Goal 4 - Quality education

Programme for International Student Assessment – PISA is internationally coordinated by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and in Poland by the Ministry of Education. The aim of the programme is to verify the practical application of knowledge acquired in and outside the school. The survey (representative) is carried out in randomly selected schools, and depending on the type of school, it covers randomly selected students aged 15-16 (results are generalized to the entire population). The success of the survey depends on the participation of all sampled schools and students. PISA standards only allow a small-scale denial.

PISA tests students skills in three subject areas: reading, mathematics and science . The survey is carried out every three years, since 2000. Poland has been participating in the study since its inception.

PISA tests (developed by an international consortium, with the cooperation of the countries participating in the project) are different from typical school activities, and on the basis of the results, the level of student skills is estimated. The best students reach level 5 or 6 (ability to resolve tasks with a relatively high degree of difficulty), while results below level 2 - a minimum level of competence - indicate very basic skills, which means a higher risk of difficulties coping with education and adult life.

PIRLS is the largest international study of reading comprehension in primary schools. The initiator and organizer of the study is the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) - an independent consortium of research organizations and government agencies from almost 70 member countries; in Poland it is coordinated by the Ministry of Education. The study involves students in their fourth year of schooling (due to the reforms in the compulsory school age in Poland, the achievements of third-graders were examined until 2011).

The subject of measurement is reading in terms of literary experience (reading literary texts) and reading in order to obtain information (reading informational texts). The study has been carried out since 2001. Poland has been participating in the study since 2006.

Based on the results obtained, the skill level of the student is estimated. The best students achieve level 5 (ability to separate important information from irrelevant information, drawing conclusions from premises scattered in the text, etc.), while results below level 2 - the minimum level of competence - indicate that they have only very basic skills (understanding only single sentences).

Until 2016, the PIRLS survey in all countries was implemented only in a paper version. Since 2016, it is possible to carry out the survey in two versions: paper and digital. From 2026, the PIRLS survey will be conducted only in a digital version.