Republic of turkey

PRESENTATION

In scope of the duties and powers assigned to in accordance with article 130 and 131 of the Constitution, the Council of Higher Education is determined as the only upper body responsible for steering, planning, regulating, governing and supervising higher education.

Articles 6 and 7 of the Higher Education Law No. 2547, which defines the scope of the Council’s duty, responsibility and competences, clarifies planning, regulating and supervising functions of the Council of Higher Education in the short and long terms in unity.

When the Council of Higher Education was founded in 1981 in order to steer the higher education institutions in Turkey, all higher education institutions were 27 universities. In the 25 years that passed since its foundation, the Council of Higher Education has always a significant place in agenda of Turkey. It was criticized in different periods in different aspects. It was successful in some aspects but it could not be sufficiently successful in solving certain problems and encountered new problems. Today, higher education system of Turkey has a more developed and complicated structure including total 93 universities composed of 68 state and 25 foundation universities.

When highly enlarged and complicated higher education structure of Turkey is considered, a strategic plan that have been discussed and accepted in consensus should have been developed in order to enable the Council of Higher Education to perform its duty of directing higher education system as assigned to it with laws. However, in the 25 years that passed since its foundation, the Council of Higher Education prepared a development plan for steering higher education only once in 1991.² Even though this plan guided extension of the Turkish higher education system in 1992, it was not updated and not taken into consideration in the following years. Even though managers of the Council of Higher Education have developed some strategic opinions they utilize for guiding higher education, unfortunately these opinions could not be strategic plan that have discussed in the society and accepted with consensus until now. Significant negative results of a strategic plan in this nature were seen and the Council of Higher Education has become a body that is continuously discussed and criticized in society. A result of this deficiency that is probably worse than this is the fact that the criticisms related to this body remained limited at a level that is superficial or directed by interests of small groups even though higher education is very important for the society and currently it has a very complicated structure. When the Council of Higher Education does not suggest a multi-dimensional and carefully studied strategic plan to the society, the discussions on higher education cannot be constructive and only cause energy and time loss.

Turkey experienced the most recent example of this in “university reform” discussion in the last years. Comments made on “university reform” each time it is taken in the agenda has not yet fulfilled the expectations of the parties. In the last years, the discussion on “turban (headscarf)” and “coefficient” had became priority subjects of the discussion on universities and they continue to be such that. It is beneficial to make a preliminary determination on the ban that prevents using dressing style of young girls called “turban” and made “symbol of Islam” in public areas. Because, banning this dressing style in public areas first of all depends on decisions of our national juridical bodies and then binding decisions of international courts. Universities like all public institutions are obliged to obey these decisions.

It should be immediately added that people who are not satisfied with such bans might of course apply to legal solutions in order to change them. However, obeying rules and court decisions in a legal state is not only a duty of citizens but also not obeying them is subject to sanctions. Continuously accusing the Council of Higher Education and universities without taking these explanations into consideration is not proper.

A superficial discussion was started with the claim that different coefficients applied to students in university entrance examination “prevents graduates of vocational high schools from entering to university”. The regulations on coefficient target to provide an advantage to secondary education students (vocational high schools and general high schools) according to the fields the chose in high school period (like Science-Literature-Turkish / Mathematics) while assessing their success in university entrance examination. Giving the advantages of a student graduated from science branch of high school to a graduate from literature branch when he wants to enter medical school is the most unjust behaviour for a student of science branch. The basic logic here is to give importance and value to preference of the student. Applying a single coefficient to all high school graduates without making discrimination is equal to organizing a competition that does not have equal conditions. Discussions around these two subjects cause problems and tensions instead of bringing new solutions.

In order to take positive steps in higher education field and create hopes on future of Turkey there is urgent need for a higher education strategy. Our country has many problems accumulated and being accumulated on higher education field and intervention to these problems cannot be delayed. The rapid change in the world made human factor as the most important element of development of a country. Turkey should take significant steps in order to close the development gap between itself and developed countries in the world. For this reason, a higher education strategy for Turkey agreed on with consensus should be immediately developed. If responsible institutions of Turkey cannot develop such a strategy, they will be forced to contend with the strategies suggested by international institutions they have relation.

Depending on a strategic plan in steering higher education is compatible with current management approach in two different angles. Strategic plan will provide a flexible steering by producing general objectives to be achieved and basic policies to be implemented by higher education and on the other hand under such a flexible steering universities that are basic elements of higher education will be free to use their capacities to utilize opportunities and creativities in scope of the determined strategy and will be able to make significant contributions to increase total performance of the system. As another important characteristic, the strategy should be discussed in the society and agreed on with consensus. Producing a strategy in this nature will decrease tensions caused by inside and outside sources and open the path for a more calm and efficient development.

One and half year ago, the Council of Higher Education planned to develop such a strategy document in a certain process and established a higher education strategy preparation commission for this purpose. This commission^ started to prepare the first draft of higher education strategy by making a division of tasks among members and utilizing the knowledge on this subject in Turkey and in the world. During this preparatory works, a two-day international conference was organized by the Council of Higher Education on November 14-15, 2006 in order to discuss problems of and solutions for higher education in both the world and Turkey. Almost all university rectors and other relevant people in Turkey participated in this conference. The meeting provided useful input for the works of Strategy Development Commission.

Main lines of the text prepared by the Strategy Development Commission will be presented for the first time on July 3, 2006 in a meeting before the President of the Republic with participation of members of the Council of Higher Education, university rectors and the commission members. Immediately after this presentation strategy document will be published in the web site of the Council of Higher Education (www.yok.gov.tr) and opinions to be submitted will be systematically compiled and utilized. In the final stage, higher education strategy for Turkey will be transformed into a consensus text by taking opinions of public and all relevant stakeholders.

Basically three institutions will be responsible for implementation of the Higher Education Strategy for Turkey, which has been transformed into a consensus text. The first of these institutions is the Council of Higher Education, which has played the leading role in developing this strategy. The Council of Higher Education will use the powers assigned to it by laws in line with this strategy. The second group of institutions that will be responsible for implementation of the strategy are universities. In the higher autonomy environment to be provided in accordance with the strategy, it is expected that universities choose more innovative implementations and increase their performances. The existing Higher Education Law will limit implementation of this strategy at a certain degree. In order to implement the strategy in a more comprehensive way, legal changes will be needed. Government will be responsible for this aspect of the strategy. Existence of a higher education strategy agreed with consensus will be very valuable guide that can be utilized by the government.

The Strategy Development Commission analysed development trends and expected developments in higher education in the world and Turkey before developing the higher education strategy. Then, the commission assessed structure of the higher education in Turkey in a very extensive way with regard to aspects like education, research and public service supply and performance, management culture, life quality it provides to its students. By considering the differences between expectations and existent situation it clarified different dimensions of the higher education problem in Turkey and examined the various means and policy tools that can be utilized for solving these problems.

The last section of the study of the Strategy Development Commission is on strategy suggestion. The Strategy includes a vision suggestion that includes all three functions of higher education, strategic objectives for higher education system and macro performance criteria, a structure suggestion for Turkish higher education, determinations for limits and ethics of university, new principle suggestions for entering to higher education, new regulations for financing of higher education, strategies that increase and guarantee quality in higher education, performance criteria for higher education institutions, approaches that will guide enlargement and distribution of higher education, policies for development of academic and administrative staff and suggestions on working rights of academic staff.