TALIS

Strengthen employability, social participation and inclusive socieities

We encourage governments to develop the knowledge and skills of all members of society and ensure that those skills are used effectively, since knowledge and skills play a crucial role in generating better jobs and better lives for individuals and in supporting inclusive societies

Progress Report

Education and Skills

at the OECD

Learn more

Write to us

Directorate for Education and Skills

OECD

2, rue André Pascal

75775 Paris Cedex 16

FRANCE

edu.contact@oecd.org

Visit our website:

www.oecd.org/education

Explore our data on education and skills:

http://gpseducation.oecd.org/

Read our books online:

http://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/education/books

Subscribe to our online library:

www.oecd-ilibrary.org/

Order our publications

OECD on-line bookshop : www.oecd.org/bookshop

Connect with us on:

Educationtoday: Global perspectives on Education: http://oecdeducationtoday.blogspot.fr/

Twitter: @OECD_Edu

Subscribe to our newsletter

www.oecd.org/edu/newsletter

Instrumentation

• Measures of cognitive, social and emotional outcomes are conceptually coherent and, wherever possible, psychometrically linked
• Measures of the socio-economic context of individuals and institutions are relevant and comparable across all surveys.
• The outcome measures for out-of-school students in PISA for development are comparable to PISA and, where possible, PIAAC
• The teacher surveys in PISA are compatible to TALIS
• The early childhood staff survey is compatible to TALIS.
• The early learning outcomes measures are designed such that they can serve as a baseline for PISA to facilitate measurement of synthetic learning growth.

Timing

• Move TALIS to a six-yearly cycle to maintain compatibility with PISA. The PISA teacher questionnaire can be used in off-cycle years.
• Time the early learning outcome surveys such that they will facilitate synthetic cohort-links with PISA and TALIS.
• Time the early childhood staff surveys such that they will maximise analytic synergies with TALIS.
• Carefully explore what would be the optimal timing of PIAAC

Alignment

Aligning our education surveys conceptually, methodologically and operationally so that they form part of a coherent strategic work programme that serves participating countries most effectively and provides the best possible value for money

Operations

• Explore the establishment of joint expert groups, both to capitalise on potential synergies and to pool expertise and resources where appropriate.
• Align contracting structures

Where we need to be

We work with governments to identify and better understand the factors behind successful reforms and provide support to member countries that are designing, adopting and implementing reforms around education and skills

Your participation

Strengthen the effectiveness and efficiency of institutions to make reform happen

Opening the “black box” of teaching and learning

Early childhood education and care

Our aspiration

Help countries better understand

how students learn effectively

and teachers teach effectively

Teachers and teaching

The youngest of our citizens deserve the best possible start in life. We are developing data to help countries evaluate the effectiveness – and cost-effectiveness – of their policies and practices. Our staff survey elicits information on the qualifications, professional development, practices and working conditions among staff of early childhood education facilities. In addition, we offer countries in-depth, customised reviews of their early childhood education and care policies and provision.

Since the quality of an education system depends largely on the quality of its teaching, the OECD gathers information about today’s teachers with the aim of helping countries build a high-quality teaching profession. The Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS) examines teachers’ work and attitudes, and the role of school leaders. TALIS is also examining initial teacher preparation across countries, and is developing a video study to analyse and document effective teaching practices in the classroom. In addition, the Innovative Teaching for Effective Learning project is investigating the issue of teacher quality by studying teachers’ pedagogical knowledge base and how new knowledge is incorporated into the teaching profession.

Schools

Our PISA-based Test for Schools is a student-assessment tool geared for use by schools and networks of schools to support research, benchmarking and school-improvement efforts. The assessment allows schools to compare themselves with schools in other education systems. It also gathers information about students’ socio-economic background, their attitudes towards learning, and the learning environment in school, and how all of these are associated with student performance. The Learning Environments Evaluation Programme (LEEP) produces instruments and analysis that inform school leaders, researchers, policy makers and others about how investments in the learning environment translate into better outcomes, and lead to more efficient use of education resources.

Higher education

Recognising the importance of higher education in developing highly-skilled adults, and the share of countries’ public and private resources allocated to this sector, we work on benchmarking the performance of higher education systems, how to respond to emerging trends, such as MOOCs and globalisation, and how to ensure that higher education is relevant to the labour market and financially sustainable. We also explore an Assessment of Higher Education Learning Outcomes (AHELO), which aims to help countries improve their systems of higher education by evaluating student performance at that level across the globe. Our Higher Education Programme (IMHE) provides a forum in which representatives of higher education institutions exchange experiences.

Assisting countries with policy development and implementation

Enhancing excellence, equity and efficiency in education

Enhancing efficiency

Learning outcomes at school

Given tight public budgets, shifting demographics and the growing importance of education in knowledge-based societies, we work with countries to develop the best learning opportunities to achieve the best learning outcomes equitably and efficiently. Our project on the effective use of resources examines and develops policy advice on the use, distribution and management of resources for education at the school level.

Launch of PISA on 6 December 2016

The triennial Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) studies the extent to which 15-year-old students nearing the end of compulsory education have acquired key knowledge and skills that are essential for participation in modern societies. PISA tests students’ creative and critical thinking skills and their capacity to apply what they have learned in key subjects. It also measures how equitably countries offer education opportunities to their young citizens, and gathers information about students’ social and emotional skills and students’ attitudes towards learning. Together with UNESCO, UNICEF, the World Bank and national development agencies PISA for Development is currently extending the instruments for countries in development

The Education and Social Progress project aims to develop a better understanding of how social and emotional skills are shaped. It focuses on the power of social and emotional skills, such as perseverance and resilience, in driving young people’s success in life; and the role family, school and community play in developing children’s skills.

We also explore an assessment of early learning outcomes, including social and emotional skills; communication, language skills, and other cognitive skills; physical development; health, hygiene and nutrition;

and the general well-being of small children.

'GPS'

Building and using skills for better jobs and better lives

ISTP 2015

Reviews/Strategies

Our web-based, data-rich EducationGPS gives policy makers, researchers and the general public easy access to our analysis on education at the click of a mouse. Our Education Policy Outlook provides systematic comparative analysis on education policies and reforms across OECD countries. In combination with national country profiles, it shows how different countries respond to the challenges facing their education systems.

We produce country notes that summarise a country's performance against certain key indicators and offer deeper analysis in individual country reviews of specific policy areas. We conduct diagnostic reviews of national policy on education, using our stock of comparative evidence and expertise, and we help countries to build a “whole-of-government” approach to their national skills strategies, formulating and adopting skills policies at national, regional and local levels.

Tailor-made studies

We prepare tailor-made studies for countries that have specific requests, such as advice on implementing a new policy, evaluating recent reforms, or helping to build capacity.

Our aspiration

Help countries develop the right skills

and to transform these into

better jobs and better lives

Skills, employability, social participation and inclusion

Tertiary

Upper secondary

Lower secondary

Governance

Measuring education and skills opportunities and outcomes

Beyond accompanying countries in their national reform efforts, our Governing Complex Education Systems programme aims to build more adaptable and resilient institutions and help education systems become smarter and more efficient. It works to reinforce trust and improve equity by building collaborative networks among all stakeholders in society.

Education 2030

Our aspiration

Help education systems advance from teaching people something towards equipping them with a compass and the navigation skills to find their own way in an increasingly complex and volatile world

Our Survey of Adult Skills measures adults’ proficiency in key foundation skills – literacy, numeracy and the ability to solve problems in technology-rich environments – that adults use in the workplace, at home and in their communities. It also gathers information on the degree to which these skills, as well as some “soft” skills, like communicating and working with others, are actually used, and their relationship with social and economic outcomes. Analysis of data from the Survey of Adult Skills gives participating countries a good indication of the strengths and weaknesses in their workforce – and where their education and training systems have room for improvement.

Education&Skills Online makes our instruments

publicly accessible (launch on 3 August).

Our global metrics help countries to see what is possible in education and to set meaningful aspirations

A well-formulated, responsive education policy will deliver results if it is implemented effectively

Transforming schools

Our Transforming Schools into Learning Organisations project examines how to advance education reform implementation at the frontline, and how to improve schools’ ability to effect change.

Education at a Glance

The OECD Indicators offer a snapshot of the state of education in more than 40 countries. This annual compendium of statistics covers the structure, finances and performance of education systems, describes who participates in and benefits from education, and examines the school environment.

Launch on 24 November

Work-based learning

and vocational education

Skills Outlook

Skills and education for innovation

We co-ordinate the OECD’s Skills Outlook, which gathers the organisation’s collective insights on how skills are developed, made available to the labour market, and actually used in the workplace. The Skills Outlook is overseen by the Skills Strategy Advisory Group, which is composed of representatives from committees across the OECD, reflecting the need for a system-wide approach to skills to improve economic and social outcomes.

We are working with countries to strengthen employability and employment through work-based learning and training. Our aim is to better co-ordinate work-based learning with classroom learning, and ensure that the outcomes of both are fully recognised; tackle unemployment and improve recruitment; and exploit new technology to pursue distance learning and other options in work-based learning.

We also work with countries to develop vocational education and training (VET) systems, which prepare individuals for professional, managerial and technical jobs in expanding fields such as health care, as well as in traditional trades, in a fast changing world. We examine initial VET in secondary schools through our Learning for Jobs project, and post-secondary VET systems through our Skills beyond Schools project.

We provide countries with a framework to assess their innovation ecosystem for education, including educational research and development, a regulatory framework, school and institutional organisation, and the use of technology to improve educational outcomes. Our work on Skills and Education for Innovation has identified the skills used by employees holding highly innovative jobs and provides education policy makers and practitioners with evidence of the effects of different types of curricula, pedagogies and assessments on the development of skills for innovation.

Four pillars