– PISA, the Program for International Student Assessment of 15-year-old students, is followed by a growing number of countries as a benchmark to compare their progress in education. Now, it seems that – finally – the world is beginning to understand all the importance of “early education” as well. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) will launch a new study in order to measure the outcome of early learning for five-year-old children. An initiative that has, inevitably, sparked some debate in the sector.
– Referred among educators as “Mini-PISA” or “Baby-PISA,” the new program will take place in 2018 and 2019 in three to six countries, with a report set to be published in 2020. The purpose of Baby-PISA is the identification of the key elements that can foster or hinder the efficiency of early learning, both at home and at preschool. Children’s early numeracy and literacy skills, and social and emotional abilities will be analysed. According to the OECD, the program is not intended to gauge school readiness in particular, but children’s long-term development in general.
A School for Boys and Girls, by Jan Steen (Google Art Project / Wikimedia Commons)
