Turkish schools conclude academic year, summer break begins
Students pose with their report card following the end of the school year, Mardin, southeastern Türkiye, June 14, 2024. (AA Photo)

Over 20 million students have begun their summer holidays after receiving their report cards



Over 20 million students in primary and secondary schools across Türkiye received their report cards on Friday, marking the start of the summer holiday. Families are looking forward to enjoying a long break together.

Students began the 2023-2024 academic year on Sept. 11, 2023, along with nearly 1.2 million teachers.

First lady Emine Erdoğan shared the joy of students receiving their report cards and wished them a pleasant holiday. She posted a message on social media celebrating the end of the academic year.

"I wholeheartedly share the joy of all our students who received their report cards and wish them a wonderful holiday. They have successfully completed another academic year and are steadily moving toward their goals. May the path of our children, the guarantors of our future and our hope, be open," Erdoğan said in her message.

For the first time, middle school students received newly designed report cards that included not only their grades but also their participation in social activities. Students with an average grade of 50 or higher who failed no more than three subjects will be promoted to the next grade as responsible students. Ninth graders who fail four or more subjects will have to repeat the year. Additionally, the passing grade threshold for Turkish was raised to 70.

Starting from the 2024-2025 academic year, a new curriculum prepared under the National Education Model, a model designed as part of "Century of Türkiye," a campaign described by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan as "the name of a revolution that will bring democracy, development, peace and welfare to every corner of the world," will be gradually implemented, beginning with preschool, first grade, fifth grade and ninth grade.

Students will begin the 2024-2025 academic year on Sept. 9.

The Ministry of National Education announced that from July 1, free summer schools in sports, visual arts, music and informatics will be available for students from second grade onward.

In addition to the summer schools, support and enrichment courses for academic subjects will be provided for eighth-grade middle school students and 11th and 12th-grade high school students.

These courses will be held in centers designated by provincial and district central commissions, and no fees will be charged to students and trainees. Courses for graduates will be offered in public education centers.

The courses will start on July 1 and end on Aug. 29. Support and enrichment courses for the academic year will begin on Sept. 2.

The summer school courses will be scheduled after 1:30 p.m. and will run five days a week. Each course will not exceed two hours per day and will last no less than four weeks and no more than eight weeks.