Program for International Student Assessment (PISA): 2012 Results -Financial Literacy: School Poverty Indicator

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Financial Literacy: School Poverty Indicator

Proficiency Levels

Table FL5. Percentage distribution of U.S. 15-year-old public school students on PISA financial literacy scale, by proficiency level and percentage of students in enrolled schools eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, based on principals' reports: 2012
Percent of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch	Below level 2			Level 2			Level 3		Level 4			Level 5
	Percent		*s.e.*	Percent		*s.e.*	Percent	*s.e.*	Percent		*s.e.*	Percent		*s.e.*
U.S. average	17.8		*1.51*	26.2		*1.79*	27.1	*1.80*	19.4		*1.78*	9.4		*1.17*
Less than 10 percent	‡		†	‡		†	‡	†	‡		†	21.19	*	5.58
10 to 24.9 percent	8.8	*	2.07	15.1	*	3.58	25.4	4.44	31.2	*	4.52	19.5	*	2.87
25 to 49.9 percent	11.1	***	2.64	22.3		3.55	29.3	3.83	26.2	***	4.32	11.1		3.07
50 to 74.9 percent	23.6	*	3.28	30.4	**	3.25	25.8	3.51	14.7	**	2.39	5.5	*	1.53
75 percent or more	30.5	*	4.80	35.0	*	4.90	25.4	4.01	8.0	!*	3.21	‡		†
OECD average (FL)	15.3		*0.38*	22.9		*0.48*	30.2	*0.50*	21.9		*0.43*	9.7		*0.30*
† Not applicable. ! Interpret data with caution. Estimate is unstable due to high coefficient of variation. ‡ Reporting standards not met. * p<.05. Significantly different from both the U.S. and OECD averages at the .05 level of statistical significance. p<.05. Significantly different from the OECD average at the .05 level of statistical significance. * p<.05. Significantly different from the U.S. average at the .05 level of statistical significance. NOTE: To reach a particular proficiency level, a student must correctly answer a majority of items at that level. Students were classified into financial literacy levels according to their scores. Exact cut scores are as follows: below level 1 (a score less than or equal to 325.57); level 1 (a score greater than 325.57 and less than or equal to 400.33); level 2 (a score greater than 400.33 and less than or equal to 475.10); level 3 (a score greater than 475.10 and less than or equal to 549.86); level 4 (a score greater than 549.86 and less than or equal to 624.63); and level 5 (a score greater than 624.63). Proficiency levels below 1 and level 1 have been collapsed into a below level 2 category for this table, in order to provide descriptive and meaningful proficiency levels for the financial literacy assessment. Scores are reported on a scale from 0 to 1,000. The National School Lunch Program provides free or reduced-price lunch for students meeting certain income guidelines. The percentage of students receiving such lunch is an indicator of the socioeconomic level of families served by the school. Data in this table are based on principals' responses to a question in the school questionnaire that asked the approximate percentage of eligible students in the school during the previous school year. Free or reduced price-lunch data are for public schools only. The OECD average (FL) is the average of the national percentages of the 13 OECD member countries that participated in the financial literacy (FL) assessment, with each country weighted equally. The following OECD countries participated in the financial literacy assessment: Australia, Belgium-Flemish Community, Czech Republic, Estonia, France, Israel, Italy, New Zealand, Poland, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain and the United States. Standard error is noted by s.e. Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding. SOURCE: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), Program for International Student Assessment (PISA), 2012.