The rapidly growing demand for highly skilled workers has led to a global competition for talent. While basic competencies are important for the absorption of new technologies, high-level skills are critical for the creation of new knowledge, technologies and innovation. For countries near the technology frontier, this implies that the share of highly educated workers in the labour force is an important determinant of economic growth and social development. There is also mounting evidence that individuals with high-level skills generate relatively large externalities in knowledge creation and utilisation, compared to an "average" individual, which in turn suggests that investing in excellence may benefit all. Educating for excellence is thus an important policy goal. The OECD's Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) has taken an innovative approach to examining educational excellence, by directly assessing students' knowledge, skills and attitudes and exploring how these relate to the characteristics of individual students, schools and education systems. The development of this report was guided by three areas of interest: Who are the students who meet the highest performance standards? What types of families and communities do these students come from?; What are the characteristics of the schools that they are attending? What kinds of instructional experiences are provided to them in science? How often do they engage in science-related activities outside of school?; What motivations drive them in their study of science? What are their attitudes towards science and what are their intentions regarding science-related careers? FURTHER READING The first results from PISA 2006 were published in PISA 2006: Science Competencies for Tomorrow's World (OECD, 2007). THE OECD PROGRAMME FOR INTERNATIONAL STUDENT ASSESSMENT (PISA) PISA is a collaborative process among the 30 member countries of the OECD and nearly 30 partner countries and economies. It brings together expertise from the participating countries and economies and is steered by their governments on the basis of shared, policy-driven interests. Its unique features include: The literacy approach: PISA aims to define each assessment area (science, reading and mathematics) not mainly in terms of mastery of the school curriculum, but in terms of the knowledge and skills needed for full participation in society; A long-term commitment: It enables countries to monitor regularly and predictably their progress in meeting key learning objectives; The age-group covered: By assessing 15-year-olds, i.e. young people near the end of their compulsory education, PISA provides a significant indication of the overall performance of school systems; The relevance to lifelong learning: PISA does not limit itself to assessing students' knowledge and skills but also asks them to report on their own motivation to learn, their beliefs about themselves and their learning strategies, as well as their goals for future study and careers