Digital Transformation and Openness in the Turkish Higher Education System

This chapter introduces openness in education and open educational resources (OER) in Turkey. To better understand and conceptualize the Turkish case, there is a need to briefly introduce Turkish HE and how openness is perceived by Turkish Society. By 2021, the total population of Turkey is around 85 million and approximately 10% of its population (around 8 million) attends higher education (HE). HE in Turkey is delivered through face-to-face, distance, and open education modalities. In this context, it should be noted that due to Turkish regulations, there are distinct differences in the definition of distance education and open education. Accordingly, open education offers open admissions with minimal entry requirements and flexible learning opportunities (e.g., self-paced, attendance is not required), on the other hand, distance education offers partly flexible admissions (e.g., predefined entry requirements, attendance is required, students should pay for the courses). The demand for HE is high, but the number of accepted students is relatively low compared to the total demand. As such, open education is a viable solution for the Turkish HE system