Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan: “Family cannot compensate for the shortcomings of the education system”

Psychiatrist Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan, Founding Rector of Üsküdar Üniversitesi, extensively discussed the topic “How Should a Proper Education System Be?” in the program “Akla Kapı with Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan” broadcast on Dost TV and Dost FM. Tarhan stated, “Currently, social norms, family norms, and moral norms have changed in society. Due to these changing norms, families have started to be unable to compensate for the shortcomings of the education system. Generations that are entirely products of popular culture are now growing up.” Tarhan also pointed out that education should be in line with the cultural codes of society. 

“Generations that are products of popular culture are growing up”

Psychiatrist Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan, stating that Turkey has taken very important steps in recent years in the defense industry, health, and many other fields, noted that Turkey has fallen behind in the education system. Tarhan said, “We have to accept this. If we cannot self-criticize, we cannot catch up with the times. There is an education system exactly the opposite of the world's education system. In other words, the philosophy of the education system is wrong, the philosophy of science is wrong. How can a system without a philosophy run healthy? It's like this; You are going to build a building, and its project is flawed. If there is a flawed project, that building will collapse at the first tremor. Its columns, beams are wrong, its calculations are wrong. So, the production comes out wrong. If a factory's project is wrong, both the production and the product come out wrong. Previously, society and family would compensate for the shortcomings and errors of the education system. Now, social norms, family norms, and moral norms have changed in society. Due to these changing norms, families have started to be unable to compensate for the shortcomings of the education system. Generations that are entirely products of popular culture are now growing up.”

“Education must be in line with the cultural codes of society”

Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan, stating that education should be in line with the cultural codes of society, said; “Our current education system intended to do things in terms of technology and many other aspects, but because it established its philosophy incorrectly, the individuals it raises do not become people of our own values, of our own society. In other words, intelligent and hardworking individuals who are the resource of a society are going abroad. We are exporting brains to the whole world. Our education system is raising young generations, but the elite part of the young generation is going to another world. This education system is one that needs to be questioned. This is not just a curriculum issue. If education is compatible with the cultural codes of society, that education system will work. Just as when a tissue transplant is performed on the body, if there is a blood group incompatibility, the body rejects it. That is, if it does not fit the genetic structure, it rejects it. Therefore, continuous special attention is required. One must strive throughout life to prevent rejection. Since our current education system does not conform to our cultural fabric, our cultural fabric is rejecting our education system. Society and family used to compensate for this rejection, but now that compensation is also gone…” he stated. 

“The human brain learns in an enjoyable and disciplined environment”

Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan, stating that one should work with love and discipline, said; “The human brain learns in an enjoyable and disciplined environment. Permanent learning is achieved. If you write on sand, it immediately dissipates. If you write on stone, it stays. In the brain, when information is written with chemical letters, it is like being written on stone, but when written with electrical letters, it is forgotten, it quickly disappears. That is, short learnings, those not repeated or without emotion, are written with electrical letters and vanish. Learnings in which emotions are involved become permanent learning. 'Enjoyable' here means learning done with pleasure, with a sense of flow. Working with love and discipline, working with passion.”

“Our current education system gives opportunity to totalitarian thought”

Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan, noting that there should be a free market of ideas for transformation in education, said; “If the market of ideas is free, if ideas compete, the highest quality idea will prevail. It will be the same in education. It will give opportunity to free thought. Our current education system gives opportunity to totalitarian thought. That is, everyone should think the same way, everyone should believe in the same sacred values, everyone should behave the same way. We have a fear-oriented education system. An education system with an official ideology cannot exist. No developed country's constitution has an official ideology. That is, for an official ideology, 'I am raising this type of person' is not acceptable. The sacred value of this era is universal human rights.”

“Human talents do not develop in a comfort zone”

Tarhan, stating that children learned moral norms through the traditional culture of Anatolian wisdom, said; “The family and society used to compensate for the shortcomings of our education system. For example, they would take the child in the summer and make them work. They would work in their father's business, in the factory. They learned budget management there. Within that family, they learned not to lie, to keep their word, moral norms, social norms, taboos, prohibitions, and many such things. A traditional culture stemming from Anatolian wisdom. Currently, our fathers were first the generation of the Ottoman period, and then cultural transmission was somehow passed on with families, the environment, and society. After the 1990s, the cultural transmission of the family and society stopped. That is, even if families set an example for a child to be honest, the child views it as foolishness. Such a generation is emerging. Since mothers and fathers are the second or third generation, they raise their children in a comfort zone, thinking, ‘We suffered, our children should not suffer.’ Human talents do not develop in a comfort zone either.” he stated. 

“Being intelligent and hardworking is not enough, it is also necessary to teach how to be a good person”

Tarhan, emphasizing that in addition to being intelligent and hardworking, one also needs to be a good person, said; “Global viruses have now entered our society, our family. We must definitely develop antibodies against this. That is, keeping one's word, not lying, being honest, being hardworking, being benevolent, being a good person… For example, when raising a person, we raise them with two paradigms. We raise them to be intelligent and hardworking. Currently, parents also raise them that way. Our current education system also raises them that way. The child becomes intelligent, works, becomes a chemical engineer. Becomes a computer engineer, becomes intelligent, becomes hardworking. A person our education system desires. But after graduation, the chemical engineer goes and produces synthetic drugs. The computer engineer goes and engages in hacking. This means that being intelligent and hardworking is not enough. It is also necessary to teach how to be a good person.”  

“The 20th Century was the age of information, the 21st Century must be the age of wisdom”  

Tarhan, emphasizing that some skills will gain importance more than the importance of knowledge, said; “Currently, the only thing artificial intelligence cannot do is to possess social and emotional skill areas. People who are good in social and emotional skill areas will make a difference. Social leaderships will be valuable. Therefore, people's wisdom will be very important. Wisdom will be very important as a 21st Century skill. The 20th Century was the age of information, the 21st Century must be the age of wisdom.  Wisdom, that is, the wisdom of Socrates, the wisdom of Plato, these are universal wisdoms. These wisdoms are also the wisdoms of heavenly teachings, the teachings of the Quran.”