International Achievement Testing, Education Policy, and Large-Scale Reform

2016 ◽  
pp. 17-30
Keyword(s):  
Education Policy ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Achievement Testing

scholarly journals Technology adoption in Malaysian schools: An analysis of national ICT in education policy initiatives

2020 ◽  
pp. 172-194
Author(s):  
Azlin Zaiti Zainal ◽  
Siti Zaidah Zainuddin
Keyword(s):  
Education Policy ◽  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Evaluation Studies ◽  
Communication Technologies ◽  
Virtual Learning Environment ◽  
Ict In Education ◽  
Educational Innovations ◽  
Teachers And Students ◽  
Information And Communication

Educational change, particularly change involving the adoption of educational innovations, is a complex process. In Malaysia, the significant role of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in promoting digital education is reflected in the national ICT in education policy. Nevertheless, studies in the Malaysian educational context have shown that the policy implementation resulted in varying degrees of success. Through a discourse analysis approach, this paper aims to examine the evaluation studies on large scale initiatives introduced to digitize the Malaysian education system, from the Smart Schools programme to the incorporation of the Frog Virtual Learning Environment in classroom. The rationale behind these top-down initiatives and how they affected the stakeholders at the micro level, namely, teachers and students, are reviewed and analysed. The analysis informs our understanding of the factors that contribute to the successful and unsuccessful implementation of these initiatives and guide the planning of future policies.

Assessment for Monitoring of Education Systems: International Comparisons

2019 ◽  
Vol 683 (1) ◽  
pp. 75-92 ◽  
Author(s):  
Henry I. Braun ◽  
Judith D. Singer
Keyword(s):  
Education Policy ◽  
Causal Inference ◽  
Instrument Development ◽  
Global Education ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
International Comparisons ◽  
Education Policies ◽  
Country Rankings ◽  
History Of ◽  
Comparative Description

Over the last two decades, with the increase in both numbers of participating jurisdictions and media attention, international large-scale assessments (ILSAs) have come to play a more salient role in global education policies than they once did. This has led to calls for greater transparency with regard to instrument development and closer scrutiny of the use of instruments in education policy. We begin with a brief review of the history of ILSAs and describe the requirements and constraints that shape ILSA design, implementation, and analysis. We then evaluate the rationales of employing ILSA results for different purposes, ranging from those we argue are most appropriate (comparative description) to least appropriate (causal inference). We cite examples of ILSA usage from different countries, with particular attention to the widespread misinterpretations and misuses of country rankings based on average scores on an assessment (e.g., literacy or numeracy). Looking forward, we offer suggestions on how to enhance the constructive roles that ILSAs play in informing education policy.

Soft governance by hard fact? The OECD as a knowledge broker in education policy

2018 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 267-283 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dennis Niemann ◽  
Kerstin Martens
Keyword(s):  
Education Policy ◽  
Social Constructivism ◽  
Global Education ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Role Model ◽  
Decisive Role ◽  
National Education ◽  
Diffusion Of Knowledge ◽  
Soft Governance ◽  
National Education Systems

As the policy field of education has become increasingly internationalized over the last two decades, international organizations like the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) play an increasingly decisive role in the diffusion of knowledge, monitoring, and research in global education policy. Although the OECD lacks any binding or coercive governance instruments in relation to states, or ability to provide material incentives for compliance, it has nevertheless successively expanded its influence regarding education. From a perspective of social constructivism, we argue that the transmission of ideas and information generated through ratings and rankings can be viewed as a crucial governance tool for the influence of an international organization (IO). Our article seeks to analyze how the OECD uses large-scale education assessments to promote the economically based idea of human capital and related learning techniques in education policy – thus influencing national education systems. Furthermore, the OECD and its distinctive approach of soft governance through putative hard fact may become a role model for other IOs, both in the field of education and beyond.

An Overview of Language-in-Education Policy Making

1981 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
pp. 105-111 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alison d'Anglejan
Keyword(s):  
Education Policy ◽  
Policy Making ◽  
Third World ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Formal Education ◽  
Educational Achievement ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Migrant Populations ◽  
Acts Of God

Such are the vicissitudes of economics, politics, and Acts of God, that the provision of appropriate schooling for disparate refugee or migrant populations presents an enduring challenge for educators and policy–makers. The challenge is not a new one in that large scale migrations of people have been taking place since the earliest times in recorded history. However, it is heightened in today's world by our recongnition of the critical role which formal education plays in determining an individual's capacity to benefit from and to contribue to the society in which he lives. Such are the vicissitudes of economics, politics, and Acts of God, that the provision of appropriate schooling for disparate refugee or migrant populations presents an enduring challenge for educators and policy–makers. The challenge is not a new one in that large scale migrations of people have been taking place since the earliest times in recorded history. However, it is heightened in today's world by our recongnition of the critical role which formal education plays in determining an individual's capacity to benefit from and to contribue to the society in which he lives. This is as true for Third World countries as it is for modern industrialized ones. Given that educational achievement is a fundamental determinant of social and occupational mobility, it makes sense for the State to do whatever possible to ensure that migrants are provided every opportunity to become fully participating members of society rather than remaining marginal or disfunctional.

scholarly journals An Alternative Vision for Large-scale Assessment in Canada

2006 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Louis Volante
Keyword(s):  
Student Achievement ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Achievement Testing ◽  
Large Scale Assessment ◽  
Scale Assessment ◽  
Alternative Vision ◽  
Large Scale Testing ◽  
International Testing ◽  
The Impact

Concern over the quality of education has prompted virtually every Canadian province and territory to develop large-scale assessment programs to measure student achievement. The approach of individual provinces and territories varies according to the grades tested, sample size, test format, and frequency of administration. Many provinces also participate in national and international testing programs. This paper provides a general overview of the various large-scale assessment programs across Canada and outlines central arguments for and against student achievement testing. Research documenting the impact of large-scale testing on students and teachers is also reported. The discussion proposes an alternative vision for large-scale assessment aimed at supporting teachers’ instructional practices and student learning. A set of key considerations within this vision serve as a basis for assessment policy reform.

scholarly journals Some Comments on Assessment in U.S. Education

1998 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. 14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Stake
Keyword(s):  
Educational Policy ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Achievement Testing ◽  
American Education ◽  
Costs And Benefits

We do not know much about what assessment has accomplished but we know it has not brought about the reform of American Education. The costs and benefits of large scale mandated achievement testing are too complex to be persuasively reported. Therefore, educational policy needs to be based more on deliberated interpretations of assessment, experience, and ideology. Evaluation of assessment consequences, however inconclusive, has an important role to play in the deliberations.

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