FOR RELEASE Contact: David Thomas November 20, 1996 (202) 401-1576
Pursuing Excellence: A Study of U.S. Eighth Grade Mathematics and Science Teaching, Learning, Curriculum and Achievement in International Context, released today by the U.S. Education Department's National Center for Education Statistics, reports U.S. scores in both math and science as not significantly different from those of England or Germany. In science, among participating G 7 countries -- America's major economic and political allies -- only Japan scored significantly higher than the U.S. [G 7 countries include the United Kingdom, Canada, France, Germany, Japan and Italy. Italy did not participate in the test.]
Overall, American students are above average in life sciences and environmental issues, average in fractions, algebra and physics, but struggle with measurement and geometry.
"If we see the news in the report as simply a horse race story of who finished first and who finished second we miss the point," said U.S. Secretary of Education Richard W. Riley. "The issues are much deeper -- the content and rigor of what we are teaching -- how we go about teaching -- the fact that we continue to shortchange America's teachers by not giving them the preparation and help they need to do the best job possible in the classroom. One of the clear messages of this report is that we need to take a good, hard look at what we teach and how we teach math."
Among the findings drawn from the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS):
The international comparison suggests a general improvement in U.S. science from a 1991 assessment that placed American students below average, though the tests and the set of participating nations have changed. U.S. mathematics performance, however, remains slightly below the international average.
"Our own National Assessments of Educational Progress show our students have improved in math since the early 80s," Riley said, "but it appears students in other nations are moving up, too. For U.S. students, average is just not good enough."
Riley said states and local school districts should review and toughen their academic standards, and cited materials prepared by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics as an example of how to improve the teaching of math.
According to the report, U.S. teachers are generally familiar with the tougher standards suggested by the council, but it appears that other nations, notably Japan, are doing a better job of actually teaching tougher material. Based on videotapes of actual classroom instruction, the researchers found that U.S. math classes still largely focus on how to solve problems, while Japanese teachers do a much better job at helping students understand the concepts behind the solutions.
Riley said the department will sponsor a series of regional and state workshops on the results of the study, with an emphasis on successful practices that illustrate more rigorous content and teaching methods. Riley also said the department will prepare and send a summary of the report to business and education leaders and the nation's local PTA chapters. The department also will work with communities and states, as well as the National Science Foundation, the National Academy of Sciences, and the nation's math and science teachers to share what works to boost achievement.
The study found that common culprits such as television watching and lack of time devoted to study could not account for the below average U.S. math scores. Heavy TV watching was found to be about as common in Japan -- one of the highest scorers -- and U.S. students actually spend more classroom time on math and science than students in both Japan and Germany.
"The data appear to be telling us that we need to examine what's actually going on in the school and the classroom," Riley said. "We have bright, dedicated, well educated teachers, but compared to Japan and Germany, they get little practical training or mentoring, and little opportunity to work closely with other teachers to improve teaching."
Riley said colleges and universities should examine how teachers are prepared and suggested that guidelines from the National Commission on Teaching and America's Future be considered as a "blueprint" of how to proceed. The commission has called for high standards, more opportunities for apprenticeships, mentoring by master teachers and work schedules that permit ongoing professional development.
Riley also stressed that improving how we train teachers "will be of little use if teachers are forced to teach using textbooks that are outdated, lack focus, and do not reflect the tougher standards."
"Every student should enter middle school and junior high school with a firm grasp of arithmetic," Riley said, "but clearly employers want problem solvers, people who have mastered the basics and can apply that knowledge to new situations. Our math curriculum in middle schools and junior high schools lacks focus and too much class time is spent memorizing formulas at the expense of understanding useful concepts.
"Many of our students have not even been exposed to the material on this test, for example basic geometry and physics, by the eighth grade. Rather, they see the same content over and over again, year after year. It's time to re examine what we ask of students and raise the bar -- do away with dead end, general math classes. We can do better."
Other findings in the TIMSS report include:
Additional TIMSS reports, examining the math and science achievement of fourth and 12 grade students, are being prepared. In all, nearly 500,000 students participated in TIMSS -- 40,000 in the U.S.
The report is available on the department's web site at http://nces.ed.gov/timss. Printed copies are available while they last from the National Library of Education at 1/800/424/1616 (in D.C., 219/1651). The report also will be available from the U.S. Government Printing Office.