The OECD Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) assesses the competencies of 15-year-old students around the world. In 2006, the PISA report focused on the science competencies 15-year-old students developed. The report does not reflect a systematic consideration of science learning environments in schools and their relationship to cognitive and motivational outcomes in terms of scientific literacy. However, in all investigated countries, schools are where young people become familiar with science over an extended period of time. Hence, this book aims to provide detailed information on science teaching and learning in schools in the OECD countries. Data from the PISA 2006 school principals’ and students’ questionnaires is used for the description of science teaching and learning. First, the context of science teaching in schools is described to provide a background for the analyses that follow. Then, the book draws a detailed picture of different components of science teaching relevant for student learning. In addition, international patterns of science teaching and learning are investigated. The investigation focuses on the teaching of scientific enquiry. This focus is chosen because the process of scientific enquiry models the way in which researchers think, and it provides students with ample opportunities to develop science literacy. Further investigations include the effects of different patterns of science teaching on student literacy. The book concludes with implications for policy and practice.

“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.

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.

The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) is an important part of the OECD's Indicator Programme. It collects data and provides comparative indicators of education systems in OECD member and partner countries. PISA provides datasets of outstanding quality regarding samples, instruments and analyses. In addition to its important function for educational monitoring, the PISA datasets are the basis of a wide range of secondary analyses from a number of different scientific perspectives and disciplines. The aim of this book is to make some of the outstanding PISA related research results available for a wider audience. Specifically four research areas will be focused: (1) Content related research; (2) Methodological research; (3) Context related research; (4) Research on trends in PISA. Each part of the book is devoted to one of these areas and will start with an introduction from a leading expert in the field followed by chapters covering research conducted in this field.

The Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) is an international achievement measure that assesses 15-year-old student performance in the areas of reading, mathematics, and science literacy in over 70 countries and economies triennially. By presenting an in-depth examination of PISA’s role in education governance and policy discourses, this book provides the reader with a critical analysis of the educational change process within our increasingly global educational policy environment. Exploring the prominent socio-political drivers of large-scale educational reform across the globe, chapter authors examine PISA’s national and global implications from a diverse range of regional contexts. Through the presentation of cross-disciplinary viewpoints and topical issues related to the PISA international survey, this volume explains the degree to which PISA-focused research is linked to national educational policy discourses and international education agendas.

This book reports the findings from the tri-national video study Quality of Instruction in Physics (QuIP). Within the scope of the QuIP study, physics instruction was investigated in a total of 103 classes from-Finland, North Rhine-Westphalia (Germany) and German-speaking Switzerland. The main aim was to identify typical patterns of physics instruction of the three samples and to investigate conditions under which these patterns are successful with respect to students' learning, interest and motivation. Among others instructional characteristics, the quality of students' practical work, successful patterns of sequencing, the subject matter structure and teaching strategies were investigated by means of analyses of video-recorded lessons. Variables external to instruction that were investigated included teachers' professional knowledge and students' cognitive abilities. The study followed a pre-post-design with data collection prior to and after an instructional unit on electrical energy and power. The results are well in line with the findings from large-scale international studies indicating a particularly successful instructional pattern in Finland. A comparison of characterisation of instruction in comparison between the three countries reveals important findings for the improvement of the teaching and learning of physics in secondary school education.

This open access book compares and contrasts the results of international student assessments in ten countries. The OECD’s Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) released the results of its 2018 assessment in December 2019. This book reflects the debates that typically follow the release of these results and focuses on the causes of differences between countries. Such causes include continuous decline in one country, improvement combined with increasing internal inequalities in another country, or rapid improvement in spite of an outdated curriculum in yet another. In addition, the book discusses a number of general questions: Is knowledge outdated? Are computers taking over and replacing teachers? Are schools killing creativity? Are we adequately preparing the next generation? Are schools failing to educate our kids? The book starts out with a summary of PISA’s evolution and PISA results, and an explanation of the major factors that play a role in changes in countries’ results. The next ten chapters are devoted to ten specific countries, offering a summary of data and an explanation of the major drives for changes in education results for each one. Each chapter includes a short description of the country’s educational system as well as the impact of PISA and other ILSA studies on the country’s educational policies. The chapters also include a timeline of policy measures and main hallmarks of the country’s educational evolution, discussing the impact of these measures on its PISA results. A final reference chapter explains what PISA is, what it measures and how. While highlighting the 2018 results, the book also takes into consideration previous results, as well as long-term initiatives. This book gathers the contribution of well-known and respected experts in the field. Specialists such as Eric Hanushek, for the US, Tim Oates, for England, Montse Gomendio, for Spain, Gunda Tire, for Estonia, and all other contributors draw on their vast experience and statistical analysis expertise to draw a set of rich country lessons and recommendations that are invaluable for all of those who care about improving a country’s education system.

This is one of six volumes that present the results of the PISA 2018 survey, the seventh round of the triennial assessment. Volume I, What Students Know and Can Do, provides a detailed examination of student performance in reading, mathematics and science, and describes how performance has changed since previous PISA assessments.

This collection focuses on the ways in which policy relating to professional development and professional learning in teacher education is changing across Europe. The chapters examine how policies change with time and with changes in personnel at various levels in the political or professional spectrum. It also highlights the continued diversity of the education systems of Europe, despite moves towards economic and social integration. A common theme running through the chapters is an understanding of the importance of professional development and professional learning of educators in the success and effective operation of the education systems of the countries concerned. This book was originally published as a special issue of Professional Development in Education.

This new informative publication clearly identifies and arranges profiles in relation to two connected areas of professional teacher practices: classroom teaching practices and participation in professional learning communities.