Understanding How Schools Work. The Use of Comparison in Evaluating the Effectiveness of Education Systems

The key role of competence and knowledge in stimulating social development and economic growth has been widely recognized in studies and research. As a consequence, a number of indicators for measuring various aspects of the effectiveness of education systems are published frequently and regularly by the most important international organizations that support social and economic development. These collections of indicators — for example, the editions of Education at a Glance available from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development — suggest that comparison is an important tool for evaluating the quality of education as well as for assessing the effectiveness of educational policies. Focusing on Italy, this paper shows the potential and limits of comparison in order to stimulate its appropriate use. The purpose of comparison is not merely to establish a merit ranking, as is often thought, but to highlight the aspects of education systems that must be improved by means of targeted actions.