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The OECD Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) assesses the extent to which 15-year-old students have acquired key knowledge and skills that are essential for full participation in modern societies. The assessment, which focuses on reading, mathematics, science and problem-solving, does not just ascertain whether students can reproduce what they have learned; it also examines how well they can extrapolate from what they have learned and apply that knowledge in unfamiliar settings, both in and outside of school. This approach reflects the fact that modern societies reward individuals not for what they know, but for what they can do with what they know.

Around 510,000 students (representative of about 28 million students overall) from all 34 OECD member countries and 31 partner countries and economies participated in PISA 2012, representing more than 80 per cent of the world economy. For the first time, PISA 2012 also included an assessment of the financial literacy of young people. The findings presented in this report will allow policy makers to gauge the knowledge and skills of students in their own countries in comparison with those in other countries, set policy targets against measurable goals achieved by other education systems, and learn from policies and practices applied elsewhere.

This is one of six volumes that present the results of the 2012 PISA survey, the fifth round of the triennial assessment. The chapters are as follows: Defining and measuring equity in education; Equity in outcomes; The challenge of diversity; Equity in opportunities to learn and in resources; Policy implications of equity in education. Show less

Impressive progress has been made in raising participation in early childhood education as well as tertiary educational attainment over the past 30 years. However, the inflow of poorly educated youth into the labour market is unusually heavy for a high-income country, largely on account of high drop-out rates in lower secondary education which, in turn, reflect one of the highest grade repetition rates in the OECD. The supply of workers with intermediate vocational skills is surprisingly low, despite the high return, in terms of labour market outcomes that these skills offer, even if they have recently deteriorated. There is room to raise learning outcomes up to the end of compulsory school, as measured by the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), although, owing to a compressed distribution of such outcomes, the share of poorly performing pupils is not unusually large. While significant reforms have been undertaken to address these problems, more measures are needed to reduce grade repetition and raise education outcomes, by improving accountability of schools and school staff, as well as by raising school autonomy further than has already occurred. Vocational training needs to become more attractive. In tertiary education, few Spanish universities have attained a high level of international standing, and scope remains to improve the contribution tertiary attainment can make to gains in economic welfare, notably by reforming funding arrangements.

Published abstract reprinted by permission of the copyright owner. Show less

Throughout the OECD, there is growing recognition that mental health is a major issue in social and labour market policy. Mental illness exacts a heavy price on people, employers, and the economy at large, affecting wellbeing and employment, and causing substantial productivity losses. Austria has seen a rapid increase over the past 20 years in sickness absences and disability benefit claims attributable to mental disorders. Overall benefit dependency among the working-age population is high, with many claimants of all types of benefits, including unemployment benefit, reporting mental health problems. While the Austrian labour market is in good shape and was comparatively little affected by the recent economic downturn, at least initially, the mentally unwell underperform in the job market. Their unemployment rate is almost thrice the national average and their employment rates are lower.

Excerpts from publication.

The chapters are as follows: Executive summary; Assessment and recommendations; Mental health and work challenges in Austria; Benefit reform in Austria to tackle widespread inactivity; Preventing labour market exit at Austrian workplaces; Improving the job prospects of vulnerable young people in the Austrian education system; Linking mental health policy in Austria to other policy fields. Show less

This report contains, for Denmark, a survey of the main barriers to employment for young people, an assessment of the adequacy and effectiveness of existing measures to improve the transition from school-to-work, and a set of policy recommendations for further action by the public authorities and social partners. The report is based on the proceedings of a seminar and is published in English only. However, a French translation of the summary and main recommendations has been included in this volume.

Published abstract reprinted by permission of the copyright owner. Show less

This publication is based on papers presented at the joint National Center on Adult Literacy and OECD International Roundtable held in Philadelphia, US in November 2003. The Roundtable examined whether, and to what extent, information and communications technology (ICT) could be a useful tool for improving the educational outcomes of out-of-school youth and adults. The chapters are as follows: Introduction / Richard Sweet and Daniel A. Wagner; ICT in adult education: defining the territory / Neil Selwyn; Adult learning and ICT: how to respond to the diversity of needs / Beatriz Ponts and Richard Sweet; Connections between in-school and out-of-school ICT programmes for youth / Anthony Wilhelm; Reaching the most disadvantaged with ICT: what works? / Robert Kozma and Daniel A. Wagner; Lessons of the uses of ICT for out-of-school youths and adults in developing countries / Bob day and Rod Grewan; ICT in non-formal and adult education: reflections on the roundtable / Stephen McNair. Show less

[This publication] describes the essential ingredients that shape people's well-being in OECD and partner countries. It includes a wide variety of statistics, capturing both material well-being (such as income, jobs and housing) and the broader quality of people's lives (such as their health, education, work-life balance, environment, social connections, civic engagement, subjective well-being and safety). The report documents the latest evidence on well-being, as well as changes over time, and the distribution of well-being outcomes among different groups of the population. This third edition [features] a special focus on child well-being, which finds that not all children are getting a good start in life, and those living in less affluent families face more risks to their well-being. The report introduces new measures to capture some of the natural, human, social and economic resources that play a role in supporting well-being over time. A chapter on volunteering suggests that volunteer work can create a virtuous circle: doing good makes people feel good, and brings a variety of other well-being benefits to both volunteers and to society at large. Finally, the report looks at inequalities in well-being across different regions within countries, demonstrating that where people live can shape their opportunities for living well.

Published abstract.

The chapters are as follows: Well-being today and tomorrow: an overview; How's life? in figures; Resources for future well-being; How's life for children?; The value of giving: volunteering and well-being; Going local: measuring well-being in regions. Show less

With the labour market becoming increasingly selective, relevant work skills are becoming increasingly necessary to combat high youth unemployment in OECD countries. This requires co-ordinated policies linking education to the requirements of the labour market and the provision of appropriate training courses. This report focuses on Norway, and assesses the efficacy of existing measures which aim to improve the school to work transition, as well as providing policy recommendations for further action. Show less

This study seeks to define the role of the upper secondary system in determining the educational, vocational and social choices of young people, and to examine the nature of the principal changes introduced at this level of education in the majority of OECD member countries. Specifically, the report offers: (1) a short, critical analysis of the options now being offered to young people, and of the methods of transition and choice in regard to such opportunities; and (2) a review of the changes introduced or envisaged in member countries with the intention of providing new options to young people and the social policy objectives on which these changes are based. The report draws on a series of studies undertaken within the framework of the programs of work of the Education Committee and of the Centre for Educational Research and Innovation (CERI). Show less

In all G20 economies, youth are a key asset. Equipping them with the skills needed in the labour market and giving them opportunities to become well-integrated into the world of work contributes not only to their own well-being but also to the productive potential of the economy and to social cohesion more generally. While achieving this objective has been a long-term challenge for all G20 economies, it has become more acute in the aftermath of the global financial and economic crisis, as youth have borne a disproportionate share of job losses and are still facing significant barriers to finding good quality jobs even in the current recovery phase. Some G20 countries face the daunting challenge of generating productive and rewarding jobs for large and growing numbers of youth. Others need to deal with declining job opportunities for low-skilled youth while mobilising potential labour resources to cope with the fiscal pressures arising from rapid population ageing. Within this context, the G20 Leaders, at their Summit in St Petersburg in September 2013, expressed their commitment to giving youth a better start in the world of work. Therefore, the main objectives of this paper are to: (1) provide a review of progress in the labour market situation of youth in G20 economies and identify the remaining key challenges; (2) analyse key policy measures that countries have recently developed and implemented to tackle these challenges that may provide examples of good policy practices; and (3) highlight, in particular, those features and policy measures that can help broaden access to apprenticeships and make them more attractive for both youth and employers. The key messages for youth employment policies are: more needs to be done to improve youth labour market outcomes; quality apprenticeships and quality internships can serve as important pathways for helping youth make a smoother transition from school to work; and monitoring the success of recent G20 youth employment policy initiatives is important.

Edited excerpts from publication. Show less

This review of Australia's educational policy, undertaken in 1976, focused on the education and training needs of, and provision for, young people entering working life. It was carried out as part of the program of OECD's Education Committee. The review focused on the following nine issues: (1) possible divergences between the specific objectives of education as perceived by people within education and those perceived by society at large; (2) the possibility of organisational and administrative defects which might prevent the education system from fulfilling its desired social role; (3) the after effects of the massive expansion of tertiary education in the late 1960s and early 1970s; (4) the effects of the present economic recession and the associated high level of unemployment; (5) possible worsening structural imbalances in the labour market of a secular nature; (6) the effects of earlier high immigration which may have led employers to neglect problems of labour supply; (7) possible inadequacies and distortions in the flow of information about the employment situation to young people in educational institutions; (8) the possibility that special difficulties are experienced on leaving school by particular groups such as Aborigines, recent migrants and some groups of females; and (9) possible changes in cultural and social attitudes that may have resulted in a widening of any generation gap. The report is presented in two parts: the main report, which is presented in part one, and a record of the review meeting where questions relating to the issues covered in the report were put to an official Australian delegation.

This report is complemented by a background report, 'Educational policy and planning: transition from school to work or further study' (indexed at TD/TNC 86.220). Show less