Personal Blogs

The discrepancy between Greece and Germany at national levels in relation to average performance is startling (particularly for science literacy and maths). Gender differences are similar in both countries, suggesting that this is an effect of national characteristics that can’t be attributed to cultural differences in an easy way.

However, they may be attributable to national debt effects (reduced services and family incomes, as well as low expectations amongst school-leavers for employment).

My belief is that this economic difference is likely to be much greater than any effect of any adjustments that learning analytics is capable or competent of producing – especially given the exceptionally high correlation (highest in OECD) of socio-economic status and access to preparatory education in Greece.

I’m as sure as I can be that no stealth assessment will help to raise Greek performance without overt attention to the deliberate impoverishment of Greece brought about by EEC demands that the answer to the problems of the Greek economy must lie in reductions in national public spending and economic deflation. In fact Greece is being deliberately underdeveloped by more developed economies like Germany for getting above itself politically. Although, of course the corruption in the internal system hasn't helped.

In fact, I can’t see what the question here is getting at, since no conclusions can be arrived at where learning analytics is the first line of response to bring about change.  

All the best

Steve