The 2009 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA)* report has been released. The report examines the science of 15 year olds from 57 countries in math, science and reading. The main focus of PISA 2009 was reading. The survey also updated performance assessments in mathematics and science.
The Asian countries continue to do very well for several reason including tutoring; they have even turned tutors into rock stars earning millions of dollars. The results show that the focus on student achievement in sciences has had an impact in Asia.
The emphasis is on mastering processes, understanding concepts and functioning in various contexts within each assessment area. the PISA 2012 survey will return to mathematics as the major assessment area, PISA 2015 will focus on science.
Results for the Science portion (rank – country – mean score)(I am not listing all countries):
- 1 – Finland – 554
- 2 – Hong Kong – 549
- 3 – Japan – 539
- 4 – Korea – 538
- 5 – New Zealand – 532
- 6 – Canada – 529
- 7 – Estonia – 528
- 8 – Australia – 527
- 9 – Netherlands – 522
- 10 – Taiwan – 520
- 11 – Germany – 520
- 14 – United Kingdom – 514
- 21 – USA – 502 (up from 489 and 29th place in 2006)
- OECD average – 501
- 25 – France – 498
- 46 – Mexico – 416
- 49 – Brazil – 405
Results for the math portion (rank – country – mean score)(I am not listing all countries):
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