Education Commons^™

In this paper the author describes what it is that the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) mathematics assessment aims to measure, and presents a case regarding the potential benefits that could flow from a pedagogy that takes the PISA mathematics challenges seriously. Other potential uses of PISA data are also briefly canvassed.

Mathematical literacy has received increasing attention in many countries over the last few years. This is partly driven by concerns of employers that too many students leave school unable to function mathematically at the level needed in the modern world of work. Further, it is increasingly recognised that people can only tackle many of the challenges of modern life effectively if they are mathematically literate in key areas. Planning in personal finance, assessment of risk, design in the home or on the computer screen, and critical appraisal of the flood of statistical information from advertising, politicians and the press — …

Several test items from the OECD’s Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) are now in the public domain. Some of these incorporate elements of modelling. This paper highlights a selection of those items, shows some interesting student outcomes such as gender differences and item difficulty, and poses some questions about the implications of these items for school mathematics.

Item panelling is a process with a long history at ACER. Essentially the same process is referred to in the US Cognitive Laboratory literature as a ‘cognitive walk-through’. Test development agencies in the UK use the phrase ‘item shredding’ to describe essentially the same process. Item panelling is one of a number of essential steps in the development of high quality test items. It is a means of subjecting draft test material to the scrutiny of experts who can provide a rigorous evaluation of the quality of the material, and where appropriate can propose ways in which the material may …