Large Scale Testing Lab /en/ The Large Scale Testing Lab coordinates Romania's participation in IEA international studies: TIMSS, ICCS, and ICILS. quarto-1.8.25 Tue, 17 Feb 2026 23:00:00 GMT Launching START-RO: The First National Longitudinal Study of Children’s Development in Romania George Gunnesch-Luca /en/posts/2026-02-18-startro-launch/ The Large Scale Testing Lab (LST) announces the launch of START-RO (Study of Trajectories and Adjustment in Romanian Children), the first national longitudinal study dedicated to understanding the educational, psychological, and social development of children in Romania.

What is START-RO?

START-RO is a large-scale research project of the LST Lab at the Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Bucharest. The study will follow cohorts of children from school entry through adolescence, documenting their developmental trajectories at critical educational transitions. Phase 1 (2026–2027) is funded through a private grant from Accenture, managed by the University of Bucharest Foundation.

Why is this study needed?

Romania currently lacks a longitudinal evidence base on children’s development. Educational policy decisions often rely on cross-sectional data or evidence from other national contexts that may not reflect the realities of the Romanian educational system. START-RO will fill this gap by providing rigorous, systematically collected data to inform policies and services for children and families.

Study aims

START-RO aims to describe the educational, psychological, and social lives of Romanian children at school entry; to chart their development over time; to identify the key factors that facilitate or hinder educational adjustment; to establish the effects of early family and school experiences on later outcomes; to map variation across children from different socio-economic and educational backgrounds; and to produce evidence for the design of effective educational policies and services.

What comes next?

Over the course of 2026, the LST team will finalize the study design, develop measurement instruments, and initiate data collection for the first cohort. Further details on methodology, the study timeline, and collaboration opportunities will be published on the dedicated START-RO page.

]]> /en/posts/2026-02-18-startro-launch/ Tue, 17 Feb 2026 23:00:00 GMT Policy Brief II: Democracy Starts in the Classroom: Romanian Students Need Teachers Trained for Civic Education! Octavia Borș /en/posts/2025-07-23-policy-brief-2/ The Large Scale Testing Lab team conducted a new series of analyses, based on data available from the International Civic and Citizenship Education Study 2022, and formulated a new set of recommendations aimed at contributing to the improvement of civic education in Romania.

The results of our analyses indicate that approximately half of Romanian 8th-grade students face difficulties in understanding and applying fundamental democratic principles. Additionally, a significant proportion of teachers who teach subjects in the “Man and Society” curricular area feel insufficiently prepared to address essential civic education topics, such as voting, elections, and constitutional systems.

These findings, corroborated with other recent studies (Bădescu et al., 2024), highlight the need to ensure students have access to better-prepared teachers. In this context, our main recommendation is that the allocation of Social Education hours — a subject taught by teachers with diverse specializations — should be conditional on completing a free continuing education course, specialized in the teaching, learning, and assessment of this subject.

We invite you to explore our key findings and educational policy recommendations, aimed at contributing to the strengthening of democracy in Romania.

]]> /en/posts/2025-07-23-policy-brief-2/ Tue, 22 Jul 2025 22:00:00 GMT Policy Brief I: Democracy Through the Eyes of 14-Year-Olds Octavia Borș /en/posts/2024-12-05-pbdemocratia/ The Large Scale Testing Lab presents a new policy brief based on the results of the international ICCS 2022 study, which examines the civic and citizenship competences of 8th-grade students. The document highlights the challenges and opportunities in civic education for Romanian students, their perceptions of state institutions, and their degree of future involvement in democratic processes.

Explore the key findings and educational policy recommendations to support the strengthening of democracy in Romania here.

]]> /en/posts/2024-12-05-pbdemocratia/ Wed, 04 Dec 2024 23:00:00 GMT Romania in ICCS 2022: The Country Report Dragoș Iliescu Lucian Ciolan /en/posts/2024-12-02-raporticcs22/ The Large Scale Testing Lab makes available for download the national report for ICCS 2022, providing a detailed analysis of Romania’s results in this international study.

ICCS (International Civic and Citizenship Education Study) is an international comparative study initiated by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement, aiming to assess the civic and citizenship competences of 8th-grade students. Romania is one of 24 countries/education systems that participated in this study in 2022.

The report includes details about the research methodology and study results: Romanian students’ civic knowledge and reasoning skills, their attitudes and prior civic participation experiences, their voting intentions, teaching and assessment practices of teachers who teach subjects in the “Man and Society” curricular area. Additionally, the report includes structured conclusions based on analysis of context questionnaire data, as well as educational policy recommendations.

]]> /en/posts/2024-12-02-raporticcs22/ Sun, 01 Dec 2024 23:00:00 GMT Launch of the ICCS 2022 National Assessment Results George Gunnesch-Luca /en/posts/2024-10-04-ICCS2022res/

Romania in ICCS 2022: The Country Report

The Large Scale Testing Lab launched today, April 10, 2024, the national report of the International Civic and Citizenship Education Study, available here, (press release here).

ICCS (International Civic and Citizenship Education Study) is an international comparative study initiated by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement, aiming to assess the civic and citizenship competences of 8th-grade students.

ICCS assesses the civic competences of 8th-grade students and investigates how these are formed. This edition of the study included aspects related to global citizenship, sustainable development, migration, the evolution of political systems, and the use of digital technologies for civic participation. Additionally, within ICCS, data are collected on various aspects that help teachers teach and students learn, for example, opportunities for civic participation in schools.

24 countries participated in ICCS 2022: Brazil, Bulgaria, Chinese Taipei, Colombia, Croatia, Cyprus, Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany (North Rhine-Westphalia), Germany (Schleswig-Holstein), Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, Serbia, the Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, and Sweden. In total, approximately 82,000 students from approximately 3,400 schools participated, alongside approximately 40,000 teachers.

Our country participated for the first time in this study, under the coordination of the Large Scale Testing Lab team from the Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Bucharest. Romania’s participation in the study was funded by the European Education and Culture Executive Agency, the Romanian American Foundation, and the Ministry of Education.

In Romania, tests were administered in paper format to a sample of 158 schools. A total of 2,768 students participated (1,357 boys and 1,411 girls), along with 2,242 teachers and the principals of the respective schools.

The test consisted of items measuring students’ civic knowledge and analytical capacity in the field of civic and citizenship education. In Romania, the test was administered on paper, including 11 clusters of items. Additionally, students responded to the European questionnaire and a questionnaire with questions regarding their background, school context, perceptions, and conceptions. Furthermore, in each school selected for the sample, the principal and a number of randomly selected teachers answered questions about school and community characteristics.

Key Findings

Civic Knowledge and Reasoning

Romanian students achieved a mean score of 470 on the civic knowledge and reasoning assessment, significantly lower than the ICCS 2022 average (508), placing Romania 16th out of 20 participating countries.

Approximately one quarter of Romanian students are at proficiency Level D or below (compared to 14.2% for the ICCS 2022 average), and approximately one fifth are at Level A (compared to 30.6% for the ICCS 2022 average).

Civic Engagement in School and Community

Most Romanian students, 86%, voted for the election of the class representative to the student council, compared to 78%, the average of ICCS 2022 participating countries;

Less than one third of Romanian students (28%) have a high or very high interest in politics and social issues, compared to 30%, the ICCS 2022 average;

More Romanian students (55%) than the ICCS 2022 average (37%) reported being part of volunteer groups that help the local community.

Trust in State Institutions, Voting Intentions, and Participation

Most Romanian students (7 out of 10) consider that democracy is the best form of government, but only 4 out of 10 students have high trust in the Government and Parliament, compared to 5 out of 10 for the ICCS average.

Romanian students’ voting intentions are more optimistic than the ICCS 2022 average, with over three quarters stating they would vote in at least one type of election in the future. Similar to students in other participating countries, at least half of Romanian students expect to participate in the future in legal civic and political activities (contacting elected representatives, participating in peaceful marches/protests, collecting signatures for a petition).

To a greater extent than the ICCS 2022 average, Romanian students believe they will engage in environmental protection activities in the future, and almost 9 out of 10 students believe they will also encourage others to get involved.

European Citizenship

Romanian students have a strong sense of European belonging: 97% of them identify as European, 94% are proud of Romania’s membership in the European Union, both percentages being higher than the ICCS 2022 average (95% and 91%, respectively).

The majority of Romanian students support freedom of movement within Europe: 96% of them consider that the freedom of European citizens to work anywhere in Europe is beneficial for the European economy, and only 30% of them, compared to 4% for the ICCS 2022 average, believe that the right of Europeans to work in the European area should be limited to some extent.

Key Recommendations

Ministry of Education and Other Institutions

Periodic review and improvement of the civic education curriculum, taking into account the results of the ICCS study and the major local/global challenges we face. Mini-innovation grants dedicated to schools to support civic projects (especially in sustainable development and the environment).

Review of external evaluation standards for educational units to integrate aspects related to civic education and sustainable development.

Continuing education programs for teachers, offered in partnership with a diverse range of providers (universities, non-profit organizations, companies), dedicated to improving teachers’ competence levels for teaching civic education (especially regarding institutions and political participation, sustainable development, and specific methods: project-based learning, service learning, inquiry-based learning, photovoice).

“Open doors” programs to help young people understand how state institutions are organized and function.

Pre-University Educational Institutions

Initiating experiential learning programs/projects/activities in the field of civic education, alongside local public authorities, non-governmental organizations, and others.

Supporting representative student structures (e.g., the Student Council) to increase the number of involved students, diversify the profiles of representatives, and increase the influence of these structures in decision-making at the school level.

Adopting innovative pedagogies and creating authentic, relevant learning experiences for students. Innovative pedagogies and applied learning experiences, anchored in everyday reality, can make learning more attractive and motivate students.

Revising student assessment methods in civic education to test students’ civic reasoning, applied to everyday life contexts.

Systematically guiding students to better understand the impact of technologies and social media on democracy.

Parents (and Extended Family)

Ongoing discussions with their children about current social/political issues, both local and global. Ongoing discussions about what their children learn at school in civic education and willingness to learn from them.

Promoting informed and responsible consumption of social media, technology, and resources.

]]> /en/posts/2024-10-04-ICCS2022res/ Tue, 09 Apr 2024 22:00:00 GMT Launch of the IEA ICCS 2022 European Report Dragoș Iliescu /en/posts/2024-18-02-invitatielansare/ IEA invites you to attend the launch of the IEA ICCS 2022 European Report, which will take place on Thursday, February 22, between 10:00 and 12:00 CET at Università LUMSA in Rome. The event will be live-streamed and you can register by following this link.

Romania participated for the first time in the ICCS (International Civic and Citizenship Study), under the coordination of the Large Scale Testing Lab team from the Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Bucharest. Romania’s participation in the study was funded through the FSS2022 project (Romania’s Participation in IEA International Comparative Studies in Education), the European Education and Culture Executive Agency, and the Romanian American Foundation.

]]> /en/posts/2024-18-02-invitatielansare/ Sat, 17 Feb 2024 23:00:00 GMT Launch of TIMSS 2019 Results for Romania George Gunnesch-Luca /en/posts/2020-29-12-lansarereztimss/ IEA’s TIMSS 2019 is the seventh cycle of TIMSS assessment, the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study. TIMSS 2019 was conducted at the 4th and 8th grades in 64 countries and 8 benchmarking systems. Launched in 1995, TIMSS has been conducted every four years since then, providing 24 years of trends in mathematics and science achievement. We present here some of the international results as well as the recording of the press conference from the launch of TIMSS 2019 results for Romania.

Below are several documents reflecting the international results of TIMSS, released on December 8, 2020. The country report for Romania will be published in April 2021.

  1. Comunicat de presă (Română)
  2. Press release (English).
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