Results of controversial examination announced, Yalova tops the nation again

The Student Selection and Placement Center (ÖSYM) on Thursday revealed the much anticipated results of the YGS on the Internet and provided specific details regarding the performance of students in general.

Speaking to news agencies in relation to Yalova’s success in the YGS, Yalova Provincial Education Director Süleyman Şişman said this was not a coincidence, but based on a lot of hard work. “Our province has taken its place among the top performing provinces in the 2011 YGS results, which pleased all of us in Yalova. I congratulate all our administrators, teachers, students and parents who contributed to this achievement,” he said.

The top performing student in Turkey was Ankara Science High School student Mahmut Bilal Doğan. Sharing his joy with his family who live in Kayseri, Doğan said he did not encounter any codes when answering exam questions. In response to journalists’ questions about claims of codes in the exam, Doğan said he experienced difficulty answering math questions and lost time as a result. He said he also answered one Geography question incorrectly. “‘If you ask me, I have nothing to be ashamed of.

I worked hard and prayed for success,” he said. According to a statement made by ÖSYM, 1,692,144 students applied to take the exam, but 43,509 of these were unable to do so; and 38,269 exam-takers had scores less that 0.5. Students receiving a score of “zero” in the exam numbered 14,156. In the math exam -- which was at the center of controversy due to allegations it contained a code that could reveal the answer when read in a certain way – 30,633 candidates answered at least 35 out of a total 40 questions correctly.

ÖSYM also revealed how many students answered how many questions correctly. As such, 1,805 students who sat this year’s math exam answered all 40 questions correctly, 3,261 students answered 39 questions correctly, 4,607 answered 38 questions correctly and 5,677 answered 37 questions correctly.

In last year’s mathematics exam, 2,141 students answered all 40 questions correctly, and 74,347 exam-takers gave correct answers for at least 35 questions. Students achieving a perfect score of 40 out of 40 in the Turkish language examination numbered 1,392, and only five students responded correctly to all questions in the Humanities exam. In the Science exam, 407 test-takers answered all 40 questions correctly.

Yalova was among the provinces with the most successful test-takers last year, alongside Kayseri, Aydın, Karaman and Denizli. The least successful provinces in this the 2011 YGS were revealed to be Hakkari, Şırnak and Ardahan.

Investigation completed

An investigation into the answer keys of 1.7 million students and the examination booklets of students who got a perfect score in this year’s Transition to Higher Education Examination (YGS) is complete, the Ankara Prosecutor’s Office said on Thursday. “The analysis by the team of investigators is complete, and the exam results can be made public,” the office said, adding the evaluation of examination results and their release were administrative procedures and were available to the Student Selection and Placement Center (ÖSYM) directorate.

Ankara Deputy Chief Prosecutor Şadan Sakınan had ordered a team of investigators to search the Meteksan publishing house -- where a controversial question booklet used in this year’s YGS was printed. The investigators, including computer experts, reviewed the database of question booklets distributed to 1.7 million test takers. Auditors from ÖSYM, which administers the YGS, also simultaneously analyzed the examination booklets of students ranked among the top 1,000. Shortly after the exam was held this past March 27, ÖSYM was accused of having inserted a code into the multiple-choice answers of the exam in such a way as to reveal the correct answer if read a certain way.