PISA Director of Education Schleicher Presents His Book Published by Bahçeşehir University Press

Andreas Schleicher, Director for Education at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and of the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), held a press conference at Bahçeşehir University to introduce his book "How to Build a 21st-Century School System", published by Bahçeşehir University Press. Together with the book's translator, Bahçeşehir University President Prof. Dr. Şirin Karadeniz, he shared his views on education systems in the world and in Türkiye.

Evaluating PISA's test results in Türkiye, OECD and PISA Director for Education Andreas Schleicher said: "Unfortunately, partly because of the exam system, we see that Turkish students lack the skills to solve complex problems. In fact, they are not lacking in knowledge; we simply need to raise young people who can find their way through the problems of a world that changes every day and will face major problems."

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Stating that education systems must keep pace with innovation in a developing and changing world order, Schleicher emphasized that otherwise the education system loses its purpose day by day, and as a result young people find no meaning in school.

Speaking first about the mistakes made in education and what should be done instead, Schleicher said:

"Educating children was much easier in the past. In the future it will become even harder, because the world is changing very fast. Sometimes we as parents are more of a problem than a solution, because we are very anxious about our children. We become even more anxious when we realize that our children are learning things we no longer understand, or when they no longer learn the things that were very important to us in the past. Education is truly losing its relevance and purpose. Young people find no meaning in school. In the world we live in, it is easy to learn certain things but hard to measure them. We apply a rote-learning system and think it is a lifesaver, but later we see that it is of no use. We need to be open to innovation. There are people who want to keep education as it is and do not want to see how the world is changing. They try to pass on our own ideas to the next generation. We cannot teach questioning, openness to change or keeping up with innovation."

"One of the biggest shortcomings in education is that we do not teach how to learn"

Saying that one of the biggest shortcomings in education is that "we do not teach how to learn", Schleicher continued:

"The world changes every day. That is why we need to be learners throughout our lives. Success is no longer just about learning and teaching. Success now depends on having a compass and finding our way in an innovative world. Merely learning and teaching belong to the education systems of the 19th and 20th centuries. Back then, we learned things from the encyclopedias we held in our hands; it was more limited. But now, with the computers and the internet at our fingertips, we can find thousands of answers to a question we ask, but the question now is which one is right," he said.

Stating that prejudices affect education and that change must start with teachers, Schleicher said: "No education system can rise above the quality of its teachers," and continued:

"We have prejudices about education. For example, the belief that children from poor families will fail or that immigrants will lower the quality of education. Our research shows that these factors are not directly related to the quality of education. Likewise, small or large class sizes are among the debated issues, and we have found that this is not decisive either. But the quality of education is directly related to the teacher. No education system can rise above the quality of its teachers. We need teachers who understand their students' hopes and dreams, because it is teachers who are the real designers and who prepare the future, and that is why we need to raise their motivation and ensure that our teachers are trained by the best teachers. Türkiye has a considerable number of high-quality teachers. Another misconception is the belief that the longer we extend education and class hours, the more successful we will be. In developed countries with high-quality education, school hours are much shorter than in countries with the lowest quality of education. What matters here is not the amount of time but allocating qualified and effective time."

"Schools are like factories"

PISA Director Schleicher: The Turkish education system has failed to adapt to the world
Schleicher said: "Another problem is that educational institutions, that is, schools, are like factories. We need to move away from industrialized educational institutions and proceed with an approach to education that keeps pace with change, values the differences of each student and does not simply follow the old curriculum. Just as we cannot give every patient the same medicine and expect them to recover, we cannot give every student the same education and expect success."
Stating that, in order to truly change things and improve the quality of education, investment in education must be increased and the largest share of countries' gross spending should be allocated to education, Andreas Schleicher also argued that society must devote itself to education.

Schleicher also said: "Investment in education must be increased and resources must be used very well. When it comes to education, we only discuss teachers' salaries and classrooms. Yes, there are many problems, and solving them will take a long time. We must raise highly motivated people who know what they want more than the exam system demands of them, who have learned how to learn and who can produce solutions to complex problems, because the requirements of the 21st century demand this."

"It is enough to fill the gap between university education and the sector in Türkiye"

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Commenting on unemployed graduates, a topic of debate as the number of universities in Türkiye grows, Schleicher said: "The real issue here is not the number of universities. According to reports and the results of our assessments, university students have learned the wrong things and moved forward without preparing themselves for the future. That is why the real reason they remain unemployed after graduation is the wrong knowledge they have equipped themselves with. This is also why the business sector complains about a shortage of qualified staff. In this sense, the gap between university education and the sector must be filled."

Evaluating PISA's test results in Türkiye and expressing disappointment in this regard, Schleicher said:

"Unfortunately, partly because of the exam system, we see that Turkish students lack the skills to solve complex problems. In fact, they are not lacking in knowledge; we simply need to raise young people who can find their way through the problems of a world that changes every day and will face major problems. In other words, they must use their knowledge in the right place. Education, which is among Türkiye's 2023 goals, seems likely to solve this. The education system in Türkiye has begun to improve, but of course it is insufficient, and it needs to move forward by focusing its energy on the education system."