The Level of Skills in Spain: How to Solve the Puzzle using International Surveys

The information provided by international surveys is essential to understand the strengths and weaknesses of the Spanish education system, since one of its unique features is the lack of national standardized evaluations. Historically, Spain has lagged behind most other European countries in terms of the rate of expansion of the education system, the increase in years of schooling and the lengthening of compulsory education. When convergence was eventually achieved, Spain continued to focus its efforts on increasing access to tertiary education and pre-school, to the extent that it has surpassed most European countries in these quantitative targets. Unfortunately, much effort has been placed on inputs with little regard for outcomes.