ESERA SIGs

SIG11: Large-scale Studies in Science Education (LASSIE)

Identity
Large-scale studies play a central role in contemporary science education research by shaping educational policy, curriculum reform, and research agendas across countries and regions. These studies are systematic empirical investigations that collect data from large samples of well-defined populations, often using standardised instruments and complex study designs, including international studies like PISA, TIMSS, and ROSE, national studies like NAEP and NSSME, and other large-scale projects.
Large-scale studies provide powerful data on students’ knowledge, skills, attitudes, and learning contexts, yet they also raise important theoretical, methodological, and interpretive questions. Recent and forthcoming developments—such as TIMSS 2023 adding environmental awareness, TIMSS 2027 assessing the use of AI, and PISA 2025 focusing on science literacy—highlight the need for a dedicated forum within ESERA to engage with the evolving scope, design, and use of large-scale studies in science education.

The special interest group Large-Scale Studies in Science Education (LASSIE) brings together researchers who examine science teaching and learning through large-scale data. It provides a forum for dialogue on how constructs like science literacy are conceptualised, measured, and interpreted, and how large-scale evidence is used to address key issues in science education—such as equity, sustainability, and teaching quality—across social, cultural, and policy contexts. It promotes links between large-scale data, classroom practice, and broader policy and societal challenges.

Scope
LASSIE provides a platform for researchers who develop, administer, use, analyse, critique, and extend large-scale studies in science education. Its scope encompasses diverse theoretical perspectives, methodological approaches, and data sources that together deepen understanding of science teaching and learning across education systems and contexts.

Aims
The LASSIE SIG aims to:

1. Advance theoretical and conceptual understanding of how large-scale studies define, operationalise, and interpret constructs related to science teaching and learning.
2. Promote critical discussion of assessment frameworks, validity, and cultural relevance of large-scale studies and their implications for science education research, curriculum, and policy.
3. Support methodological innovation through dialogue on analytical approaches, data linkage, and integration of large-scale data with other forms of evidence.
4. Facilitate international and interdisciplinary collaboration among researchers, institutions, and organisations to strengthen the scientific and policy impact of science education research.
5. Build research capacity by organising training and dissemination activities as well as mentorship on theoretical and methodological aspects of large-scale studies.
6. Foster an active and inclusive community that shares resources, data practices, and research findings across contexts.
7. Promote ethical, equitable, and transparent use of large-scale data in science education.
8. Bridge collaboration between science education researchers and organisations conducting large-scale studies (e.g., OECD, International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement [IEA]).

Coordinators:

Nani Teig; nani.teig@ils.uio.no
Matheus Monteiro Nascimento