PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment) is a standardized assessment written by approximately 500,000 15 year olds in 70 economies across the world. Tests are written in reading, math and science, and for the first time, digital literacy was a component of the reading test. Students were tested not only on the skills and knowledge required in the curriculum, but also those needed to function successfully as adults once they leave school. Rankings are a part of this survey but the OECD also gathers other data to look at educational issues such as gender differences, class size, teacher pay and resource allocation.
According to the OECD website, the PISA initiative seeks to assist their member countries in looking at "how their school systems match up globally with regard to their quality, equity and efficiency. The best performing education systems show what others can aspire to, as well as inspire national efforts to help students to learn better, teachers to teach better, and school systems to become more effective."
In reading literacy, Canada came in 6th (Alberta was within the Canadian average).
In math, Canada placed 10th (Alberta was within the Canadian average).
In science, Canada placed 8th (Alberta was above the Canadian average).
Other findings of note:
The best school systems were the most equitable - students do well regardless of their socio-economic background. But schools that select students based on ability early show the greatest differences in performance by socio-economic background.
Combining local autonomy and effective accountability seems to produce the best results.
High performing school systems tend to prioritise teacher pay over smaller class sizes.
Countries where students repeat grades more often tend to have worse results overall, with the widest gaps between children from poor and better-off families.
If you would like more detailed reading around the Canadian results, check out "Measuring up: Canadian Results of the OECD PISA Study" released by the Council of Ministers of Education, Canada (CMEC).
You can also read the press release, "Alberta's 15-year olds place among the world's best in reading, scientific and mathematical literacy," from the Government of Alberta
For media commentary on these results, check out the Calgary Herald article, "Canada slips in education rankings;" the National Post article, "Canada slipping in math, science and reading skills;" and the CTV News article, "Canadian education amongst best in world: OECD."
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