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| Table 602.70. | Average science literacy scores of 15-year-old students and percentage attaining science literacy proficiency levels, by country or other education system: 2012 |
| [Standard errors appear in parentheses] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Country or other education system | Average science literacy score | Percentage attaining science literacy proficiency levels1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Below level 2 Level 1 |
At level 2 | At level 3 | At level 4 | At or above level 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total below level 2 | Below level 1 |
At level 1 | Total at or above level 5 |
At level 5 | At level 6 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| OECD average2 | 501 | (0.5) | 17.8 | (0.17) | 4.8 | (0.09) | 13.0 | (0.14) | 24.5 | (0.16) | 28.8 | (0.17) | 20.5 | (0.15) | 8.4 | (0.11) | 7.2 | (0.10) | 1.1 | (0.04) | ||||||||||
| Australia | 521 | (1.8) | 13.6 | (0.48) | 3.4 | (0.25) | 10.2 | (0.41) | 21.5 | (0.47) | 28.5 | (0.68) | 22.8 | (0.63) | 13.6 | (0.55) | 10.9 | (0.47) | 2.6 | (0.25) | ||||||||||
| Austria | 506 | (2.7) | 15.8 | (1.00) | 3.6 | (0.54) | 12.2 | (0.92) | 24.3 | (1.05) | 30.1 | (0.85) | 21.9 | (0.81) | 7.9 | (0.70) | 7.0 | (0.62) | 0.8 | (0.20) | ||||||||||
| Belgium | 505 | (2.2) | 17.7 | (0.86) | 5.9 | (0.53) | 11.8 | (0.58) | 21.5 | (0.63) | 28.7 | (0.71) | 23.0 | (0.66) | 9.1 | (0.43) | 8.1 | (0.42) | 0.9 | (0.16) | ||||||||||
| Canada | 525 | (1.9) | 10.4 | (0.47) | 2.4 | (0.24) | 8.0 | (0.38) | 21.0 | (0.65) | 32.0 | (0.54) | 25.3 | (0.58) | 11.3 | (0.55) | 9.5 | (0.47) | 1.8 | (0.20) | ||||||||||
| Chile | 445 | (2.9) | 34.5 | (1.58) | 8.1 | (0.80) | 26.3 | (1.11) | 34.6 | (1.06) | 22.4 | (0.96) | 7.5 | (0.60) | 1.0 | (0.15) | 1.0 | (0.15) | # | (†) | ||||||||||
| Czech Republic | 508 | (3.0) | 13.8 | (1.13) | 3.3 | (0.62) | 10.5 | (1.03) | 24.7 | (0.99) | 31.7 | (1.23) | 22.2 | (0.96) | 7.6 | (0.58) | 6.7 | (0.53) | 0.9 | (0.18) | ||||||||||
| Denmark | 498 | (2.7) | 16.7 | (0.97) | 4.7 | (0.55) | 12.0 | (0.69) | 25.7 | (0.80) | 31.3 | (0.90) | 19.6 | (0.79) | 6.8 | (0.70) | 6.1 | (0.67) | 0.7 | (0.17) | ||||||||||
| Estonia | 541 | (1.9) | 5.0 | (0.45) | 0.5 | (0.14) | 4.5 | (0.43) | 19.0 | (0.87) | 34.5 | (0.87) | 28.7 | (0.96) | 12.8 | (0.73) | 11.1 | (0.66) | 1.7 | (0.25) | ||||||||||
| Finland | 545 | (2.2) | 7.7 | (0.58) | 1.8 | (0.28) | 5.9 | (0.48) | 16.8 | (0.69) | 29.6 | (0.77) | 28.8 | (0.73) | 17.1 | (0.66) | 13.9 | (0.62) | 3.2 | (0.38) | ||||||||||
| France | 499 | (2.6) | 18.7 | (1.01) | 6.1 | (0.67) | 12.6 | (0.71) | 22.9 | (1.08) | 29.2 | (1.12) | 21.3 | (0.87) | 7.9 | (0.77) | 6.9 | (0.68) | 1.0 | (0.21) | ||||||||||
| Germany | 524 | (3.0) | 12.2 | (0.90) | 2.9 | (0.46) | 9.3 | (0.73) | 20.5 | (0.82) | 28.9 | (0.89) | 26.2 | (1.05) | 12.2 | (0.95) | 10.6 | (0.80) | 1.6 | (0.28) | ||||||||||
| Greece | 467 | (3.1) | 25.5 | (1.47) | 7.4 | (0.70) | 18.1 | (1.14) | 31.0 | (1.10) | 28.8 | (1.02) | 12.2 | (0.81) | 2.5 | (0.40) | 2.3 | (0.40) | ‡ | (†) | ||||||||||
| Hungary | 494 | (2.9) | 18.0 | (1.14) | 4.1 | (0.61) | 14.0 | (1.04) | 26.4 | (1.08) | 30.9 | (1.16) | 18.7 | (0.98) | 5.9 | (0.75) | 5.5 | (0.73) | 0.5 | ! | (0.18) | |||||||||
| Iceland | 478 | (2.1) | 24.0 | (0.78) | 8.0 | (0.56) | 16.0 | (0.72) | 27.5 | (0.87) | 27.2 | (0.86) | 16.2 | (0.74) | 5.2 | (0.61) | 4.6 | (0.60) | 0.6 | (0.17) | ||||||||||
| Ireland | 522 | (2.5) | 11.1 | (0.88) | 2.6 | (0.40) | 8.5 | (0.76) | 22.0 | (1.15) | 31.1 | (1.03) | 25.0 | (0.94) | 10.7 | (0.58) | 9.3 | (0.63) | 1.5 | (0.25) | ||||||||||
| Israel | 470 | (5.0) | 28.9 | (1.67) | 11.2 | (1.08) | 17.7 | (0.93) | 24.8 | (0.93) | 24.4 | (1.19) | 16.1 | (1.12) | 5.8 | (0.65) | 5.2 | (0.58) | 0.6 | ! | (0.22) | |||||||||
| Italy | 494 | (1.9) | 18.7 | (0.68) | 4.9 | (0.35) | 13.8 | (0.52) | 26.0 | (0.58) | 30.1 | (0.66) | 19.1 | (0.59) | 6.1 | (0.41) | 5.5 | (0.37) | 0.6 | (0.08) | ||||||||||
| Japan | 547 | (3.6) | 8.5 | (0.88) | 2.0 | (0.39) | 6.4 | (0.61) | 16.3 | (0.79) | 27.5 | (0.92) | 29.5 | (1.06) | 18.2 | (1.21) | 14.8 | (0.93) | 3.4 | (0.49) | ||||||||||
| Korea, Republic of | 538 | (3.7) | 6.6 | (0.77) | 1.2 | (0.25) | 5.5 | (0.60) | 18.0 | (1.02) | 33.6 | (1.11) | 30.1 | (1.24) | 11.7 | (1.13) | 10.6 | (0.93) | 1.1 | ! | (0.39) | |||||||||
| Luxembourg | 491 | (1.3) | 22.2 | (0.63) | 7.2 | (0.42) | 15.1 | (0.67) | 24.2 | (0.63) | 26.2 | (0.60) | 19.2 | (0.53) | 8.2 | (0.54) | 7.0 | (0.49) | 1.2 | (0.17) | ||||||||||
| Mexico | 415 | (1.3) | 47.0 | (0.81) | 12.6 | (0.52) | 34.4 | (0.58) | 37.0 | (0.59) | 13.8 | (0.52) | 2.1 | (0.16) | 0.1 | ! | (0.04) | 0.1 | ! | (0.04) | ‡ | (†) | ||||||||
| Netherlands | 522 | (3.5) | 13.1 | (1.12) | 3.1 | (0.53) | 10.1 | (0.83) | 20.1 | (1.35) | 29.1 | (1.28) | 25.8 | (1.24) | 11.8 | (1.06) | 10.5 | (0.98) | 1.3 | (0.28) | ||||||||||
| New Zealand | 516 | (2.1) | 16.3 | (0.86) | 4.7 | (0.39) | 11.6 | (0.76) | 21.7 | (0.94) | 26.4 | (0.95) | 22.3 | (0.85) | 13.4 | (0.69) | 10.7 | (0.62) | 2.7 | (0.25) | ||||||||||
| Norway | 495 | (3.1) | 19.6 | (1.10) | 6.0 | (0.63) | 13.6 | (0.71) | 24.8 | (0.80) | 28.9 | (0.91) | 19.0 | (0.79) | 7.5 | (0.57) | 6.4 | (0.56) | 1.1 | (0.24) | ||||||||||
| Poland | 526 | (3.1) | 9.0 | (0.75) | 1.3 | (0.32) | 7.7 | (0.70) | 22.5 | (0.98) | 33.1 | (0.92) | 24.5 | (0.96) | 10.8 | (1.01) | 9.1 | (0.76) | 1.7 | (0.35) | ||||||||||
| Portugal | 489 | (3.7) | 19.0 | (1.44) | 4.7 | (0.66) | 14.3 | (1.09) | 27.3 | (0.96) | 31.4 | (1.25) | 17.8 | (1.06) | 4.5 | (0.55) | 4.2 | (0.55) | 0.3 | ! | (0.11) | |||||||||
| Slovak Republic | 471 | (3.6) | 26.9 | (1.58) | 9.2 | (0.95) | 17.6 | (1.14) | 27.0 | (1.30) | 26.2 | (1.62) | 15.0 | (1.02) | 4.9 | (0.72) | 4.3 | (0.58) | 0.6 | ! | (0.25) | |||||||||
| Slovenia | 514 | (1.3) | 12.9 | (0.56) | 2.4 | (0.19) | 10.4 | (0.55) | 24.5 | (1.00) | 30.0 | (1.02) | 23.0 | (0.92) | 9.6 | (0.72) | 8.4 | (0.71) | 1.2 | (0.24) | ||||||||||
| Spain | 496 | (1.8) | 15.7 | (0.71) | 3.7 | (0.33) | 12.0 | (0.51) | 27.3 | (0.64) | 32.8 | (0.60) | 19.4 | (0.53) | 4.8 | (0.29) | 4.5 | (0.26) | 0.3 | (0.08) | ||||||||||
| Sweden | 485 | (3.0) | 22.2 | (1.11) | 7.3 | (0.62) | 15.0 | (0.80) | 26.2 | (0.84) | 28.0 | (0.84) | 17.2 | (0.77) | 6.3 | (0.50) | 5.6 | (0.45) | 0.7 | (0.14) | ||||||||||
| Switzerland | 515 | (2.7) | 12.8 | (0.72) | 3.0 | (0.31) | 9.8 | (0.62) | 22.8 | (0.82) | 31.3 | (0.74) | 23.7 | (0.86) | 9.3 | (0.77) | 8.3 | (0.70) | 1.0 | (0.22) | ||||||||||
| Turkey | 463 | (3.9) | 26.4 | (1.50) | 4.4 | (0.50) | 21.9 | (1.27) | 35.4 | (1.43) | 25.1 | (1.28) | 11.3 | (1.28) | 1.8 | (0.36) | 1.8 | (0.34) | ‡ | (†) | ||||||||||
| United Kingdom | 514 | (3.4) | 15.0 | (1.07) | 4.3 | (0.48) | 10.7 | (0.86) | 22.4 | (1.00) | 28.4 | (0.98) | 23.0 | (0.91) | 11.2 | (0.79) | 9.3 | (0.70) | 1.8 | (0.34) | ||||||||||
| United States | 497 | (3.8) | 18.1 | (1.33) | 4.2 | (0.54) | 14.0 | (1.08) | 26.7 | (1.08) | 28.9 | (1.07) | 18.8 | (1.07) | 7.5 | (0.74) | 6.3 | (0.64) | 1.1 | (0.20) | ||||||||||
| Non-OECD education systems | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Albania | 397 | (2.4) | 53.1 | (1.20) | 23.5 | (1.04) | 29.6 | (0.94) | 28.5 | (1.19) | 14.4 | (0.78) | 3.6 | (0.41) | 0.4 | ! | (0.13) | 0.4 | ! | (0.14) | ‡ | (†) | ||||||||
| Argentina | 406 | (3.9) | 50.9 | (2.21) | 19.8 | (1.39) | 31.0 | (1.46) | 31.1 | (1.33) | 14.8 | (1.20) | 3.0 | (0.43) | 0.2 | ! | (0.10) | 0.2 | ! | (0.10) | ‡ | (†) | ||||||||
| Brazil | 405 | (2.1) | 53.7 | (1.14) | 18.6 | (0.78) | 35.1 | (0.79) | 30.7 | (0.78) | 12.5 | (0.68) | 2.8 | (0.37) | 0.3 | ! | (0.10) | 0.3 | ! | (0.10) | ‡ | (†) | ||||||||
| Bulgaria | 446 | (4.8) | 36.9 | (2.02) | 14.4 | (1.34) | 22.5 | (1.15) | 26.3 | (1.07) | 22.5 | (1.09) | 11.2 | (0.84) | 3.1 | (0.58) | 2.8 | (0.50) | 0.3 | ! | (0.12) | |||||||||
| Chinese Taipei | 523 | (2.3) | 9.8 | (0.77) | 1.6 | (0.25) | 8.2 | (0.64) | 20.8 | (0.89) | 33.7 | (0.97) | 27.3 | (1.00) | 8.3 | (0.61) | 7.8 | (0.56) | 0.6 | (0.13) | ||||||||||
| Colombia | 399 | (3.1) | 56.2 | (1.61) | 19.8 | (1.36) | 36.3 | (1.10) | 30.8 | (1.08) | 11.0 | (0.83) | 1.9 | (0.25) | ‡ | (†) | ‡ | (†) | ‡ | (†) | ||||||||||
| Connecticut-USA3 | 521 | (5.7) | 13.5 | (1.70) | 3.3 | (0.82) | 10.2 | (1.36) | 21.4 | (1.58) | 29.4 | (1.69) | 22.8 | (1.46) | 12.9 | (1.34) | 10.7 | (1.13) | 2.2 | (0.60) | ||||||||||
| Costa Rica | 429 | (2.9) | 39.3 | (1.75) | 8.6 | (0.79) | 30.7 | (1.30) | 39.2 | (1.25) | 17.8 | (1.12) | 3.4 | (0.57) | 0.2 | ! | (0.10) | 0.2 | ! | (0.11) | ‡ | (†) | ||||||||
| Croatia | 491 | (3.1) | 17.3 | (0.93) | 3.2 | (0.38) | 14.0 | (0.74) | 29.1 | (0.99) | 31.4 | (1.19) | 17.6 | (1.16) | 4.6 | (0.79) | 4.3 | (0.75) | ‡ | (†) | ||||||||||
| Cyprus | 438 | (1.2) | 38.0 | (0.67) | 14.4 | (0.47) | 23.7 | (0.66) | 30.3 | (0.89) | 21.3 | (0.73) | 8.4 | (0.43) | 2.0 | (0.29) | 1.8 | (0.29) | 0.2 | ! | (0.08) | |||||||||
| Florida-USA3 | 485 | (6.4) | 21.3 | (2.15) | 5.1 | (0.96) | 16.1 | (1.61) | 28.4 | (1.61) | 28.2 | (2.00) | 16.6 | (1.64) | 5.5 | (1.05) | 4.9 | (1.01) | ‡ | (†) | ||||||||||
| Hong Kong-China | 555 | (2.6) | 5.6 | (0.62) | 1.2 | (0.23) | 4.4 | (0.52) | 13.0 | (0.72) | 29.8 | (1.06) | 34.9 | (0.99) | 16.7 | (1.05) | 14.9 | (0.91) | 1.8 | (0.36) | ||||||||||
| Indonesia | 382 | (3.8) | 66.6 | (2.20) | 24.7 | (1.96) | 41.9 | (1.42) | 26.3 | (1.54) | 6.5 | (1.02) | ‡ | (†) | ‡ | (†) | ‡ | (†) | ‡ | (†) | ||||||||||
| Jordan | 409 | (3.1) | 49.6 | (1.55) | 18.2 | (1.21) | 31.4 | (0.96) | 32.2 | (1.04) | 15.0 | (0.86) | 3.0 | (0.57) | ‡ | (†) | ‡ | (†) | ‡ | (†) | ||||||||||
| Kazakhstan | 425 | (3.0) | 41.9 | (1.83) | 11.3 | (0.99) | 30.7 | (1.49) | 36.8 | (1.16) | 17.8 | (1.19) | 3.3 | (0.45) | 0.2 | ! | (0.09) | 0.2 | ! | (0.09) | ‡ | (†) | ||||||||
| Latvia | 502 | (2.8) | 12.4 | (0.96) | 1.8 | (0.39) | 10.5 | (0.90) | 28.2 | (1.20) | 35.1 | (1.02) | 20.0 | (1.05) | 4.4 | (0.51) | 4.0 | (0.47) | 0.3 | ! | (0.13) | |||||||||
| Liechtenstein | 525 | (3.5) | 10.4 | (1.96) | ‡ | (†) | 9.6 | (1.94) | 22.0 | (3.94) | 30.8 | (3.79) | 26.7 | (2.58) | 10.1 | (1.80) | 9.1 | (1.47) | ‡ | (†) | ||||||||||
| Lithuania | 496 | (2.6) | 16.1 | (1.08) | 3.4 | (0.48) | 12.7 | (0.84) | 27.6 | (1.00) | 32.9 | (1.08) | 18.3 | (0.88) | 5.1 | (0.49) | 4.7 | (0.47) | 0.4 | (0.09) | ||||||||||
| Macao-China | 521 | (0.8) | 8.8 | (0.46) | 1.4 | (0.20) | 7.4 | (0.49) | 22.2 | (0.60) | 36.2 | (0.81) | 26.2 | (0.73) | 6.7 | (0.36) | 6.2 | (0.35) | 0.4 | (0.10) | ||||||||||
| Malaysia | 420 | (3.0) | 45.5 | (1.55) | 14.5 | (1.13) | 31.0 | (1.21) | 33.9 | (1.10) | 16.5 | (1.07) | 3.7 | (0.54) | 0.3 | ! | (0.12) | 0.3 | ! | (0.13) | ‡ | (†) | ||||||||
| Massachusetts-USA3 | 527 | (6.0) | 11.5 | (1.18) | 2.6 | (0.65) | 8.9 | (1.03) | 21.2 | (1.96) | 29.4 | (1.50) | 23.8 | (1.84) | 14.2 | (1.94) | 11.3 | (1.48) | 2.9 | (0.73) | ||||||||||
| Montenegro, Republic of | 410 | (1.1) | 50.7 | (0.72) | 18.7 | (0.74) | 32.0 | (0.98) | 29.7 | (0.94) | 15.4 | (0.76) | 3.8 | (0.47) | 0.4 | ! | (0.14) | 0.4 | ! | (0.14) | ‡ | (†) | ||||||||
| Peru | 373 | (3.6) | 68.5 | (1.95) | 31.5 | (1.61) | 37.0 | (1.26) | 23.5 | (1.29) | 7.0 | (0.85) | 1.0 | (0.28) | ‡ | (†) | ‡ | (†) | ‡ | (†) | ||||||||||
| Qatar | 384 | (0.7) | 62.6 | (0.53) | 34.6 | (0.38) | 28.0 | (0.58) | 19.6 | (0.71) | 11.2 | (0.39) | 5.1 | (0.40) | 1.5 | (0.12) | 1.3 | (0.11) | 0.1 | (0.04) | ||||||||||
| Romania | 439 | (3.3) | 37.3 | (1.64) | 8.7 | (0.77) | 28.7 | (1.32) | 34.6 | (1.23) | 21.0 | (1.12) | 6.2 | (0.77) | 0.9 | ! | (0.29) | 0.9 | (0.26) | ‡ | (†) | |||||||||
| Russian Federation | 486 | (2.9) | 18.8 | (1.15) | 3.6 | (0.39) | 15.1 | (0.96) | 30.1 | (1.08) | 31.2 | (0.89) | 15.7 | (0.98) | 4.3 | (0.59) | 3.9 | (0.51) | 0.3 | ! | (0.16) | |||||||||
| Serbia, Republic of | 445 | (3.4) | 35.0 | (1.81) | 10.3 | (0.99) | 24.7 | (1.15) | 32.4 | (1.21) | 22.8 | (1.06) | 8.1 | (0.63) | 1.7 | (0.36) | 1.6 | (0.35) | ‡ | (†) | ||||||||||
| Shanghai-China | 580 | (3.0) | 2.7 | (0.41) | 0.3 | ! | (0.11) | 2.4 | (0.36) | 10.0 | (0.86) | 24.6 | (0.87) | 35.5 | (1.11) | 27.2 | (1.32) | 23.0 | (1.09) | 4.2 | (0.57) | |||||||||
| Singapore | 551 | (1.5) | 9.6 | (0.51) | 2.2 | (0.27) | 7.4 | (0.48) | 16.7 | (0.73) | 24.0 | (0.73) | 27.0 | (0.87) | 22.7 | (0.81) | 16.9 | (0.94) | 5.8 | (0.41) | ||||||||||
| Thailand | 444 | (2.9) | 33.6 | (1.56) | 7.0 | (0.64) | 26.6 | (1.33) | 37.5 | (1.07) | 21.6 | (1.14) | 6.4 | (0.74) | 0.9 | (0.27) | 0.9 | ! | (0.27) | ‡ | (†) | |||||||||
| Tunisia | 398 | (3.5) | 55.3 | (1.87) | 21.3 | (1.45) | 34.0 | (1.07) | 31.1 | (1.36) | 11.7 | (1.00) | 1.8 | (0.49) | ‡ | (†) | ‡ | (†) | ‡ | (†) | ||||||||||
| United Arab Emirates | 448 | (2.8) | 35.2 | (1.30) | 11.3 | (0.76) | 23.8 | (0.99) | 29.9 | (0.83) | 22.3 | (0.88) | 10.1 | (0.60) | 2.5 | (0.27) | 2.3 | (0.25) | 0.3 | (0.07) | ||||||||||
| Uruguay | 416 | (2.8) | 46.9 | (1.25) | 19.7 | (1.06) | 27.2 | (0.92) | 29.3 | (1.00) | 17.1 | (0.95) | 5.6 | (0.53) | 1.0 | (0.25) | 1.0 | (0.24) | ‡ | (†) | ||||||||||
| Vietnam | 528 | (4.3) | 6.7 | (1.09) | 0.9 | ! | (0.26) | 5.8 | (0.90) | 20.7 | (1.40) | 37.5 | (1.48) | 27.0 | (1.50) | 8.1 | (1.09) | 7.1 | (0.90) | 1.0 | ! | (0.32) | ||||||||
| †Not applicable. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| #Rounds to zero. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| !Interpret data with caution. The coefficient of variation (CV) for this estimate is between 30 and 50 percent. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ‡Reporting standards not met. Either there are too few cases for a reliable estimate or the coefficient of variation (CV) is 50 percent or greater. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1 To reach a particular proficiency level, a student must correctly answer a majority of items at that level. Students were classified into science literacy levels according to their scores. Exact cut scores are as follows: below level 1 (a score less than or equal to 334.94); level 1 (a score greater than 334.94 and less than or equal to 409.54); level 2 (a score greater than 409.54 and less than or equal to 484.14); level 3 (a score greater than 484.14 and less than or equal to 558.73); level 4 (a score greater than 558.73 and less than or equal to 633.33); level 5 (a score greater than 633.33 and less than or equal to 707.93); and level 6 (a score greater than 707.93). | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2 Refers to the mean of the data values for all Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries, to which each country contributes equally, regardless of the absolute size of the student population of each country. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 3 Results are for public school students only. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| NOTE: Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) scores are reported on a scale from 0 to 1,000. Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SOURCE: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), Program for International Student Assessment (PISA), 2012. (This table was prepared November 2013.) |