- Summary
- Introduction
- Acknowledgements
- Indicators Part I: Population and School Enrollment
- Indicators Part II: Academic Performance
- Indicators Part III: Contexts for Learning
- Indicator 15: Gender Differences in Students' Attitudes Toward Reading
- Indicator 16: Gender Differences in Students' Attitudes Toward Mathematics
- Indicator 17: Gender Differences in Students' Attitudes Toward Science
- Indicator 18: Fourth-Grade Teachers' Strategies for Assisting Students Having Difficulty Reading
- Indicator 19: Teacher Collaboration in Mathematics Instruction
- Indicator 20: Teacher Professional Development in Mathematics
- Indicator 21: Teacher Professional Development in Science
- Indicator 22: Fourth-Grade Reading Teachers' Career Satisfaction
- Indicators Part IV: Expenditure for Education
- Indicators Part V: Education Returns: Educational Attainment and Income
- List of Tables
- List of Exhibit and Figures
- References
- Appendix A: The Education Systems of the G-20 Countries
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Indicator 19: Teacher Collaboration in Mathematics Instruction
G-20 Countries Included: Australia, Germany, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Republic of Korea, Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, United Kingdom (England and Northern Ireland), United States
At the fourth-grade level, the United States was the only reporting G-20 country in which a larger percentage of students had teachers who were very collaborative (49 percent) than who had teachers were only collaborative (40 percent) or sometimes collaborative (11 percent).
This indicator describes the extent to which fourth- and eighth-grade mathematics teachers collaborate on mathematics instruction. It is based on an index, Collaborate to Improve Teaching, formed using data from the TIMSS 2011 teacher questionnaire. The index places students into one of three categories (those having sometimes collaborative teachers, collaborative teachers, or very collaborative teachers) based on how often their teachers engaged in the various interactions described in "Definition and Methodology" below. The data in this indicator are from all three categories of this index.
At the fourth-grade level, the United States was the only partici-pating G-20 country in which a measurably larger percentage of students had teachers who were very collaborative (49 percent) than who had teachers who were only collaborative (40 percent) or sometimes collaborative (11 percent) (figure 19-1). In four countries (Australia, the Republic of Korea, Turkey, and the United Kingdom [England]), similar percentages of students had teachers who were very collaborative as had teachers who were collaborative. In the six remaining countries, higher percentages of students had teachers who were collaborative than had teachers in other categories, with the percentages ranging from 55 percent in the United Kingdom (Northern Ireland) to 74 percent in Saudi Arabia. Less than one-quarter of students in any of the participating G-20 countries had mathematics teachers who were only some-times collaborative, with the percentages ranging from 4 percent in the Republic of Korea to 23 percent in the United Kingdom (Northern Ireland). In the United States, 11 percent of students had teachers who were sometimes collaborative.
At the eighth-grade level, there were no countries in which higher percentages of students had teachers who were very collaborative than had other categories of teachers; instead, in all countries except the United States and Indonesia, higher percentages of students had teachers who were collaborative. In the United States and Indonesia, there were no measurable differences between the percentages of students who had teachers in the very collaborative and collaborative categories (39 and 40 percent, respectively, in the United States; 45 and 50 percent, respectively, in Indonesia) (figure 19-2). In all other countries, the percentage-point differences between the two categories were larger (reaching 62 percentage points in the Russian Federation). The percentages of eighth-grade students who had teachers who were only sometimes collaborative ranged from 4 percent in the Russian Federation to 31 percent in Italy, showing more variability than at the fourth grade. In the United States, 22 percent of students had teachers who were only sometimes collaborative.
Definitions and Methodologie
This indicator is based on an index formed using data from the TIMSS 2011 fourth- and eighth-grade teacher questionnaires, which were administered to the teachers of the students sampled for TIMSS. The teacher questionnaires were designed to obtain information about the classroom contexts for the teaching and learning of mathematics and science and about the implemented curriculum in these subjects. For each participating school, one teacher questionnaire that addressed both mathematics and science was administered to the classroom teacher of the sampled fourth-grade class, and separate versions of the questionnaire were administered to the mathematics teacher and the science teacher of the sampled eighth-grade class. It should be noted that the TIMSS 2011 teachers do not constitute representative samples of teachers. Rather, they are the teachers for nationally representative samples of fourth-grade and eighth-grade students. Thus, the teacher data presented in this indicator were analyzed at the student level.
To develop the Collaborate to Improve Teaching index, teachers were asked to indicate how often they interacted with other teachers to (a) discuss how to teach a particular topic; (b) collaborate in planning and preparing instructional materials; (c) share what I have learned about my teaching experiences; (d) visit another classroom to learn more about teaching; and (e) work together to try out new ideas. The index places teachers into one of three categories (very collaborative, collaborative, or sometimes collaborative) based on whether they answered that they daily or almost daily, 1–3 times per week, 2 or 3 times per month, or never or almost never engaged in the five interactions described above. (Note that the TIMSS international report uses slightly different language to describe these categories; this indicator draws on the language used in the international codebook and the IDE.)
In TIMSS 2011 at the fourth grade, countries were required to sample students in the grade that corresponded to the end of 4 years of formal schooling, providing that the mean age at the time of testing was at least 9.5 years. In TIMSS 2011 at the eighth grade, countries were required to sample students in the grade that corresponded to the end of 8 years of formal schooling, providing that the mean age at the time of testing was at least 13.5 years. As defined by TIMSS, the first year of formal schooling begins with the first year of primary school (ISCED97 level 1), which should mark the beginning of formal instruction in read-ing, writing, and mathematics. (Note that kindergarten is not counted.) For most countries, the target grades were fourth and eighth grades or their national equivalents.