Probe launched into 29 individuals over national high school exam controversy

ANKARA

Authorities have launched an administrative investigation into 29 individuals over allegations of misconduct in Türkiye’s national high school placement exam, known as the Transition to High Schools Exam (LGS), following widespread controversy over claims that exam questions were leaked and distributed through various channels.

The controversy was fueled by reports that 719 students from 544 different schools achieved perfect scores, an unusually high number, surpassing the previous record of 565 set in 2023 and compared to 352 last year.

The outcome sparked public debate and prompted the Education Ministry to respond. Education Minister Yusuf Tekin announced the investigation, confirming that legal procedures have been initiated against the suspects, including school administrators accused of sharing exam content.

In an interview, Tekin dismissed the claims of a leak as unfounded. “We conducted our investigation. The verbal session, which ended at 10:45 a.m., was photographed by one of the administrators under investigation and converted into a PDF, which was shared at 11:57 a.m. Our technical team analyzed the PDF material and confirmed that it did not originate from us. The claim that questions were stolen is completely false,” he said.

Tekin emphasized that the administrative investigation could result in disciplinary action and, if warranted, criminal proceedings.

Meanwhile, Özgür Türk, the director general of the ministry’s information technologies department, has been dismissed and replaced by Ersin Karaman, a former adviser to the minister. The timing of the change, amid ongoing scrutiny, attracted attention on social media.

However, the ministry sources clarified that all operations related to the LGS exam fall under the Directorate General for Measurement, Evaluation and Examination Services (ÖSYM), and that Türk had no direct involvement with that unit.