scholarly journals Educational test scores among adolescents in three-generational households in 20 countries

2017 ◽  
Vol 51 ◽  
pp. 3-22 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antti Olavi Tanskanen ◽  
Mirkka Danielsbacka ◽  
Jani Erola

Grandparental presence is often found to associate with improved grandchild wellbeing. However, studies have shown that the effect is not always positive. This could be explained by the fact that in some circumstances grandparents compete with grandchildren over parental time resources. We studied the assumption using data from the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) from 20 Western countries (n=73,346 children at age 15). According to the results grandparental presence was associated with lower levels of parental involvement and decreased educational test scores among adolescents. Moreover, the results indicate that when the parental involvement is lower at the first place the grandparental presence tends to be associated with even weaker child outcomes. Finally, we found support that grandparental co-residence is a mediator of the association between parental involvement and child outcomes. These results are discussed with reference to the local resource competition model.

Author(s):  
Björn Högberg ◽  
Solveig Petersen ◽  
Mattias Strandh ◽  
Klara Johansson

AbstractStudents’ sense of belonging at school has declined across the world in recent decades, and more so in Sweden than in almost any other high-income country. However, we do not know the characteristics or causes of these worldwide trends. Using data on Swedish students aged 15–16 years from the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) between 2000 and 2018, we show that the decline in school belonging in Sweden was driven by a disproportionately large decline at the bottom part of the distribution, and was greatest for foreign-born students, students from disadvantaged social backgrounds, and for low-achieving students. The decline cannot be accounted for by changes in student demographics or observable characteristics related to the school environment. The decline did, however, coincide with a major education reform, characterized by an increased use of summative evaluation, and an overall stronger performance-orientation.


2018 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 213-226 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jörg Blasius

Purpose Evidence from past surveys suggests that some interviewees simplify their responses even in very well-organized and highly respected surveys. This paper aims to demonstrate that some interviewers, too, simplify their task by at least partly fabricating their data, and that, in some survey research institutes, employees simplify their task by fabricating entire interviews via copy and paste. Design/methodology/approach Using data from the principal questionnaires in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2012 and the Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) data, the author applies statistical methods to search for fraudulent methods used by interviewers and employees at survey research organizations. Findings The author provides empirical evidence for potential fraud performed by interviewers and employees of survey research organizations in several countries that participated in PISA 2012 and PIAAC. Practical implications The proposed methods can be used as early as the initial phase of fieldwork to flag potentially problematic interviewer behavior such as copying responses. Originality/value The proposed methodology may help to improve data quality in survey research by detecting fabricated data.


2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 679-701
Author(s):  
Vincenzo Andrietti ◽  
Xuejuan Su

This paper uses a quasi-natural policy experiment in Germany, the G8 reform, to examine the impact of schooling intensity on student learning. The G8 reform compresses secondary school for academic-track students from nine to eight years, while holding fixed the overall academic content and total instruction time required for graduation, resulting in a higher schooling intensity per grade. Using German extension of the Programme for International Student Assessment data, we find that this reform improves test scores on average, but the effect differs across subgroups of students. The reform effect is larger for girls than for boys, for students with German-born parents than for those with immigrant parents, and for students having more books at home. The heterogeneous reform effects cannot be explained by changes in observed channels. Instead, quantile regression results suggest that unobserved heterogeneity plays an important role: Whereas high-performing students significantly improve their test scores, the lowest-performing students hardly improve at all after the reform. We interpret the unobserved heterogeneity as reflecting students’ capability to cope with the increase in schooling intensity.


2015 ◽  
Vol 117 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Nancy Perry ◽  
Kadriye Ercikan

The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) was designed by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) to evaluate the quality, equity, and efficiency of school systems around the world. Specifically, the PISA has assessed 15-year-old students’ reading, mathematics, and science literacy on a 3-year cycle, since 2000. Also, the PISA collects information about how those outcomes are related to key demographic, social, economic, and educational variables. However, the preponderance of reports involving PISA data focus on achievement variables and cross-national comparisons of achievement variables. Challenges in evaluating achievement of students from different cultural and educational settings and data concerning students’ approaches to learning, motivation for learning, and opportunities for learning are rarely reported. A main goal of this themed issue of Teachers College Record (TCR) is to move the conversation about PISA data beyond achievement to also include factors that affect achievement (e.g., SES, home environment, strategy use). Also we asked authors to consider how international assessment data can be used for improving learning and education and what appropriate versus inappropriate inferences can be made from the data. In this introduction, we synthesize the six articles in this issue and themes that cut across them. Also we examine challenges associated with using data from international assessments, like the PISA, to inform education policy and practice within and across countries. We conclude with recommendations for collecting and using data from international assessments to inform research, policy, and teaching and learning.


2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (8) ◽  
pp. 231 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristie J. Rowley ◽  
Shelby M. McNeill ◽  
Mikaela J. Dufur ◽  
Chrisse Edmunds ◽  
Jonathan A. Jarvis

Many countries attempt to increase their Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) rankings and scores over time. However, despite providing a more accurate assessment of the achievement-based improvements across countries, few studies have systematically examined growth in PISA scores over multiple assessments. Using data from the 2006, the 2009, and the 2012 PISA, we analyzed which countries experienced significant increases in their country-level average PISA scores between 2006 and 2012. To facilitate improved policy decisions, we also examined what country-level conditions were associated with such increases. Contrary to expectations, we found that few countries significantly increased their PISA scores over time. Countries that did experience meaningful improvements in PISA scores were more likely to have had lower PISA scores in 2006 and experienced country-level foundational advancements more recently, such as advancing to a more democratic form of government and/or a higher income classification.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jose Marquez ◽  
Louise Lambert ◽  
Natasha Ridge ◽  
Stuart Walker

In most education systems, students with an immigrant background perform worse academically compared to native students. However, in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), differences emerge in the opposite direction and the national-expatriate gap in academic competence is equivalent to almost three years of schooling. This gap is a concern in the UAE, where national students mainly attend public schools and expatriates, mostly private schools. To investigate the competence gap between national and expatriate students, we estimate group differences and conduct linear regression analysis using data from the 2018 Programme for International Student Assessment. Results show that the gap varies by emirate and country of origin and is greater among boys, better-off students and in private schools. Between 33% and 47% of this gap is explained by school type, whether public or private. We offer recommendations; however, in a country characterized by 85% expatriates and a maturing education policy, challenges remain, but may serve to pave the way for other high expatriate nations in development.


2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 197-218
Author(s):  
James M Raymo ◽  
Hao Dong

The papers in this special issue use newly available panel data and data from the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) to examine linkages between parental resources and children’s outcomes in China, Japan, and Korea. Specific foci of the papers include regional differences, non-monetary resources, shadow education, gender differences, and the proximity of grandparents. Results demonstrate that, as in western societies, parental education and income are positively associated with child well-being and development in East Asia, but distinctive contextual features contribute to variation in these relationships. It is also clear from the findings that relationships between parental resources and child outcomes are more complicated than suggested by simple emphases on economic inequality and the relative success of children from rich and poor families. Together, these papers contribute a much needed geographic extension to the large cross-national literature on parental resources and children’s well-being. The findings provide a valuable empirical basis for assessing the role of context and understanding similarities and differences within East Asia and between the East and West.


2017 ◽  
Vol 43 (3) ◽  
pp. 316-353 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simon Grund ◽  
Oliver Lüdtke ◽  
Alexander Robitzsch

Multiple imputation (MI) can be used to address missing data at Level 2 in multilevel research. In this article, we compare joint modeling (JM) and the fully conditional specification (FCS) of MI as well as different strategies for including auxiliary variables at Level 1 using either their manifest or their latent cluster means. We show with theoretical arguments and computer simulations that (a) an FCS approach that uses latent cluster means is comparable to JM and (b) using manifest cluster means provides similar results except in relatively extreme cases with unbalanced data. We outline a computational procedure for including latent cluster means in an FCS approach using plausible values and provide an example using data from the Programme for International Student Assessment 2012 study.


2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel A Briley

We replicated Tucker-Drob, Cheung, and Briley (2014) who found that the association between science interest and science knowledge depended on economic resources at the family, school, and national levels using data from the 2006 Program for International Student Assessment (PISA). In more economically prosperous families, schools, and nations, student interest was more strongly correlated with actual knowledge. Over roughly a decade, these results may no longer hold due to substantial changes to educational or economic systems. Using similar data from 2015 PISA (N = 537,170), we found largely consistent results. Students from more economically advantaged homes, schools, and nations exhibited a stronger link between interests and knowledge. However, these moderation effects were substantially reduced, and the main effect of science interest increased by nearly 25%, driven almost entirely by lower SES families and lower GDP nations. The interdependency of interests and resources is robust, but perhaps weakening with educational progress.


2015 ◽  
Vol 117 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nancy Perry ◽  
Kadriye Ercikan

The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) was designed by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) to evaluate the quality, equity, and efficiency of school systems around the world. Specifically, the PISA has assessed 15-year-old students’ reading, mathematics, and science literacy on a 3-year cycle, since 2000. Also, the PISA collects information about how those outcomes are related to key demographic, social, economic, and educational variables. However, the preponderance of reports involving PISA data focus on achievement variables and cross-national comparisons of achievement variables. Challenges in evaluating achievement of students from different cultural and educational settings and data concerning students’ approaches to learning, motivation for learning, and opportunities for learning are rarely reported. A main goal of this themed issue of Teachers College Record (TCR) is to move the conversation about PISA data beyond achievement to also include factors that affect achievement (e.g., SES, home environment, strategy use). Also we asked authors to consider how international assessment data can be used for improving learning and education and what appropriate versus inappropriate inferences can be made from the data. In this introduction, we synthesize the six articles in this issue and themes that cut across them. Also we examine challenges associated with using data from international assessments, like the PISA, to inform education policy and practice within and across countries. We conclude with recommendations for collecting and using data from international assessments to inform research, policy, and teaching and learning.


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