This paper presents some of the major issues raised in Education International's preliminary analysis of the overall PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment) 2009 study. Some of these issues are: (1) PISA has serious limitations. The study does not cover the full curriculum, focusing on a narrow set of subject areas, neglecting such important domains as the arts, humanities and social sciences; (2) Moreover, as noted above PISA is not designed on the basis of national education goals, curricula and programs, but it applies its own innovative methods to assess literacy and competencies in reading, mathematics and science. PISA provides only a snapshot of the selected group at one point in time during the life of the school; (3) PISA is intended to provide policy guidance to governments. Predictably, the reports will argue that the results show how countries can learn from each other about how to set and achieve measurable goals achieved elsewhere; and (4) PISA presents the performance of different students in different countries (each cycle brings in new countries and territories) at different times, and in different political, social and economic circumstances. The collection of 2009 PISA data overlapped with the deep economic crisis and recession affecting many OECD and partner countries, yet the PISA analysis does not take this broader context into account. According to Education International, while PISA reveals interesting data on correlations between the performance of students in reading, science and mathematics, their socioeconomic backgrounds, and the organization of schools, it is based on a relatively simple set of questions posed in a 2-hour paper-and-pencil test, answered by a sample of students drawn from one particular age-group (15-year-olds). As such it conveys neither the complexity nor the breadth of education systems, nor does it portray anything close to the total picture of education quality in any country. (Contains 13 sources and resources.