Education is a crucial issue for the economic, cultural and social development of all countries. International empirical evidence has actually highlighted the close correlation between school learning and the economic growth of a country, reaffirming the value of education as a central development lever. INVALSI data, therefore, in addition with other data sources - such as the ones of the Ministry of Education and Merit - may be precious in order to know, better understand, and deepen school processes. INVALSI tests, in particular, provide both educational institutions and policy makers with a wide range of useful and important information to respond to different school needs.
This volume collects some research papers presented at the sixth edition of the Seminar "INVALSI data: a tool for research and teaching" (held in Rome from 25th to 28th November 2021) aimed to explore this topic.
As the Statistical Service, we hope that these examples of the use of INVALSI data, either alone or integrated with other databases, will reinforce the belief that a proper use of data can make an important and crucial contribution to decision-making processes and be a determining factor in making worthy and strong decisions.

Patrizia Falzetti, Technologist Director, is the Head of the INVALSI Area of the Evaluation Research, of the SISTAN Statistical Office and of the INVALSI Statistical Service which manages data acquisition, analysis and return about both national and international surveys on learning (OECD and IEA). She coordinates and manages the process about returning data and statistical analysis to every school and to the Ministry of Education and Merit.