global awareness on environmental issues and sustainability and evaluates universities in five categories: setting and infrastructure, energy and climate change, waste, water resources, transportation and education. The criteria used in the evaluation also include basic institutional information such as the size of the university, both spatially and in terms of population, campus location and the amount of green space; and also information on energy use, transport, water use and recycling and waste treatment. In addition, it collects information about efforts being made by the institution towards establishing green policies and management.

It is expected that by drawing the attention of university leaders and stake holders, more attention will be given to combating global climate change, energy and water conservation, waste recycling, and green transportation. Another unique quality of the ranking is the fact that all universities are depicted according to their current status and all are equal once they begin their participation.

3rd International GreenMetric Workshop Held in Istanbul

Upon the evaluation by the GreenMetric steering committee and as a result of the top rank achieved by Turkish universities since 2014, Bülent Ecevit University (BEU) was selected as the National Coordinator of the ranking platform in Turkey. In this respect, BEU aims to publicize the ranking among Turkish universities in order to increase participation in the country. As a publicizing activity, BEU organized the first Turkish National Workshop on GreenMetric on 3 October 2016, in Zonguldak, Turkey. The workshop drew a number of university leaders and experts, which helped to increase awareness on environmental issues among higher education institutions.

Along with national workshops, GreenMetric organizes an international workshop attended by leaders of higher education institutions and stakeholders. This year, the international workshop was co-organized by BEU and Istanbul University. Hosted by Istanbul University, the workshop was held on 9-10 April 2017 in Istanbul, nearly 100 people attended, including rectors, vice rectors, experts, landscape architects, city planners, academic staff, executive officers from the ministries of environment, and energy managers and stakeholders from 20 different countries including Indonesia, Malaysia, Taiwan, Jordan, Russia, India, Brazil, Colombia, Greece, Hungary, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Kazakhstan, Egypt and Morocco.

During the workshop, participants from all over the world had the chance to share their experience with building environmentally-friendly campuses and their sustainability with their colleagues. The workshop gave the participants the opportunity to discuss the current situation of environmental awareness and sustainability in their countries and campuses. A number of articles presented contained important projects as exemplary applications and policies implemented by universities to enhance environmental awareness and come up with solutions to worldwide environmental problems. The articles were grouped according to the main categories used in the GreenMetric ranking. Articles on greening of campuses, management of waste, use of alternative forms of energy, and green transportation were discussed by participants.

The articles and projects presented will have a number of benefits for universities and countries. First of all, participants had the opportunity to see the level of awareness about environmental issues and sustainability in other countries and universities. This may be useful for participants in establishing or revising current policies and future planning. Besides, good applications implemented by various universities to address different kinds of environmental problems which were presented during the workshop can be useful for triggering wider adoption among universities. Universities seeking solutions to similar problems or those looking for new ideas can benefit greatly from the sharing of these environmental experiences.

The workshop was a significant international event enhancing environmental consciousness and global cooperation on sustainability. Considering the unique mission of raising environmental awareness among universities and international networking opportunities, the GreenMetric World University Ranking deserves widespread attention and participation.

Universities are one of the very few institutions which have existed for a long period of time. Fundamentally changing throughout centuries due to both internal and external causes, universities and other higher education institutions continue to exist today by assuming a variety of functions. Especially in the last fifty years, higher education institutions have experienced structural reforms at the behest of the public. All countries eased the access to higher education and experienced a tremendous rise in enrollment in higher education systems. The financial burden of increased enrollment forced the higher education systems to use their resources more efficiently and to respond to the demands of the public and the market. In this respect, quality assurance systems and procedures came to the fore.

On the other hand, the fierce and relentless competition in the world economy imposed more burdens on higher education institutions: universities are now expected to be a center of attraction for international students and academics. Internationalization began to be seen as a source of revenue, an element of public diplomacy, and an instrument to attract the most intelligent and diligent people in the world to increase the research capacity in economic competition. All of these processes necessitated universities to position themselves in accordance with external factors. Since its conception, universities had never faced such pressure. The impact of these processes, expectations from higher education institutions and how higher education institutions respond to societal and external factors continue to be the subjects of heated discussions today.

University Ranking Criteria and the Higher Education Market

Especially in the last twenty years, university rankings which originally were regional and created to aid students and researchers have become increasingly global, establishing a prominent market. There are new ranking institutions being founded every day. While the countries publish national ranking lists employing various criteria, they start to carry these rankings to a global level as they gain legitimacy. As the rankings were recognized by countries, these rankings started to have an increasingly transformative effect on higher education systems. Despite all the discussions about the criteria being extremely narrow and the ranking system’s possible failure in reflecting quality, the world university rankings increased the pressure and made it a matter of prestige for countries to have higher ranking universities on the list. Those who set the criteria and standards rule the higher education market. Moreover, those who set the criteria are able to direct the flow of money due to the investments on higher education. Especially developing countries have started to allot tremendous budgets to found world-class universities and to be on these lists.

Considering the impact of world university rankings on higher education institutions’ behaviors and the immense budgets allotted to rank higher on the list, it is important to mention several crucial matters and risks. Firstly, the top 25 universities on the lists which are world-renowned and, thus, have a vast area of legitimacy, have almost never changed. Moreover, the universities ranking between 25th and 100th on the list have only experienced minimal changes. Hence, there is a monopoly in the highest ranking segment of the lists and this monopoly is expected to perpetuate itself in the near future, unless the criteria are changed (see John Aubrey Douglass’s book The New Flagship University: Changing the Paradigm from Global Ranking to National Relevancy). Prestige and past performances determine the future rankings. As the wealthy have the potential to become wealthier, these ranking systems allow higher education institutions which have extensive experience and a powerful research and publication capacity to maintain their positions on the list. Therefore, the newcomers will not be able to make leaps forward on the list in the near future, even if they allot tremendous budgets to rank higher.

As the ranking systems which rely on a limited set of criteria are facing increasing criticism, alternative ranking systems are being researched. For instance, most of the European countries ranking lower than the US and the UK on the list forced the EU to take action; as they believed rankings would not face a change in the short term, they started to work on an alternative ranking system which also takes the quality of education into consideration. As a result of their efforts, a new ranking system known as U-Multirank, multidimensional ranking of higher education institutions, emerged. As it was not completely acknowledged by the US and the UK, its recognition was limited to European countries. Therefore, the new ranking systems changing the main trend on world university rankings have a limited recognition and legitimacy.

On the other hand, the pressure to publish and cite more in order to rank higher on the existing world universities ranking creates the risk of academics of developing countries focusing more on the issues of those countries which dominate the network of publication and citations, instead of local, national or regional issues that their countries experience. While the universities of developing countries are expected to be more sensitive towards their own countries’ issues for economic improvement, they are also pressured to rank higher on the world universities ranking. Due to the simultaneous pressure on both ends, the most powerful universities of the developing countries are forced to be desensitized towards national issues. This constitutes a paradox which is hard to resolve.

Especially during the recent years, it is being discussed that there is an increasing trend in a brain drain due to the inconsistency between the economic opportunities provided by having a world-class university and the quality of graduates.

What should be done?

The criteria employed by world universities rankings are definitely important and they should be also deemed important by higher education institutions, which are already restructuring themselves according to the common criteria. However, the world universities ranking is not everything and it should be taken with a grain of salt due to the reasons stated. The most important aspect is to have powerful higher education institutions which are connected with local, national and regional issues. This does not entail isolation or a disconnection from the global issues; besides, national and regional issues are not independent of the global ones. Therefore, while creating solutions for national and regional issues, the universities also contribute to the global knowledge database. Nevertheless, there is nothing more natural than a higher education institution prioritizing its immediate environment, thus the country it is in.

On the other hand, the higher education system should have a flexible structure which will allow institutions to create dynamic resolutions for the country’s issues. Balanced and efficient planning of all processes, along with increasing diversification which will allow higher education institutions to have distinct missions are the most important aspects. In other words, national needs and demands have to be taken into consideration. Meticulous and stable steps must be taken to further a small number of flagship universities in certain fields in the world through distribution of roles and careful allotment of national resources, while ensuring these universities continue to prioritize national interests and issues.

In Turkey today, there are discussion about how children should be taught the theory of evolution. Those calling for teaching ideas other than Darwinism in schools are not looking to obscure that theory, but trying to undo centuries of disastrous rationalist, capitalist thinking that has left many devoid of humanity.

Before Darwin’s theory of evolution, the order of the world we live in was mostly settled. A new Western civilization emerged from the wars between the clergy and non-clergy segments of society, who also fought fiercely amongst themselves, taking place in Medieval Catholic Europe. Encompassed by the Renaissance, movements for reform, enlightenment and Humanism, this emergent civilization dominated by Reason would later lead to the creation of capitalism through the transformation of the non-clergy. They walked side by side, nurturing each other, eventually dominating the whole world.

The West experienced unprecedented economic, social and cultural transformation in the three centuries that followed the 16^th century. Scientific thought which was nurtured by Copernicus, Bacon, and Descartes and blossomed with Newton caused a fundamental shift in the world of thought. The transformation was not limited to science, however; the world itself, humankind and all the things inhabiting the world started to be explained through science. This marked the inception of the problem.

Emerging from Italy by the late 14^th and early 15^th century and spreading through Western Europe, especially France, the Renaissance was seen as an attempt to break away from the metaphysical and to create a world order centered on reason, opposing the divine order. In this world, every action of humankind was determined and regulated by this very “reason.” Arguably a righteous rebellion against the oppressive Catholic Church, Humanism detached the human being from a sacred celestial order and attached it to the profane. Humans were capable of everything. While humankind seemed as the most precious and beautiful creature to ever walk the earth, it actually had lost its essence once its feet touched the earthly soil; humans became their own gods. Now, those who employ their reason efficiently could define and control nature.

From the second half of the 17^th century on, reason was made the supreme ruler of human life through the period known as the Enlightenment. The rest of the world was littered with superstition and false belief. Not some, mind you, but all! Talking about God and how it created humankind was considered unscientific and seen as metaphysical nonsense. Those who believe humans have a soul and a spiritual aspect had become the “heretics” of the rationalist-positivist materialist world order. Humans were only to trust their reason and accept it as the principle of their lives. According to Bacon, “idols” would be eradicated with the bright lights of enlightenment. What he defined as idols were indeed eradicated; however, in a bizarre contradiction, reason started to be discussed as a superhuman subject, while the divine aspects of humanity were obscured. Reason and the sciences it helped to create became the idols of modernity, inevitably. Humanity became imprisoned within the confines of science. Humans were nothing more than explanations and experimentations for science.

Colonialism which emerged in the second half of the 15^th century and lasted for four centuries was nourished on this notion. On the other hand, colonialism didn’t only contribute to the emergence of merchant capitalism in the second half of the 16^th century; two centuries later, it created industrial capitalism. Colonialism resulted in the transference of all resources around the world to the West. Thus, Western societies transitioned from colonialism to industrial capitalism, increasing their wealth tremendously in the process. For the first time in history, the West became the economic center of the world. As a result of increasing capital and monopolization, the aim was to achieve the highest profits, instead of satisfying needs. The wealthier you were, the more human you were.

In Europe, which exploited the rest of the world through the guidance of reason, paupers and beggars started to appear from the 16^th century onwards. They were considered as “mindless, feeble and lazy.” Despite all its glorification, the French Revolution which promised equality and liberty to all through the establishment of a new social order which is based on reason actually triggered a long period of conflict and chaos in Europe. With the industrial revolution that emerged in Britain by the end of the 18^th century, masses were forced to leave their villages and seek employment in cities. Social crisis was everywhere. There were approximately 10,000 and 50,000 beggars in Paris and London, respectively. The conditions of those who worked for a wage weren’t any better. Now, all members of a household had to work in order to survive. The science of sociology was discovered to analyze these social issues.

While liberal capitalism continues to commodify humankind and their lives, the Humanistic image of humanity was eclipsed by the emergent definition of homo economicus. Moreover, liberal capitalism was able to further itself as it already was based on the human image, which was both dominated by reason and Humanism. There were some philosophers and thinkers of the West who claimed that humans weren’t homo economicus>; however, they were unable to change the course of history. The dye had already been casted.

In an environment where a rational, positivist, materialist and capitalist world flourished, Darwin published his famous book On the Origin of Species in 1859. There were others who have talked and written about evolution since antiquity; however, Darwin was the first to include humans into the theory of evolution, as he perceived humankind as another species within nature. Darwin was arguing that substantial changes were the results of genetic processes which created the species, along with natural selection.

Humans, which were defined as beings dominated by reason and positioned within a network of material relations who had lost their souls, became equals with animals. Spencer reinterpreted this equation and Social Darwinism emerged, which became an indispensable tool for capitalists. It was a dog-eat-dog world, so exploitation was a must. Even though nature didn’t have any order of exploitation, humankind which shared a common ancestor with animals had the right to change the natural order a bit, as it possessed rationality.

According to Darwin, only those who adapt would survive. Moreover, according to Darwinism, the weak had to be inferior, as they could not survive natural selection, while the victor had to be superior. Darwinism also affected the movements which emerged in resistance to capitalism. Evolution was a part of all the ideologies that came into being in 19^th century Europe. Both national socialists and communists employed the theory of evolution while explaining their own intents and aims. If the theory of evolution didn’t exist, could National Socialism? No. Maybe there would still be some massacres, but genocide would be highly improbable. On the other hand, brutal acts which even surpassed those committed in medieval times took place in the West. National Socialists perpetuated a genocide, which bred racism. The Nazi effort to create a perfect race was a start example of this. When the Red Army took control of Auschwitz, the Soviet soldiers found 8 tons of hair. It was revealed that they were shaved off from the heads of women, men and children who were sent to gas chambers, in order to make clothes and socks for soldiers.

A mind that is deprived of spirituality and is under the hegemony of impulses will cause many more disasters in the world, especially if it becomes systematic. Those who have surrendered to the sheer will of rationality are now hierarchically inferior to animals, as they have become even more insidious than the devil itself.

Karl Marx, in his “Das Capital” which was published in 1867 says the following: “If the German reader shrugs his shoulders at the condition of the English industrial and agricultural laborers, or in optimist fashion comforts himself with the thought that in Germany things are not nearly so bad; I must plainly tell him, “De te fabula narratur!” (It is of you that the story is told). Even though he made the most accurate portrayal of capitalism, Marx was unable to provide any substantial resolution as he was also shaped by this materialist and positivist world. And, now, the story is about us all, despite the world having experienced the ostensibly alternate order proposed by Marx.

So, when it comes to deciding what to teach school children in Turkey, or elsewhere, it is time to give them more than the start rationalist ideology that has failed the world today.

Darwin must be read, of course. Moreover, materialist positivist philosophies, along with ideologies that are based on Darwinism, must be taught. How can we explain the recent rise of xenophobia in Western countries, otherwise?

Could homo economicus share his bread with a human? Definitely not. However, the one who doesn’t share is the greater fool, rather than the one who shares. Only reasonable people can understand this in this materialist positivist world, not the ones who became a slave to rationality.

In the last few years, Turkey has been going through a rather dynamic phase in higher education. Especially in the last ten years, the higher education sector experienced an impressive growth rate. As the increasing demand for higher education was not met by higher education institutions for decades, politics has intervened by pursuing the policy of founding new universities to increase the higher education supply. This meant that the massification of higher education, which took place in developed countries after World War II, could be experienced in Turkey first in the late 2000s. This also meant that Turkey must also struggle the problems brought about by the massification. Despite these problems, however, there are dazzling gains: obstacles to higher education were removed and schooling rates in higher education are steadily increasing.

According to the Global Competitiveness Report 2016–2017 by the World Economic Forum (WEF), Turkey is ranked 55th among 138 countries in the Global Competitiveness Index (GCI) and the country is ranked 17th in tertiary education enrollment. When compared to 2011-2012 Report by the WEF and the subsequent reports in the following years, it is seen that Turkey has been experiencing stable progress.

For the first time, the schooling rate of women surpassed men’s, due to women’s increased access to higher education. Similarly, the number of women academics within this period skyrocketed, surpassing the average of the European Higher Education Area (EHEA). The number of students in higher education is currently over 7 million. On the other hand, the number of international students and academics increased significantly. The internationalization of Turkey’s higher education is strengthening by the day and providing the opportunity to become a regional and global center for higher education. All of these are important gains for Turkey and now the time has come to deal completely with the problem of quality.

The tremendous growth in higher education raised questions about the quality of education; nevertheless, it’s not a form of growth that disregards the quality of education. These developments all took place in accordance with the existing culture of quality and this culture is being consolidated by the day. There is an increased awareness on the subject matter; the experiences of the past paved the way for healthy development, while also contributing to the culture of quality. Increased awareness, higher education institutions embracing the process and the quality assurance system are crucial, along with staff, students and the partners being a part of this culture of quality for the years to come.

Previously, higher education institutions in Turkey were accrediting their departments and programs in accordance with their own quality standards through international accreditation institutions. Similarly, institutional evaluations of higher education institutions were being handled voluntarily through the Institution Evaluation Program (IEP) of the European University Association (EUA); however, only a handful of universities were able to implement it. After the establishment of national quality associations under the umbrella of international quality agencies, the awareness for quality increased and the culture of quality started to spread. In this context, associations such as the Association for Evaluation and Accreditation of Engineering Programs (MÜDEK); the Science, Literature, Faculty of Science and Letters, Faculty of Languages, History and Geography Curriculum Programs Assessment and Accreditation Association (FEDEK); the Association for Evaluation and Accreditation of Medical Education Programs (TEPDAD), recognized by the Council of Higher Education (YÖK), and the Association for Evaluation and Accreditation of Educational Institutions and Programs of Veterinary Medicine (VEDEK) contributed heavily to the training of personnel specialized in quality assurance and the formation of a common understanding.

http://thenewturkey.org/with-brexit-and-the-trump-election-turkey-has-a-chance-to-draw-more-international-students/

As the table below indicates, 340 higher education programs, excluding evening education programs, were accredited by these associations (April 2016). The increasing number of accredited programs of higher education institutions sets a level of quality which sets a standard for those programs that aren’t yet accredited, allowing them to share their experiences with other educational units within the same university. Moreover, the resistance of higher education institutions to external assessment is weakening, which is leading the way for the establishment of quality assurance systems.

On the other hand, even though EHEA encourages higher education institutions to be assessed by other countries’ quality assurance agencies to establish trust between higher education systems, increase transparency and to set a quality standard, it can be seen that there are limitations within some European countries (Eurydice, 2012). For instance, higher education institutions in Denmark and Germany can only use other countries’ quality assurance agencies when the accreditation of the joint programs is in question. Similarly, in Austria, while public higher education institutions can use other countries’ quality assurance agencies, their private counterparts cannot.

In Moldova and Spain, the assessment of higher education institutions by foreign agencies is only possible after they have been accredited by domestic agencies. In Turkey, however, all higher education institution programs are free to accredit themselves from any existing quality assurance agencies, including both European and international ones. In this sense, while there are limitations for higher education institutions in some European countries to be accredited by international agencies, their Turkish counterparts are open to the assessment of all international agencies without a limit. As the table below indicates, 94 higher education programs in Turkey have been accredited by international agencies (April 2016).

EHEA, previously known as the Bologna Process, contributed to our higher education institutions and especially education programs by making them student-centered, while helping them to define the educational output in terms of skills and competences. All of these made it easier for the aforementioned quality associations to function and be a part of the system, along with increasing their activities.

After these experiences, the year 2015 witnessed two important cornerstones in terms of quality of Turkish higher education system. The Regulation on Higher Education Quality Assurance was prepared by the Council of Higher Education (YÖK) and came into force on July 23, 2015. The Higher Education Quality Council has been founded by the regulation. Similarly, with the joint effort of the Ministry of National Education (MEB), YÖK and the Vocational Qualification Authority (MYK), the Turkish Qualification Framework (TYÇ) was published, which was implemented on November 19, 2015.

The Higher Education Quality Council finalized its structuring and started to function. By December 2016, it started the international institutional evaluation program of the Turkish higher education institutions. This is an important cornerstone indicating that Turkey is entering a new era in higher education quality. While the higher education institutions previously could apply for institutional evaluation voluntarily through the IEP of EUA for exchange of a hefty sum of money, the new setting foresees the one-time external institutional evaluation of all Turkish higher education institutions within five years through the Higher Education Quality Council without any expenses. This process, analogous to the previous ones, will contribute to the development of the culture of quality within the Turkish Higher Education System, along with instilling this culture in the institutions and increasing awareness.

The institutional evaluation reports will be unique for each higher education institution and will include guidance to improve quality in the services they provide. In this sense, it won’t be accreditation, but a report which will encourage the higher education institutions to improve their services, while also assuring their quality. Therefore, it will function as an indicator which shows the strengths and weaknesses in quality assurance, and as a form of incentive to improve their status. As the institutional evaluation processes will result in the mutual learning of both the higher education institutions and evaluation teams, and help the spread of good examples in the county, it will also help the setting of a standard in the long-term in the Turkish higher education system. On the other hand, this process will eventually render the criticisms on lacking quality of higher education institutions irrelevant. Consequently, Turkish higher education system maintains its momentum and strives to continue the success stories despite the July 15 coup attempt.