Scandalous allegations from Kadıköy Anadolu High School students

Kadıköy Anadolu High School students and their parents have been complaining about recent grievances and poor conditions. Due to the school administration's practices, which they claim are contrary to regulations, the students prepared a joint statement detailing their problems.

According to Özgür İfade, the students stated that the school's heating system was not working, that they were continuing their education in the cold, and that the administration had asked them to bring heaters from their own homes. In addition, the allegations include a series of issues such as the installation of a camera system in the dormitories without the students' permission or knowledge, and a ban on students living in the dormitory from talking to each other and socializing.

"UNFORTUNATELY, WE HAVE ALWAYS BEEN LEFT ALONE"

The joint statement published by the students is as follows:

"Kadıköy Anadolu High School; a school that those who are not students sometimes glance at with envy while passing through the streets of Moda, where we watch with admiration the performances that 'young high school kids' put on as part of school clubs at universities, a school that sits at the top of the preference lists for students transitioning to high school, and a school where we have heard that people known from all walks of life have studied...

It is time to shout out not what you have heard, but what we have not been allowed to announce; not what you see, but what we have not been able to show. As Turkish youth, when we came to this school, we all had a common goal while singing our National Anthem on the first day of school with the excitement of that huge door opening to our lives. To succeed. To achieve something for our country. However, unfortunately, we have always been left alone in this pursuit. Perhaps, just as we will be left alone after these lines.

However, leaving a mark, being a voice, and keeping hope alive will be the most important kindness we can do for our future siblings in the long run. The excerpt we will describe to you in a few lines will unfortunately be only a few examples of the education and discipline approach that persists in Turkey's best schools. We hope that the conditions our school administrator offers to students are at a level he would deem appropriate for his own children. 

We are curious about what educational philosophy allows a school principal figure, who tells students at every opportunity that the school's financial situation is insufficient, to discuss money with his students in a public school. A high school student worrying about school finances is not part of any student mission. The fact that the school has not had heating facilities to date in air temperatures dropping to 2 degrees for two weeks has unfortunately put the students in an extremely difficult situation.

To our school administration, which gave the instruction 'bring an electric heater from your home,' there is something we would like to remind you: Don't let the electricity bill be too high!

"STUDENTS CHATTING IN THE DORMITORY IS A DISCIPLINARY OFFENSE"

We kiss the hands of our dormitory supervisors who gave the instruction to keep disciplinary records even when students chat with each other, and we leave them alone with their consciences. We would like to ask you which article of the Ministry of National Education's School Dormitories Regulation states what you have written in the schedule: 'students cannot enter each other's rooms and floors in any way,' and which of the elements that cause disciplinary action this falls under. We researched it for you and could not find it.

With what right can you forbid dormitory students from entering floors where male construction workers can walk in and out freely in the section where female students stay? We suspect you think that if we cannot chat freely and socialize there, you can raise students who will bow down to you. Unfortunately, you always ignore the fact that our heads will always be held high.

"WE WERE THREATENED BY HAVING FOOTAGE TAKEN IN THE DORMITORY WITHOUT OUR KNOWLEDGE"

What kind of administrative approach involves threatening a student by using footage taken in the dormitory without the student's knowledge or consent? In which regulation is this written? We are very curious. You owe an explanation to 1087 students. Unfortunately, as the student body, we sometimes fail to learn functions, and sometimes equations. But you, dear administration, you have not learned that whatever you do to one of our lives, to one of our siblings, or however you upset them, 1087 people will expect an explanation from you for it. 

Even if you try to rein us in by canceling our weekend leave, even if you think you will discipline us by condemning us to the cold in December, dear teacher; we received our discipline from our families. What we expect from you is to provide the necessary conditions to fulfill our right to education. Just that.

What we expect from our graduates and those who read this is to be able to feel them by our side. We exist as long as we speak, and we are aware of our rights. We were entrusted to you by our families and by Atatürk, Kadıköy Anadolu. Just as the future of our country is entrusted to us, we keep our word. The last things you can break are our thoughts, our free ideas, and our words. We apologize if we have taken your time. With love, with the seagulls of all our generations."