The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) has instigated educational changes and reforms globally, in particular, introducing and intensifying neoliberal logic and governance in test-taking countries and beyond. PISA outcome impacted upon the educational governance of South Korea as well, however, the changes deviated from what…

Group differences in test scores are a key metric in education policy. Response time offers novel opportunities for understanding these differences, especially in low-stakes settings. Here, we describe how observed group differences in test accuracy can be attributed to group differences in latent response speed or group differences in latent…

The Programme in International Student Assessment (PISA) has become the prominent method of international comparison of the achievement of 15-year-old children in reading, mathematics, and science. Recently, the OECD, which administers PISA, has devoted a great deal of energy promoting the notion of "academic resilience"--which refers to…

It is a much-lamented fact that research with the potential to inform or influence education policy instead remains policy inert. There are many reasons for this frustrating state of affairs, including a lack of strategic thinking on the part of researchers on how to successfully accomplish outreach--as opposed to communication with peers…

This paper discusses the emergence of the new global educational governance characterized by 1) global educational reform movement, 2) the active participation of the international organizations in global educational policy making, and 3) the emerging performative culture. Against this background, this article contextualizes the East Asian…

The introductory article of the GSE special issue 'PISA for scandalization, PISA for projection: the use of international large-scale assessments in education policy making' contextualises the four articles of the special issue in the broader context of comparative policy studies in education. It reflects in particular on the question of why…

In spite of advances in recognising that girls and boys, and women and men, do not have to be bounded by traditional roles, gender stereotypes persist in education and beyond. Children and youth are affected by gender stereotypes from the early ages, with parental, school, teacher and peer factors influencing the way students internalise their…

The article presents two key concepts of sociological systems theory -- externalisation and structural coupling -- and applies them to explain (a) the exponential growth of international large-scale student assessments and (b) the rise of 'policy-relevant' educational research. The author concludes with a comparison between key concepts used in…

In recent decades, the pursuit of excellence, broadly defined as high educational achievement, has shaped the education systems and the research agendas of many countries across the world. Schools have been encouraged to provide a world-class quality education, with an emphasis on outstanding performance for some students, alongside a general…

The High Performing Systems for Tomorrow (HPST) was a three-year partnership among the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the National Center on Education and the Economy (NCEE), and a select group of education leaders, including Directors-General, Deputy Ministers, senior advisors, and others, from among a group of…

The world demands bold action to meet the global goal of zero net emissions by 2050. Young people will experience the consequences of climate change more directly during their lifetime than any previous generation in recent history. Education can play a pivotal role in preparing new generations for a greener future. What students learn may mean…

This paper applies insights from narrative theory to analyse the OECD's transition to providing humanitarian large-scale assessments under the SDGs, situating this within the evolving dynamics of a global development complex. The perspective is guided by the thematic interests of the special issue, with the goal of enriching understanding of both…

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) has recently piloted the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA)-based Test for Schools in the USA. In this paper, I contend that by connecting directly with local school boards this new initiative has the potential to further promote the OECD's educational agenda in…

"What is important for citizens to know and be able to do?" The OECD Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) seeks to answer that question through the most comprehensive and rigorous international assessment of student knowledge and skills. As more countries join its ranks, PISA is evolving to successfully cater for a…

This paper explains the rationale for updating the OECD Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2021 questionnaire on Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and shows how it covers policy topics of current relevance. After presenting key findings based on previous ICT-related PISA data, the paper provides a summary of the…