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OECD finds middle school students' science performance flatlines since 2006

Xinhua, December 7, 2016 Adjust font size:

The performance of students in middle schools across the globe in science subjects has barely improved on average since 2006, according to a report from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

The OECD released its triennial Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) report with a global launch in London on Tuesday, where OECD Secretary General Angel Gurria told journalists that since 2006 "standards in science have flat-lined, with less than a quarter of countries (economies) improving their performance."

Singapore is the standout performer in science, with Japan, Estonia, Finland and Canada as the lead performers among OECD members.

But across the OECD, more than one in five students fall short of baseline proficiency in science. Gurria said that in some this was closer to one in two.

"They can't use basic or everyday scientific knowledge to identify a valid conclusion from a simple data set, an ability we expect from every citizen," said Gurria.

Disadvantaged students in OECD members are, on average, almost three times more likely to be low performers than advantaged students.

They also tend to spend 35 minutes per week less in regular science lessons, are twice as likely to have repeated a grade by the time they sit the PISA test, and almost three times more likely to be enrolled in a vocational rather than an academic track.

Gurria said: "From 2006 to 2015, no country or economy improved its performance in science and equity in education simultaneously. This is shocking."

The survey was carried out in 2015, with over half a million 15-year-olds taking the internationally agreed two-hour test covering science, mathematics, reading, collaborative problem-solving and financial literacy.

The findings are collated in the PISA 2015, with the two volumes of the report published on Tuesday covering performance in science. The final volumes, to be released next year, will focus on student well-being, social skills and financial literacy. Endit