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Government of Alberta News Release

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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 1995. A third round of data collection is scheduled for 2003.

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.

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This announcement is available on the Internet at: http://www.learning.gov.ab.ca/news

More information about TIMMS is available at: http://timss.bc.edu/

For more information contact:
Dr. Lyle Oberg - Minister of Learning - (780) 427-2025
Randy Kilburn - Alberta Learning Communications - (780) 427-2285
To be connected toll free dial 310-0000

 

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.

 

 

1999 THIRD INTERNATIONAL MATHEMATICS AND
SCIENCE STUDY (TIMSS-99)

Results of the Mathematics Test

Results Significantly Higher than Canada's		Results as Good as Canada's		Results Significantly 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
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

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 53.
3. These are results as reported by TIMSS Canada and the numbers may vary due to the size and reliability of the sample.

 

1999 THIRD INTERNATIONAL MATHEMATICS AND
SCIENCE STUDY (TIMSS-99)

Results of the Science Test

Results Significantly Higher than Canada's		Results as Good as Canada's		Results Significantly 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
		Newfoundland	51	Macedonia	46
				Jordan	45
				Iran	45
				Indonesia	44
				Turkey	43
				Tunisia	43
				Chile	42
				Philippines	35
				Morocco	32
				South Africa	24

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 53.
3. These are results as reported by TIMSS Canada and the numbers may vary due to the size and reliability of the sample.

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