We want Mediterranean, Black Sea report cards!

If you read the title with a melody, you are either old or, as the new generation puts it, a 'boomer'. We used to wait for our report cards with such excitement, didn't we? We would call out to our teachers with this song, eager to get our hands on our report cards as soon as possible. Much like the cliché about the "good old days" of holidays, one feels like saying, "where are those old report card days?" Nowadays, it is unfortunately impossible to talk about such excitement. So, why don't 'report cards' excite students, teachers, or parents as much anymore?

One of the reasons for this is the "e-school" system. With this system, both students and parents can track and learn the results of exams taken throughout the year via the system; in other words, all grades are already known before the report cards are even received. Naturally, this eliminates the mystery of the report cards received on the last day of school. However, the main reason for the end of report card excitement is that assessment and evaluation in schools no longer yield realistic results, and most of the grades are 'hormone-injected' (inflated).

In the past, receiving an honor or high-honor certificate was a big deal. Only a few children in every neighborhood could receive these documents, and those children were pointed out as examples. Now, thank goodness, honors and high-honors are flying everywhere. When you look carefully at the children's hands on report card day, it is possible to see these documents in most of them. As a result, they unfortunately no longer hold any value. This situation also negatively affects good students who truly deserve these documents, put in the effort, and work hard. It lowers their motivation as well. If our children are so successful, why don't these school grades reflect in the LGS and YKS, the country's two most important centralized exams? When we look at the course averages for both exams, the situation is dire.

There is something wrong here; either the school grades are wrong or the centralized exam results are. Considering the reliability of centralized exam results, it is crystal clear that school grades are inflated. At this point, my advice to parents regarding report cards is this: Do not be deceived by high grades; those grades do not reflect your child's true situation. Be aware of this, and consult with teachers in a sincere manner to learn your child's actual level.

Parents who pressure teachers and demand high grades should also know that the greatest harm will be to their own children. Just as a balloon that is over-inflated will burst, a student who drifts away from their own reality with inflated grades will, metaphorically speaking, unfortunately burst when it comes to centralized exams. To prevent this unhealthy situation, the Ministry of National Education (MEB) must take the necessary steps immediately; first and foremost, it must free teachers from the pressure of giving high grades and strengthen their authority. Schools that give inflated grades should be strictly audited. The MEB, which has brought back "failing a grade," must stand firmly behind this decision without compromise. Otherwise, it is impossible for education to make any progress with this distorted assessment and evaluation system. In their current state, the report cards received are nothing more than symbolic pieces of paper. Consequently, there is no excitement left in this process.