Resumen de Student achievement in a cross-country perspective: a multilevel analysis of Pisa 2006 data for Italy and Spain
Tommaso Agasisti, José Manuel Cordero Ferrera
In this paper, we applied a multilevel analysis to the OECD-PISA2006 data with the aim to compare factors affecting students� achievement across Italy and Spain. The cross-country comparison appears as useful given the increasing role of European Union in setting priorities for European educational systems.
Moreover, Italy and Spain share some common institutional features (low autonomy, choice and accountability) that make the comparison meaningful.
The findings show that both countries are affected by strong internal regional heterogeneity, with some Regions clearly obtain higher students� achievement than others. Moreover, the results suggest that main determinants of achievement are different in the two countries. In Italy, a major role is for �tracking� - students are divided among comprehensive schools (Licei), technical and vocational ones. In Spain, an important distinction is between public schools and private ones � with the former outperform the latter.
