Conclusion of the International Assessment of Panamanian Students

In previous analyzes of learning in 2009 and 2018, which measure skills acquired by students for their full participation in society, scores were very low according to the authorities of the Ministry of Education (Medoka).

Since 2000, this project of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), presented by Panama, is one of the most famous international education indicators, which allows to obtain data on progress or lag in public policies. Tests in reading, math and science.

In the case of Panama, the test will make it possible to measure the impact of distance learning applied during Covid-19, as opposed to face-to-face learning.

Already in 2009, Panama scored poorly in the tests and was 62nd out of 65 eligible countries, only three of the worst eligible countries.

In 2018, 77 countries were evaluated and Panama ranked 71st. Six thousand 270 students participated, a random sample of a total of 72 thousand 84 students of 15 years of age.

Despite the academic withdrawal, which deepened in the first two years of the pandemic – as acknowledged by the education authorities themselves – in 2022, 6,300 students from 16 school districts, both public and private, will participate.

Meduca Evaluation director Gina Garces explained to La Prensa that the test will allow the country to obtain information to monitor learning assessment and the results of the national education system.

He stressed that the test will provide results about students’ attitudes towards learning and their social and cultural context.

Panama accepted the challenge of the PISA test, despite the fact that the president of the republic himself, Laurentino Cortizo, said last March that he was sure the country would fail again, acknowledging that education is the biggest challenge for this. government and the next.

The latest 2018 Pisa tests showed that more than half of 15-year-old Panamanian students do not understand what they read and that seven out of 10 cannot even solve a basic arithmetic.

The Isthmus first participated in the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) in 2009. From that year until 2014, assessments were no longer a priority of the country’s education policy, with the exception of the Terce Study of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) .

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