Average TIMSS science scores of eighth-grade students, by jurisdiction: 1995, 1999, 2003, and 2007

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Table B.1.26b.

Average TIMSS science scores of eighth-grade students, by jurisdiction: 1995, 1999, 2003, and 2007

Jurisdiction	1995					1999					2003					2007
Jurisdiction	Average score			s.e.		Average score			s.e.		Average score			s.e.		Average score			s.e.
TIMSS scale average		500		0.0	▼		500		0.0	▼		500		0.0	▼		500		0.0	▼

Algeria		—		†			—		†			—		†			408		1.7	▼
Argentina		(1)		†			—		†			—		†			—		†
Armenia		—		†			—		†			461		3.5	▼		488		5.8	▼
Australia		514		3.9			540	³	4.4	∆		527		3.8			515		3.6
Austria		539	⁴	3.8	∆		—		†			—		†			—		†

Bahrain		—		†			—		†			438		1.8	▼		467		1.7	▼
Belgium (Flemish)		533	⁵	6.4	∆		535	⁵	3.1	∆		516		2.5	▼		—		†
Belgium (French)		466	⁴	3.8	▼		—		†			—		†			—		†
Bosnia and Herzegovina		—		†			—		†			—		†			466		2.8	▼
Botswana		—		†			—		†			365		2.8	▼		355		3.1	▼

Bulgaria		545	⁴	5.2	∆		518		5.4			479		5.2	▼		470	⁶	5.9	▼
Canada		514		2.6			533		2.1	∆		—		†			—		†
Chile		—		†			420		3.7	▼		413		2.9	▼		—		†
Chinese Taipei		—		†			569		4.4	∆		571		3.5	∆		561		3.7	∆
Colombia		365		6.2	▼		—		†			—		†			417		3.5	▼

Cyprus		452		2.1	▼		460		2.4	▼		441		2.0	▼		452		2.0	▼
Czech Republic		555		4.5	∆		539		4.2	∆		—		†			539		1.9	∆
Denmark		(7)		†			—		†			—		†			—		†
Egypt		—		†			—		†			421		3.9	▼		408		3.6	▼
El Salvador		—		†			—		†			—		†			387		2.9	▼

England		533	^5,8	†	∆		538	⁵	4.8	∆		(9)		†			542	⁵	4.5	∆
Estonia		—		†			—		†			552		2.5	∆		—		†
Finland		—		†			535		3.5	∆		—		†			—		†
France		488		3.2	▼		—		†			—		†			—		†
Georgia		—		†			—		†			—		†			421	¹⁰	4.8	▼

Germany		518	^4,5,10	5.5			—		†			—		†			—		†
Ghana		—		†			—		†			255		5.9	▼		303		5.4	▼
Greece		(7)		†			—		†			—		†			—		†
Hong Kong SAR¹¹		510		5.8			530	⁵	3.7	∆		556	^5,12	3.0	∆		530	⁵	4.9
Hungary		537		3.1	∆		552		3.7	∆		543		2.8	∆		539		2.9	∆

Iceland		484		5.8	▼		—		†			—		†			—		†
Indonesia		(1)		†			435		4.5	▼		420	¹⁰	4.1	▼		427		3.4	▼
Iran, Islamic Republic of		463		3.6	▼		448		3.8	▼		453	¹²	2.3	▼		459		3.6	▼
Ireland		518		5.1			—		†			—		†			—		†
Israel		(13)		†			468	⁸	4.9	▼		488	⁸	3.1	▼		468	⁸	4.3	▼

Italy		(1)		†			493	¹²	3.9	▼		491		3.1	▼		495		2.8	▼
Japan		554		1.8	∆		550		2.2	∆		552		1.7	∆		554		1.9	∆
Jordan		—		†			450		3.8	▼		475		3.8	▼		482		4.0	▼
Korea, Republic of		546		2.0	∆		549		2.6	∆		558	¹⁴	1.6	∆		553		2.0	∆
Kuwait		(13)		†	▼		—		†			—		†			418	¹⁴	2.8	▼

Latvia (LSS)¹⁵		476	¹⁰	3.3	▼		503	¹⁰	4.8			513		2.9	▼		—		†
Lebanon		—		†			—		†			393		4.3	▼		414		5.9	▼
Lithuania		464	^10,12	4.0	▼		488	^10,14	4.1	▼		519	¹⁰	2.1	▼		519	¹⁰	2.6
Macedonia, Republic of		—		†			458		5.2	▼		449	⁸	3.6	▼		—		†
Malaysia		—		†			492		4.4	▼		510		3.7	▼		471		6.0	▼

Malta		—		†			—		†			—		†			457		1.4	▼
Mexico		(16)		†			—		†			—		†			—		†
Moldova, Republic of		—		†			459		4.0	▼		472		3.4	▼		—		†
Morocco		—		†			323		4.3	▼		396	^2,6,10	2.5			(17)		†
Netherlands		541	⁹	6.0	∆		545	⁵	6.9	∆		536	⁵	3.1			—		†

New Zealand		511		4.9			510		4.9			520		5.0			—		†
Norway		514		2.4			—		†			494		2.2	▼		487		2.2	▼
Oman		—		†			—		†			—		†			423		3.0	▼
Palestinian National Authority		—		†			—		†			435		3.2	▼		404		3.5	▼
Philippines		(18)		†			345		7.5	▼		377		5.8	▼		—		†

Portugal		473		3.1	▼		—		†			—		†			—		†
Qatar		—		†			—		†			—		†			319		1.7	▼
Romania		471		5.1	▼		472		5.8	▼		470		4.9	▼		462		3.9	▼
Russian Federation		523	¹²	4.5			529		6.4			514		3.7	▼		530		3.9	∆
Saudi Arabia		—		†			—		†			398		4.0	▼		403	⁶	2.4	▼

Scotland		501	²	5.6			—		†			512	⁵	3.4	▼		496	⁵	3.4	▼
Serbia		—		†			—		†			468	¹⁰	2.5	▼		470	^10,12	3.2	▼
Singapore		580		5.5	∆		568		8.0	∆		578		4.3	∆		567		4.4	∆
Slovak Republic		532		3.3	∆		535		3.3	∆		517		3.2	▼		—		†
Slovenia		514		2.7			533	³	3.2			520		1.8			538		2.2	∆

South Africa		(13)		†			243		7.9	▼		244		6.7	▼		—		†
Spain		504		2.3			—		†			—		†			—		†
Sweden		553		4.4	∆		—		†			524		2.7			511		2.6	▼
Switzerland		509	¹⁰	2.8			—		†			—		†			—		†
Syrian Arab Republic		—		†			—		†			—		†			452		2.9	▼

Thailand		(7)		†			482		4.0	▼		—		†			471		4.3	▼
Tunisia		—		†			430		3.4	▼		404		2.1	▼		445		2.1	▼
Turkey		—		†			433		4.3	▼		—		†			454	⁶	3.7	▼
Ukraine		—		†			—		†			—		†			485		3.5	▼
United States		513	⁵	*5.6*			515		*4.6*			527	²	*3.1*			520	^5,12	*2.9*

∆ Score is higher than U.S. score (p <.05).

▼ Score is lower than U.S. score (p <.05).

— Not available. (Data were not collected or not reported.)

† Not applicable.

¹Argentina, Italy, and Indonesia were unable to complete the steps necessary for their data to appear in TIMSS 1995 report (Peak, 1996).

²Nearly satisfied guidelines for sample participation rates only after substitute schools were included.

³Because of national-level changes in the starting age/date for school, data cannot be compared with other years.

⁴Sampling issue identified by the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS). See TIMSS 1995 report (Peak, 1996) for more details.

⁵Met guidelines for sample participation rates only after substitute schools were included.

⁶Data not comparable with previous cycles.

⁷Data not shown because of unapproved sampling procedures at classroom level.

⁸National Defined Population covers less than 90 percent of the National Target Population (but at least 77 percent).

⁹England collected data in 2003, but due to problems with meeting the minimum sampling requirements its eighth-grade data are not reported.

¹⁰National Target Population did not include all of the International Target Population defined by TIMSS.

¹¹Hong Kong is a Special Administrative Region (SAR) of the People's Republic of China.

¹²National Defined Population covers 90 percent to 95 percent of National Target Population.

¹³Data not shown because of unapproved sampling procedures at classroom level and failure to meet other guidelines.

¹⁴Tested the same cohort of students, but later, at the beginning of the next school year.

¹⁵Only Latvian-speaking schools (LSS) were included.

¹⁶Mexico participated in the testing portion of TIMSS, but chose not to release its results at grades 7 and 8 in the international report.

¹⁷Morocco failed to meet the required school participation rates in 2007 because of a procedural difficulty with some schools.

¹⁸Data for the Philippines are not shown because characteristics of its school sample are not completely known.

NOTE: Science scores are reported on a scale from 0 to 1,000. The TIMSS 1995 average scores were rescaled to allow for trend analysis. For more details, see appendix A of Provasnik, Gonzales, and Miller (2009). 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. Standard error is noted by s.e.

SOURCE: International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA), Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS), 1995, 1999, 2003, and 2007. Provasnik, S., Gonzales, P., and Miller, D. (2009). U.S. Performance Across International Assessments of Student Achievement: Special Supplement to The Condition of Education 2009 (NCES 2009-083), table A-7. National Center for Education Statistics, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education. Washington, DC.