School effectiveness in Portugal. Comparing factors associated with school effectiveness using PISA 2015 and 2018 data.

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.21814/rpe.33811

Keywords:

Eficacia escolar, regresión logística, rendimiento académico, pruebas internacionales de evaluación a gran escala

Abstract

The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), developed by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), assesses the reading, mathematics and science skills of students completing compulsory education. Since 2000, it has had an impact on education systems and has been used for international comparisons. A non-experimental design is employed to analyse school effectiveness factors in Portugal, using data from PISA 2015 and 2018. Specifically, two types of quantitative analyses, multilevel modelling and binary logistic regressions, have been used to identify variables associated with school performance and school effectiveness, respectively. The sample included 11500 students from 370 Portuguese schools. Significant correlations were found between certain factors (feedback, use of Information and Communication Technologies) and academic performance, but logistic regressions did not show statistically significant results in relation to school effectiveness in Portugal. Therefore, it is proposed to investigate other variables and aspects, such as the educational policies applied, in order to better understand the country's educational success. Certain lines of future research on the subject are also proposed.

Downloads

Author Biographies

Cristina Frade-Martínez, Instituto Universitario de Ciencias de la Educación (IUCE), Universidad de Salamanca

Cristina Frade Martínez holds a PhD in Training in the Knowledge Society from the University of Salamanca. She is a member of the research group GRIAL and the University Institute of Education Sciences (IUCE). Her lines of research focus on research methodology and programme evaluation methodology.

Adriana Gamazo, Instituto Universitario de Ciencias de la Educación (IUCE), Universidad de Salamanca

Adriana Gamazo has a degree in Psychology and Psychopedagogy, and a PhD in Education from the University of Salamanca, where she currently works as a "Profesora Permanente Laboral". She teaches subjects related to the area of Research Methods and Diagnosis in Education in the Degrees of Pedagogy and Social Education. Her main research interests are school effectiveness and educational equity through the study of data from large-scale evaluations.

Susana Olmos-Migueláñez, Instituto Universitario de Ciencias de la Educación (IUCE), Universidad de Salamanca

Susana Olmos Migueláñez PhD in Pedagogy from the University of Salamanca. "Profesora Titular de Universidad" in the area of Research Methods and Diagnosis in Education, Director of the Research Institute University Institute of Education Sciences (IUCE) at the University of Salamanca. Member of the research group GRIAL. Her lines of research focus on research methodology, programme evaluation methodology and evaluation processes in e-learning contexts.

Ricardo Pocinho, Escola Superior de Educação e Ciências Sociais, Politécnico de Leiria

Graduated in Law, with a PhD in Training Processes from the University of Salamanca and in Psychogerontology from the University of Valencia, Post-Doctorate in Education Sciences, Speciality of Permanent Education and Adult Training, from the University of Coimbra, Doctor Honoris Causa from the University of Peru and the Federal University of Tocantins - Brazil, Professor at the School of Education and Social Sciences of the Polytechnic of Leiria, Integrated Researcher at CICS.NOVA.IPLeiria. He is President and Scientific Coordinator of the National Association of Social Gerontology.

References

Aitkin, M., & Longford, N. (1986). Statistical modelling issues in school effectiveness studies. Journal of the Royal Statistical Society: Series A (General), 149(1), 1-43. https://doi.org/10.2307/2981882

Chapman, C., Muijs, D., Reynolds, D., Sammons, P., & Teddlie, C. (Eds.). (2015). The Routledge International Handbook of Educational Effectiveness and Improvement: Research, policy, and practice. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315679488

Coleman, J. S. (1966). Equality of educational opportunity. U.S. Department of Health, Educatio.

Creemers, B. P. M., & Kyriakides, L. (2008). The dynamics of educational effectiveness: A contribution to policy, practice and theory in contemporary schools. Routledge.

Ding, H., & Homer, M. (2020). Interpreting mathematics performance in PISA: Taking account of reading performance. International Journal of Educational Research, 102, e101566. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijer.2020.101566

Doncel-Abad, D., & Cabrera-Álvarez, P. (2020). Comunidades Autónomas bilingües, identidades y desempeño educativo según PISA 2015. Revista de Educación, (387), 163-188. https://doi.org/10.4438/1988-592X-RE-2020-387-443

Frade-Martínez, C., O’Hara, J., Gamazo, A., Olmos-Migueláñez, S., & Brown, M. (2024). A multilevel investigation of factors related to achievement in Ireland and Spain using PISA data. Frontiers in Education, 9, e 1306197. https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2024.1306197

Frade-Martínez, C., Olmos-Migueláñez, S., & Gamazo, A. (2021). Factors associated with the school performance of Spanish students: A study based on PISA 2018 data [Conference paper]. In M. Alier & D. Fonseca (eds.). TEEM’21: Ninth International Conference on Technological Ecosystems for Enhancing Multiculturality. (pp. 732-736). Association for Computing Machinery. https://doi.org/10.1145/3486011.3486550

Gamazo, A. (2019). Factores asociados al rendimiento y a la eficacia escolar: Un estudio basado en métodos mixtos a partir de PISA 2015 [Tesis doctoral publicada]. Universidad de Salamanca. https://doi.org/10.14201/gredos.140406

Gamazo, A., Martínez-Abad, F., Olmos-Migueláñez, S., & Rodríguez-Conde, M. J. (2018). Evaluación de factores relacionados con la eficacia escolar en PISA 2015: Un análisis multinivel. Revista de Educación, (379), 56-84. https://doi.org/10.4438/1988-592X-RE-2017-379-369

García Perales, R., Almeida, L. S., & Viseu, F. (2017). El rendimiento matemático excelente en las evaluaciones PISA: Resultados para España y Portugal. Revista de Estudios e Investigación en Psicología y Educación, (01), 303-308. https://doi.org/10.17979/reipe.2017.0.01.2998

Goldstein, H. (1987). Multilevel models in educational and social research. Charles Griffin and Company Limited.

Gómez-Fernández, N., & Mediavilla, M. (2021). Exploring the relationship between Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) and academic performance: A multilevel analysis for Spain. Socio-Economic Planning Sciences, 77, e101009. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.seps.2021.101009

Hu, X., Gong, Y., Lai, C., & Leung, F. K. S. (2018). The relationship between ICT and student literacy in mathematics, reading, and science across 44 countries: A multilevel analysis. Computers & Education, 125, 1-13. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2018.05.021

Kameshwara, K. K., Sandoval-Hernandez, A., Shields, R., & Dhanda, K. R. (2020). A false promise? Decentralization in education systems across the globe. International Journal of Educational Research, 104, e101669. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijer.2020.101669

Laukaityte, I., & Rolfsman, E. (2020). Low, medium, and high-performing schools in the Nordic countries: Student performance at PISA Mathematics 2003-2012. Education Inquiry, 11(3), 276-295. https://doi.org/10.1080/20004508.2020.1721256

Lenkeit, J. (2012). How effective are educational systems? A value-added approach to study trends in PIRLS. Journal of Educational Research Online, 4(2), 143-173. https://doi.org/10.25656/01:7486

Lizasoain Hernández, L., Angulo Vargas, A., Azpillaga Larrea, V., Bartau, I., Danborenea Isusi, M. D., Del-Frago Arbizu, R., Etxeberria Sagastume, F., Intxausti Intxausti, N., Joaristi Olariaga, L., Méndez Usillos, Y., Núñez Fernández, C., & Valadez Monreal, C. (2015). La eficacia escolar en los centros del País Vasco. Universidad del País Vasco (UPV-EHU), Instituto de Evaluación e Investigación Educativa (ISEI-IVEI). https://redined.educacion.gob.es/xmlui/handle/11162/203206

Martínez-Abad, F. (2019). Identification of factors associated with school effectiveness with data mining techniques: Testing a new approach. Frontiers in Psychology, 10, e2583. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.02583

Martínez-Abad, F., Gamazo, A., & Rodríguez-Conde, M-J. (2020). Educational data mining: Identification of factors associated with school effectiveness in PISA assessment. Studies in Educational Evaluation, 66, e100875. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.stueduc.2020.100875

Murillo Torrecilla, F. J. (2005). La investigación sobre eficacia escolar. Octaedro.

Murillo Torrecilla, F. J. (2007). Investigación iberoamericana sobre eficacia escolar. Convenio Andrés Bello. https://repositorio.minedu.gob.pe/bitstream/handle/20.500.12799/284/155.%20Investigación%20Iberoamericana%20sobre%20eficacia%20escolar.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y

Murillo Torrecilla, F. J. (2008). Hacia un modelo de eficacia escolar: Estudio multinivel sobre los factores de eficacia de las escuelas españolas. REICE: Revista Iberoamericana sobre Calidad, Eficacia y Cambio en Educación, 6(1), 4-28. https://doi.org/10.15366/reice2008.6.1.001

OECD. (2006). El programa PISA de la OCDE: Qué es y para qué sirve. OECD Publishing. https://www.sev.gob.mx/upece/evaluacion/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2020/10/PISA-que-es-y-para-que-es.pdf

OECD. (2019). PISA 2018 assessment and analytical framework [Report]. OECD Publishing. https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/education/pisa-2018-assessment-and-analytical-framework_b25efab8-en

OECD. (2023). PISA 2022 results (Vol. I): The state of learning and equity in education [Report]. PISA, OECD Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1787/53f23881-en

Pomianowicz, K. (2021). Educational achievement disparities between second-generation and non-immigrant students: Do school characteristics account for tracking effects? European Educational Research Journal, 22(3), 297-324. https://doi.org/10.1177/14749041211039929

Raudenbush, S. W., & Bryk, A. S. (1986). A hierarchical model for studying school effects. Sociology of Education, 59(1), 1-17. https://doi.org/10.2307/2112482

Scheerens, J. (1990). School effectiveness research and the development of process indicators of school functioning. School Effectiveness and School Improvement, 1(1), 61-80. https://doi.org/10.1080/0924345900010106

Simola, H. (2013). El milagro finlandés de PISA: Observaciones históricas y sociológicas sobre la enseñanza y la formación del profesorado. Profesorado: Revista de Curriculum y Formación del Profesorado, 17(2), 153-169. http://hdl.handle.net/10481/30014

Stringfield, S. C., & Slavin, R. E. (1992). A hierarchical longitudinal model for elementary school effects. In B. P. M. Creemers & G. J. Reezigt (Eds.), Evaluation of educational effectiveness (pp. 35-68). ICO.

Wu, H., Shen, J., Zhang, Y., & Zheng, Y. (2020). Examining the effect of principal leadership on student science achievement. International Journal of Science Education, 42(6), 1017-1039. https://doi.org/10.1080/09500693.2020.1747664

Yetişir, M. I., & Bati, K. (2021). The effect of school and student-related factors on PISA 2015 science performances in Turkey. International Journal of Psychology and Educational Studies, 8(2), 170-186. https://doi.org/10.52380/ijpes.2021.8.2.433

Downloads

Published

2025-03-26

How to Cite

Frade-Martínez, C., Gamazo, A., Olmos-Migueláñez, S., & Pocinho, R. (2025). School effectiveness in Portugal. Comparing factors associated with school effectiveness using PISA 2015 and 2018 data. Portuguese Journal of Education, 38(1), e25009. https://doi.org/10.21814/rpe.33811

Issue

Vol. 38 No. 1 (2025): January - June

Section

Artigos

License

Copyright (c) 2025 Cristina Frade-Martínez, Adriana Gamazo, Susana Olmos-Migueláñez, Ricardo Pocinho

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

1. The authors preserve their authorship and grant the Portuguese Journal of Education the right to the first publication. The work is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution License that allows sharing the work with the acknowledgment of initial authorship and publication in this Journal.

2. The authors have the right to take additional contracts separately, for non-exclusive distribution of the published version of their work (e.g. to deposit in an institutional repository or as a book chapter), acknowledging the initial authorship and publication in this Journal.

3. The authors have the permission and are stimulated to post their work online (e.g. in an institutional repository or on their personal website). They can do this at any phase of the editorial process, as it may generate productive changes, as well as increase impact and article citation (see The Open Citation Project).


Licença Creative Commons

The work is licensed under Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-SA 4.0)