Cross-National Variation in Educational Preparation for Adulthood: From Early Adolescence to Young Adulthood

Abstract

This article presents key indicators of educational and employment success for adolescents and young adults preparing for adulthood in representative OECD countries. Nations are compared on mathematics achievement, educational attainment, literacy, and unemployment, as well as on national expenditures for education circa 1995. Nations with high-performing students on mathematics assessments are found also to have high levels of literacy in their population, and high rates of graduation from secondary school. National rates of tertiary degree attainment, however, appear to be unrelated to national performance on mathematics and literacy assessments in the countries studied. Indicators of educational performance in the countries studied did not track either an indicator of national investment in education or an indicator of success of young adults in the labor market, which may be more related to country economic cycles and labor force characteristics.

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