Open data, or data sharing practices would mean that research data is incorporated into the permanent scientific record by releasing it under an open access license. Data can be shared at different levels of access and availability based on defined conditions in purpose-built data repositories or as supporting information alongside published articles. Education research has been for a long time (over)represented by (mostly) quantitative data databases collected by large-scale assessments and curated (documented) by IEA and OECD that are perused by researchers and other professionals. These uses provide an opportunity to assess challenges with using educational data by people outside education as well as education researchers analyzing data with less-than-ideal knowledge of the data context (framework, technical details on the data collection) and/or methodology used for establishing the scores and scales. It is worth stressing that large-scale assessments have only limited coverage when it comes to education research. EERA Networks vary a lot in how they view and relate to the growing open data demands. The contribution will review the main challenges and risks, including the GDPR, IP, and touch on opportunities and needs in recreating the focus of the research work from output to process.

Wagemaker, H. (Ed.). (2020). Reliability and validity of international large scale assessment: Understanding IEA’s comparative studies of student achievement. SPRINGER Cham.