This study evaluates seismic performance of the school buildings with the selected template designs in Turkey considering nonlinear behavior of reinforced concrete components. Six school buildings with template designs were selected to represent major percentage of school buildings in medium-size cities located in high seismic region of Turkey. Selection of template designed buildings and material properties were based on field investigation on government owned school buildings in several cities in western part of Turkey. Capacity curves of investigated buildings were determined by pushover analyses conducted in two principal directions. The inelastic dynamic characteristics were represented by equivalent single-degree-of-freedom (SDOF) systems and their seismic displacement demands were calculated under selected ground motions. Seismic performance evaluation was carried out in accordance with recently published Turkish Earthquake Code that has similarities with FEMA-356 guidelines. Reasons of building damages in past earthquakes are examined using the results of performance assessment of investigated buildings. The effects of material quality on seismic performance of school buildings were investigated. The detailed examination of capacity curves and performance evaluation identified deficiencies and possible solutions for template designs.