A r c h i v e d  I n f o r m a t i o n

A First Look at What We Can Learn From
High Performing School Districts:
An Analysis of TIMSS Data From the First in the World Consortium

August 1999

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Table of Contents

Title Page

• Acknowledgments

• Introduction

• What is the FiW Consortium?
  History and Description
  Goals and Objectives
  Plan of Action

• How Well Did the FiW Consortium Perform When Benchmarked Against an International Measure of Math and Science Achievement?
  Fourth-Grade Results
  Eighth-Grade Results
  Twelfth-Grade Results
  General Knowledge
  Advanced Math and Physics
  AP Calculus and AP Physics Results
  Summary
  

• Do Home Factors Explain the High Achievement of the FiW Consortium?
  

• What is the Context for Teaching and Learning Math in the FiW Consortium?
  Curriculum
  Instructional Topic Coverage
  Textbook Use and Topic Coverage
  Fourth Grade
  Eighth Grade
  Summary
  Classroom Instructional Practices
  Teachers' Reports on Class Activities
  Teachers' Reports on Classroom Organization
  Students' Reports on Classroom Organization and Class Activities
  Summary
  Teacher Engagement
  Teacher Involvement in School-related Activities Outside the School Day
  Frequency of Teacher Meetings
  Teacher Influence Over Key School Decisions
  Teacher Familiarity with Key Curriculum and Assessment Documents
  Summary
  Teaching Environment
  Summary

• What is the FiW Consortium Doing to Improve Math and Science?
  Teacher Learning Networks: Collaborative Learning Communities
  Teacher Network Grants
  Example of a FiW Teacher Learning Network: Analysis of FiW Physics Achievement
  Project Activities
  Initial Results
  Topics for Further Research Identified by the Physics Teachers' Learning Network
  Summary

• Summary and Conclusion
  

• Bibliography
  

• Endnotes
  
  

• Appendix A: Contact Information and Characteristics of First in the World Consortium Districts

  Exhibit A-1: List of First in the World Districts

  Exhibit A-2: First in the World District Characteristics

• Appendix B: FiW TIMSS Achievement Results

  Exhibit B-1: Distributions of Mathematics Achievement in the Fourth Grade(51K)

  Exhibit B-2: Distributions of Science Achievement in the Fourth Grade(51K)

  Exhibit B-3: Fourth-Grade Mathematics Performance, by Subtopic(13K)

  Exhibit B-4: Distributions of Mathematics Achievement in the Eighth Grade(73K)

  Exhibit B-5: Distributions of Science Achievement in the Eighth Grade(73K)

  Exhibit B-6: Eighth-Grade Mathematics Performance, by Subtopic(24K)

  Exhibit B-7: Distributions of General Mathematics Achievement in the Twelfth Grade(43K)

  Exhibit B-8: Distributions of General Science Achievement in the Twelfth Grade(43K)

  Exhibit B-9: Distributions of Advanced Mathematics Achievement in the Twelfth Grade(36K)

  Exhibit B-10: Distributions of Advanced Science (Physics) Achievement in the Twelfth Grade(36K)

  Exhibit B-11: Distributions of Advanced Mathematics Achievement for Twelfth-Grade FiW AP Students(36K)

  Exhibit B-12: Distributions of Advanced Science (Physics) Achievement for Twelfth-Grade FiW AP Students(36K)

List of Exhibits

Exhibit 1: Fourth-Grade Math Teachers' Reports on Instructional Topic Coverage

Exhibit 2: Eighth-Grade Math Teachers' Reports on Instructional Topic Coverage

Exhibit 3: Teachers' Reports on Use of Textbooks and Other Teaching Materials and Percent of Mathematics Teaching Time based on Textbook

Exhibit 4: Teachers' Reports on How Frequently Students Are Asked to Complete Specific Tasks

Exhibit 5: Teachers' Reports on Classroom Organization During Mathematics Lessons

Exhibit 6: Students' Reports on the Frequency of Math Class Activities

Exhibit 7: Teachers' Reports on Hours Spent Per Week on Activities Outside the Formal School Day

Exhibit 8: Teachers' Reports on the Frequency of Meetings with Other Teachers in Their Subject Area to Discuss and Plan Curriculum or Teaching Approaches

Exhibit 9: Teachers' Reports on Their Influence over School Decisions

Exhibit 10: Teachers' Reports on Their Familiarity with Key Curriculum Documents

Exhibit 11: Teachers' Reports on the Factors that Limit How They Teach Mathematics Class

Exhibit 12: First in the World Teacher Learning Networks

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[ Acknowledgments ]

This page last modified on December 13, 1999. (dtm)