About PISA
The Program for International Student Assessment（PISA）is a triennial（每三年一次的）international survey which aims to evaluate education systems worldwide by testing the skills and knowledge of 15-year-old students.To date，students representing more than 70 economies have participated in the assessment.
What makes PISA different
PISA is unique because it develops tests which are not directly linked to the school curriculum.The tests are designed to assess to what extent students at the end of compulsory education can apply their knowledge to real life situations and be equipped for full participation in society.The information collected through background questionnaires also provides context which can help analysts interpret the results.
What the assessment involves
Since the year 2000，every three years，fifteen-year-old students from randomly selected schools worldwide take tests in the key subjects：reading.mathematics and sciences with a focus on one subject in each year of assessment.The students take a test that lasts 2 hours.The tests are a mixture of open-ended and multiple-choice questions that are organized in groups based on a passage setting out a real-life situation. A total of about 390 minutes of test items are covered. Students take different combinations of different tests.
Additional PISA initiatives
PlSA-based Test for Schools（PTS）
As interest in PISA has grown，School and local educators have been wanting to know how their individual schools compare with students and schools in education systems worldwide. To address this need，the OECD（The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development）has developed the PISA-based test for schools.It is currently available in the United States and the OECD is in discussions with governments to make the test available in other countries such as England and Spain.
【小题1】PISA is different from other programs because ________ .| A．its test is closely related to the school curriculum |
| B．its test aims to assess whether students can solve real-life problems |
| C．its test can equip students for full participation in school |
| D．test scores directly determine the analysis of the test |
| A．Test-takers are carefully selected. |
| B．Test-takers answer the same questions. |
| C．Test-takers are tested on three key subjects. |
| D．Test-takers spend about 390minutes on the test. |
| A．Students of all ages will be able to take PTS in the future. |
| B．More countries are likely to have PTS in the future. |
| C．School and local educators show little interest in PISA at present. |
| D．PISA provides evaluation of the education system within a certain country. |
