From the United States to the United Kingdom and from China to India, growing inequality has led to social discontent and the emergence of populist parties, also contributing to economic crises. We urgently need a better understanding of the roots and costs of these income gaps. The Costs of Inequality draws on the experience of Latin America, one of the most unequal regions of the world, to demonstrate how inequality has hampered economic growth, contributed to a lack of good jobs, weakened democracy, and led to social divisions and mistrust. In turn, low growth, exclusionary politics, violence and social mistrust have reinforced inequality, generating various vicious circles. Latin America thus provides a disturbing image of what the future may hold in other countries if we do not act quickly. It also provides some useful lessons on how to fight income concentration and build more equitable societies.
This edited volume presents a systematic analysis of conceptual, methodological and applied aspects related to the validation of educational tests used in Latin American countries. Inspired by international standards on educational measurement and evaluation, this book illustrates efforts that have been made in several countries to validate different types of educational assessments, including student learning assessments, measurements of non-cognitive aspects in students, teacher evaluations, and tests for certification and selection. It gathers the experience of validity studies from the main international assessments in Latin America (PISA, TIMSS, ERCE, and ICCS). Additionally, it shows the challenges that must be taken into account when evaluations are used to compare countries, groups or trends of achievement over time. The book builds on the premise that measurements in the educational field should not be used if there are no studies that support the validity of the interpretation of their scores, or the use made of such tests. It shows that, despite the recognition given to validity, relatively few educational measurement assessments have accumulated enough evidence to support their interpretation and use. In doing so, this volume increases awareness about the relevance of validity, especially when assessments are key component of educational policies.
To improve their education systems, countries around the world have increasingly initiated national largescale assessment programs or participated in international or regional large-scale assessment studies for the first time. Well-constructed large-scale assessments can provide credible information on student achievement levels, which, in turn, can promote better resource allocation to schools, stronger education service delivery, and improved learning outcomes. The World Bank developed this Primer on Large-Scale Assessments of Educational Achievement as a firststop resource for those wanting to understand how to design, administer, analyze, and use the results from these assessments of student achievement. The book addresses frequently asked questions from people working on large-scale assessment projects and those interested in making informed decisions about them. Each chapter introduces a stage in the assessment process and offers advice, guidelines, and country examples. This book also reports on emerging trends in large-scale assessment and provides updated information on regional and international large-scale assessment programs. DIRK HASTEDT, Executive Director of the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) “A special feature of the publication is that it not only gives an overview of technical specifications, but also includes examples from around the world on how countries are conducting large-scale assessments, what they found, and how the results were used. With this perspective, the Primer on Large-Scale Assessments of Educational Achievement is an excellent and easy-to-read publication to get a comprehensive overview of large-scale assessments and how and why they are conducted.†? SILVIA MONTOYA, Director of UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UNESCO UIS) “If you are responsible for learning assessment in a country and are searching for a comprehensive, yet readable, guide on large-scale assessment, this is your book. Extremely well structured and written, this primer is easy to follow, and makes points clearly and concisely. It is an excellent resource that explores the steps for a good large-scale assessment with examples from all international large-scale assessment programs.†? ANDREAS SCHLEICHER, Director for the Directorate of Education and Skills and Special Advisor on Education Policy to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development’s (OECD) Secretary- General “Many countries have joined international educational assessments to benchmark quality, equity, and efficiency in their education systems. But what does it take to design and implement those efforts well and to draw value from this to help students learn better, teachers teach better, and schools to work more effectively? This Primer on Large-Scale Assessments of Educational Achievement helps policy makers and their technical teams to find answers to these questions.†? ANDREI VOLKOV, Director of the Institute for Public Strategy, Moscow School of Management SKOLKOVO “In 2008, when the Russia Education Aid for Development (READ) Program was launched, we determined its main goal as the improvement of the quality of basic education. Today, the READ Program keeps setting trends as the largest Russian initiative promoting educational assessment. Approaches developed within the READ Program, from building institutional and expert capacity to influencing educational reforms, have proven their efficacy in many countries. The Primer on Large-Scale Assessments of Educational Achievement brings together in a practical format the best experience and case studies in conducting assessments under the READ Program. An especially important feature of the book is an integrated capacity building component, which makes it a practical tutorial ready for use in different cultural contexts. Through this book, we hope that our collective experience gathered during READ will be widely shared, bringing us closer to achievement of the Sustainable Development Goal on education.†? evelopment Goal on Education.†?
World Bank Discussion Paper No. 257. Countries in the Latin America and the Caribbean region (LAC) have invested heavily in primary education over the past 10 years. International studies of achievement, however, show that LAC countries still perfo
Understanding what and how students learn has emerged as a salient issue in Latin America, a region where the majority of children now have access to schools but few students learn the skills they need to succeed. 'Raising Student Learning in Latin America' examines recent advances in our understanding of the policies and programs that affect student learning and provides policy makers with effective options. This volume relies on indicators from national and international assessments of subject matter knowledge plus intermediate learning indicators, such as dropout and completion rates. The first part focuses on the central role of student learning in education. The second part reviews the evidence on factors and policies that affect student learning. The final part addresses policy optons on education quality assurance.
"Myth, Reality, and Reform bridges these critiques by balancing the importance of the four key functions of higher education: academic leadership, professional development, technological training and development, and general higher education. The book suggests how to consolidate the strengths of higher education systems while fundamentally reforming their weaker features.
Can Latin America compete? Many argue that the macroeconomic and trade reforms of the 1990s merely put a handsome coat of paint over education, labour, judicial, and administrative reforms that remain incomplete. This book identifies ten factors that most influence the competitiveness of Latin American nations and will shape their economic futures.
"Examines the relationship between private education and public policy in Latin America by combining conceptual analysis with empirical research, and incorporating case studies from Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Guatemala, Peru, and Venezuela"--Provided by publisher.
Des pays du monde entier se sont lancés dans de grandes évaluations nationales ou ont participé pour la première fois à de grandes évaluations régionales ou internationales dans le but d’améliorer leur systèmed’éducation. Lorsque les évaluations sont bien conçues, les informations crédibles qu’elles f ournissent au sujet de la performance des élèves peuvent contribuer à mieux répartir les ressources entre les établissements et à améliorer la qualité de l’enseignement et le rendement de l’apprentissage. Les services de la Banque mondiale ont rédigé le présent Manuel pour les évaluations à grande échelle des acquis scolaires dans le but de proposer un guide complet à ceux qui veulent en apprendre davantage sur la conception et l’administration de ce type d’évaluations et sur l’analyse et l’utilisation de leurs résultats. Cet ouvrage répond à des questions que se posent souvent les équipes chargées de grandes évaluations et les responsables politiques qui souhaitent prendre des décisions les concernant en toute connaissance de cause. Chaque chapitre aborde une étape du processus d’évaluation, prodigue des conseils, propose des orientations et donne des exemples de ce qui se fait dans des pays. Par ailleurs, cet ouvrage décrit les nouvelles tendances qui se dessinent dans les grandes évaluations et donne des informations à jour sur de grandes évaluations régionales et internationales. DIRK HASTEDT, Directeur exécutif de l’Association internationale pour l’évaluation du rendement scolaire (IEA) « Ce qu’il y a d’unique dans cet ouvrage, c’est qu’en plus de passer des spécifications techniques en revue, il donne des exemples de la façon dont des pays du monde entier administrent des évaluations à grande échelle, en tirent des enseignements et en utilisent les résultats. En ce sens, ce Manuel pour les évaluations à grande échelle des acquis scolaires est un excellent guide pratique à consulter pour obtenir une vue d’ensemble des grandes évaluations et mieux comprendre comment et pourquoi les administrer. » SILVIA MONTOYA, Directrice de l’Institut de statistique de l’UNESCO (ISU) « C’est l’ouvrage idéal pour les responsables d’évaluations scolaires à la recherche d’informations complètes, mais lisibles, sur le sujet. Il est extrêmement bien rédigé et parfaitement structuré, de sorte qu’il est facile à consulter et que tous les aspects y sont décrits clairement et avec concision. C’est l’ouvrage de référence par excellence pour tous ceux qui veulent explorer les étapes à enchaîner pour mener une grande évaluation, d’autant qu’il foisonne d’exemples sur toutes les grandes évaluations internationales. » ANDREAS SCHLEICHER, Directeur de la Direction de l’éducation et des compétences et conseiller spécial du Secrétaire général, chargé de la politique de l’éducation, de l’Organisation de coopération et de développement économiques (OCDE) « De nombreux pays ont décidé d’administrer des évaluations internationales pour comparer la qualité, l’équité et l’efficience de leur système d’éducation à des normes de référence. Mais retirent-ils vraiment de leurs efforts de planification, d’administration et d’analyse de quoi aider les élèves à mieux apprendre, les enseignants à mieux enseigner et les établissements à travailler plus efficacement ? Ce Manuel pour les évaluations à grande échelle des acquis scolaires aidera les responsables politiques et leurs équipes techniques à répondre à ces questions. » ANDREI VOLKOV, Directeur de l’Institut de stratégie publique, École de gestion de Moscou SKOLKOVO « En 2008, c’est en grande partie dans l’objectif d’améliorer la qualité de l’enseignement fondamental que le Fonds fiduciaire de l’assistance russe à l’éducation pour le développement (READ) a été créé. Le Fonds continue de donner l’exemple, c’est d’ailleurs la plus grande initiative russe visant à promouvoir l’évaluation des acquis scolaires. Les approches conçues à l’aide du Fonds, que ce soit celles visant à renforcer les capacités institutionnelles et spécialisées ou à orienter les réformes de l’éducation, ont prouvé leur efficacité dans de nombreux pays. Le Manuel pour les évaluations à grande échelle des acquis scolaires rassemble sous un format pratique les meilleures études de cas au sujet des évaluations à grande échelle. Cet ouvrage a un atout particulièrement important, celui de proposer un système intégré de renforcement des capacités, de sorte que c’est un guide pratique, facile à utiliser dans des contextes culturels différents. Nous espérons que cet ouvrage contribuera à faire connaître largement l’expérience collective rassemblée par le Fonds et nous rapprochera de la réalisation de l’objectif relatif à l’éducation dans le Programme de développement durable. »
Thomas Kellaghan Educational Research Centre, St. Patrick's College, Dublin, Ireland Daniel L. Stufflebeam The Evaluation Center, Western Michigan University, Ml, USA Lori A. Wingate The Evaluation Center, Western Michigan University, Ml, USA Educational evaluation encompasses a wide array of activities, including student assessment, measurement, testing, program evaluation, school personnel evalua tion, school accreditation, and curriculum evaluation. It occurs at all levels of education systems, from the individual student evaluations carried out by class room teachers, to evaluations of schools and districts, to district-wide program evaluations, to national assessments, to cross-national comparisons of student achievement. As in any area of scholarship and practice, the field is constantly evolving, as a result of advances in theory, methodology, and technology; increasing globalization; emerging needs and pressures; and cross-fertilization from other disciplines. The beginning of a new century would seem an appropriate time to provide a portrait of the current state of the theory and practice of educational evaluation across the globe. It is the purpose of this handbook to attempt to do this, to sketch the international landscape of educational evaluation - its conceptual izations, practice, methodology, and background, and the functions it serves. The book's 43 chapters, grouped in 10 sections, provide detailed accounts of major components of the educational evaluation enterprise. Together, they provide a panoramic view of an evolving field.
