The Council of State last week decided to block a decision issued by YÖK’s General Council in July after the İstanbul Bar Association asked it to ensure the continuation of the system in which a lower coefficient is used to calculate the scores of graduates of vocational high schools on Turkey’s university admission exam, the Student Selection Examination (ÖSS). The system is considered by many a form of clear discrimination against graduates of vocational schools.
The lower coefficient used for the scores of vocational school students is a remnant of the Feb. 28, 1997 unarmed military intervention, which led to the collapse of an Islamic-rooted government, and was introduced in an attempt to keep students from religious imam-hatip schools -- classified as vocational schools -- out of universities. Opponents of the coefficient rule say it is discriminatory and unfair.
YÖK’s petition against the ruling was sent to the Council of State on Wednesday. In the petition, YÖK criticized the Council of State, finding that “students of regular high schools and vocational high schools are not equal.” The petition also stated that according to the Constitution and legislation relevant to YÖK, only YÖK has the authority to decide on matters concerning the system of transition to higher education from high school. YÖK’s petition also said the Council of State ruling had no legal basis and the high court should have overturned the application of the İstanbul Bar Association in the first place. The petition said the ruling was a violation of a number of rights guaranteed by the Constitution such as the right to an education, equal opportunity in education and the right to self-improvement. The petition also stated that vocational training should be encouraged, not discouraged or punished with the lower coefficient.
YÖK’s petition also dismissed the İstanbul Bar Association’s accusation that the move to abolish the lower coefficient was ideological. The petition reiterated that the only way to improve vocational training in Turkey was to eradicate discrimination towards students and graduates of these schools. YÖK stated that the reason the coefficient practice was being removed was economic and social rather than ideological.
Meanwhile, on Wednesday, shortly after YÖK completed the appeal process, YÖK President Yusuf Ziya Özcan told members of the media that they were prepared for obstacles and had devised alternative systems. If the appeal is not accepted, YÖK will employ a new method of calculation. He did not say directly but implied that the difference in the coefficients used to form scores of regular and vocational high school students might be as small as 0.01 percent.
