Chapter 4: The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA): A Scientific (Counter)Model for Research in Comparative Education?

Since the launch of the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) in 2000, the success of this OECD-led evaluation has been particularly remarkable. In fact, PISA does not shy away from introducing itself in its reports as a leading reference in comparative education. This chapter analyses precisely the issues raised by the adoption of the PISA methodology as research model in comparative education. Three major issues will be analysed to describe how the PISA publications stray from the common scientific norms: from the perspective of taking into account the critical studies that have been carried out on PISA; from the perspective of the shift from analysing relationships between variables and results to causal links; and from the perspective of a more or less implicit reference to a globalising or even neoliberal political understanding. Through a critical analysis of these issues raised by PISA, this chapter will highlight the importance of reflexivity in comparative education to support other approaches to education and research in the face of a dominant discourse on a worldwide scale.