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Almost 100 academics have signed a letter to the Director of Education and Skills at the OECD, Andreas Schleicher, expressing their concern about what they believe to be 'the negative consequences of the PISA rankings' including its 'escalation' in 'standardised testing' and emphasis on 'a narrow range of measurable aspects of education'.

They say that these developments are 'in conflict with widely accepted principles of good educational practice', and that 'no reform of any consequence should be based on a narrow measure of equality' and that OECD should 'publish the direct and indirect costs of administering PISA'. In an article in the Guardian Newspaper, which summarises the Academics' arguments, Schleicher responds by saying that 'PISA, far from impoverishing education, enriches it because it encourages ideas from around the world' and that, because of PISA, ' Poland and Germany modified streaming by ability in their secondary schools'.

The article and letter can be accessed at Global school tests under attack as OECD accused of killing 'joy of learning'

The OECD's reponse to the letter can be accessed here.