16/10/2018 - A student’s or school’s postcode is still the best predictor of the quality of education a child will get in many countries. A new OECD report, Equity in Education: Breaking Down Barriers to Social Mobility, shows that there is no country in the world that can yet claim to have entirely eliminated socio-economic inequalities in education. While some countries and economies that participate in PISA have managed to build education systems where socio-economic status makes less of a difference in students' learning, well-being and post-secondary educational attainment, every country can do more to improve equity in education.

 

The report, under embargo until 11.00 CEST/09.00 GMT on Tuesday 23 October, will also examine how high performance and more positive attitudes towards schooling among disadvantaged 15-year-old students are strong predictors of success in higher education and work later on; and how equity in education has evolved over several cycles of the PISA. It identifies the policies and practices that can help disadvantaged students succeed academically and feel more engaged at school.

Andreas Schleicher, OECD Director for Education and Skills, will present the report in London at an event hosted by the Education Policy Institute starting at 09.15 local time, at M&G Investments, 5 Laurence Pountney Hill, London, EC4R 0HH. To register, journalists should send an email to [email protected].

A public webinar with Andreas Schleicher will be held that day at 16.00 CEST/14.00 GMT. To register, go to https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/4348501811385965059

Journalists can request an advance copy of Equity in Education: Breaking Down Barriers to Social Mobility under embargo by emailing [email protected]. Country notes will also be available for Australia, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Mexico, Switzerland, UK and the US. In asking to receive the report and country notes under embargo, journalists undertake to respect the OECD’s embargo procedures. They will be sent by email on Monday 22 October.

For further information on the report, contact Spencer Wilson of the OECD Media Division (tel. + 33 1 45 24 81 18).

 

Working with over 100 countries, the OECD is a global policy forum that promotes policies to improve the economic and social well-being of people around the world.