What the expansion of higher education means for graduates in the labour market

by Markus SchwabeStatistician, Directorate for Education and SkillsA university degree has always been considered as key to a good job and higher wages. But as the share of tertiary-educated adults across OECD countries has almost doubled over the last two decades, can the labour market absorb this growing supply of skills? At first glance, the answer isn’t encouraging: the number of unemployed tertiary-educated...

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Busting the myth about standardised testing

by Tarek MostafaAnalyst, Directorate for Education and SkillsStandardised testing has received a bad rap in recent years. Parents and educators argue that too much testing can make students anxious without improving their learning. In particular, standardised tests that could determine a student’s future – entry into a certain education programme or into university, for example – might trigger anxiety...

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Citizenship and education in a digital world

by Marc FusterConsultant, Directorate for Education and Skills"Everyone believes in the atrocities of the enemy and disbelieves in those of his own side, without ever bothering to examine the evidence”, George Orwell wrote in 1943. And in an era of ‘fake news’ and post-truth, it resembles our world today.Democracies are built upon the principles of equality and the participation of citizens in public...

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Educating our youth to care about each other and the world

by Andreas SchleicherDirector, Directorate for Education and SkillsIn 2015, 193 countries committed to achieving the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations, a shared vision of humanity that provides the missing piece of the globalisation puzzle. The extent to which that vision becomes a reality will in no small way depend on what is happening in today’s classrooms. Indeed, it...

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How can countries close the equity gap in education?

by Dirk Van DammeHead of the Skills Beyond School Division,  Directorate for Education and SkillsEducation plays a dual role when it comes to social inequality and social mobility. On the one hand, it is the main way for societies to foster equality of opportunity and support upward social mobility for children from disadvantaged backgrounds. On the other hand, the evidence is overwhelming that...

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Who really bears the cost of education?

by Marie-Hélène DoumetSenior Analyst, Directorate for Education and SkillsIt can be difficult to get your head around education finance. Who actually pays for it, where does the money come from, and how is it spent are all crucial questions to ask if you want to understand how the money flows in education. In many countries, basic education is considered a right, and governments are expected to ensure...

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Are school systems ready to develop students’ social skills?

by Andreas SchleicherDirector, Directorate for Education and SkillsSuccesses and failures in the classroom will increasingly shape the fortunes of countries.  And yet, more of the same education will only produce more of the same strengths and weaknesses. Today’s students are growing up into a world hyperconnected by digitalisation; tomorrow, they’ll be working in a labour market that is already...

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How much will the literacy level of working-age people change from now to 2022?

by François KeslairStatistician, Directorate for Education and Skills Taken as a whole, the OECD’s Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) and Survey of Adult Skills (PIAAC) present a mixed picture for Korea and Singapore. As their economies have grown, these two countries’ education systems have seen fast and impressive improvements; both now rank among PISA’s top performers....

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Is the growth of international student mobility coming to a halt?

by Dirk Van DammeHead of the Skills Beyond School Division,  Directorate for Education and SkillsHigher education is one of the most globally integrated systems of the modern world. There still are important barriers to the international recognition of degrees or the transfer of credits, but some of the basic features of higher education enjoy global convergence and collaboration. This is...

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Is free higher education fair?

by Andreas Schleicher Director, Directorate for Education and Skills Skills have become the currency of 21st century economies and, despite the significant increase the UK has seen in university graduation over the last decade, the earnings of workers with a Master’s degree remain over 80% higher than those of workers with just five good GCSEs or an equivalent vocational qualification. Sure,...

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What matters for managing classrooms?

by Francesca GottschalkConsultant, Directorate for Education and Skills Teaching is a demanding profession. Teachers are responsible for developing the skills and knowledge of their students, helping them overcome social and emotional hurdles and maintaining equitable, cohesive and productive classroom environments. On top of their teaching responsibilities, they are also expected to engage...

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How PISA measures students’ ability to collaborate

by Andreas SchleicherDirector, Directorate for Education and Skills PISA 2015 Results (Volume V) Collaborative Problem Solving – Sample Question from EduSkills OECD Late next month (21 November, to be exact) we’ll be releasing the results PISA’s first-ever assessment of students’ ability to solve problems collaboratively. Why has PISA focused on this particular set of skills? Because in today’s increasingly interconnected world, people are often required to collaborate in order to achieve...

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The fork in the road towards gender equality

by Simon NormandeauStatistician, Directorate for Education and SkillsGender biases can be persistent. Too persistent. A simple exercise to illustrate the point: Picture a doctor or a professor. You will most likely think of a man. Now think of nurses and teachers and you are likely to imagine a woman. This unconscious gender bias is rooted in years of associating male and female attributes to specific...

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How can we tell if artificial intelligence threatens work?

by Stuart W. ElliottU.S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and MedicineNew technologies tend to shift jobs and skills. New technologies bring new products, which shift jobs across occupations: with the arrival of cars, the economy needed more assembly line workers and fewer blacksmiths. New technologies also bring new work processes, which shift skills in jobs: with the arrival of copiers,...

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