The Error Climate and Its Influence on Student Performance

The Error Climate and Its Influence on Student Performance

Learning is an active process that requires students to explore and discuss their own opinions and doubts. Thus, during this process, it is natural to make mistakes. Indeed, making mistakes usually generates learning opportunities and gives the teacher clues about students’ cognitive process…

The More Experienced the More…Boring?

The More Experienced the More…Boring?

Pietro Sancassani Teachers are arguably one of the most important ingredient of education systems. If countries want to improve their students’ education and skills, it is therefore natural to analyse what characteristics make teachers more effective, as this can provide valuable information for policymakers. Does teacher experience matter? An aspect that has been widely investigated […]

Opportunity to Learn: Why Does Asia Outperform England?

Opportunity to Learn: Why Does Asia Outperform England?

In international comparisons for mathematics in PISA and TIMSS, Asia outperforms England considerably at the secondary level. For geometry this difference is particularly large. In a recent study, I have investigated if these differences in geometry achievement might be attributed to differences in ‘Opportunity to Learn’ within a country’s curriculum.

Researcher Degrees of Freedom: Some Remarks on Secondary Analysis

Researcher Degrees of Freedom: Some Remarks on Secondary Analysis

Christian Bokhove In recent decades more and more educational data have become available, including those from International Largescale Assessments (ILSAs), with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) playing key roles in disseminating results from such ILSA and their international databases. This proliferation […]

“Oh look, Santa brought me an ILSA!”

“Oh look, Santa brought me an ILSA!”

Eemer Eivers For many, December means Christmas, but for those interested in International Large-Scale Assessments (ILSAs), it is a Christmas of another sort. December is traditionally when ILSA results are released and we get to play with our new toys (the huge datasets!).   Like Christmas, ILSA releases have certain traditions. Expect a few psychometricians […]

The Digital Divide in Online Education: Who Was Prepared for Online Education Before the COVID-19 Pandemic Took Place?

The Digital Divide in Online Education: Who Was Prepared for Online Education Before the COVID-19 Pandemic Took Place?

Herman G. van de Werfhorst, Emma Kessenich, and Sara Geven The crisis resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic has disordered the educational process of millions of children. Distance education through online communication channels has become the practice in many societies since March 2020 (UNESCO 2020[1]). While schools slowly reopen in many societies, and despite the great […]

crop chemist holding in hands molecule model

When Too Little or Too Much Hurts: Evidence for a Curvilinear Relationship Between Inquiry-based Teaching and Student Achievement in Science

Nani Teig A growing body of research has investigated the effectiveness of inquiry-based teaching, such as by engaging students in conducting scientific experiments. Yet, this research abounds in conflicting findings: While some studies showed that this teaching approach is positively related to higher science achievement, others found negative or insignificant relations. What may cause the […]

Do Girls and Boys Feel Equally Confident in Their Mathematics Abilities? Evidence from TIMSS 2015

Do Girls and Boys Feel Equally Confident in Their Mathematics Abilities? Evidence from TIMSS 2015

Despite the importance of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), not enough students are interested in pursuing a STEM career. Moreover, among the few students who do show an interest – and do pursue a STEM career – the proportion of women is small.

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Why is it so hard to study school leadership in cross-cultural research?

Jelena Veletić Evidence shows that some of the key aspects of educational policies, like school leadership, are very sensitive and shaped by the culture and context where they are executed.  Nevertheless, we frequently want to compare and contrast such concepts across different cultures and contexts. To do so, our instrument (e.g. test, questionnaire) must operate […]

Are the Gender Gaps in PISA Influenced by Its Methodology?

Are the Gender Gaps in PISA Influenced by Its Methodology?

PISA measures 15-year-olds achievement scores in mathematics, reading and science and has evolved into a powerful tool in politics, as the scores can be compared across countries and over time. Apart from the scores themselves, there is also significant interest in the achievement differences between boys and girls.