ABSTRACT
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and its PISA (Program for International Student Assessment) testing program interacts with national education systems, often with important ramifications. But how this happens varies from country to country according to national contextual conditions. This chapter looks at the consequences for New Zealand education policy, research, and practice of PISA testing and OECD education influences more generally. It focuses on the period since 2008 while the National Coalition Government has been in power. The chapter looks at how PISA results have been cherry-picked or referred to in general by New Zealand policymakers, politicians, and academics to support a wide range of arguments about educational reform. More broadly, the OECD acts as a higher power that the National Coalition Government has been able to defer to in times of trouble. It is argued that the OECD has gained undue influence over New Zealand education, supporting questionable policies, and marginalizing local concerns and approaches.
