Turkey’s 10-Year Rise in PISA Rankings: Analysis by Dr. Faik Tanrıkulu

While discussions regarding the quality of the education system in Turkey remain a hot media topic, international data presents a different picture of the country's upward trend. According to a new analysis published by Dr. Faik Tanrıkulu, an associate professor at Istanbul Medipol University, Turkey's performance in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) has been moving with a positive slope over the past decade [1].

Transformation in PISA Results; From 2015 to 2026 The PISA test, conducted by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), measures the skills of 15-year-old students in three main areas: mathematics, science, and reading. According to Dr. Tanrıkulu, although Turkey still ranks below the OECD average in some indicators, its rate of progress is rare among member countries [2].

Based on the analyzed data, in 2015, the gap between Turkish students' scores and the global average in mathematics was 70 points, but this gap has decreased to 19 points in the latest official assessments. In the field of science, this progress has been stunning, with the 68-point gap in 2015 now reduced to just 9 points, indicating extreme proximity to global standards [1][3].

Closing the Gap with the OECD Average One of the key points in Dr. Tanrıkulu's analysis is the stability of educational quality improvement. While many developed countries faced a sharp decline in scores following the COVID-19 pandemic, Turkey managed to maintain its position and even improve in some areas. Mathias Cormann, the Secretary-General of the OECD, previously noted that Turkey is one of the few countries that has consistently moved in the right direction over the past 10 years [2].

In the area of reading skills, Turkey's gap with the global average has decreased from 62 points in 2015 to 20 points. these statistics show that structural reforms in the education system, including updating curriculum content and investing in digital infrastructure, have yielded tangible results [1].

Key Factors in Improving Educational Quality Dr. Tanrıkulu believes that education should not be compared to infrastructure projects like bridges or hospitals, where results are seen immediately. Education is a long-term investment whose fruits appear after a decade [2]. Increased access to pre-school education, improving the quality of teacher training, and the use of digital learning platforms are among the factors that have played a role in this 10-year ascent.

Outlook for PISA 2025 Results Given the current trend, the results of the new cycle (PISA 2025), which are scheduled to be officially released in September 2026, are expected to be another confirmation of this continuous progress. Experts predict that by continuing this trend, Turkey will fully reach the average of developed countries in the coming years and even surpass them in some areas [1][2]. This transformation indicates that despite domestic criticism, international data tells the story of a qualitative leap in the new generation of Turkish students.