Pisa results – what should we learn from them?

Pisa results – what should we learn from them?

Every three years, an early Christmas gift arrives for the global education community. The Programme for International Student Assessments (Pisa) is an international test in which 15 year olds are tested on their knowledge and skills in maths, science and reading, and also looks at wellbeing. It relegates those far below the Pisa top 10 as poor performers in desperate need of improvement, which includes countries such as Wales and the United States.

The Pisa scores for participating education systems around the world are unquestionably significant. But since its inception in 2000, Pisa has sparked much debate, especially among experts and policymakers, with many viewing it as a flawed instrument to assess educational outcomes.

In 2018, around 600 000 students took part in the standardised Pisa tests. Predictably, the 2023 report on the 2022 test application captured the negative impact of COVID on learners and learning, with some downward trends in performance visible across the data set. The results signalled mixed fortunes for countries round the world.

There were no actual surprises in the latest results. Countries like Singapore, Taiwan and Japan have retained their comparative advantage and will probably continue to do so. The complexity and dynamic of any education system cannot (and should not) be at the mercy of a single measure of assessment however compelling or lucrative it may be.

But what does that mean for the countries with poorer results? First, it should encourage us to look at Pisa as one data set only and to not be obsessed by its findings.

Second, it should be a reminder that Pisa is a snapshot of performance at a particular moment in time. It takes no account of the possibilities and potential of countries’ ongoing educational reforms. Hence, the danger is that every three years, Pisa fuels doubt, dissent and concern, when education systems need certainty, confidence and consensus about the reforms they are putting in place.

Third, no education system is perfect. Getting great Pisa scores is certainly no guarantee that the wellbeing and mental health of children and young people is not compromised along the way.

We cannot ignore Pisa, but we can put it in perspective and continue to focus on the learning and wellbeing of all children who take it. This is what matters most.

(Harris, A. https://theconversation.com, 13.12.2023. Adaptado)

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