PISA and Poverty

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The following information was taken from Education Week --January 8, 2014 www.edweek.org/go/commentary

The results of the 2012 Program for International Student Assessment or PISA were released last month. The results were released by Arne Duncan, the Secretary of Education. He said, "Americans need to wake up to this educational reality--instead of napping at the wheel while emerging competitors prepare their students for economic leadership. Results are a picture of educational stagnation."

The scores reported were the average scores. No detailed information was released.

In 2009 when the detailed information was released important insights were released along with the data that really paint a very different picture. This information was reported by Martin Carnoy and Richard Rothstein in their report titled "What do International Tests Really Show About U.S. Student Performance?" They revealed that 38% of students who sat for the 2009 PISA were from the two lowest socioeconomic categories. That is the largest percentage of low income test takers among our comparative nations. It is a fact that students from low-income families throughout the world score far lower than students from more advantaged families on these tests. In 2009,the U.S. had the highest poverty rate--22%_- of any of the comparative nations, yet our PISA sample included 38% low-income students. If our sampling was so skewed it gives us little confidence in the validity of the test.

So how do our students' scores look when we compare them in a fairer, disaggregated manner? Much better. In fact, if you look carefully at our students' scores in comparison with those of countries with somewhat similar socioeconomic profiles France, Germany, and the United Kingdom---our lower-income students score the highest among these nations, on both the reading and the math tests. American schools with fewer than 10% low-income students score at the very top. American schools with fewer than 25% low-income students are near the top. The achievement gaps on the reading and math tests--between upper income students and lower income students are smaller in the U.S. than in France, Germany, and the United Kingdom.

Mr. Duncan's flawed snapshot of American students' achievement is part of his unrelenting message that our mediocre schools are placing our nation's economic well-being at risk.

We are not napping Mr. Duncan. Instead of continuing with this doomsday rhetoric that serves to tear down the morale of our teachers and parents, we urge you to take a closer look at some of the successful schools in our country. There are thousands of them. Please call me if you need directions.