Alberta's students continue to shine on international stage

Transcription

1 Government of Alberta News Release December 5, 2000 "Alberta students have attained world-class results that are consistent with Alberta's high standards." Learning Minister, Dr. Lyle Oberg Alberta's students continue to shine on international stage Edmonton...Alberta's Grade 8 students are among the best in the world, which has been verified in the largest global study of comparative educational achievement in science and mathematics. Results from the 1999 Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS-99) shows Alberta's results in science are in the top handful around the globe. No other country scored significantly higher than Alberta. Our province's students ranked alongside Taiwan and Singapore. In math, only six countries and the province of Quebec scored significantly higher than Alberta. Those countries are Singapore, Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Japan and Belgium (Flemish). "The exceptional quality of Alberta's education system is demonstrated by these international tests and the excellent results achieved by our students," says Learning Minister Dr. Lyle Oberg. "We expect a lot from our students, and thanks to their hard work, and strong dedication and commitment from Alberta's teachers, they continue to meet and exceed these high expectations." The 1999 results are similar to the results Alberta students achieved in the 1995 TIMSS in both science and mathematics. More than 1,200 students from 55 schools across the province participated in the 1999 study. Alberta along with British Columbia, Ontario, Quebec and Newfoundland had samples large enough to enable each province to report separate results, as did the participating countries. A total of 8,770 Grade 8 students from across Canada took part in these tests. Students in equivalent grades from 37 other countries also participated in the study. TIMSS data was first collected in 1995 for Grades 3, 4, 7, 8 and 12. The 1999 study was designed for Grade 8 students only, as they had been tested as Grade 4 students in A third round of data collection is scheduled for In addition to the test results, the study gathered information about curriculum and instruction in participating schools. This information will be shared with schools across the province and will allow Alberta to maintain its status as having one of the best educational systems in the world. This announcement is available on the Internet at: More information about TIMMS is available at: For more information contact: Dr. Lyle Oberg - Minister of Learning - (780) Randy Kilburn - Alberta Learning Communications - (780) To be connected toll free dial

2 Backgrounder Third International Mathematics and Science Study, 1999 (TIMSS-99) TIMSS is conducted under the auspices of the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement. Thirty-eight countries participated in the 1999 study. Twenty-six of these countries had participated in TIMSS-95, which included students in Grades 3 or 4 and Grade 12, as well as in Grade 7 and 8. The tests reflect international expert input and have been endorsed by all participating countries. Both multiple-choice items and items requiring students to construct responses were included. The science test covered six content areas: earth science, life science, physics, chemistry, environmental and resource issues, and scientific inquiry. The mathematics test covered five content areas: fractions and number sense; geometry; algebra; data representation, analysis and probability; and measurement. The study also collected questionnaire data. Students answered questions on attitudes towards math and science, parental expectations, and activities in class and out of school. Teachers answered questions on their preparation, instructional practices, textbook use, and views on current issues in math and science education. School principals answered questions about school characteristics, resources, and course offerings. All test materials were developed in English and translated by participants into other languages. Translation of the test items and all of the questionnaires into the appropriate language for each country was supervised and verified centrally. A quality control program helped ensure that the data were gathered from representative samples from comparable populations of students, that the instruments were unbiased, and that the data collection and data processing standards were of the highest quality. Statistics Canada selected a nationally representative sample of Canadian schools and classrooms. The sample included public, separate, and private schools, French-speaking as well as English. Five provinces chose to over-sample so that comparisons could be made at the provincial level THIRD INTERNATIONAL MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE STUDY (TIMSS-99) Results of the Mathematics Test Higher than Canada's Results as Good as Canada's Lower than Canada's Country Mean Country Mean Country Mean Singapore 60 Netherlands 54 Finland 52 Korea 59 Slovak Republic 53 Czech Republic 52 Taiwan 59 Alberta 53 Ontario 52

3 Hong Kong 58 Hungary 53 Bulgaria 51 Japan 58 CANADA 53 Latvia (LSS) 51 Québec 57 Slovenia 53 United States 50 Belgium (Flemish) 56 Russia 53 Newfoundland 50 Australia 53 England 50 British Columbia 52 New Zealand 49 Malaysia 52 Lithuania 48 Italy 48 Cyprus 48 Romania 47 Thailand 47 Moldova 47 Israel 47 Tunisia 45 Macedonia 45 Jordan 43 Turkey 43 Iran 42 Indonesia 40 Chile 39 Philippines 35 Morocco 34 South Africa 28

4 Notes: 1. The numbers shown in this display have been rounded and should not be used for determining significance levels. 2. Results are scale scores. The international mean scale score across all countries was 49. Canada's mean was These are results as reported by TIMSS Canada and the numbers may vary due to the size and reliability of the sample THIRD INTERNATIONAL MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE STUDY (TIMSS-99) Results of the Science Test Higher than Canada's Results as Good as Canada's Lower than Canada's Country Mean Country Mean Country Mean Taiwan 57 Netherlands 54 Bulgaria 52 Singapore 56 British Columbia 54 Ontario 52 Alberta 56 Australia 54 United States 51 Hungary 55 Québec 54 New Zealand 51 Japan 55 Czech Republic 54 Latvia 50 Korea 55 England 54 Italy 49 Finland 54 Malaysia 49 Slovak Republic 54 Lithuania 49 Belgium (Flemish) 53 Thailand 49 Slovenia 53 Romania 47 CANADA 53 Israel 47 Hong Kong 53 Cyprus 46 Russia 52 Moldova 46

5 Newfoundland 51 Macedonia 46 Notes: Jordan 45 Iran 45 Indonesia 44 Turkey 43 Tunisia 43 Chile 42 Philippines 35 Morocco 32 South Africa The numbers shown in this display have been rounded and should not be used for determining significance levels. 2. Results are scale scores. The international mean scale score across all countries was 49. Canada's mean was These are results as reported by TIMSS Canada and the numbers may vary due to the size and reliability of the sample. Alberta Index Dept Index Learning Home Page News Releases Top of Page Comments regarding presentation should be forwarded Technical and service related questions should be forwarded Copyright(c); 2000 Government of Alberta Return to Government Home Page