12 YEARS OF BASIC EDUCATION

The importance given to education has risen parallel to / in tandem with development. Whereas schooling was not considered such a priority in the 19^th century now it is compulsory for children up to a certain age. This is 16 in the UK and 14 currently in Turkey. Ideally, the period of compulsory education should include college as well; obviously the better educated the youth are, the better prepared for life they are and the more useful they are for society. Yet is Turkey ready for such an undertaking / venture? The answer is most certainly not. Therefore, the idea of extending compulsory education to include high school as well should be postponed to a later date.

Politicians who are concerned with votes and winning elections are trying to push through legislation with complete disregard for the fact that the infrastructure is not in place. 12 years compulsory education looks good on paper but what about school buildings? Let us imagine for the sake of argument that some businessman built the school; things don’t stop there: what about white boards, computers, modern facilities, furniture? In a poor country with a soaring budget deficit, can the ministry of education really claim to be able to provide all this by September in every village? It doesn’t seem likely.

Secondly, assuming that all the practical requirements have been met, there is the small problem of teaching staff. Teachers don’t grow on trees; what is more Turkey refuses to employ existing graduates of teacher training colleges. How does the government propose to man schools under these circumstances? Obviously, no one wants a mediocre teacher or teachers fresh out of college; they want the good ones. Under these conditions how can equality be provided? Some people will get a good education while others may not even be able to read properly.

Thirdly, in a developing country where the pressure to enter the job market is high do we need to keep everyone in school until they are 18? Most people would prefer to learn job skills or go to a vocational school; they may think trigonometry and modern physics are unnecessary for them and they can’t really be blamed. 14 is a much more realistic stopping place; besides, we haven’ managed to apply this rule properly yet.

Some may claim that keeping children in school until they are 18 might enable the government to instill good moral values and sound general principles. However, not everyone agrees with the state’s definition of good moral values: some people may desire a more secular education to one heavily laden with religion. Everyone should have a right to provide their children with the education they believe is right.

In conclusion, Turkey is not ready to extend schooling to include high school and they will not be ready for a long time. What is more, even if they were, such a move could be undemocratic. The solution is business as usual for the foreseeable future.