PISA test

Update: May 3, 2016. We are pleased to announce that everything is ready for the implementation of the PISA test in Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2018! All competent organizations at all levels of government in BiH, including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of BiH, the Ministry of Civil Affairs of BiH, the Ministry of Finance and Treasury of BiH, the Office for Legislation of the Council of Ministers of BiH, and the Ministry of Education, have in the last six months given a positive opinion on the need to introduce the PISA test in BiH. After collecting these positive opinions, the Agency for Preschool, Elementary, and Secondary Education (APOSO) turned to the BiH Council of Ministers in March with a request to adopt a resolution on the PISA test. A national coordinator has been appointed, and cooperation with the OECD office has already begun. The money needed for the testing was provided by the IPA in 2015. The European Parliament recently also adopted a resolution on BiH, which contains the following text: "(European Parliament) welcomes also the commitment of BiH to take part in the 2018 OECD PISA study; regards this study as a useful instrument for debating the quality of education and necessary reforms; commends the expressed will of all 13 ministries of education and all related agencies to take part in this joint effort; calls on the Commission to consider financing BiH's participation in the study from pre-accession funds." APOSO otherwise cooperates with all ministers of education regarding the implementation of the Common Core curricula. For the first time, it would be defined based on learning outcomes, so that upon completion of its implementation, an improvement in results in the PISA study is expected in some subsequent cycles (the PISA test is given every three years). Public statement of BHAAAS on the occasion of PISA testing April 13, 2015 Members of the Bosnian-Herzegovinian-American Academy of Sciences and Arts (BHAAAS) want to invite state institutions to implement the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) test in Bosnia and Herzegovina. We believe that this is one of the necessary steps to raise the education system in Bosnia and Herzegovina to the standards of developed countries in Europe and the rest of the world, and therefore we appeal to all competent government organizations to allocate adequate time and funds for the introduction of this program. The PISA test has existed since 2000, and the number of countries participating in it is constantly increasing. Over 70 countries, including all countries in the region except Bosnia and Herzegovina, are participating in the PISA test this year. The administration of this test is carried out by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), and the test, which consists of three parts—reading, mathematics, and science—is given to fifteen-year-old students. The results of the test are a benchmark not only for the quality of education at the time it was implemented but also for monitoring long-term trends in education. The results are significant for educators, social analysts, and state institutions because they identify the characteristics of successful schools and effective educational strategies but also indicate gaps in education caused by socioeconomic factors. Comparative data derived from the PISA test can trigger significant educational reforms, as has been the case in Germany, Wales, Poland, and other countries. The next PISA test will be held in 2018, and the application for participation must be submitted to the OECD by the end of June 2015, which means that the ministries of education need to react urgently. BHAAAS wants to join organizations such as the European Stability Initiative, the Delegation of the European Union to Bosnia and Herzegovina, the European Union Directorate for Education and Culture, and the Agency for Pre-School, Primary, and Secondary Education that support the adoption of the PISA test and have been unsuccessful for some time. They are trying to convey the importance of this issue to the appropriate government institutions. The adoption of the PISA test is the norm in the educational systems of countries where there is an awareness of the prerequisites for the success of young people. Inaction on the occasion of this important program by our state institutions would be another indicator of the isolation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and its lagging behind modern political, social, and educational trends. That is why BHAAAS believes that PISA must be integrated into the education system of Bosnia and Herzegovina as soon as possible.