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Table 1. Average mathematics scores of fourth- and eighth-grade students, by country: 2007

Grade four Grade eight
Country Average score Country Average score
TIMSS scale average 500 TIMSS scale average 500
Hong Kong SAR1 607 Chinese Taipei 598
Singapore 599 Korea, Rep. of 597
Chinese Taipei 576 Singapore 593
Japan 568 Hong Kong SAR1, 4 572
Kazakhstan2 549 Japan 570
Russian Federation 544 Hungary 517
England 541 England4 513
Latvia2 537 Russian Federation 512
Netherlands3 535 United States4, 5 508
Lithuania2 530 Lithuania2 506
United States4, 5 529 Czech Republic 504
Germany 525 Slovenia 501
Denmark4 523 Armenia 499
Australia 516 Australia 496
Hungary 510 Sweden 491
Italy 507 Malta 488
Austria 505 Scotland4 487
Sweden 503 Serbia2, 5 486
Slovenia 502 Italy 480
Armenia 500 Malaysia 474
Slovak Republic 496 Norway 469
Scotland4 494 Cyprus 465
New Zealand 492 Bulgaria 464
Czech Republic 486 Israel7 463
Norway 473 Ukraine 462
Ukraine 469 Romania 461
Georgia2 438 Bosnia and Herzegovina 456
Iran, Islamic Rep. of 402 Lebanon 449
Algeria 378 Thailand 441
Colombia 355 Turkey 432
Morocco 341 Jordan 427
El Salvador 330 Tunisia 420
Tunisia 327 Georgia2 410
Kuwait6 316 Iran, Islamic Rep. of 403
Qatar 296 Bahrain 398
Yemen 224 Indonesia 397
   Syrian Arab Republic 395
   Egypt 391
   Algeria 387
   Colombia 380
   Oman 372
   Palestinian Nat'l Auth. 367
   Botswana 364
   Kuwait6 354
   El Salvador 340
   Saudi Arabia 329
   Ghana 309
   Qatar 307

Color swatch indicating that average score is higher than the U.S. average score (p < .05) Average score is higher than the U.S. average score (p < .05)
Color swatch indicating that average score is not measurably different from the U.S. average score (p < .05) Average score is not measurably different from the U.S. average score (p < .05)
Color swatch indicating that average score is lower than the U.S. average score (p < .05) Average score is lower than the U.S. average score (p < .05)
1 Hong Kong is a Special Administrative Region (SAR) of the People's Republic of China.
2 National Target Population does not include all of the International Target Population defined by the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS).
3 Nearly satisfied guidelines for sample participation rates only after substitute schools were included.
4 Met guidelines for sample participation rates only after substitute schools were included.
5 National Defined Population covers 90 percent to 95 percent of National Target Population.
6 Kuwait tested the same cohort of students as other countries, but later in 2007, at the beginning of the next school year.
7 National Defined Population covers less than 90 percent of National Target Population (but at least 77 percent).
NOTE: Countries are ordered by 2007 average score. The tests for significance take into account the standard error for the reported difference. Thus, a small difference between the United States and one country may be significant while a large difference between the United States and another country may not be significant. The standard errors of the estimates are shown in tables E-1 and E-2 available at http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2009001.
SOURCE: International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA), Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS), 2007.