Measuring Educational Equity in Large-Scale Assessments: Indicators, Dimensions, and Associated Factors. A Systematic Review

Vanessa Izquierdo-Álvarez; Fernando Martínez-Abad

doi:10.24320/redie.2026.28.especial.e01.7894

Autores

Vanessa Izquierdo-Álvarez Universidad de Salamanca https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0760-9017
Fernando Martínez-Abad Universidad de Salamanca https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1783-8198

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.24320/redie.2026.28.especial.e01.7894

Palabras clave:

resiliencia, equidad, rendimiento escolar, igualdad de oportunidades educativas, estatus socioeconómico

Agencias de apoyo:

Grant PID2021-125775NB-I00 funded by MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033/ and by ERDF A Way of Making Europe.

Resumen

Los sistemas educativos desempeñan un papel clave en la garantía de la igualdad de acceso mediante políticas orientadas a promover la calidad y la equidad. La equidad educativa busca garantizar el desarrollo del potencial individual sin importar el origen social u otras circunstancias personales. Las evaluaciones internacionales a gran escala (ILSA, por sus siglas en inglés) proporcionan datos relevantes para el análisis de sistemas educativos en este ámbito. Esta revisión sistemática tiene por objetivo analizar los indicadores utilizados para evaluar la equidad educativa en el contexto de las ILSA (igualdad de resultados, igualdad de oportunidades y segregación socioeconómica) e identificar factores contextuales y educativos clave asociados. Siguiendo las directrices PRISMA, en esta revisión se identificó una falta de consenso en la literatura científica en lo que respecta a las estrategias de medición y la selección de indicadores. La mayoría de los estudios se centran en factores contextuales (el género o el origen migrante) y políticas educativas vinculadas a la mercantilización de la educación (como el agrupamiento temprano por capacidad, la elección de escuelas y la expansión de la educación privada), las cuales se asocian a mayores niveles de desigualdad. Por otro lado, algunos factores educativos emergen como elementos protectores a nivel individual, entre ellos las expectativas académicas, la formación docente, las metodologías de enseñanza y el apoyo a alumnos que presentan dificultades de aprendizaje.

Descargas

Los datos de descarga aún no están disponibles.

Referencias

Alegre, M. A., & Ferrer, G. (2010). School regimes and education equity: Some insights based on PISA 2006. British Educational Research Journal, 36(3), 433–461. https://doi.org/10.1080/01411920902989193

Ali, F., Ow-Yeong, Y. K., & Tilley, J. L. (2024). Are schools becoming more unequal? Insights from exploratory data mining of international large-scale assessment, TIMSS 2003-2019. Studies in Educational Evaluation, 81, 101330. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.stueduc.2024.101330

Appels, L., De Maeyer, S., Faddar, J., & Van Petegem, P. (2023). Unpacking equity. Educational equity in secondary analyses of international large-scale assessments: A systematic review. Educational Research Review, 38, 100494. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.edurev.2022.100494

Appels, L., De Maeyer, S., & Van Petegem, P. (2024). Re-thinking equity: The need for a multidimensional approach in evaluating educational equity through TIMSS data. Large-scale Assessments in Education, 12, 38. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40536-024-00227-6

Bencomo-Mesa, P., Marrero, G. A., & Sicilia, G. (2025). Inequality of opportunity in education in Spanish regions: A machine learning approach. Hacienda Pública Española, 252(1), 113–162. https://doi.org/10.7866/HPE-RPE.25.1.4

Blanco-Varela, B., Amoedo, J. M., & Sánchez-Carreira, M. C. (2024). Analysing ability grouping in secondary school: A way to improve academic performance and mitigate educational inequalities in Spain? International Journal of Educational Development, 107, 103028. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijedudev.2024.103028

Brinkmann, M., Huth-Stöckle, N., Schunck, R., & Teltemann, J. (2024). Achievement or social background? The impact of tracking on the composition of schools in an international comparison. Zeitschrift für Soziologie, 53(2), 164–185. https://doi.org/10.1515/zfsoz-2024-2014

Broer, M., Bai, Y., & Fonseca, F. (2019). A review of the literature on socioeconomic status and educational achievement. In M. Broer, Y. Bai, & F. Fonseca (Eds.), Socioeconomic inequality and educational outcomes: Evidence from twenty years of TIMSS (pp. 7–17). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-11991-1_2

Caro, D. H., & Mirazchiyski, P. (2012). Socioeconomic gradients in Eastern European countries: Evidence from PIRLS 2006. European Educational Research Journal, 11(1), 96–110. https://doi.org/10.2304/eerj.2012.11.1.96

Chitty, C. (1997). The school effectiveness movement: Origins, shortcomings and future possibilities. The Curriculum Journal, 8(1), 45–62. https://doi.org/10.1080/09585176.1997.11070761

Coleman, J. S., Campbell, E., Hobson, C., McPartland, J., Mood, A., Weinfeld, F., & York, R. (1966). Equality of educational opportunity. U.S. Government Printing Office.

Cordero, J. M., & Mateos-Romero, L. (2021). Exploring factors related with resilience in primary education: Evidence from European countries. Studies in Educational Evaluation, 70, 101045. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.stueduc.2021.101045

Danhier, J. (2018). How big is the handicap for disadvantaged pupils in segregated schooling systems? British Journal of Educational Studies, 66(3), 341–364. https://doi.org/10.1080/00071005.2017.1322682

Duggan, A., Karakolidis, A., Clerkin, A., Gilleece, L., & Perkins, R. (2023). Trends in educational inequalities in Ireland’s primary schools: An analysis based on TIMSS data (2011–2019). Large-scale Assessments in Education, 11, 39. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40536-023-00188-2

Enchikova, E., Neves, T., Toledo, C., & Nata, G. (2024). Change in socioeconomic educational equity after 20 years of PISA: A systematic literature review. International Journal of Educational Research Open, 7, 100359. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijedro.2024.100359

Enchikova, E., Neves, T., Toledo, C., & Nata, G. (2025). A long road to educational equity: Tracking trends through PISA 2000–2018. International Journal of Educational Research Open, 8, 100445. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijedro.2025.100445

European Commission: European Education and Culture Executive Agency and Delhaxhe, A. (Ed.), (2015). Assuring quality in education – Policies and approaches to school evaluation in Europe, Publications Office of the European Union. https://data.europa.eu/doi/10.2797/678

Ferreira, F. H. G., & Gignoux, J. (2014). The measurement of educational inequality: Achievement and opportunity. The World Bank Economic Review, 28(2), 210–246. https://doi.org/10.1093/wber/lht004

Field, S., Kuczera, M., & Pont, B. (2007). No more failures: Ten steps to equity in education. Education and Training Policy. OECD Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1787/9789264032606-en

Formichella, M. M. (2014). Measuring internal educational equity: Application to Latin America. Education Policy Analysis Archives, 22(1), 1–26. https://doi.org/10.14507/epaa.v22n1.2014

García, J. S. M., & Giovine, M. A. (2025). Equity and education: Philosophies and measurement. Social Indicators Research, 178, 707–723. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11205-025-03572-3

García-Herrero, M., Rodríguez-Conde, M. J., & Martínez-Abad, F. (2024). Factores de calidad docente asociados a la equidad educativa: formación del profesorado y estrategias docentes [Teacher quality factors associated with equity in education: Teacher development and teaching strategies]. Revista Electrónica Interuniversitaria de Formación del Profesorado, 27(1), 75–88. http://doi.org/10.6018/reifop.595181

Hernández-Torrano, D., & Courtney, M. G. R. (2021). Modern international large-scale assessment in education: An integrative review and mapping of the literature. Large-scale Assessments in Education, 9, 17. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40536-021-00109-1

Holgado-Aguadero, M., Martínez-Abad, F., & Hernández-Ramos, J. P. (2025). Estudio de factores sociodemográficos asociados a la inequidad educativa en la Educación Secundaria en España. Un análisis de las pruebas PISA [Study of sociodemographic factors associated with educational inequity in secondary education in Spain. An analysis of PISA tests]. Estudios sobre Educación, 49, 33–57. https://doi.org/10.15581/004.49.002

Holmlund, H., & Öckert, B. (2021). Patterns of school segregation in Europe. EENEE Analytical Report No. 45. European Commission. https://data.europa.eu/doi/10.2766/269991

Hopfenbeck, T. N., Lenkeit, J., El Masri, Y., Cantrell, K., Ryan, J., & Baird, J. A. (2018). Lessons learned from PISA: A systematic review of peer-reviewed articles on the Programme for International Student Assessment. Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research, 62(3), 333–353. https://doi.org/10.1080/00313831.2016.1258726

Ivaniushina, V., Makles, A. M., Schneider, K., & Alexandrov, D. (2018). School segregation in St. Petersburg – the role of socioeconomic status. Education Economics, 27(2), 166–185. https://doi.org/10.1080/09645292.2018.1538408

Javornik, S., & Klemenčič, E. (2023). Factors contributing to school effectiveness: A systematic literature review. European Journal of Investigation in Health Psychology and Education, 13(10), 2095–2111. https://doi.org/10.3390/ejihpe13100148

Jenkins, S. P., Micklewright, J., & Schnepf, S. V. (2008). Social segregation in secondary schools: How does England compare with other countries? Oxford Review of Education, 34(1), 21–37. https://doi.org/10.1080/03054980701542039

Kyriakides, L., & Creemers, B. (2018). Investigating the quality and equity dimensions of educational effectiveness. Studies in Educational Evaluation, 57, 1–5. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.stueduc.2017.12.005

Levin, B. (2003). Approaches to equity in policy for lifelong learning. A paper for the OECD. OECD.

Liu, J., Peng, P., Zhao, B., & Luo, L. (2022). Socioeconomic status and academic achievement in primary and secondary education: A meta-analytic review. Educational Psychology Review, 34, 2867–2896. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-022-09689-y

Lu, B., Anders, J., Siddiqui, N., & Shao, X. (2024) How do academic selection systems affect pupils’ educational attainment? New evidence from an analysis of large-scale data on England. Educational Review, 76(5), 1285–1306. https://doi.org/10.1080/00131911.2023.2240977

Maiztegui‐Oñate, C., & Santibáñez‐Gruber, R. (2008). Access to education and equity in plural societies. Intercultural Education, 19(5), 373–381. https://doi.org/10.1080/14675980802531432

Marrero, G. A., Palomino, J. C., & Sicilia, G. (2024). Inequality of opportunity in educational achievement in Western Europe: Contributors and channels. The Journal of Economic Inequality, 22, 383–410. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10888-023-09595-5

Martínez-Abad, F., Crespi, M. C., Mikulic, I. M., & Holgado-Aguadero, M. (2024). Evolución de la inequidad y segregación socioeconómica en la educación secundaria argentina [Trends in inequity and socioeconomic segregation in secondary education in Argentina]. REICE. Revista Iberoamericana sobre Calidad, Eficacia y Cambio en Educación, 22(4), 165–187. https://doi.org/10.15366/reice2024.22.4.009

Martínez-Abad, F., Torrecilla-Sánchez, E. M., Gamazo, A., & Torrijos-Fincias, P. (2025). Towards a model of educational equity based on social justice in Ibero-American countries. International Journal of Educational Research Open, 9, 100548. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijedro.2025.100548

Mejía-Rodríguez, A. M., & Kyriakides, L. (2022). What matters for student learning outcomes? A systematic review of studies exploring system-level factors of educational effectiveness. Review of Education, 10(3), e3374. https://doi.org/10.1002/rev3.3374

Murillo, F. J. (2016). Midiendo la segregación escolar en América Latina. Un análisis metodológico utilizando el TERCE [Measuring school segregation in Latin America. A methodological analysis using TERCE]. REICE. Revista Iberoamericana sobre Calidad, Eficacia y Cambio en Educación, 14(4), 33–60. https://doi.org/10.15366/reice2016.14.4.002

Murillo, F. J., Belavi, G., & Pinilla, L. M. (2018). Segregación escolar público-privada en España [Public-private school segregation in Spain]. Papers - Revista de Sociología, 103(3), 307–337. https://doi.org/10.5565/rev/papers.2392

Murillo, F. J., & Garrido, C. M. (2017). Segregación social en las escuelas públicas y privadas en América Latina [Social segregation in public and private schools in Latin America]. Educação e Sociedade, 38(140), https://doi.org/10.1590/ES0101-73302017167714

Murillo, F. J., & Guiral, C. (2024). Los centros privados concertados como factor de segregación escolar por nivel socioeconómico en España [Private subsidized schools as a factor of school segregation by socioeconomic status in Spain]. REICE. Revista Iberoamericana sobre Calidad, Eficacia Y Cambio en Educación, 22(3), 5–22. https://doi.org/10.15366/reice2024.22.3.001

Murillo, F. J., & Martínez-Garrido, C. (2018). Impact of the economic crisis on school segregation in Spain. Revista de Educación, (381), 67–93. https://doi.org/10.4438/1988-592X-RE-2017-381-381

Murillo, F. J., & Martínez-Garrido, C. (2019). Perfiles de segregación escolar por nivel socioeconómico en España y sus Comunidades Autónomas [Profiles of school segregation by socioeconomic status in Spain and its autonomous communities]. RELIEVE, 25(1), 1. http://doi.org/10.7203/relieve.25.1.12917

Murillo, F. J., Martínez-Garrido, C., & Graña, R. (2023). Segregación escolar por nivel socioeconómico en educación primaria en América Latina y el Caribe [School segregation by socioeconomic level in primary education in Latin America and the Caribbean]. REICE. Revista Iberoamericana sobre Calidad, Eficacia y Cambio en Educación, 21(1), 87–117. https://doi.org/10.15366/reice2023.21.1.005

OECD. (2009). PISA Data Analysis Manual: SPSS, Second Edition. https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/education/pisa-data-analysis-manual-spss-second-edition_9789264056275-en

OECD. (2012). Equity and quality in education: Supporting disadvantaged students and schools. http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/9789264130852-en

OECD (2019). PISA 2018 results (Volume II). Where all students can succeed. https://doi.org/10.1787/b5fd1b8f-en

OECD. (2022). PISA 2022. Technical Report. https://doi.org/10.1787/01820d6d-en

Page, M. J., Moher, D., Bossuyt, P. M., Boutron, I., Hoffmann, T. C., Mulrow, C. D., Shamseer, L., Tetzlaff, J. M., Akl, E. A., Brennan, S. E., Chou, R., Glanville, J., Grimshaw, J. M., Hróbjartsson, A., Lalu, M. M., Li, T., Loder, E. W., Mayo-Wilson, E., McDonald, S., … McKenzie, J. E. (2021). PRISMA 2020 explanation and elaboration: Updated guidance and exemplars for reporting systematic reviews. BMJ, 372(160). https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.n160

Parker, P. D., Marsh, H. W., Jerrim, J. P., Guo, J., & Dicke, T. (2018). Inequity and excellence in academic performance: Evidence from 27 countries. American Educational Research Journal, 55(4), 836–858. https://doi.org/10.3102/0002831218760213

Perry, L. B. (2018). Using PISA to examine educational inequality. Orbis Scholae, 2(2), 77–86. https://doi.org/10.14712/23363177.2018.235

Perry, L. B., Saatcioglu, A., & Mickelson, R. A. (2022). Does school SES matter less for high-performing students than for their lower-performing peers? A quantile regression analysis of PISA 2018 Australia. Large-scale Assessments in Education, 10. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40536-022-00137-5

Perry, L. B., Yoon, E.-S., Sciffer, M., & Lubienski, C. (2024). The impact of marketization on school segregation and educational equity and effectiveness: Evidence from Australia and Canada. International Journal of Comparative Sociology, 67(1). https://doi.org/10.1177/00207152241227810

Pongsophon, P. (2024). Deciphering the layers of reading achievement: A multi-level analysis of student and school-level predictors in top-performing PIRLS 2021 countries. British Educational Research Journal, 50(6), 2777–2798. https://doi.org/10.1002/berj.4053

Qiu, X. L., & Leung, F. K. S. (2022). Equity in mathematics education in Hong Kong: Evidence from TIMSS 2011 to 2019. Large-scale Assessments in Education, 10, 3. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40536-022-00121-z

Rowley, K. J., Edmunds, C. C., Dufur, M. J., Jarvis, J. A., & Silveira, F. (2020). Contextualising the achievement gap: Assessing educational achievement, inequality, and disadvantage in high-income countries. Comparative Education, 56(4), 459–483. https://doi.org/10.1080/03050068.2020.1769928

Rupérez, F. L., García I. G., & Expósito-Casas E. (2018). Educational effectiveness, efficiency, and equity in Spanish regions: What does PISA 2015 reveal? Orbis Scholae, 12(2) 9−36. https://doi.org/10.14712/23363177.2018.291

Rutkowski, D., & Delandshere, G. (2016). Causal inferences with large scale assessment data: Using a validity framework. Large-scale Assessments in Education, 4, 6. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40536-016-0019-1

Secada, W. G. (1989). Educational equity versus equality of education: An alternative conception. In Secada, W. G. (Ed.), Equity in education, (pp. 68–88). Falmer.

Sicilia, G., & Simancas, R. (2023). Eficiencia y equidad educativa en España: un análisis comparativo a nivel regional [Efficiency and equity in education in Spain: A comparative regional analysis]. Hacienda Pública Española/Review of Public Economics, 245(2), 7–33. https://dx.doi.org/10.7866/HPE-RPE.23.2.1

Siebecke, D. E. (2024). Does social well-being predict academic resilience and achievement? Analysis of Swedish PISA 2018 data. European Journal of Psychology of Education, 39, 2105–2128. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10212-023-00762-w

Steinmann, I., & Olsen, R. V. (2022). Equal opportunities for all? Analyzing within-country variation in school effectiveness. Large-scale Assessments in Education, 10, 2. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40536-022-00120-0

Strello, A., Strietholt, R., Steinmann, I., & Siepmann, C. (2021). Early tracking and different types of inequalities in achievement: Difference-in-differences evidence from 20 years of large-scale assessments. Educational Assessment, Evaluation and Accountability, 33, 139–167. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11092-020-09346-4

Strello, A., Strietholt, R., & Steinmann, I. (2022). Does tracking increase segregation? International evidence on the effects of between-school tracking on social segregation across schools. Research in Social Stratification and Mobility, 78, 100689. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rssm.2022.100689

Teddlie, C., & Reynolds, D. (2000). The international handbook of school effectiveness research. Routledge.

Teltemann, J., & Schunck, R. (2016). Education systems, school segregation, and second-generation immigrants’ educational success: Evidence from a country-fixed effects approach using three waves of PISA. International Journal of Comparative Sociology, 57(6), 401–424. https://doi.org/10.1177/0020715216687348

Tobin, M., Nugroho, D., & Lietz, P. (2016). Large-scale assessments of students’ learning and education policy: Synthesising evidence across world regions. Research Papers in Education, 31(5), 578–594. https://doi.org/10.1080/02671522.2016.1225353

UNESCO. (2007). Educational equity and public policy: Comparing results from 16 countries. https://policycommons.net/artifacts/8954212/educational-equity-and-public-policy/9820113/

UNESCO. (2018). Handbook on measuring equity in education. https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000262806

Vicente, I., Pastor, J. M., & Soler, A. (2021). Improving educational resilience in the OECD countries: Two convergent paths. Journal of Policy Modeling, 43(6), 1149–1166. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpolmod.2021.09.007

Vigdor, J., & Nechyba, T. (2007). Peer effects in North Carolina public schools. In L. Woessmann & P. E. Peterson (Eds.), Schools and the equal opportunity problem (pp. 73–102). The MIT Press.

Yang Hansen, K., Thorsen, C., & Johansson, S. (2025). Identifying school-level factors predicting academic resilience in Sweden: Evidence from PISA studies. European Journal of Psychology of Education, 40, 67. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10212-025-00970-6

Zheng, J. Q., Cheung, K. C., & Sit, P. S. (2024). Insights from two decades of PISA-related studies in the new century: A systematic review. Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research, 68(3), 371–388. https://doi.org/10.1080/00313831.2022.2148273