PISA Peculiarities (4): High Test Scores, Low Life Satisfaction
PISA has many peculiar and surprising discoveries…
PISA wants to offer advice on anything and everything considered important to students in the world so it has decided to jump on the bandwagon of student well being. Life satisfaction is a very important aspect of well being because it “is closely associated with happiness, and can enable the kinds of healthy habits and attitudes that lead to a successful, fulfilling life.” Thus PISA wants to “help educators, schools and parents promote positive development amongst youth, and identify and support students who experience emotional or behavioural distress” “[b]y providing insights into adolescents’ self-perceptions about how satisfied they are with their lives” (OECD, 2019, p. 154).
Below are some interesting findings PISA has uncovered from its 2018 round regarding life satisfaction and reading scores.
First, “students in low-achieving countries tended to report higher levels of life satisfaction than students in high-achieving countries… Moreover, in most East Asian countries and economies, such as Beijing, Shanghai, Jiangsu and Zhejiang (China) (hereafter “B-S-J-Z [China]”), Hong Kong (China), Japan and Macao (China), students scored above the OECD average in reading, but reported lower levels of life satisfaction than the average 15-year-old student in OECD countries” (OECD, 2019, p. 160).
Second, “students who were classified as ‘very satisfied’ with their lives scored 16 points lower in reading CONTINUE READING: Education in the Age of Globalization » Blog Archive » PISA Peculiarities (4): High Test Scores, Low Life Satisfaction
