Measuring education beyond academic learning: a survey of social and emotional skills in OECD countries

• In Event: Highlighted Session: Reimagining the measurement of transferrable skills to inform learning in the 21st century

Proposal

With PISA, OECD countries have a long history of establishing global metrics for academic schooling outcomes. But these are just part of the story of what makes individuals, businesses, and countries successful. For the first time the OECD has now published an international comparative assessment of social and emotional skills that complements the picture. We know that employers greatly value such skills and many education and skills systems seek to prioritise their development. But it has always proved difficult to measure such skills in reasonably reliable and comparable ways, and what isn’t measured rarely gets improved. The survey discussed herein covers a range of outcomes which research shows are highly predictive for labour-market and social success, such as open-mindedness (including curiosity and creativity), task performance (including responsibility, self-control and persistence), sociability and assertiveness, collaboration as well as stress resistance and emotional control.

Social and emotional skills are not just important in their own right. The results from the survey show that they are also important predictors of school grades across age cohorts, subjects, and cities. In particular, being intellectually curious and persistent are the social and emotional skills most strongly related to school grades for both 10- and 15-year-olds. The results show that students’ perceptions of a competitive school climate and high expectations from parents or teachers are related to a higher level of psychological well-being. But when competitive learning environments and high expectations are not accompanied by adequate social and emotional support, students feel overwhelmed and ill-prepared to face challenges.

This work underlines why it is important for education systems to strive for a holistic development of their students, which includes more than the development of academic skills. It highlights the relationship between social and emotional skills and students’ well-being and social relations in the school environment. When students perceive that they are treated in a fair way, when the school and its staff help students develop a sense of belonging and provides for a disciplined, structured and co-operative environment, when the environment is supportive and less punitive, students’ social and emotional skills develop better. Also, students are less likely to engage in violent and negative interactions.

Author

• Andreas Schleicher, OECD