Accountability policies through standardized testing are widespread in diverse educational systems. Based on an ethnographic research study, we sought to understand how a learning assessment policy, used for over three decades in primary and lower secondary education, is lived and interpreted in daily school life in Chile. This article analyzes…

This mixed methods study explores how market-oriented policies, specifically privatization and decentralization of the educational system in Chile have impacted students' academic achievement since the Change in the Constitution in 1980. First, using teachers' interviews I identify variables that influences students' academic achievement and…

Increasing the supply of qualified teachers is a priority in many nations as a prerequisite to accomplishing UNESCO's Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG 4) to "ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all" by the year 2030. Questions remain however concerning definitions and…

This paper explores the impact of test-taking conditions on the quality of the Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) assessment. Interviewers record information about the room of assessment and interruptions that occurred during each interview. These observations, along with information on interviewer assignment…

We investigate the effect of attending selective secondary schools belonging to the "Bicentenario" schools program in Chile, a free education option that is intended to give vulnerable students everywhere in Chile a unique educational opportunity, in the period from 2011 to 2014. By using propensity score methods, we find that attending…

Human development and rights-based approaches to education have been gaining support among international organisations and development agencies as alternative frameworks to human capital orthodoxy. While these global trends have been well-documented in the international development literature, there is little empirical evidence into what extent,…

Latin American students consistently score low on international tests of cognitive skills. In the PISA 2012 results, students in seven Latin American countries had an average score of 395 in mathematics, or about 100 points lower than the average score of 497 in four Scandinavian countries. We estimate the effect of socioeconomic characteristics…

Ibero-America is a land of untapped potential. The region is young, facing a unique demographic opportunity. This demographic bonus opens a window of opportunity for inclusive growth in the region, with equitable and high-quality education being a potential driver of domestic growth to support future progress. The social and economic progress of…

This article reports an original investigation into school performance measures and the multilevel nature of pupil achievement data in the Chilean school system using a sample of 177,461 students, nested within 7146 classrooms, 2283 secondary schools and 313 municipalities. The data-set comprised Year 10 students' 2006 SIMCE test's results in two…

School value-added studies have largely demonstrated the effects of socioeconomic and demographic characteristics of the schools and the pupils on performance in standardised tests. Traditionally, these studies have assessed the variation coming only from the schools and the pupils. However, recent studies have shown that the analysis of academic…

Although teacher quality is usually signalled to be the most relevant school-level factor impacting students' learning, little is known about the relevance of teacher effects explaining educational inequality. By using a value-added model for a cohort of 10th graders, in this work we examine the socioeconomic gap in teacher effects across Chilean…

This study aims to examine to what extent the field of competence regarding curriculum knowledge is concordant with the other sub-competency fields of teaching. These fields are field knowledge, pedagogic competence in field teaching, use of information and communication technologies in teaching, student behaviours and class management,…

This article synthesises findings from two systematic reviews that examined evidence of the link between large-scale assessments (LSAs) and education policy in economically developing countries and in countries of the Asia-Pacific. Analyses summarise evidence of assessment characteristics and policy goals of LSAs that influence education policy,…

Policymakers worldwide are trying to figure how best to organize, govern, and support their education systems. They must manage multiple goals, such as workforce development, nurturing knowledgeable citizens, and ensuring educational opportunity. Some countries approach these issues with a public investment in teacher professionalization and a…

This research-based volume presents a substantive, panoramic view of ways in which Australia and countries in Africa, Asia, Europe, and North and South America engage in educational programs and practices to transform the learning processes and outcomes of their students. It reveals and analyzes national and global trajectories in key areas of…