The promises and expectations of ILSAs regarding policymaking: lessons from Latin America

ABSTRACT

Standardised International Large-Scale Assessments (ILSAs) have gained prominence in global and national educational discussions. ILSAs claim to offer valuable insights for improving education systems, but their impact on educational policy varies and has become a contested arena. This article analyses how these assessments fed educational policymaking in six Latin American countries based on a review of policy documents; the article advances three theses on how ILSAs are used by policymakers: First, there is a tokenistic usage of ILSAs; second, ILSAs must be considered more as political devices bolstering national reputation rather than studies in the academic sense; third, ILSAs can serve as leverage tools that can be mobilised for broader political ends. The study shows that the promises, designs and reporting of ILSAs are not necessarily aligned, that participation in ILSAs has become a symbolic gesture, and that ILSAs’ data are often cherry-picked to support pre-existing diagnoses and policy agendas.

KEYWORDS:

• Educational Assessments
• ILSAs
• Latin-America
• IEA
• OECD
• TIMSS
• PIRLS
• PISA
• PIAAC
• LLECE
• educational policy

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 See, for instance, Addey et al. 2017; Addey and Sellar 2019; Bieber et al. 2015; Cardoso 2022; Carpentieri 2015; Elfert and Ydesen 2023; Gomez Caride 2018; Gorur 2015; Grek 2024; Grotlüschen and Heilmann 2021; Hamilton 2012; 2017; Klemenčič and Mirazchiyski 2018; Lewis and Lingard 2023; Loveless 2013; Martens 2007; Martens and Niemann 2013; Meyer and Benavot 2013; Smith 2002; Steiner-Khamsi, Martens, and Ydesen 2024; UNESCO 2019; Ydesen 2019.

2 See https://www.iea.nl/studies/.

3 The quoted text included a reference to an annex where contextual information was provided. In the Peruvian case, none of the indicators included showed variations between 2000 and 2009 except students’ average age that moved from 15.9 to 15.8 and there is no explanation of why this change should be understood as negative.

4 See https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LzKyIeqyhxs.

5 See https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NkOalQsDIlg.

6 This individual has sought the presidency in three consecutive elections (2011, 2016, and 2021) advancing to the run-off election getting substantial voter support (48.6%, 49.9%, and 49.9% of the votes, respectively). Thus, she is a prominent figure within the Peruvian political landscape, firmly established within the political establishment and not only because she is the eldest daughter of the last Peruvian dictator.

7 See https://elcomercio.pe/politica/gobierno/keiko-fujimori-ya-no-estamos-piloto-automatico-ahora-estamos-neutro-eso-peor-noticia-1619133/.

8 https://pruebat.org/Landing/PISA_2022.

9 https://pruebat.org/Inicio/ConSesion/Breves/verBreve/1924-bienvenida-seleccion-colombia-pisa-fuerte.

10 https://www.gob.mx/sep/articulos/se-acerca-la-prueba-pisa-ya-estas-listo and https://www.gob.mx/sep/articulos/prueba-pisa-2018?idiom=es.

11 While there is no systematic evidence or official records on this issue, while conducting fieldwork I was informed about it by principals, and later some informal exchanges with Ministry’s officials confirmed it.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

César Guadalupe

César Guadalupe is a Full Professor of Social and Political Sciences at Universidad del Pacífico (Peru). He holds a Doctor of Education (EdD) and an MA in Social and Political Thought from the University of Sussex, UK. He also possesses a bachelor's degree and professional title in Sociology from the Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú. Currently, he serves as the President of the Sociedad Peruana de Investigación Educativa (2023–2025). Prior to this role, he was a member of the Peruvian National Education Council (2014–2020) and its chairperson from 2017 to 2020. Before joining Universidad del Pacífico in 2012, he worked as a senior official leading the Learning Outcomes Section at the UNESCO Institute for Statistics (Montreal, Canada). He has held various positions in academia and civil service, both nationally and internationally. For an updated list of his publications, visit: https://www.zotero.org/cguadalupe