Measuring the Performance of the Maltese Education System: A Comparative Analysis

Purpose: The aim of this research paper is to compare the investment/output relationship in the Maltese education system with those of four other European Union (EU) countries - France, Germany, Spain, and Sweden. The objectives towards achieving this aim were (i) to develop a standard performance metric built on a number of internationally recognised Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) as a basis for carrying out such comparison; (ii) to determine how the different education systems relatively perform in terms of Value for Money (VFM) for the level of education expenditure per capita, (iii) to evaluate the value-adding projects that have recently been implemented in the Maltese educational system and lastly (iv) to make recommendations for Malta based on any relevant experiences learned from such EU member states. Design/Methodology?Approach: A mixed methodology was adopted to achieve such objectives. Quantitative data was gathered from international education databases primarily sourced from Eurostat statistics and related to the most recently published KPIs of the various countries. A standard performance metric was then created to evaluate different aspects of the education systems and the VFM of each system was assessed by a comparison of the overall performance of each education system against the respective real education expenditure per capita. Additionally, qualitative data was obtained from eleven interviews conducted with key stakeholders in Malta's education sector to identify recent value-adding initiatives and to explore how practices from the other four EU countries could be implemented in Malta. Findings: The findings indicated that, in terms of overall performance and in terms of VFM, the Maltese education system ranked last. While enjoying excellent results in terms of human resources, Malta performed particularly poorly in terms of educational attainment and participation in Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC). On a positive note, the standard performance metric identified areas in which the Maltese education system has made significant progress, these being adult education, transition from education to work and Early Leaving from Education and Training (ELET) rates. Originality/Value: Although the Maltese public authorities have implemented a number of value-adding initiatives aimed at reducing Malta’s ELET rates and addressing the educational spending inefficiency, there is as yet room for improvement as evidenced by the ranking established through this research. Furthermore, this paper sheds particular light on aspects that may necessitate change in the Maltese education system for it to achieve spending efficiency and effectiveness within a small-state context.