Regulatory coordination in relation to post-PISA improvement planning

In 2024, consideration of regulatory coordination in relation to post-PISA improvement planning must take account of the PISA 2022 follow-up during 2024 and the responsibilities it places before education systems. In this case, this matter should be read as a question of public administration and learner protection, not as a statement that one institutional model is suitable in every jurisdiction. The chosen response should address the risk without weakening access, educational quality or fair treatment.

In work concerning post-PISA improvement planning, education indicators should support decisions by describing outcomes and variation with definitions and limitations that permit responsible interpretation.

Status and scope

Relevant evidence for regulatory coordination in relation to post-PISA improvement planning will normally include coverage and missingness analysis, indicator definitions and metadata, uncertainty estimates where relevant, disaggregated results, and triangulation with administrative and qualitative evidence. The conclusion should rely on evidence whose date, source and coverage are sufficient for the decision. An unresolved contradiction is a limitation on the conclusion and should be reported as such.

This analysis is informed by PISA 2022 follow-up during 2024. Its relevance to the policy position should be assessed against the affected jurisdiction, learner population and form of provision.

For decisions concerning post-PISA improvement planning, the first PISA 2022 results were released on 5 December 2023, with mathematics as the principal assessment domain and reading and science also reported. The cycle was conducted after major disruption to education systems. Comparisons require attention to participation, coverage and the exceptional context; changes from earlier cycles should not be attributed to a single cause without further evidence.

An improvement plan should connect a verified problem with a specific intervention, accountable ownership, resources, milestones and a measure of effect. For post-PISA improvement planning, broad intentions should be converted into decisions capable of review. The judgement should state its supporting evidence and any condition limiting application to the declared scope.

The principal risks in relation to implementation are data revisions not carried through to published conclusions, incomplete coverage, changes in definition presented as changes in performance, and small differences overstated. As regards post-PISA improvement planning, the relationship between the risks is material: one failed safeguard may remove the evidence needed to activate another. Within the scope under review, review should follow the sequence of decisions and records rather than assess documents in isolation.

Public-interest implications

For post-PISA improvement planning, the applicable expectation should be capable of consistent application. Implementation should be assessed against observable effects on access, learning, safety and fair treatment, rather than against the existence of a policy statement alone. Criteria affecting learners should not permit materially different interpretation without an evidenced reason.

Public reporting on post-PISA improvement planning should distinguish established fact, analytical judgement and planned action. Changes to definitions or evidence should be recorded separately from changes in educational performance.

In work concerning post-PISA improvement planning, records relating to the issue should preserve both the conclusion and its limits. The correction record should state what the new evidence changes and which earlier conclusions or decisions require review. The correction process should identify prior users and decisions where published information has had material effect.

• Define the decision the indicator will inform.
• Analyse missing information.
• Disaggregate material results before using it to determine a learner or provider outcome.
• Test comparability.
• Avoid causal claims unsupported by the design.

Institutional responsibilities

Authorities and providers reviewing regulatory coordination in relation to post-PISA improvement planning should proceed in a defined sequence. A competent review of the measure should prioritise actions by learner impact and control weakness, establish dependencies, test implementation at suitable intervals and retain unresolved items until effectiveness is verified. Amend the plan where evidence does not support the original causal assumption. The record for post-PISA improvement planning should distinguish a finding that requires action from an observation that supports no formal conclusion.

For post-PISA improvement planning, the implementation record for implementation should identify the instrument being applied, its status, the competent authority, the affected jurisdiction and the action expected of each responsible body. Binding obligations should remain distinct from policy commitments and measures adopted by institutions. Transition arrangements require defined dates, protections during implementation and a scheduled assessment of readiness.

Interpretation of the policy position should not extend beyond the population, period and setting examined. For post-PISA improvement planning, measurement can reveal where outcomes differ; it does not by itself establish why they differ or which intervention will work. International instruments do not operate identically in every legal system. Their domestic effect depends on the status of the instrument, national law and the measures adopted by competent authorities. A finding should not be separated from limitations capable of changing how it is understood or applied.

The current development provides a basis for examining whether the measure is supported by responsible action and demonstrable result. For decisions concerning post-PISA improvement planning, public confidence cannot be separated from an institution's ability to identify responsibility and substantiate its conclusions.