Halime Öztürk Çalıkoğlu

This study examines how higher education financing regimes influence equity and completion outcomes across diverse governance contexts in Canada, Chile, Norway, and Türkiye between 2015 and 2025. Employing a qualitative comparative policy analysis supported by OECD, UNESCO, and World Bank indicators, the study integrates quantitative trends with case-based interpretation to explain how financing designs mediate progress toward SDG 4 (Quality Education) and SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities). The findings show that publicly funded systems sustain broader inclusion and completion, while privatized or mixed regimes reproduce stratification unless offset by redistributive reforms. Even high-investment systems face persistent sustainability challenges. By linking cost-sharing structures to redistributive, procedural, and participatory dimensions of justice, the study proposes a multidimensional framework for assessing sustainable equity in higher education. The results offer policy insights for post-2030 frameworks that align equitable funding design, transparent governance, and inclusive monitoring with fiscal sustainability.

Background and Objectives: “Successful aging” concerns the process of growing older while maintaining physical, cognitive, and social well-being, emphasizing independence for overall satisfaction and quality of life. We investigate the impact of eHealth literacy on reducing loneliness and sustaining well-being during the pandemic, comparing middle- and high-income countries. Research Design and Methods: Online surveys were conducted between April 4, 2020, and September 30, 2021, collecting responses (N = 2,091) from medium- and high-income countries in Europe, Asia, and North America. T-tests and ANOVAs were used to test how sociodemographic predictors were associated with differences in e-Health literacy, loneliness, and well-being. Results: Respondents from high-income countries reported significantly higher well-being scores than those from middle-income countries and respondents from high-income countries had significantly higher e-HEALS (e-Health literacy) scores compared to middle-income countries. No significant difference was observed in loneliness scores between high-income and middle-income country respondents. Well-being is associated with age, with younger adults (18–29 years) and those aged 40+ reporting higher levels. Higher education and income are linked to greater well-being. Gender differences are observed, with females and those with a partner reporting higher well-being. In middle-income countries, higher education levels are more linked to loneliness, while in higher-income countries, loneliness is observed across education levels. Discussion and Implications: Future interventions by governments and policymakers should consider intersectionality in e-Health planning and offer digital literacy and digital skills training to those with lower education levels.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic brought digital practices and engagement to the forefront of society, which were based on behavioral changes associated with adhering to different government mandates. Further behavioral changes included transitioning from working in the office to working from home, with the use of various social media and communication platforms to maintain a level of social connectedness, especially given that many people who were living in different types of communities, such as rural, urban, and city spaces, were socially isolated from friends, family members, and community groups. Although there is a growing body of research exploring how technology is being used by people, there is limited information and insight about the digital practices employed across different age cohorts living in different physical spaces and residing in different countries. Objective: This paper presents the findings from an international multisite study exploring the impact of social media and the internet on the health and well-being of individuals in different countries during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: Data were collected via a series of online surveys deployed between April 4, 2020, and September 30, 2021. The age of respondents varied from 18 years to over 60 years across the 3 regions of Europe, Asia, and North America. On exploring the associations of technology use, social connectedness, and sociodemographic factors with loneliness and well-being through bivariate and multivariate analyses, significant differences were observed. Results: The levels of loneliness were higher among respondents who used social media messengers or many social media apps than among those who did not use social media messengers or used ≤1 social media app. Additionally, the levels of loneliness were higher among respondents who were not members of an online community support group than among those who were members of an online community support group. Psychological well-being was significantly lower and loneliness was significantly higher among people living in small towns and rural areas than among those living in suburban and urban communities. Younger respondents (18-29 years old), single adults, unemployed individuals, and those with lower levels of education were more likely to experience loneliness. Conclusions: From an international and interdisciplinary perspective, policymakers and stakeholders should extend and explore interventions targeting loneliness experienced by single young adults and further examine how this may vary across geographies. The study findings have implications across the fields of gerontechnology, health sciences, social sciences, media communication, computers, and information technology. International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID): RR2-10.3389/fsoc.2020.574811

BACKGROUND The COVID-19 pandemic brought digital practices and engagement to the forefront of society, which were based on behavioral changes associated with adhering to different government mandates. Further behavioral changes included transitioning from working in the office to working from home, with the use of various social media and communication platforms to maintain a level of social connectedness, especially given that many people who were living in different types of communities, such as rural, urban, and city spaces, were socially isolated from friends, family members, and community groups. Although there is a growing body of research exploring how technology is being used by people, there is limited information and insight about the digital practices employed across different age cohorts living in different physical spaces and residing in different countries. OBJECTIVE This paper presents the findings from an international multisite study exploring the impact of social media and the internet on the health and well-being of individuals in different countries during the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS Data were collected via a series of online surveys deployed between April 4, 2020, and September 30, 2021. The age of respondents varied from 18 years to over 60 years across the 3 regions of Europe, Asia, and North America. On exploring the associations of technology use, social connectedness, and sociodemographic factors with loneliness and well-being through bivariate and multivariate analyses, significant differences were observed. RESULTS The levels of loneliness were higher among respondents who used social media messengers or many social media apps than among those who did not use social media messengers or used ≤1 social media app. Additionally, the levels of loneliness were higher among respondents who were not members of an online community support group than among those who were members of an online community support group. Psychological well-being was significantly lower and loneliness was significantly higher among people living in small towns and rural areas than among those living in suburban and urban communities. Younger respondents (18-29 years old), single adults, unemployed individuals, and those with lower levels of education were more likely to experience loneliness. CONCLUSIONS From an international and interdisciplinary perspective, policymakers and stakeholders should extend and explore interventions targeting loneliness experienced by single young adults and further examine how this may vary across geographies. The study findings have implications across the fields of gerontechnology, health sciences, social sciences, media communication, computers, and information technology. INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT RR2-10.3389/fsoc.2020.574811

Aim: Nowadays, students' smartphone use during their lessons for non-class-related purposes has become an issue that educators have trouble controlling. The purpose of this study is to determine the level of cyberloafing that university students perform during lessons through their smartphones.Method: This descriptive study was conducted with 892 students studying in health-related undergraduate programs at two-state and two foundation universities. The data was collected through a face-to-face survey using a question form and the Smartphone Cyberloafing Scale in Classes (SPCSC) adapted to Turkish by Polat (2018).Results: The smartphone cyberloafing level of university students participating in the research has been determined to be low (2,33±1,11). The smartphone cyberloafing levels during lessons were significantly higher for male students participating in the study compared to female students; for students aged 21 and over compared to students aged 20 and under; for students in the Marmara region compared to students in the Mediterranean region; and for students studying in the Department of Nutrition and Dietetics compared to students studying in the Department of Nursing (p<0.05).Conclusion: The frequency of smartphone cyberloafing behavior in class is affected by gender, age, geographical region, and the department of the students. This study provides educators with basic knowledge to guide planning for effective teaching and learning settings.

There are diversified experiences among countries with respect to formulation, implementation and outcomes of voucher policies around the world. Education Incentive Policy (EIP) was introduced as a privatization mechanism in Turkey in the 2014-2015 school year to expand the share of private education. This study aims to describe and evaluate the first four-year implementation period of the EIP applied as a voucher-like scheme for students attending private education institutions. A qualitative case study design was applied to explore the goals, rationales, and the intended outcomes of the EIP through policy documents and national statistics as data sources. The results showed that Turkish voucher case used the neoliberal economic rationales which are efficient use of resources, increasing equity for disadvantaged students, and enhancing quality by class-size reduction and competition among schools. The eligibility criteria to benefit from the incentive had a targeted feature for a beneficiary profile of low-to moderate income families. On the other hand, the transformation process of Private Tutoring Institutions (PTIs) into private schools had significantly contributed to the expansion of the share of private education. Further, since the government paid less money per pupil, opportunities aroused to increase the education quality in public education. The EIP needs to be examined how the policy consequences have affected quality and investments rising in public schools.

Bu çalışmanın amacı, öğretmen adaylarının Türk eğitim sistemine ilişkin algılarını metaforlar aracılığıyla ortaya koymaktır. Çalışma grubunu, Çanakkale Onsekiz Mart Üniversitesi, Eğitim Fakültesi’nde 2015-2016 eğitim-öğretim yılında son sınıfta okuyan dört farklı programdan toplamda 189 öğretmen adayı oluşturmaktadır. Katılımcılardan Türk Eğitim Sistemine ilişkin çizimler aracılığıyla görsel metaforlar üretmeleri ve ürettikleri bu metaforların nedenlerini açıklamaları istenmiştir. Toplanan veriler, içerik analizi yoluyla analiz edilmiştir. Bitki, hayvan, renk ve çizgilerle ifade edilen eğitim sistemi metaforları üç grup altında incelenmiştir: olumlu, olumsuz, olumlu-olumsuz. Çalışma sonuçları işlenen ve potansiyel işleyen girdi olarak öğretmen adaylarının daha çok olumsuz bir eğitim sistemi algılarının bulunduğunu göstermiştir. Öğretmen adayları eğitimi girdi olarak değerli ve kaçınılmaz bir yatırım olarak görürken, uygulamaya yönelik sorunların eğitimin hedeflerine ulaşmasına engel olduğunu düşünmektedir.