Trends in Student Performance: International Trends in Average Scores

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Reading Literacy

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Table T4. Average scores and changes in average scores of 15-year-old students on PISA reading literacy scale, by education system: 2000, 2003, 2006, 2009, and 2012
Education system	Average score															Change in average score
	2000			2003			2006			2009			2012			2012-2000					2012-2003					2012-2009
	Score	s.e.		Score	s.e.		Score	s.e.		Score	s.e.		Score	s.e.		Score			s.e.		Score			s.e.		Score			s.e.
OECD trend score1	496	0.7		497	0.6		490	0.7		496	0.5		498	0.6		2			1.5		4.1	*		1.4		2	*		0.9
Shanghai-China	—	†		—	†		—	†		556	2.4		570	2.9		—			†		—			†		14	*		4.5
Hong Kong-China	525	2.9		510	3.7		536	2.4		533	2.1		545	2.8		19	*		7.2		35	*		7.3		11	*		4.4
Singapore	—	†		—	†		—	†		526	1.1		542	1.4		—			†		—			†		16	*		3.1
Japan	522	5.2		498	3.9		498	3.6		520	3.5		538	3.7		16			8.7		40	*		7.8		18	*		5.7
Korea, Republic of	525	2.4		534	3.1		556	3.8		539	3.5		536	3.9		11			7.5		2			7.5		-3			5.9
Finland	546	2.6		543	1.6		547	2.1		536	2.3		524	2.4		-22	*		6.9		-19	*		6.3		-12	*		4.2
Ireland	527	3.2		515	2.6		517	3.5		496	3.0		523	2.6		-3			7.2		8			6.7		28	*		4.7
Canada	534	1.6		528	1.7		527	2.4		524	1.5		523	1.9		-11			6.4		-5			6.2		-1			3.6
Chinese Taipei	—	†		—	†		496	3.4		495	2.6		523	3.0		—			†		—			†		28	*		4.8
Poland	479	4.5		497	2.9		508	2.8		500	2.6		518	3.1		39	*		8.0		22	*		7.0		18	*		4.8
Estonia	—	†		—	†		501	2.9		501	2.6		516	2.0		—			†		—			†		15	*		4.2
Liechtenstein	483	4.1		525	3.6		510	3.9		499	2.8		516	4.1		33	*		8.3		-10			7.8		16	*		5.6
New Zealand	529	2.8		522	2.5		521	3.0		521	2.4		512	2.4		-17	*		7.0		-9			6.6		-9	*		4.2
Australia	528	3.5		525	2.1		513	2.1		515	2.3		512	1.6		-16	*		7.1		-14	*		6.2		-3			3.8
Netherlands2	—	†		513	2.9		507	2.9		508	5.1		511	3.5		—			†		-2			7.2		3			6.7
Switzerland	494	4.2		499	3.3		499	3.1		501	2.4		509	2.6		15			7.7		10			7.0		9			4.4
Macao-China	—	†		498	2.2		492	1.1		487	0.9		509	0.9		—			†		11			6.1		22	*		2.9
Belgium	507	3.6		507	2.6		501	3.0		506	2.3		509	2.3		1			7.3		2			6.6		3			4.2
Vietnam	—	†		—	†		—	†		—	†		508	4.4		—			†		—			†		—			†
Germany	484	2.5		491	3.4		495	4.4		497	2.7		508	2.8		24	*		7.0		16	*		7.1		10	*		4.7
France	505	2.7		496	2.7		488	4.1		496	3.4		505	2.8		1			7.1		9			6.8		10			5.2
Norway	505	2.8		500	2.8		484	3.2		503	2.6		504	3.2		-1			7.3		4			7.0		1			4.9
United Kingdom3	—	†		—	†		495	2.3		494	2.3		499	3.5		—			†		—			†		5			4.9
United States4	504	7.0		495	3.2		—	†		500	3.7		498	3.7		-7			9.9		2			7.5		-2			5.8
Denmark	497	2.4		492	2.8		494	3.2		495	2.1		496	2.6		-1			6.9		4			6.8		1			4.3
Czech Republic	492	2.4		489	3.5		483	4.2		478	2.9		493	2.9		1			7.0		4			7.2		15	*		4.8
Italy	487	2.9		476	3.0		469	2.4		486	1.6		490	2.0		2			6.9		14	*		6.7		4			3.6
Austria	492	2.7		491	3.8		490	4.1		470	2.9		490	2.8		-2			7.1		-1			7.3		19	*		4.8
Latvia	458	5.3		491	3.7		479	3.7		484	3.0		489	2.4		31	*		8.3		-2			7.1		5			4.6
Hungary	480	4.0		482	2.5		482	3.3		494	3.2		488	3.2		8			7.8		7			6.9		-6			5.2
Spain	493	2.7		481	2.6		461	2.2		481	2.0		488	1.9		-5			6.8		7			6.5		7			3.8
Luxembourg	—	†		479	1.5		479	1.3		472	1.3		488	1.5		—			†		8			6.0		16	*		3.3
Portugal	470	4.5		478	3.7		472	3.6		489	3.1		488	3.8		18	*		8.3		10			7.7		-2			5.5
Israel	452	8.5		—	†		439	4.6		474	3.6		486	5.0		34	*		11.5		—			†		12			6.7
Croatia	—	†		—	†		477	2.8		476	2.9		485	3.3		—			†		—			†		9			5.1
Sweden	516	2.2		514	2.4		507	3.4		497	2.9		483	3.0		-33	*		7.0		-31	*		6.8		-14	*		4.9
Iceland	507	1.5		492	1.6		484	1.9		500	1.4		483	1.8		-24	*		6.4		-9			6.1		-18	*		3.5
Slovenia	—	†		—	†		494	1.0		483	1.0		481	1.2		—			†		—			†		-2			3.1
Lithuania	—	†		—	†		470	3.0		468	2.4		477	2.5		—			†		—			†		9	*		4.3
Greece	474	5.0		472	4.1		460	4.0		483	4.3		477	3.3		3			8.4		5			7.7		-6			6.0
Turkey	—	†		441	5.8		447	4.2		464	3.5		475	4.2		—			†		35	*		9.1		11			6.1
Russian Federation	462	4.2		442	3.9		440	4.3		459	3.3		475	3.0		13			7.8		33	*		7.5		16	*		5.2
Slovak Republic	—	†		469	3.1		466	3.1		477	2.5		463	4.2		—			†		-6			7.7		-15	*		5.5
Cyprus	—	†		—	†		—	†		—	†		449	1.2		—			†		—			†		—			†
Serbia, Republic of5	—	†		—	†		401	3.5		442	2.4		446	3.4		—			†		—			†		4			5.0
United Arab Emirates	—	†		—	†		—	†		—	†		442	2.5		—			†		—			†		—			†
Chile	410	3.6		—	†		442	5.0		449	3.1		441	2.9		32	*		7.5		—			†		-8			5.0
Thailand	431	3.2		420	2.8		417	2.6		421	2.6		441	3.1		11			7.4		21	*		7.0		20	*		4.8
Costa Rica6	—	†		—	†		—	†		443	3.2		441	3.5		—			†		—			†		-2			5.4
Romania7	428	3.5		—	†		396	4.7		424	4.1		438	4.0		10			7.9		—			†		13	*		6.3
Bulgaria	430	4.9		—	†		402	6.9		429	6.7		436	6.0		6			9.8		—			†		7			9.4
Mexico	422	3.3		400	4.1		410	3.1		425	2.0		424	1.5		2			7.0		24	*		7.1		-2			3.6
Montenegro, Republic of5	—	†		—	†		392	1.2		408	1.7		422	1.2		—			†		—			†		15	*		3.3
Uruguay	—	†		434	3.4		413	3.4		426	2.6		411	3.2		—			†		-23	*		7.3		-14	*		4.8
Brazil	396	3.1		403	4.6		393	3.7		412	2.7		410	2.1		14	*		7.0		7			7.5		-2			4.3
Tunisia	—	†		375	2.8		380	4.0		404	2.9		404	4.5		—			†		29	*		7.7		#			†
Colombia	—	†		—	†		385	5.1		413	3.7		403	3.4		—			†		—			†		-10			5.7
Jordan	—	†		—	†		401	3.3		405	3.3		399	3.6		—			†		—			†		-6			5.5
Malaysia6	—	†		—	†		—	†		414	2.9		398	3.3		—			†		—			†		-16	*		5.1
Indonesia	371	4.0		382	3.4		393	5.9		402	3.7		396	4.2		26	*		8.3		15			7.8		-6			6.2
Argentina	418	9.9		—	†		374	7.2		398	4.6		396	3.7		-22			12.1		—			†		-2			6.5
Albania	349	3.3		—	†		—	†		385	4.0		394	3.2		45	*		7.5		—			†		9			5.8
Kazakhstan	—	†		—	†		—	†		390	3.1		393	2.7		—			†		—			†		2			4.8
Qatar	—	†		—	†		312	1.2		372	0.8		388	0.8		—			†		—			†		16	*		2.8
Peru	327	4.4		—	†		—	†		370	4.0		384	4.3		57	*		8.6		—			†		14	*		6.4
Change in average score is greater than the U.S. change in average score. Change in average score is lower than the U.S. change in average score. — Not available. † Not applicable. # Rounds to zero. * p<.05. Change in average score is significant at a05 level of statistical significance. 1The OECD trend scores for 2000, 2003, 2009, and 2012 are based on the averages of the 27 OECD countries with comparable data for 2000 and 2012 and with each country weighted equally. The seven current OECD members not included in the OECD averages used to report on trends in reading literacy include the Slovak Republic and Turkey, which joined PISA in 2003; Estonia and Slovenia, which joined PISA in 2006; Luxembourg, which experienced substantial changes in its assessment conditions between 2000 and 2003; and the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, which did not meet the PISA response-rate standards in 2000. The OECD excluded the data for Austria from the trend analysis in its report (OECD, PISA 2009 Results: Learning Trends - Changes in Student Performance Since 2000 (Volume V), available at http://www.pisa.oecd.org) because of a concern over a data collection issue in 2009; however, after consultation with Austrian officials, NCES kept the Austrian data in the U.S. trend reporting. The OECD trend score for 2006 is based on the averages of 26 OECD countries, as PISA 2006 reading literacy results were not reported for the United States. 2Although the Netherlands participated in PISA 2000, technical problems with its sample prevent its results from being included. 3Although the United Kingdom participated in PISA 2000, technical problems with its sample prevent its results from being included. Because of low response rates, 2003 data for the United Kingdom are not presented. 4PISA 2006 reading literacy results are not reported for the United States because of an error in printing the test booklets. PISA 2006 reading literacy results are therefore not compared to PISA 2012 reading literacy results. For more details, see Baldi et al. 2007 (available at http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2008016). 5The Republics of Montenegro and Serbia were a united country under the PISA 2000 and 2003 assessments. 6For Costa Rica and Malaysia the change between PISA 2009 and PISA 2012 represents change between 2010 and 2012 because these education systems implemented the PISA 2009 assessment in 2010 as part of PISA 2009. 7The 2000 results for Romania were not reported by OECD due to delayed submission of data. Romania did not participate in PISA in 2003. NOTE: Education systems are ordered by 2012 average score. Scores are reported on a scale from 0 to 1,000. All average scores reported as higher or lower than the comparison year are different at the .05 significance level of statistical significance. Standard error is noted by s.e. Italics indicate non-OECD countries and education systems. SOURCE: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), Program for International Student Assessment (PISA), 2000, 2003, 2006, 2009, 2012.