Sir, – Dr Kenny Denny of UCD tells us (December 14th) that international ranking in Pisa tests are “mildly interesting” and a “fetish” concern. The variation in performance within Ireland and its causes is more interesting he tells us.
The Pisa reports compare those variations within Ireland with those of competitor countries. In particular the 2012 Pisa report shows again that the proportion of high achievers in mathematics in Ireland remains lower than the OECD average and much lower than many competitor countries.
If Dr Denny reads the economic literature he will discover the strong correlation between national economic progress and comparative performance in cognitive tests such as PISA. He will also discover its correlation with the proportion of high achievers in such tests.
PISA reports valuably give the socio-economic and other contexts of national achievement and international comparison. – Yours, etc,
SEÁN Mc DONAGH,
The Court,
Bettyglen,
Raheny, Dublin 5.
Sir, – Dr Kevin Denny (December 14th) asserts that the OECD Pisa assessment is constructed such as the overall average is set at 500 on each administration and that Pisa cannot measure absolute change in performance. He is incorrect.
Each cycle of Pisa links performance back to earlier cycles, through the administration of common (link) questions. Performance in a given cycle within each country is then adjusted to reflect changes in performance on the link questions since the previous cycle. An overall average of 500 was set for reading in 2000, maths in 2003 and science in 2006. Performance in subsequent cycles is benchmarked against these years, and differences in performance between cycles can be interpreted as reflecting absolute changes in performance. Hence, we have interpreted the strong increase in performance in science among Ireland’s 15-year-olds in Pisa 2012 as reflecting improved student learning since 2006, most likely brought about by changes in curriculum and associated changes in teaching.
Such inferences cannot be made if performance on State examinations improves (for example, an increase in A grades), since changes to prescribed texts, examination questions and marking schemes from year to year may be as influential as changes in teaching and learning. – Yours, etc,
GERRY SHIEL & RACHEL
PERKINS,
Educational Research
Centre,
St Patrick’s College,
Drumcondra, Dublin 9.