Jonas Vlachos about the Swedish PISA results in Dagens Nyheter
The PISA survey reveals poorer results for Swedish fifteen-year-olds in both mathematics and reading comprehension, while school grades have become higher. There is grade inflation in the Swedish school system, says Jonas Vlachos in an article in Dagens Nyheter.
Lower results, higher grades
The results in mathematics and reading comprehension are now at the same low level as in 2012. In natural sciences, the results remain at approximately the same level as in 2018.
Dagens Nyheter has checked the final grades of fifteen-year-olds for spring 2022 and reports that they have increased since 2018, when the latest PISA survey was conducted.
Jonas Vlachos is a Professor of Economics with a focus on school issues. He’s not suprised by the results, he says in Dagens Nyheter:
”This is almost always the case in Sweden. Grades seem to live a life of their own and are unrelated to the results in international achievement tests.”
Jonas Vlachos argues that there is inherent grade inflation in the Swedish school system. Grades are not tied to anything solid and enduring like objective measures of achievement. He continues:
”This allows schools to assign grades based on their own criteria.”
Sweden lacks a rigorous control effort for grading, says Jonas, leading to a system where high grades are easy to hand out.
”This makes students, parents, principals, and school administrators happy and the only countervailing force is teachers’ professional judgment.”
Further reading about the PISA results and the article from Dagens Nyheter
Read the article in Dagens Nyheter, in Swedish (log in needed)
Text: Anneli Eriksson
Last updated: December 12, 2023
Source: Department of Economics