PISA: leaning tower?

Image: MeiTeng via freeimages.com

The PISA tests attract a great deal of attention across the world, having quickly become the most influential rankings in international education, with students from around the world taking part every three years (Coughlan, 2013 a).

Are they a fair test, or even a necessary one? Andreas Schleicher of OECD is adamant that the tests represent a fair way of assessing what comes out of a country's education system, rather than simply how much money is poured into it (Coughlan, 2013 b). He believes it should serve as a wake up call  to our complacency; are we giving students a false sense of security that will quickly be destroyed in the face of global (or even local) competition? Even in his own country of Germany, the PISA tests acted to damage faith in the system as the results did not match up with the perceptions of the nation; while in Italy, the tests suggested a real inequality in national test scores between north and south. In the UK, the relentless rise in top grades achieved at A-level seems to have stalled in recent years (Coughlan, 2014) - perhaps this is an indication that the government have been forced to rein in their confidence?

The UK government has certainly been taking the stagnation in PISA ratings seriously (Coughlan, 2013 a), with changes made to the curriculum and attempts to give extra financial support to poor performing pupils. However, the government's reaction has been criticised by teachers, as it does not place importance on their professionalism. They point out that higher performing countries make their achievements by letting schools and teachers collaborate, instead of having ministers try to make judgements based on assumptions about market forces. Similar concerns have been raised about reactions in the US (AFTHQ, 2013), as both government and pressure groups try to apply forceful, top-down solutions to quickly bolster the test scores, instead of looking deeper into the data and trying to emulate the methods and philosophies of the top-performing nations.

We always seem to come down to how competitive we can be as a society when reacting to these test scores, but perhaps we are ignoring a deeper and growing trend towards cooperation, with individuals taking advantage of technology to share knowledge in ways previously considered impossible, and often in ways that will actually benefit their competitors as well (Price, 2013).

References:

• AFTHQ, 2013. What Does the PISA Report Tell Us About U.S. Education?, Available at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hf9UVg-TdH0&feature=youtube_gdata_player[Accessed August 16, 2014].
• Coughlan, S., 2013 a. UK “stagnates” in global school test. BBC. Available at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-25187997 [Accessed August 16, 2014].
• Coughlan, S., 2013 b. How Pisa became the world’s most important exam. BBC. Available at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-24988343 [Accessed August 16, 2014].
• Coughlan, S., 2014. A-levels dip as degree places rise. BBC. Available at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-28772974 [Accessed August 16, 2014].
• Price, D., 2013. Open: How we’ll work, live and learn in the future, England: Crux Publishing Ltd.

Trust

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In December 2011, a scandal emerged from the exposure of corrupt practices by two senior examiners from an examination board (Newell, 2011; Orr, 2011; Watt, 2011), who were captured on video telling teachers at a paid-for seminar what subjects would appear on upcoming exam papers. The ensuing public outcry and reaction from government officials led to accusations that the whole exams system was compromised by profit motives (Garner, 2011), and even calls to abolish the exam boards and replace them with a single body.

What causes examiners, with such a degree of trust placed in them, to break with the values of the education system in this way? How badly eroded is the trust in our public education system? Was this an isolated incident, or was it just a flashpoint for a growing sense of discontent with education in our country?

Four years prior to this incident, Billington (2007) reviewed the literature on trust in public institutions, with a view to building an understanding of how to look at issues of trust within examinations and examination standards. Many public institutions appear to suffer from what is described as either a 'crisis of trust' or a 'culture of suspicion', characterised by an expressed lack of faith in the institution - although this does not always equate to a lack of trust in individual professionals within that system, particularly when there is an immediate need for their skill.

There are also distinct shifts in the way that institutions and members of the public relate to one another, largely relating to the impact of information and communications technology (Billington, 2007, p.2), which alter perceptions of and demands for equality. Professionals have access to increasingly powerful tools and knowledge designed for their use, whilst the general public also have access to a wider body of information - and misinformation. People often feel the need to gain a little control over professionals whose power affects their lives, and they will attempt to use any tools at their disposal to get a sense of equality. When there is a huge deal of accountability data available, members of the public may use this accountability as a substitute for trust, which can lead to negative consequences.

In the case of public examinations, the consequences have often been that schools gravitate towards exam boards that offer less demanding specifications. There was a significant move towards the International GCSE and International Baccalaureate qualifications without any formal recognition from government bodies, which seems indicative of an erosion of trust. Education scandals in previous years had already brought a higher public awareness of examination standards. There has also been an increased politicisation of education, with an apparent mismatch between the goals of the government and the exams watchdog QCA being at odds with one another. It seems then that the media coverage of the cheating examiners has sparked a strong response to a growing sentiment of suspicion.

The qualifications environment in England has become increasingly similar to one of a free market economy (Jones, 2011); language such as 'gold standard' and 'currency of qualifications' suggest by metaphor that our understanding of and behaviour towards qualifications is strongly shaped by market philosophy. Allowing market forces to enter an area of public service can affect perceptions of trust - Billington (2007, p. 6-7) mentions the medical profession as an example of public trust being undermined by suspicion about the motives of those who represent the profession. When qualifications are treated as currency, we risk losing sight of the real educational value - just as actual currency no longer has any real relation to a physical 'gold standard' any more.

I realise that I am starting to veer off to a new matter entirely, so I'll end this blog post here!

References:

• Billington, L., 2007. Public trust and high stakes assessment. Available at: https://cerp.aqa.org.uk/research-library/public-trust-and-high-stakes-assessment [Accessed March 27, 2014].
• Garner, R., Profit motive has created corrupt education system, say teachers. The Independent. Available at: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/education-news/profit-motive-has-created-corrupt-education-system-say-teachers-6274531.html [Accessed March 27, 2014].
• Jones, B., 2011. Regulation and the qualifications market. Available at:
  https://cerp.aqa.org.uk/research-library/regulation-and-qualifications-market [Accessed March 29, 2014].
• Newell, C., 2011. Exam boards: “We”re cheating, we’re telling you the question cycle'. Telegraph.co.uk. Available at:
  http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/secondaryeducation/8940799/Exam-boards-Were-cheating-were-telling-you-the-question-cycle.html [Accessed March 29, 2014].
• Orr, J., 2011. Exam boards: examiners suspended in “corrupt practices” row.Telegraph.co.uk. Available at: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/secondaryeducation/8943300/Exam-boards-examiners-suspended-in-corrupt-practices-row.html [Accessed March 27, 2014].
• Watt, H., 2011. Exam boards: how examiners tip off teachers to help students pass. Telegraph.co.uk. Available at:
  http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/secondaryeducation/8940781/Exam-boards-how-examiners-tip-off-teachers-to-help-students-pass.html [Accessed March 29, 2014].