Statement Regarding The 2020-2021 Academic Year in Turkish Higher Education Institutions
August 13, 2020
Recently, the Council of Higher Education has frequently been receiving questions from students and their parents about the opening of Turkish universities. The Council decided to make a statement on the issue to inform the public.
The Council of Higher Education has been closely monitoring the novel coronavirus outbreak from the day the first cases were reported.
Since last March, when the epidemic affected the Turkish higher education system, necessary measures have been taken and fast and dynamic processes have been carried out. However, the global pandemic, in which more than 20 million people are infected and more than 700 thousand people died, continues to affect higher education and we are in need of new long-term measures.
Many issues related to the processes of the 2020-2021 academic year are discussed all over the world. There is no consensus on this issue in countries with a very strong higher education system. While some countries have stated that the 2020-2021 academic year will be conducted entirely online through distance education, the number of countries announcing that they would adopt face-to-face and online blended learning methods, and implement distance education and formal education on a faculty/program basis is not few.
As the Council of Higher Education, we have recently published the New Normalization Guide in Global Pandemic by examining the practices in the world. The guide includes framework decisions and recommendations under the headings of “Distance Education Practices”, “Applied Trainings”, “Assessment and Measurement Practices”, “International Students”, and “Meetings, Conferences and Exchange Programs”. As we have explained in this guide, Turkish universities are allowed to carry out different practices according to the regional and local course of the pandemic since the pandemic is a dynamic process.
There are nearly 45,000 programs in our country, and the methods of the application of each program in line with its goals of achievement vary. As a matter of fact, the education and training processes of literature, sociology, fashion design, midwifery, traditional crafts, medicine, dentistry and pilotage programs are quite different from each other. The measures to be taken in the implementation of these programs during the pandemic may, of course, differ from region to region.
As of today, Turkish universities are asked to plan their academic calendars so that they could be opened in October 1, 2020. In addition, decreasing the number of students on campuses and reducing mobility are also important, and Turkish universities were given wide opportunities for decision-making processes. Thus, it has become possible for these universities to implement different practices on the basis of faculties and programs.
The relevant boards of Turkish universities will decide on the practices to be implemented for different programs according to the regional and local course of the pandemic.
The recent structural arrangements we made due to the pandemic have created a wide area for universities to implement blended learning. Turkish universities will be able to make general plans through the Coronavirus Committees and other related boards and committees so that the pandemic will not threaten the health of students, academics and administrative staff. It is evident that this process will continue to be carried out within the framework of precautionary guidance of the Ministry of Health and other relevant ministries.
As CoHE, we have been carrying out this process from the beginning with a management approach that can be summarized as agile management, strong coordination, flexible decisions and corporate diversity. The health of all academic and administrative staff, and our beloved students entrusted to us by their families in particular, is the most important topic in our decision-making processes.