Education at a Glance OECD indicators

Transcription

1 Education at a Glance 2010 OECD indicators

2 ORGANISATION FOR ECONOMIC CO-OPERATION AND DEVELOPMENT The OECD is a unique forum where governments work together to address the economic, social and environmental challenges of globalisation. The OECD is also at the forefront of efforts to understand and to help governments respond to new developments and concerns, such as corporate governance, the information economy and the challenges of an ageing population. The Organisation provides a setting where governments can compare policy experiences, seek answers to common problems, identify good practice and work to co-ordinate domestic and international policies. The OECD member countries are: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Chile, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Korea, Luxembourg, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, the Slovak Republic, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the United States. The Commission of the European Communities takes part in the work of the OECD. OECD Publishing disseminates widely the results of the Organisation s statistics gathering and research on economic, social and environmental issues, as well as the conventions, guidelines and standards agreed by its members. This work is published on the responsibility of the Secretary-General of the OECD. The opinions expressed and arguments employed herein do not necessarily reflect the official views of the Organisation or of the governments of its member countries. ISBN (print) ISBN (PDF) Also available in French: Regards sur l éducation 2010 : Les indicateurs de l OCDE Photo credits: Stocklib Image Bank Cathy Yeulet Fotolia.com Feng Yu Getty Images blue jean images Corrigenda to OECD publications may be found on line at: OECD 2010 You can copy, download or print OECD content for your own use, and you can include excerpts from OECD publications, databases and multimedia products in your own documents, presentations, blogs, websites and teaching materials, provided that suitable acknowledgment of OECD as source and copyright owner is given. All requests for public or commercial use and translation rights should be submitted to rights@oecd.org. Requests for permission to photocopy portions of this material for public or commercial use shall be addressed directly to the Copyright Clearance Center (CCC) at info@copyright.com or the Centre français d exploitation du droit de copie (CFC) at contact@cfcopies.com.

3 Foreword Governments are paying increasing attention to international comparisons as they search for effective policies that enhance individuals social and economic prospects, provide incentives for greater efficiency in schooling, and help to mobilise resources to meet rising demands. As part of its response, the OECD Directorate for Education devotes a major effort to the development and analysis of the quantitative, internationally comparable indicators that it publishes annually in Education at a Glance. These indicators enable educational policy makers and practitioners alike to see their education systems in the light of other countries performances and, together with OECD s country policy reviews, are designed to support and review the efforts that governments are making towards policy reform. Education at a Glance addresses the needs of a range of users, from governments seeking to learn policy lessons to academics requiring data for further analysis to the general public wanting to monitor how its nation s schools are progressing in producing world-class students. The publication examines the quality of learning outcomes, the policy levers and contextual factors that shape these outcomes, and the broader private and social returns that accrue to investments in education. Education at a Glance is the product of a long-standing, collaborative effort between OECD governments, the experts and institutions working within the framework of the OECD s indicators of education systems (INES) programme and the OECD Secretariat. The publication was prepared by the Indicators and Analysis Division of the OECD Directorate for Education with input from the Centre for Educational Research and Innovation, under the responsibility of Andreas Schleicher, in co-operation with Etienne Albiser, Eric Charbonnier, Pedro Lenin García de León, Bo Hansson, Corinne Heckmann, Karinne Logez, Koji Miyamoto and Jean Yip. Administrative support was provided by Sandrine Meireles, and additional advice as well as analytical and editorial support were provided by Marika Boiron, Niccolina Clements, Julia Gerick and Estelle Herbaut. The production of the report was co-ordinated by Corinne Heckmann and Elisabeth Villoutreix. The development of the publication was steered by member countries through the INES Working Party and facilitated by the INES Networks. The members of the various bodies as well as the individual experts who have contributed to this publication and to OECD INES more generally are listed at the end of the book. While much progress has been accomplished in recent years, member countries and the OECD continue to strive to strengthen the link between policy needs and the best available internationally comparable data. In doing so, various challenges and trade-offs are faced. First, the indicators need to respond to educational issues that are high on national policy agendas, and where the international comparative perspective can offer important added value to what can be accomplished through national analysis and evaluation. Second, while the indicators need to be as comparable as possible, they also need to be as country-specific as is necessary to allow for historical, systemic and cultural differences between countries. Third, the indicators need to be Education at a Glance OECD

4 Foreword presented in as straightforward a manner as possible, while remaining sufficiently complex to reflect multi-faceted educational realities. Fourth, there is a general desire to keep the indicator set as small as possible, but it needs to be large enough to be useful to policy makers across countries that face different educational challenges. The OECD will continue to address these challenges vigorously and to pursue not just the development of indicators in areas where it is feasible and promising to develop data, but also to advance in areas where a considerable investment still needs to be made in conceptual work. The further development of the OECD Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) and its extension through the OECD Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC), as well as OECD s Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS) are major efforts to this end. This book has... StatLinks 2 A service that delivers Excel files from the printed page! Look for the StatLinks at the bottom left-hand corner of the tables or graphs in this book. To download the matching Excel spreadsheet, just type the link into your Internet browser, starting with the prefix. If you re reading the PDF e-book edition, and your PC is connected to the Internet, simply click on the link. You ll find StatLinks appearing in more OECD books. 4 Education at a Glance OECD 2010

5 Table of Contents Editorial Name of the indicator in the 2009 edition Introduction Reader s Guide Chapter A the Output of Educational Institutions and the ImpACt of Learning...25 Indicator A1 To what level have adults studied? Table A1.1a. Educational attainment: Adult population (2008) Table A1.2a. Population with at least upper secondary education (2008) Table A1.3a. Population with tertiary education (2008) Table A1.4. Trends in educational attainment: year-old population. ( ) Table A1.5. Annual average growth in year-old population between and Indicator A2 How many students finish secondary education and access tertiary education? Table A2.1. Upper secondary graduation rates (2008) Table A2.2. Trends in graduation rates (first-time) at upper secondary level. ( ) Table A2.3. Entry rates into tertiary education and age distribution. of new entrants (2008) Table A2.4. Trends in entry rates at tertiary level ( ) Indicator A3 how many students finish tertiary education? Table A3.1. Graduation rates in tertiary education and age distribution. of new graduates at tertiary-type A level (2008) Table A3.2. Trends in tertiary graduation rates ( ) Table A3.3. Graduation rates at different tertiary levels, impact of international/ foreign students (2008) Table A3.4. Structure of tertiary education: Main programme blocks (2008) Indicator A4 how many students complete tertiary education? Table A4.1. Completion rates in tertiary education (2008) Table A4.2. Completion rates in tertiary-type A education, by mode of enrolment (2008) Indicator A5 how many adults participate in education and learning? Table A5.1a. Participation in formal and/or non-formal education,. by gender and age (2007) Table A5.1b. Participation in formal and/or non-formal education,. by gender and educational attainment (2007) A1 A2 A3 A3 Education at a Glance OECD

6 Table of Contents Table A5.2. Table A5.3. Table A5.4a. Table A5.5. Table A5.6. Adults who have not participated in formal/non-formal education and have not looked for information, by gender, age group, educational attainment and labour force status (employed) (2007) Participation in formal and/or non-formal education, by gender, and according to whether individuals have looked for and found information (2007) Participation in formal and/or non-formal education, by workplace aspects (full-time/part-time status, occupation and industry) (2007) Participation in job-related non-formal education, by gender and labour force status (2007) Mean hours in non-formal education per participant, by gender, educational attainment and labour force status (2007) Indicator A6 how does educational attainment affect participation in the labour market? Table A6.1a. Employment rates and educational attainment, by gender (2008) Table A6.2a. Unemployment rates and educational attainment, by gender (2008) Table A6.3a. Trends in employment rates of year-olds, by educational attainment ( ) Table A6.4a. Trends in unemployment rates of year-olds, by educational attainment ( ) Indicator A7 What are the economic benefits of education? Table A7.1. Relative earnings of the population with income from employment (2008 or latest available year) Table A7.2a. Trends in relative earnings:total population ( ) Table A7.2b. Trends in relative earnings: Male population ( ) Table A7.2c. Trends in relative earnings: Female population ( ) Table A7.3a. Differences in earnings between females and males (2008 or latest available year) Table A7.3b. Trends in differences in earnings between females and males ( ) Indicator A8 What are the incentives to invest in education? Table A8.1. Private net present value for an individual obtaining upper secondary or post-secondary non-tertiary education as part of initial education, ISCED 3/4 (2006) Table A8.2. Private net present value for an individual obtaining tertiary education as part of initial education, ISCED 5/6 (2006) Table A8.3. Public net present value for an individual obtaining upper secondary or post-secondary non-tertiary education as part of initial education Table A8.4. (2006) Public net present value for an individual obtaining tertiary education as part of initial education (2006) Indicator A9 What are the social outcomes of education? Table A9.1. Proportion of adults reporting good health, by level of education Table A9.2. Proportion of adults expressing interest in politics, by level of education Name of the indicator in the 2009 edition A6 A7 A8 A9 6 Education at a Glance OECD 2010

7 Table of Contents Table A9.3. Table A9.4. Table A9.5. Table A9.6. Proportion of adults expressing interpersonal trust, by level of education Incremental differences in self-reported good health associated with an increase in the level of educational attainment Incremental differences in political interest associated with an increase in the level of educational attainment (with and without adjustments for age, gender and income) Incremental differences in interpersonal trust associated with an increase in the level of educational attainment (with and without adjustments for age, gender and income) Name of the indicator in the 2009 edition Indicator A10 What are the economic links with education? Table A10.1. Annual full time earnings and annual labour costs in equivalent USD, year-old population Table A10.2. Annual full time earnings and annual labour costs in equivalent USD, year-old population Table A10.4. Annual full time earnings and annual labour costs in equivalent USD, year-old population Chapter B Financial and Human Resources Invested In Education Indicator B1 how much is spent per student? Table B1.1a. Annual expenditure by educational institutions per student for all services (2007) Table B1.2. Annual expenditure per student by educational institutions on core services, ancillary services and R&D (2007) Table B1.3a. Cumulative expenditure by educational institutions per student for all services over the theoretical duration of primary and secondary studies (2007) Table B1.3b. Cumulative expenditure by educational institutions per student for all services over the average duration of tertiary studies (2007) Table B1.4. Annual expenditure by educational institutions per student for all services relative to GDP per capita (2007) Table B1.5. Change in expenditure by educational institutions for all services per student relative to different factors, by level of education (1995, 2000, 2007) Indicator B2 What proportion of national wealth is spent on education? Table B2.1. Expenditure on educational institutions as a percentage of GDP, by level of education (1995, 2000, 2007) Table B2.2. Expenditure on educational institutions as a percentage of GDP, by level of education (2007) Table B2.3. Expenditure on educational institutions as a percentage of GDP (2007), proportion of the population at basic ages of primary to tertiary education (school year ) and demographic trends ( ) Table B2.4. Expenditure on educational institutions as a percentage of GDP, by source of fund and level of education (2007) B1 B2 Education at a Glance OECD

8 Table of Contents Indicator B3 how much public and private investment is there Table B3.1. Table B3.2a. Table B3.2b. Table B3.3. Table B3.4. in education? Relative proportions of public and private expenditure on educational institutions for all levels of education (2000, 2007) Relative proportions of public and private expenditure on educational institutions, as a percentage, by level of education (2000, 2007) Relative proportions of public and private expenditure on educational institutions, as a percentage, for tertiary education (2000, 2007) Trends in relative proportions of public expenditure on educational institutions and index of change between 1995 and 2007 (2000 = 100), for tertiary education (1995, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006, and 2007) Annual public expenditure on educational institutions per student, by type of institution (2007) Indicator B4 What is the total public spending on education? Table B4.1. Total public expenditure on education (1995, 2000, 2007) Indicator B5 how much do tertiary students pay and what public subsidies do they receive? Table B5.1. Estimated annual average tuition fees charged by tertiary-type A educational institutions for national students (academic year ) Table B5.2. Distribution of financial aid to students compared to amount of tuition fees charged in tertiary-type A education (academic year ) Table B5.3. Public subsidies for households and other private entities as a percentage of total public expenditure on education and GDP, for tertiary education (2007) Indicator B6 On what resources and services is education funding spent? Table B6.1. Expenditure on educational institutions, by service category as a percentage of GDP (2007) Table B6.2a. Expenditure by educational institutions, by resource category in primary and secondary education (2007) Table B6.2b. Expenditure by educational institutions, by resource category and level of education (2007) Indicator B7 Which factors influence the level of expenditure? Table B7.1. Contribution of various factors to salary cost per student at the primary level of education (2007) Table B7.2. Contribution of various factors to salary cost per student at lower secondary level of education (2007) Table B7.3. Contribution of various factors to salary cost per student at upper secondary level of education (2007) Table B7.4. Main reforms implemented between 1995 and 2010 on the four factors used to calculate salary cost per student Name of the indicator in the 2009 edition B3 B4 B5 B6 B7 8 Education at a Glance OECD 2010

9 Table of Contents Chapter C Access to Education, participation and progression Indicator C1 Who participates in education? Table C1.1. Enrolment rates, by age (2008) Table C1.2. Trends in enrolment rates ( ) Table C1.3. Transition characteristics from age 15-20, by level of education (2008) Table C1.4. Upper secondary enrolment patterns (2008) Table C1.5. Students in primary and secondary education, by type of institution or mode of enrolment (2008) Table C1.6. Students in tertiary education, by type of institution or mode of enrolment (2008) Indicator C2 Who studies abroad and where? Table C2.1. Student mobility and foreign students in tertiary education Table C2.2. Table C2.3. Table C2.4. Table C2.5. Table C2.6. (2000, 2008) Distribution of international and foreign students in tertiary education, by country of origin (2008) Citizens studying abroad in tertiary education, by country of destination (2008) Distribution of international and foreign students in tertiary education, by level and type of tertiary education (2008) Distribution of international and foreign students in tertiary education, by field of education (2008) Trends in the number of foreign students enrolled outside their country of origin (2000 to 2008) Indicator C3 how successful are students in moving from education to work? Table C3.1a. Expected years in education and not in education for year-olds (2008) Table C3.2a. Percentage of the youth population in education and not in education, by age group (2008) Table C3.2d. Percentage of the youth population in education and not in education, by level of education (2008) Table C3.3. Percentage of the cohort population not in education and unemployed, by level of education (2008) Table C3.4a. Trends in the percentage of the youth population in education and not in education (1995, ) Table C3.5. Educational attainment and occupational matches by migrant status, and proportion of population born abroad among year-olds and year-olds (2003 and 2007) Table C3.6. Permanent jobs, full-time work and involuntary part-time work among year-old non-students (2007) Table C3.7. Education and occupational mismatches for young individuals (2003, 2007) Name of the indicator in the 2009 edition C1 C2 C3 Education at a Glance OECD

10 Table of Contents Chapter d the Learning Environment and Organisation of Schools Indicator D1 how much time do students spend in the classroom? Table D1.1. Compulsory and intended instruction time in public institutions (2008) Table D1.2a. Instruction time per subject as a percentage of total compulsory instruction time for 9-11 year-olds (2008) Table D1.2b. Instruction time per subject as a percentage of total compulsory instruction time for year-olds (2008) Indicator D2 What is the student-teacher ratio and how big are classes? Table D2.1. Average class size, by type of institution and level of education (2008) Table D2.2. Ratio of students to teaching staff in educational institutions (2008) Table D2.3. Ratio of students to teaching staff, by type of institution (2008) Indicator D3 how much are teachers paid? Table D3.1. Teachers salaries (2008) Table D3.2. Change in teachers salaries (between 1996 and 2008) Table D3.3a. Decisions on payments for teachers in public institutions (2008) Indicator D4 how much time do teachers spend teaching? Table D4.1. Organisation of teachers working time (2008) Table D4.2. Number of teaching hours per year (1996, 2008) Indicator D5 What school choices are available and what measures do countries use to promote or restrict school choice? Table D5.1. Freedom for parents to choose a public school for their child(ren) (2008) Table D5.2. Public and private schools and their role in providing compulsory education (2008) Table D5.3. Financial incentives and disincentives for school choice (2008) Table D5.4. Government regulations that apply to schools at the primary and lower secondary levels (2008) Indicator D6 how can parents influence the education of their children? Table D6.1. Requirement for schools to have a governing board in which parents can take part (2008) Table D6.2. Existence and role of parent associations (2008) Table D6.3. Regulations that provide a formal process which parents can use to file complaints regarding the education of their children (2008) Annex 1 Characteristics of Educational Systems Table X1.1a. Upper secondary graduation rate:typical graduation ages and method used to calculate graduation rates (2008) Table X1.1b. Post-secondary non-tertiary graduation rate:typical graduation ages and method used to calculate graduation rate (2008) Table X1.1c. Tertiary graduation rate:typical graduation ages and method used to calculate graduation rates (2008) Table X1.1d. Tertiary entry rate:typical age of entry and method used to calculate entry rates (2008) Name of the indicator in the 2009 edition D1 D2 D3 D4 10 Education at a Glance OECD 2010

11 Table of Contents Table X1.2a. Table X1.2b. Table X1.3. School year and financial year used for the calculation of financial indicators, OECD countries School year and financial year used for the calculation of financial indicators, partner countries Summary of completion requirements for upper secondary programmes Annex 2 Reference Statistics Table X2.1. Overview of the economic context using basic variables (reference period: calendar year 2007, 2007 current prices) Table X2.2. Basic reference statistics (reference period: calendar year 2007, 2007 current prices) Table X2.3a. Reference statistics used in the calculation of teachers salaries, by level of education (1996, 2008) Table X2.3b. Reference statistics used in the calculation of teachers salaries (1996, 2008) Table X2.3c. Teachers salaries (2008) Annex 3 Sources, Methods and Technical Notes Name of the indicator in the 2009 edition References Contributors to this Publication Related OECD Publications Education at a Glance OECD

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13 Editorial By Angel Gurría, OECD Secretary-General Investing in the future In the wake of the global economic crisis, most OECD countries face the twin challenges of making public finances sustainable while building the foundations for continued long-run economic growth. Education is a large item of public expenditure in most countries. At the same time, it is also an essential investment for developing the long-run growth potential of countries and for responding to the fundamental changes in technology and demographics that are re-shaping labour markets. This year s edition of Education at a Glance shows that public resources invested in education ultimately pay off in even greater tax revenues. On average across OECD countries, a man with a tertiary level of education will generate an additional USD in income taxes and social contributions over his working life compared to someone with just an upper secondary level of education. Even after subtracting the public revenue that has financed the degree, an average of USD remain, almost three times the amount of public investment per student in tertiary education. The returns to society are even larger because many benefits of education are not directly reflected in tax income. Education also plays a major role in keeping individuals in the labour force longer an advantage that is becoming a necessity as more OECD countries face demographic and structural changes to labour markets. Not less important, good education increases employability. Focusing on labour market conditions in 2008, the data show that in countries hit early by the recession, people with lower levels of education had more difficulties finding and keeping a job. On average across OECD countries, unemployment rates among people with a tertiary level of education have stayed at or below 4% while for those without upper secondary education, unemployment rates have repeatedly exceeded 9%. Overall, the demand for better education has shown few signs of slowing, despite the very significant increase in the number of tertiary graduates. In 2007, close to 75% of people across the OECD with a tertiary degree found a skilled job in their first years in the labour market, a percentage similar to that in The fact that labour markets have absorbed the significant increase in individuals with tertiary education shows how rapidly labour market demand for skilled labour is changing. As global competition for jobs moves up the education ladder, it will be crucial for countries to develop policies that encourage the acquisition and efficient use of these competencies to retain both high value jobs and highly educated labour. As labour markets change and the demand for competencies rises, adults will need to be able to re-enter education to upgrade their competencies or to change their professions. Education at a Glance shows that, across the OECD, more than 40% of the adult population already participate in formal and/or non-formal education in a given year. However, this varies significantly not just between countries but also across education and age groups. For Education at a Glance OECD

14 Editorial example, individuals with a tertiary level of education are almost three times more likely to participate in further education than those who have not acquired an upper secondary level of education, which means that those who need such training most are least likely to benefit from it in current education systems. Despite compelling evidence of the economic and social benefits of education, at a time of tight budgets, there is a strong need for effectiveness and efficiency in the education systems response to the skill needs of a fast-changing labour market, and countries must find new ways to generate greater value for money from educational investments. It is worrying that the significant increase in spending per student over the past decade has, in many countries, not been matched with improvements in the quality of learning outcomes. The indicators in this year s edition of Education at a Glance underline the scale of the effort that is needed for education to re-invent itself in ways that other professions have already done to provide better value for money. Improving the performance of education systems and raising value for money will be a formidable task for public policy. It will require education systems that have often tended to operate supply-driven to develop effective mechanisms to understand and respond to the rapidly changing economic and social demands for competencies. Effective policies here will require a solid understanding not just of the development of competencies, but also of how effectively economies use their talent pool, and of how better competencies feed into better jobs, higher productivity, and ultimately better economic and social outcomes. The future will measure the success of education systems no longer by how much countries spend on education or by how many individuals complete a degree, but by the educational outcomes achieved and by their impact on economic and social progress. Citizens and employers now expect education systems to: be responsive by ensuring that education and training providers adapt efficiently to changing demand; deliver quality and efficiency in learning provision so that the right skills are acquired at the right time, at the right place and in the most effective mode; provide the flexibility needed to allow people to study and train in what they want, when they want and how they want; reduce barriers to entry such as institutional rigidities, up-front fees and age restrictions and ensure a sufficient variety of entry and re-entry pathways; and, last but not least, to develop efficient and sustainable approaches to the financing of learning with a rational basis for who should pay for what, when, where and how much. The knowledge society is here to stay, and requires a capable, highly qualified and innovative labour force. Managing the growth and development of educational systems in ways that improve access, enhance quality, increase performance and boost value for money is not easy. Countries must establish which policy choices and mixes promote efficient learning in their specific contexts. International comparisons can offer valuable insights, as they allow countries to see their own education systems in relation to the quality, equity, and efficiency of educational services achieved elsewhere in the world. Sharing of policy experience can also show how different education systems address similar problems. 14 Education at a Glance OECD 2010

15 Editorial Education at a Glance has become an essential reference point for internationally comparative analysis and the OECD will continue to provide international educational benchmarks as a way of assisting countries in developing tailored responses to the public s demands for a more highly skilled, knowledgeable labour force in their specific national contexts. In a global economy, it is no longer improvement by national standards alone, but the best performing education systems internationally that provide the benchmark for success. Success will go to those individuals and nations which are swift to adapt. The task of governments will be to ensure that countries rise to this challenge. Education at a Glance OECD

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17 Introduction: the Indicators and their Framework The organising framework Education at a Glance: OECD Indicators 2010 provides a rich, comparable and up-to-date array of indicators that reflect a consensus among professionals on how to measure the current state of education internationally. The indicators provide information on the human and financial resources invested in education, on how education and learning systems operate and evolve, and on the returns to educational investments. The indicators are organised thematically, and each is accompanied by information on the policy context and the interpretation of the data. The education indicators are presented within an organising framework that: distinguishes between the actors in education systems: individual learners and teachers, instructional settings and learning environments, educational service providers, and the education system as a whole; groups the indicators according to whether they speak to learning outcomes for individuals or countries, policy levers or circumstances that shape these outcomes, or to antecedents or constraints that set policy choices into context; and identifies the policy issues to which the indicators relate, with three major categories distinguishing between the quality of educational outcomes and educational provision, issues of equity in educational outcomes and educational opportunities, and the adequacy and effectiveness of resource management. The following matrix describes the first two dimensions: 1. Education and learning outputs and outcomes 2. Policy levers and contexts shaping educational outcomes 3. Antecedents or constraints that contextualise policy I. Individual participants in education and learning 1.I. The quality and distribution of individual educational outcomes 2.I. Individual attitudes, engagement, and behaviour to teaching and learning 3.I. Background characteristics of the individual learners and teachers II. Instructional settings 1.II. The quality of instructional delivery 2.II. Pedagogy, learning practices and classroom climate 3.II. Student learning conditions and teacher working conditions III. Providers of educational services 1.III. The output of educational institutions and institutional performance 2.III. School environment and organisation 3.III. Characteristics of the service providers and their communities IV. The education system as a whole 1.IV. The overall performance of the education system 2.IV. System-wide institutional settings, resource allocations, and policies 3.IV. The national educational, social, economic, and demographic contexts Education at a Glance OECD

18 Introduction The following sections discuss the matrix dimensions in more detail: Actors in education systems The OECD indicators of education systems (INES) programme seeks to gauge the performance of national education systems as a whole, rather than to compare individual institutional or other sub-national entities. However, there is increasing recognition that many important features of the development, functioning and impact of education systems can only be assessed through an understanding of learning outcomes and their relationships to inputs and processes at the level of individuals and institutions. To account for this, the indicator framework distinguishes between a macro level, two meso-levels and a micro-level of education systems. These relate to: the education system as a whole; the educational institutions and providers of educational services; the instructional setting and the learning environment within the institutions; and the individual participants in education and learning. To some extent, these levels correspond to the entities from which data are being collected but their importance mainly centres on the fact that many features of the education system play out quite differently at different levels of the system, which needs to be taken into account when interpreting the indicators. For example, at the level of students within a classroom, the relationship between student achievement and class size may be negative, if students in small classes benefit from improved contact with teachers. At the class or school level, however, students are often intentionally grouped such that weaker or disadvantaged students are placed in smaller classes so that they receive more individual attention. At the school level, therefore, the observed relationship between class size and student achievement is often positive (suggesting that students in larger classes perform better than students in smaller classes). At higher aggregated levels of education systems, the relationship between student achievement and class size is further confounded, e.g. by the socio-economic intake of schools or by factors relating to the learning culture in different countries. Past analyses which have relied on macro-level data alone have therefore sometimes led to misleading conclusions. Outcomes, policy levers and antecedents The second dimension in the organising framework further groups the indicators at each of the above levels: indicators on observed outputs of education systems, as well as indicators related to the impact of knowledge and skills for individuals, societies and economies, are grouped under the subheading output and outcomes of education and learning; the sub-heading policy levers and contexts groups activities seeking information on the policy levers or circumstances which shape the outputs and outcomes at each level; and these policy levers and contexts typically have antecedents factors that define or constrain policy. These are represented by the sub-heading antecedents and constraints. It should be noted that the antecedents or constraints are usually specific for a given level of the education system and that antecedents at a lower level of the system may well be policy levers at a higher level. For teachers and students in a school, for example, teacher qualifications are a given constraint while, at the level of the education system, professional development of teachers is a key policy lever. 18 Education at a Glance OECD 2010

19 Introduction Policy issues Each of the resulting cells in the framework can then be used to address a variety of issues from different policy perspectives. For the purpose of this framework, policy perspectives are grouped into three classes that constitute the third dimension in the organising framework for INES: quality of educational outcomes and educational provision; equality of educational outcomes and equity in educational opportunities; and adequacy, effectiveness and efficiency of resource management. In addition to the dimensions mentioned above, the time perspective as an additional dimension in the framework, allows dynamic aspects in the development of education systems to be modelled also. The indicators that are published in Education at a Glance 2010 fit within this framework, though often they speak to more than one cell. Most of the indicators in Chapter A The output of educational institutions and the impact of learning relate to the first column of the matrix describing outputs and outcomes of education. Even so, indicators in Chapter A measuring educational attainment for different generations, for instance, not only provide a measure of the output of the educational system, but also provide context for current educational policies, helping to shape polices on, for example, lifelong learning. Chapter B Financial and human resources invested in education provides indicators that are either policy levers or antecedents to policy, or sometimes both. For example, expenditure per student is a key policy measure which most directly impacts on the individual learner as it acts as a constraint on the learning environment in schools and student learning conditions in the classroom. Chapter C Access to education, participation and progression provides indicators that are a mixture of outcome indicators, policy levers and context indicators. Internationalisation of education and progression rates are, for instance, outcomes measures to the extent that they indicate the results of policies and practices in the classroom, school and system levels. But they can also provide contexts for establishing policy by identifying areas where policy intervention is necessary to, for instance, address issues of inequity. Chapter D The learning environment and organisation of schools provides indicators on instruction time, teachers working time and teachers salaries that not only represent policy levers which can be manipulated but also provide contexts for the quality of instruction in instructional settings and for the outcomes of learners at the individual level. It also presents data on school choice and parent voice. The reader should note that, for the first time, Education at a Glance covers a significant amount of data from China, India and Indonesia (please refer to the Reader s Guide for details). Education at a Glance OECD

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21 Reader s Guide Coverage of the statistics Although a lack of data still limits the scope of the indicators in many countries, the coverage extends, in principle, to the entire national education system (within the national territory) regardless of the ownership or sponsorship of the institutions concerned and regardless of education delivery mechanisms. With one exception described below, all types of students and all age groups are meant to be included: children (including students with special needs), adults, nationals, foreigners, as well as students in open distance learning, in special education programmes or in educational programmes organised by ministries other than the Ministry of Education, provided the main aim of the programme is the educational development of the individual. However, vocational and technical training in the workplace, with the exception of combined school and work-based programmes that are explicitly deemed to be parts of the education system, is not included in the basic education expenditure and enrolment data. Educational activities classified as adult or non-regular are covered, provided that the activities involve studies or have a subject matter content similar to regular education studies or that the underlying programmes lead to potential qualifications similar to corresponding regular educational programmes. Courses for adults that are primarily for general interest, personal enrichment, leisure or recreation are excluded. Country coverage This publication features data on education from the 31 OECD member countries, five non-oecd member countries that participate in the OECD Indicators of Education Systems Programme (INES), namely Brazil, Estonia, Israel, the Russian Federation and Slovenia, and three non-oecd member countries that participate in the OECD s Enhanced Engagement process, namely China, India and Indonesia. When this publication went to print, Estonia, Israel and Slovenia were in the final stages of accession to the OECD but were not yet OECD members. Accordingly, the present edition does not include these three countries in the list of OECD countries and the calculation of OECD averages. The statistical data for Israel are supplied by and under the responsibility of the relevant Israeli authorities. The use of such data by the OECD is without prejudice to the status of the Golan Heights, East Jerusalem and Israeli settlements in the West Bank under the terms of international law. Calculation of international means For many indicators, an OECD average is presented and for some, an OECD total. The OECD average is calculated as the unweighted mean of the data values of all OECD countries for which data are available or can be estimated. The OECD average therefore refers to an average of data values at the level of the national systems and can be used Education at a Glance OECD

22 Reader s Guide to answer the question of how an indicator value for a given country compares with the value for a typical or average country. It does not take into account the absolute size of the education system in each country. The OECD total is calculated as a weighted mean of the data values of all OECD countries for which data are available or can be estimated. It reflects the value for a given indicator when the OECD area is considered as a whole. This approach is taken for the purpose of comparing, for example, expenditure charts for individual countries with those of the entire OECD area for which valid data are available, with this area considered as a single entity. Note that both the OECD average and the OECD total can be significantly affected by missing data. Given the relatively small number of countries, no statistical methods are used to compensate for this. In cases where a category is not applicable (code a ) in a country or where the data value is negligible (code n ) for the corresponding calculation, the value zero is imputed for the purpose of calculating OECD averages. In cases where both the numerator and the denominator of a ratio are not applicable (code a ) for a certain country, this country is not included in the OECD average. For financial tables using 1995 and 2000 data, both the OECD average and OECD total are calculated for countries providing 1995, 2000 and 2007 data. This allows comparison of the OECD average and OECD total over time with no distortion due to the exclusion of certain countries in the different years. For many indicators an EU19 average is also presented. It is calculated as the unweighted mean of the data values of the 19 OECD countries that are members of the European Union for which data are available or can be estimated. These 19 countries are Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Ireland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, the Slovak Republic, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom. Classification of levels of education The classification of the levels of education is based on the revised International Standard Classification of Education (ISCED-97).The biggest change between the revised ISCED and the former ISCED (ISCED-76) is the introduction of a multi-dimensional classification framework, allowing for the alignment of the educational content of programmes using multiple classification criteria. ISCED is an instrument for compiling statistics on education internationally and distinguishes among six levels of education. The glossary available at describes in detail the ISCED levels of education, and Annex 1 shows corresponding typical graduation ages of the main educational programmes by ISCED level. Symbols for missing data Seven symbols are employed in the tables and charts to denote missing data: a Data is not applicable because the category does not apply. c There are too few observations to provide reliable estimates (i.e. there are fewer than 3% of students for this cell or too few schools for valid inferences). However, these statistics were included in the calculation of cross-country averages. 22 Education at a Glance OECD 2010

23 Reader s Guide m Data is not available. n Magnitude is either negligible or zero. w Data has been withdrawn at the request of the country concerned. x Data included in another category or column of the table (e.g. x(2) means that data are included in column 2 of the table). ~ Average is not comparable with other levels of education. Further resources The website provides a rich source of information on the methods employed for the calculation of the indicators, the interpretation of the indicators in the respective national contexts and the data sources involved. The website also provides access to the data underlying the indicators as well as to a comprehensive glossary for technical terms used in this publication. All post-production changes to this publication are listed at Education at a Glance uses the OECD s StatLinks service. Below each table and chart in Education at Glance 2010 is a url which leads to a corresponding Excel workbook containing the underlying data for the indicator. These urls are stable and will remain unchanged over time. In addition, readers of the Education at a Glance e-book will be able to click directly on these links and the workbook will open in a separate window. Codes used for territorial entities These codes are used in certain charts. Country or territorial entity names are used in the text. Note that throughout the publication, the Flemish Community of Belgium and the French Community of Belgium may be referred to as Belgium (Fl.) and Belgium (Fr.) respectively. AUS Australia DEU Germany NOR Norway AUT Austria GRC Greece POL Poland BEL Belgium HUN Hungary PRT Portugal BFL Belgium (Flemish Community) ISL Iceland rus Russian Federation BFR Belgium (French Community) IRL Ireland SCO Scotland BRA Brazil ISR Israel SVK Slovak Republic CAN Canada ITA Italy SVN Slovenia CHL Chile JPN Japan ESP Spain CZE Czech Republic KOR Korea SWE Sweden DNK Denmark LUX Luxembourg CHE Switzerland ENG England MEX Mexico TUR Turkey EST Estonia NLD Netherlands UKM United Kingdom FIN Finland NZL New Zealand USA United States FRA France Education at a Glance OECD

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25 Chapter A The Output of Educational Institutions and the Impact of Learning Education at a Glance OECD

26 INDICATOR A1 TO WHAT LEVEL HAVE ADULTS STUDIED? This indicator profiles the educational attainment of the adult population as captured through formal educational qualifications. As such, it provides a proxy for the knowledge and skills available to national economies and societies. To gauge the evolution of available skills, trend data on growth in the number of people with different levels of educational attainment are part of the analysis. Key results Chart A1.1. Population that has attained tertiary education (2008) This chart compares the population aged 25 to 34 with tertiary education to the population aged 55 to 64 with tertiary education in 2008, in percentage, by age group. Tertiary attainment levels have increased considerably over the past 30 years. In almost all countries, year-olds have higher tertiary attainment levels than the generation about to leave the labour market (55-64 year-olds). On average across OECD countries, 35% of the younger cohort has completed tertiary education, compared with 20% of the oldest cohort. The expansion of the tertiary sector has put Japan and Korea in the top group together with Canada and the partner country the Russian Federation, with over 50% of the younger cohort with tertiary education. % year-olds year-olds Korea Canada Russian Federation 1 Japan New Zealand Norway Ireland Denmark Israel Belgium Australia United States Sweden France Netherlands Spain Luxembourg Switzerland United Kingdom Finland Estonia OECD average Chile Iceland Poland Slovenia Greece Hungary Germany Portugal Italy Mexico Austria Slovak Republic Czech Republic Turkey Brazil 1. Year of reference Countries are ranked in descending order of the percentage of year-olds who have attained tertiary education. Source: OECD. Table A1.3a. See Annex 3 for notes ( Education at a Glance OECD 2010