Fourth Grade:

• No measurable change was detected in the average mathematics achievement of U.S. fourth-grade boys or girls between 1995 and 2003 (figure 1). Nonetheless, U.S. boys outperformed girls in mathematics in 2003 which differs from 1995 when no measurable difference was detected.^3,4

• Fourth-grade boys and girls in six of the 14 other countries showed an improvement in average mathematics achievement: Cyprus, England, Hong Kong SAR, Latvia-LSS, New Zealand, and Slovenia (see table C7 in appendix C).

• Black fourth-grade students in the United States demonstrated an improvement in average mathematics achievement between 1995 and 2003 (figure 1 and table C8 in appendix C). In 1995, U.S. Black fourth-graders scored 457 in mathematics, on average, compared to 472 in 2003. As a result, over these 8 years, the gap in average scores between White and Black fourth-grade students narrowed, from 84 score points in 1995 to 69 score points in 2003.⁵ White and Hispanic fourth-graders showed no measurable change in their average mathematics scores over this time period.

• In 2003, U.S. fourth-graders in U.S. public schools with the highest poverty level (75 percent or more of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch) had lower average mathematics scores compared to their counterparts in public schools with lower poverty levels (figure 1. Fourth-graders in public schools with the lowest poverty level (10 percent or less eligible students) had higher average mathematics scores than students in schools with higher poverty levels. The difference in the average mathematics scores of students in schools with the lowest and highest poverty levels was 96 score points in 2003.⁶

• In 2003, U.S. eighth-grade boys and girls both showed improvement in mathematics compared to 1995 (figure 2 and table C10 in appendix C). U.S. eighth-grade boys outperformed girls in 2003.⁷ In 2003, U.S. eighth-grade boys' average score in mathematics was 507. This is 12 score points higher than in 1995, when U.S. boys scored 495. U.S. girls' average mathematics score was 502 in 2003. This is also 12 score points higher than in 1995, when U.S. girls scored 490.

• The United States is one of five countries in which both eighth-grade boys and girls improved their average mathematics performance in 2003 over previous assessment years (see table C10 in appendix C). In addition to the United States, both eighth-grade boys and girls improved their average mathematics performance in Israel, Lithuania, Morocco, and the Philippines.

• Both Black and Hispanic eighth-grade students in the United States demonstrated improvement in mathematics achievement between 1995 and 2003 (figure 2 and table C11 in appendix C). In 1995, U.S. Black eighth-grade students scored 419 in mathematics, on average. This improved to 448, on average, in 2003. Likewise, in 1995, U.S. Hispanic eighth-grade students scored 443 in mathematics, on average, improving to an average score of 465 in 2003.

• As a result of the improvement in the average mathematics achievement of Black eighth-grade students between 1995 and 2003, the gap in average scores between White and Black eighth-grade students narrowed, from 97 score points in 1995 to 77 score points in 2003 (figure 2).⁸ Although Hispanic eighth-grade students showed improvement in their mathematics performance between 1995 and 2003, there was no measurable change detected in the gap in average scores between White and Hispanic eighth-grade students.

• In 2003, U.S. eighth-graders in U.S. public schools with the highest poverty level (75 percent or more of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch) had lower average mathematics scores compared to their counterparts in public schools with lower poverty levels (figure 2).⁸ In contrast, students in schools with the lowest level (10 percent or less eligible students) had higher average mathematics scores than students in schools with poverty levels of 25 percent or more eligible. The difference in the average mathematics scores of students in schools with the lowest and highest poverty levels was 103 score points in 2003.⁹

• As was the case in the aggregate, results by poverty level showed no measurable change in average mathematics achievement between 1999 and 2003, the two years for which data are available (figure 2 and table C11 in appendix C).

Footnotes

³ The effect size of the difference between two means can be calculated by dividing the raw difference in means by the pooled standard deviation of the comparison groups (see appendix A for an explanation). The effect size of the difference in mathematics achievement between U.S. boys and girls in 2003 is .11 (see table C21 for standard deviations of U.S. student population groups).
⁴ See NCES (1997) for details on U.S. fourth grade results for TIMSS 1995.
⁵ The effect sizes of the differences in mathematics achievement between White and Black and between White and Hispanic fourth-graders in 2003 are 1.07 and .73, respectively (see table C21 for standard deviations of U.S. student population groups).
⁶ The effect size of the difference in mathematics achievement between fourth graders in public schools with the lowest and highest levels of poverty in 2003 is 1.55 (see table C21 for standard deviations of U.S. student population groups).
⁷ The effect size of the difference in mathematics achievement between U.S. eighth-grade boys and girls in 2003 is .07 (see table C21 for standard deviations of U.S. student population groups).
⁸ The effect sizes of the differences in mathematics achievement between White and Black and between White and Hispanic eighth-graders in 2003 are 1.11 and .83, respectively (see table C21 for standard deviations of U.S. student population groups).
⁹ The effect size of the difference in mathematics achievement between eighth graders in public schools with the lowest and highest levels of poverty in 2003 is 1.57 (see table C21 for standard deviations of U.S. student population groups).