Monitor student progress
over time
Compare school performance
internationally
Inform improvements
in teaching and learning
The International Schools' Assessment (ISA) is designed for students in Grades 3–10 in international schools and schools with an international focus. The program offers assessments for Mathematical Literacy, Scientific Literacy, Reading and Writing.
Reliable assessments
ISA assessments cover core subjects and are based on internationally-endorsed frameworks.
Comprehensive reporting
Informative reports allow you to track student and school performance.
Make a difference in your school with the ISA.
Talk to the ISA Team to find out how.
Informing school improvement with in-depth data
The ISA enables schools to:
- monitor an individual's or a cohort's progress over time
- measure a student's achievement to reflect on and address their strengths and weaknesses
- compare school performance and progress to an international cohort and schools in the same region
- compare results against schools with similar proportions of students with English-speaking backgrounds
- evaluate instructional programs against objective evidence of student performance, to identify gaps and measure growth.
Based on internationally endorsed frameworks
Designed by the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER), the ISA is based on the assessment frameworks of the OECD’s Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) and has been developed in consultation with international schools.† ACER has been instrumental in the implementation, management and reporting of large-scale international surveys and brings their experience in these types of assessments to the ISA program.
Like PISA, the ISA assesses complex higher-order thinking skills because it includes open-ended questions in Mathematical Literacy, Reading and Scientific Literacy, which require students to construct responses, for example, to explain their reasoning, to find evidence or to justify their opinion.
† Note that the ISA is not part of PISA and is not endorsed by the OECD.
Webinars: Introduction to the ISA
The ISA Team regularly hosts online webinars for prospective schools who would like to learn more about the ISA. Please select the session that best suits your time zone.
Introduction to the ISA (May)
This webinar covers the key aspects of the ISA program, including the assessments, reports and teaching resources offered.
Session 1: 14/5/20 5:00pm AEST (14/5/20 7:00am GMT)
Introduction to the ISA (May)
This webinar covers the key aspects of the ISA program, including the assessments, reports and teaching resources offered.
Session 2: 20/5/20 8:30am AEST (19/5/20 10:30pm GMT)