It is right now a question on how to approach assessment and measurement policies in light of the recent changes of the new competencies that are becoming of interest in the education community. Eummena is actively involved in undertaking research and providing assessment solutions for this new shift. Eummena is currently advising its partners and customers on how to shape accordingly their assessment tools, EdTech strategies, and digital skills initiatives.
A bit of background…
PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment), a worldwide assessment programme that measures 15-year-old students’ performance on Mathematics, Science, and Reading has become a global yardstick. Likewise, PISA has shaped educational policy making in the last decade by having national policy makers define the end-goals of their education system with respect to its measurement policies.
However, in the last years, concerns have been raised on the specific subjects that PISA assesses. Criticism was mainly based on the narrowness of the areas assessed. In the next administration in 2021, PISA will tackle creative thinking, trying to find ways to assess, and have students assess, flexibility in thinking and habits of creativity such as being inquisitive and persistent. The PISA team is also developing a way of testing students’ digital learning, which should be ready in time for the 2024 assessment.
With the new inclusion of what seems to be as the 21st century skills within PISA’s radius of assessment, it does beg the question on how and what innovative instruments will be used to assess these skills. Likewise, this is a current centerpiece in education which Eummena is committed to making contributions on.
More recent statements from the director of PISA, Andreas Schleicher, suggest significant changes are on the horizon because the modern world doesn’t reward us for what we know but for "how we apply knowledge."
