Belarus shines in PISA World Rankings

An ETF event in Minsk, 3 December, presenting the Torino Process 2019-2020 findings on the progress of human capital development, received a surprise input when the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) announced the results of its Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) in which Belarus ranked highly, having participated for the first time in the international survey in 2018

The national event brought together some 60 participants from the Ministry of Education and the Republican Institute for Vocational Education, Trade Unions and educational institutions, to discuss the Torino process findings, based on the national report and the ETF assessment. The PISA survey results will surely add to the momentum for educators and policy makers reviewing national policies and practices. The PISA survey can raise the profile of national education systems giving recognition at international level to achievements. As such, faring well in international rankings is increasingly an incentive in the globalised world of education.

Background 

Since 2000, the OECD has been implementing the PISA survey every three years. The assessment examines 15-year-old students’ attainment levels in reading, mathematics and science aiming to compare international education systems and their outcomes.

In 2018, the assessment was undertaken in 79 countries and territories reaching 32 million students in Europe, North and South America, Australasia and parts of the Middle East and Asia. Other ETF partner countries entering into the 2018 PISA international rankings for the first time include Bosnia and Herzegovina, Morocco, and Ukraine.