국가전략정보포털

Title page

Contents

Acknowledgments 4

Abstract 5

1. Introduction 8

Aims of this working paper 8

Methodology 10

2. Understanding and defining programme design in upper secondary education 12

Identifying upper secondary education across countries 12

Definitions and terms used to describe upper secondary education systems 15

Distinguishing features of upper secondary programmes from a comparative perspective 15

3. Programme diversity across upper secondary education systems 19

What is programme diversity? 19

Separate provision of general and vocational programmes 19

Programmes that provide no or partial completion of ISCED 3 25

Programme destination 30

The number of educational programmes in upper secondary education 35

The age at which selection into programmes is made 39

Policy framework for managing diversity in upper secondary programmes 42

4. Options and specialisations within upper secondary programmes 45

The structure of upper secondary programmes across OECD countries 45

Compulsory content in upper secondary programmes 48

The role of student choice in upper secondary subjects 59

The role of specialisation in upper secondary education 62

Policy framework for options and specialisation within upper secondary programmes 66

5. Synthesis and conclusions 69

Overview of policies that shape upper secondary design 69

How do different upper secondary systems affect students' outcomes? 70

6. Further work 74

References 76

Annex A. Upper secondary programmes and subjects 82

Table 3.1. Classification codes for education programmes at ISCED level 3 26

Table 3.2. Dimensions of horizontal stratification 37

Table 3.3. Types of diversity in upper secondary programmes and implications for policy making 44

Table 4.1. Common core in general and vocational programmes in upper secondary education 55

Table 4.2. Share of compulsory and elective courses in general upper secondary education 61

Table 4.3. Aspects of curriculum structure and implications for policy making 68

Table 5.1. Key design features of upper secondary systems internationally 69

Figure 2.1. Upper secondary education systems across OECD countries 14

Figure 3.1. Share of students aged 15-19 enrolled in upper secondary, by programme orientation 22

Figure 3.2. Students attending vocational education, socio-economic status 24

Figure 3.3. Distribution of students enrolled in upper secondary vocational programmes (2018) 30

Figure 3.4. Education programmes available to students in upper secondary education and age at first selection 40

Figure 5.1. Employment rates of 25-34 year-olds, by educational attainment and programme orientation (2021) 73

Boxes

Box 1.1. Above and Beyond: Transitions in Upper Secondary Education 9

Box 1.2. OECD, Indicators of Education Systems programme 11

Box 2.1. Principal characteristics of upper secondary education, ISCED 2011 12

Box 3.1. Programme orientation in ISCED 19

Box 3.2. Level completion and access categories for ISCED 3 26

Box 3.3. Entry-level programmes that provide only partial completion of ISCED 3 28

Box 3.4. Upper secondary general programmes and eligibility criteria to enter tertiary education 33

Box 3.5. Challenges of international classifications on orientation 35

Box 3.6. Flexibility in the Netherlands 42

Box 3.7. Policy considerations for managing programme diversity 43

Box 4.1. Upper secondary education in the United Kingdom: An outlier 47

Box 4.2. Identifying and implementing core foundations 48

Box 4.3. Cross-curricular competencies in upper secondary education 49

Box 4.4. Setting flexible minimum standards 52

Box 4.5. Breadth versus depth in upper secondary education 54

Box 4.6. Information gaps 59

Box 4.7. Specialisations and options within vocational upper secondary programmes 64

Box 4.8. Specialisation in upper secondary education in Sweden 65

Box 4.9. Policy considerations for managing options and specialisation within upper secondary programmes 67

Annex Tables

Table A.1. Upper secondary programmes 82

Table A.2. Compulsory subjects in upper secondary education 96