Türkiye outperforms OECD average across key education indicators

According to the OECD’s Education at a Glance 2026 report, Türkiye performed above the OECD average across several education indicators, including teacher staffing, timely completion of upper secondary education, improvements in learning environments and the share of public resources allocated to education.

According to a statement by Türkiye’s Ministry of National Education, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has published its annual Education at a Glance 2026 report, which provides comprehensive comparative data on education systems across countries. This year’s report focuses primarily on teacher shortages, CE Report quotes Anadolu Agency.

The report shows that Türkiye stands out positively at a time when OECD countries are facing growing teacher shortages and declining interest in the teaching profession.

Türkiye among two OECD countries fully meeting teacher demand

Türkiye, together with South Korea, is one of only two OECD countries where teacher demand is fully met at primary and secondary education levels.

Türkiye also has a relatively young teaching workforce compared with other OECD countries. Teachers under the age of 35 account for 32% of the country’s teaching workforce, compared with an OECD average of 22%.

Data obtained from surveys conducted among school principals as part of the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) also show that teacher absenteeism is lower in Türkiye than the OECD average.

The proportion of school principals who said teacher absenteeism negatively affects student learning stood at 6% in Türkiye, compared with an OECD average of 27%.

Türkiye also performed above the OECD average in terms of teacher salary increases over the past decade. According to 2025 data, the gross salary of a newly appointed primary school teacher, adjusted for purchasing power parity, was above the OECD average.

Between 2015 and 2025, the real salaries of lower secondary school teachers with 15 years of experience increased by 31% in Türkiye, compared with an increase of approximately 6-7% across the OECD.

Improvements in learning environments

Between 2015 and 2024, the number of students per teacher in Türkiye declined from 17 to 14 at lower secondary level and from 14 to 11 at upper secondary level.

As a result, Türkiye moved below the OECD average of 13 students per teacher at upper secondary level, while its figure at lower secondary level remained close to the OECD average of 13.

Türkiye has also recorded improvements in average class sizes over the past decade. The average primary school class has 23 students in Türkiye, compared with an OECD average of 21.

At lower secondary level, the average class size declined from 25 to 23 students between 2015 and 2024, bringing Türkiye in line with the OECD average.

Türkiye above OECD average in share of public spending allocated to education

Education accounts for 9.9% of total public expenditure in Türkiye, slightly above the OECD average of 9.8%.

Türkiye also ranks above the OECD average in investment spending on education. Spending on buildings, facilities, equipment and other investments accounts for 14% of total education expenditure in Türkiye, compared with an OECD average of 9%.

Türkiye records high rate of timely secondary school completion

According to the report, 92% of students in Türkiye complete upper secondary education within the expected four-year period, compared with an OECD average of 75%.

Meanwhile, the proportion of students who have neither completed upper secondary education nor remained in education two years after the expected completion date stands at 1% in Türkiye, compared with an OECD average of 12%.

These results place Türkiye alongside countries such as Canada, Ireland and Switzerland among OECD members with high rates of timely upper secondary school completion.

Preschool participation continues to increase

Türkiye is also among the OECD countries that have recorded the largest increases in access to early childhood education.

Between 2015 and 2024, participation in preschool education among children aged three through the start of compulsory education increased by 13 percentage points in Türkiye, compared with a four-point increase across the OECD.

Participation rises significantly with age, reaching 15% among three-year-olds, 43.5% among four-year-olds and 87% among five-year-olds.

Higher education attainment rises sharply among young women

The proportion of women aged 25-34 in Türkiye with a higher education qualification increased from 27% in 2015 to 50% in 2025.

Over the same period, the OECD average increased from 46% to 54%, representing an eight-percentage-point rise, compared with a 23-point increase in Türkiye.

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