Educational Statistics tells us...

What do the educational statistics tell us about education in the United States? Well, let's look!

The Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) is a system of international assessments that measures 15-year-olds' performance in reading literacy, mathematics literacy, and science literacy every 3 years. PISA was first implemented in 2000. PISA is sponsored by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), an intergovernmental organization of 30 member countries. In 2006, fifty-seven jurisdictions participated in PISA, including 30 OECD countries referred to throughout as jurisdictions and 27 non- OECD jurisdictions.

Let's look at some of the current statistics.

Total Math Literacy: OECD Average is 500

Finland 544
Japan 534
Canada 532
Netherlands 538
United States 483
Italy 466
Mexico 385

Total Problem Solving Literacy: OECD Average is 500

Finland 548
Japan 547
Canada 529
Netherlands 520
United States 477
Italy 470
Mexico 384

Total Science Literacy: OECD Average is 500

Finland 548
Japan 548
Canada 519
Netherlands 524
United States 491
Italy 486

The U.S does better in reading literacy, as the OECD Average is 494 and the U.S total score is 495. So, how are we doing, as a whole, compared to the last batch of data?

If we look at the mathematics literacy as our benchmark, in 2006, the average U.S. score in mathematics literacy was 474 on a scale from 0 to 1,000, lower than the OECD average score of 498. Thirty-one jurisdictions had a higher average score than the United States in mathematics literacy in 2006 compared with twenty-five currently. The results are better, but not much.

Peg Tyre, of Newsweek, writes:

"There's been a lot of hand wringing about how the United States is falling behind in science education. Now, it looks as though America may be losing its edge in reading and literacy, too. Six years after No Child Left Behind was signed into law—and U.S. schools began throwing resources into teaching all kinds of kids to read and read well—fourth-graders in the United States are doing no better in reading than they were in 2001, according to the results of an international reading test released this week. "

She goes even deeper, revealing:

"Fourth-grade students from 10 countries and jurisdictions—including Russia, Hong Kong, Singapore, Italy, Sweden and Canada—did better than American kids, according to the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) released by Boston College. In 2001 only three countries did better than U.S. kids in reading. Here's what's puzzling: If you believe the numbers the U.S. Department of Education churns out, the reading scores of American fourth-graders should be rising. According to the most recent National Assessment of Educational Progress scores, known as the Nation’s Report Card, fourth-grade reading scores have improved—and not just a little. Between 2001 and 2007, according to the Department of Education, reading scores for fourth-graders jumped eight points, from 213 to 221. Eighth-grade reading scores have remained flat."

Her answer:

"So why are American kids falling behind internationally? Maybe because schools can't do everything. According to a report released last week by the National Endowment for the Arts, 60 percent of 8-to-10-year-olds report reading less than 30 minutes a day for pleasure. Almost 40 percent read less than five minutes a day. At the same time, the governments in Hong Kong and Singapore, which leapfrogged over the United States' test scores between 2001 and 2007, have launched massive public awareness campaigns touting the importance of reading in school and at home."

Schools can't do it all, nor should they. We, in America, had fallen into this idea that quantity is everything. There are a lot of good things to do in a school, but the question is what is best? Blessings!