The Price of Exam Success

 

A Star Rises, Thousands Fall

Ecrin Ertaş. A little star born from the heart of Mazıdağı. She scored a perfect 500 in Turkey's National Scholarship Exam. A success story shining bright in the display window of the system...

But what about the others?

While Ecrin made headlines, where did the tens of thousands of children who failed the same exam go? No cameras turned to them. No official doors opened for them. Their teachers and families remained awkwardly silent. And maybe, deep down, they heard something like this:

"Look, Ecrin did it. That means you're not enough."

"You Failed" – The Stamp This exam is not just a test sheet. For many children, it's a line of fate, a directional sign, a life compass.

And that compass sometimes says:

"You're not successful."

"Your place isn't behind a desk, it's in a workshop."

"Don't think, don't create, just work."

Families now tell their children:

"See? You couldn't be first. Forget studying, just get a job."

The child hears this. Internalizes it. And one day something else happens: Either they become emotionless in pursuit of extreme success, or they want to burn down the whole system.

You Made Success Ideal, Failure a Shame Our education system is so distorted, it extracts PR from one child’s success story, but ignores the emotional collapse of thousands.

We frame the photo of the top scorer, But the child who failed dies inside.

So who will nurture the broken spirit of that child?

Exams Aren't Life, But No One Says This No one tells the child:

"Look, this exam doesn’t measure your intelligence, it measures your place in the system."

"You might be an artist, a craftsman, a thinker... but this system can’t understand you."

No, we don’t say this. Instead, we treat them as "losers." We turn ranking into God, and exams into fate. And then we wonder why there is so much anger.

Ecrin Is Not Guilty, But the System Is Not Innocent If Ecrin succeeded, it was because of her determination, her family's support, her teachers' honesty. But the system she succeeded in condemned others to lose.

For them, the exam wasn’t a test. It was a resignation. From school, from dreams, from society, from self...

And then these kids grow up. Some become ruthless bosses. Some become two-faced politicians. Some become angry militants.

They all come from within the system. Because the system didn’t educate them – it eliminated them.

This article isn't about Ecrin. It's about protesting the glorification of kids like her while ignoring the rest.

Before celebrating success, look at the trauma of those who failed. Because those kids are silent. But that silence eventually turns into rage, loneliness, violence.

And this system discards those children at a very young age.

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SCIENTIFIC PERSPECTIVE: Exam Trauma and Psychological Effects

PISA and OECD Reports More than 70% of students in Turkey experience "fear of failure" due to exam pressure (OECD PISA 2018). This is far above the OECD average.

This fear creates anxiety, low self-esteem, and a sense of social worthlessness in children.

While a child like Ecrin rises to the top, thousands who fail start to believe they are "stupid."

Result: The student doesn't grow distant from school, but from themselves.

Carol Dweck – Growth Mindset Systems that focus on fixed success (like exams) teach children that labeling matters more than growth.

If you're successful, you're "smart"; if not, you're stamped "useless."

But Dweck says children should be taught that "effort is valuable." Without this mindset, success becomes a one-way gate.

A person who can't grow will carry that fixed label forever.

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RELIGIOUS PERSPECTIVE: Exam Is Not a Measure of Worth

Quranic View of Success The Quran never presents intelligence or academic success as a measure of superiority.

"The most honorable of you in the sight of Allah is the most righteous of you." (Qur'an, Surah Hujurat, 13)

Success = piety = conscience, honesty, compassion.

But the modern system makes those who score full marks the "most superior." No consideration for morality, ethics, or effort.

Prophet Muhammad's Practice He never humiliated a child for being "unsuccessful." He guided every individual according to their ability.

He wanted people who live knowledge, not just memorize it.

"The best of people are those who are most beneficial to others." (Hadith)

Today, that measure is gone. All that matters is "what was your score?"

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PHILOSOPHICAL PERSPECTIVE: What Is Success?

Michel Foucault – Discipline and Power Foucault said:

"Modern society creates institutions like schools, prisons, and hospitals to discipline individuals."

Exams are a tool of invisible power to align people to the same standards.

The exam is not a learning tool but a norm-setting tool.

This system decides who is worthy and who isn't. Ecrin's story is just the showcase.

Simone Weil – Education and Justice Weil argued that a true education system should "lift the weak."

"Education should not just polish the elite, but humanize the rest."

But our exam system produces elites, not people.

Paulo Freire – Pedagogy of the Oppressed Freire opposed the "memorizing and oppressive" education model.

Children should be taught with dialogue and free thinking, not tests.

The system sees children as information banks and tries to extract with exams.

This is educational violence.

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BOTTOM LINE: Ecrin Didn't Win, The System Lost Let’s repeat:

Ecrin's success is admirable, but the structure is unjust.

If one is glorified while thousands are crushed, that's not success – it's selective cruelty.

Science, religion, and philosophy say the same thing:

"Value humans for being human. Praise effort, not just outcome."

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Diploma-Free Philosopher: The Academy of Conscience

I'm not an opposition figure. I'm against blind repetition. And yes, I support success. But not the one glorified only by winners – I support the just one.

Failure Does Not Equal Stupidity Imagine... A child studies for 20 years. Then one exam, one day, goes wrong.

And what do they hear?

"You're lazy." "You're a failure." "You wasted your life."

No! Maybe they can't become a surgeon, but maybe they can fly planes. Maybe they won't be an academic, but a soldier, a police officer, a guard. Maybe they can't solve equations, but they solve human problems.

Don't Disrespect the Baker – He Made Your Bread A doctor's education is sacred. But while they were studying, who baked their bread? Who warmed their home? Who stitched their bag, carved their desk, installed their window?

If there's no grocer, you're hungry. No baker, no breakfast. No mechanic, your house is cold. No laborer, no shelter.

Life is not built on diplomas but a chain of labor. And every link is equally sacred.

Don't Belittle the Shepherd – You Drink His Milk Say you become a doctor, professor, even an honorary genius.

Who milked the cow for your cheese? Who grew the wheat for your bread?

No shepherd, no meat. No farmer, no food.

A diploma won't make you a human being. It gives a title, not value. Without conscience, a title is garbage.

That’s Why I’m a Diploma-Free Philosopher Yes, maybe I don’t have a university diploma. But I have a mountain of life documents.

I saw. I heard. I swallowed, threw up, fought... And I understood.

Philosophy isn’t just in books – it's on the streets. Conscience isn’t just in mosques – it's in the market. Justice isn’t just in courtrooms – it's in the kitchen.

I'm a philosopher because I question. I'm a philosopher because I try to understand humanity. I'm a philosopher because I see the "failed" kids the system forgot.

And I tell them:

"You're not a failure.

You're just a value this crooked system couldn’t measure."

Because True Light Shines for Everyone A diploma may just be a piece of paper. But conscience is a lifelong certificate.

I’m a "Diploma-Free Philosopher," Not holding a diploma, But carrying humanity in my heart.

Wise Man...