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Science for Grades 4 and 8: Trends Over Three Time Points

Cognitive Subscales

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Table 33a. Change in average science cognitive domain scores of 4th-grade students, by education system: 2007-2015 and 2011-2015
Education system Average cognitive domain score Change in average cognitive domain score1
2007 2011 2015 Score difference: 2007 to 2015 Score difference: 2011 to 2015
Knowing Applying Reasoning Knowing Applying Reasoning Knowing Applying Reasoning Knowing Applying Reasoning Knowing Applying Reasoning

higher icon Average score is higher than U.S. average score at the .05 level of statistical significance.

lower icon Average score is lower than U.S. average score at the .05 level of statistical significance.

― Not available.

# Rounds to zero.

*p<.05. Change in average scores is significant at the .05 level of statistical significance.

1 The change in average score is calculated by subtracting the 2007 or 2011 estimate, respectively, from the 2015 estimate using unrounded numbers.

2 National Defined Population covers 90 to 95 percent of the National Target Population in 2015.

3 Met guidelines for sample participation rates only after replacement schools were included in 2015.

4 National Defined Population covers less than 90 percent of the National Target Population (but at least 77 percent) in 2015.

5 Nearly satisfied guidelines for sample participation rates after replacement schools were included in 2015.

6 The number in parentheses indicates years of school not grade in schooling.

7 National Target Population does not include all of the International Target Population in 2015.

8 Reservations about reliability because the percentage of students with achievement too low for estimation exceeds 15 percent but does not exceed 25 percent in 2015.

9 Did not satisfy guidelines for sample participation rates in 2015.

NOTE: Education systems are ordered by 2015 average score in reasoning. Education systems that are not countries are designated by the appended three-letter international abbreviation for their country. Participants that did not administer TIMSS at the target grade are not shown; see the international report for their results. For cross-education system trend tables, data are shown for the first available and most recent year; 1995 is the first year for the overall science scale and benchmark data and 2007 is the first year for the content and cognitive subscales. Participants that only participated in one of the three time points are also excluded. U.S. state data are based on public school students only. Standard error is abbreviated as s.e. For TIMSS 2015, Norway revised its assessed population to students in their 5th and 9th years of schooling to obtain better comparisons with Sweden and Finland. However, in previous TIMSS cycles Norway assessed students in their 4th and 8th years of schooling, which were defined as 4th and 8th grades but have been redefined as 3rd and 7th grades because year 1 in Norway is now considered the equivalent of a year of kindergarten. To maintain trend with previous TIMSS cycles, in 2015 Norway also collected data from students in their 4th and 8th years of schooling, which is used in trend tables. Jordan did not participate in the science assessment at the 4th grade. Trend results for Kuwait do not include private schools. Trend results for Lithuania do not include students taught in Polish or in Russian.

  For 2007, Georgia and Lithuania had a National Target Population that did not include all of the International Target Population; the United States, Ontario-CAN, and Quebec-CAN had a National Defined Population that covered 90-95 percent of the National Target Population; Denmark and the United States met guidelines for sample participation only after replacement schools were included; the Netherlands and Dubai-UAE nearly satisfied guidelines for sample participation rates after replacement schools were included; and Dubai-UAE tested the same cohort of students as other education systems, but later in the assessment year at the beginning of the next school year.

  For 2011, Georgia, Kuwait, Lithuania, and Florida-USA had a National Target Population that did not include all of the International Target Population; Croatia, Denmark, Hong Kong-CHN, Kazakhstan, Lithuania, Qatar, Serbia, Singapore, and the United States had a National Defined Population that covered 90-95 percent of the National Target Population; Florida-USA had a National Defined Population that covered less than 90 percent of the National Target Population (but at least 77 percent); the Netherlands and Northern Ireland-GBR met guidelines for sample participation rates only after replacement schools were included; and Norway (4) nearly satisfied guidelines for sample participation rates after replacement schools were included. In Kuwait in 2011, there were reservations about reliability because the percentage of students with achievement too low for estimation exceeded 15 percent but did not exceed 25 percent; in Morocco there were reservations about reliability because the percentage of students with achievement too low for estimation exceeded 25 percent.

  The standard errors for the estimates shown in this table are in table 33b available at http://nces.ed.gov/timss/timss2015/timss2015_table33b.asp.

SOURCE: International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA), Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS), 2007, 2011, and 2015.

Singapore2 599 higher 587 higher 576 higher 570 higher 590 higher 597 higher 574 higher 599 higher 605 higher -24 * 12 * 29 * 4 10 8
Japan 534 lower 546 higher 573 higher 538 lower 562 higher 591 higher 544 576 higher 594 higher 9 * 31 * 21 * 6 * 14 * 3
Korea, Republic of 570 higher 593 higher 605 higher 582 higher 594 higher 594 higher 12 * # -11 *
Russian Federation 546 550 higher 542 553 556 higher 542 569 higher 568 higher 561 higher 23 * 19 * 18 * 15 * 12 * 19 *
Chinese Taipei-CHN 544 560 higher 574 higher 542 552 higher 568 higher 557 higher 553 higher 558 higher 13 * -6 -16 * 15 * 1 -10 *
Hong Kong-CHN3 553 552 higher 563 higher 537 lower 529 lower 541 562 higher 554 552 higher 9 1 -10 25 * 25 * 11
Finland 579 higher 568 higher 560 higher 556 553 higher 552 higher -23 * -15 * -8 *
Kazakhstan 486 lower 499 lower 496 lower 551 547 552 64 * 48 * 56 *
Sweden2 528 lower 520 lower 528 536 lower 531 lower 537 538 lower 540 542 10 * 20 * 14 * 3 9 * 5
United States 2, 3 546 534 535 546 544 537 548 546 542 3 12 * 6 2 2 4
Lithuania2 511 lower 513 lower 521 lower 508 lower 521 lower 515 lower 526 lower 529 lower 541 14 * 15 * 21 * 18 * 8 * 26 *
England-GBR 547 537 540 529 lower 532 lower 526 lower 533 lower 538 lower 539 -14 * 1 -1 5 5 12 *
Slovenia 510 lower 525 lower 525 lower 518 lower 518 lower 525 lower 541 lower 546 538 31 * 21 * 13 * 23 * 28 * 13 *
Croatia 526 lower 510 lower 512 lower 534 lower 530 lower 536 9 * 20 * 23 *
Hungary 544 532 528 547 530 lower 525 lower 550 539 533 6 7 5 4 9 8
Germany 529 lower 526 lower 525 lower 524 lower 533 lower 526 lower 527 lower 529 lower 532 lower -1 3 6 3 -4 6
Czech Republic 521 lower 515 lower 507 lower 551 534 lower 516 lower 545 528 lower 529 lower 24 * 13 * 21 * -6 -6 12 *
Australia 532 lower 522 lower 528 517 lower 513 lower 518 lower 523 lower 522 lower 527 lower -9 # -1 5 9 * 10 *
Ireland 518 lower 517 lower 509 lower 529 lower 530 lower 526 lower 11 * 13 * 17 *
Netherlands3 521 lower 525 lower 526 lower 528 lower 534 lower 532 508 lower 519 lower 526 lower -12 * -6 # -19 * -15 * -6
Belgium (Flemish)-BEL3 507 lower 511 lower 508 lower 498 lower 513 lower 526 lower -9 * 2 17 *
Denmark 2, 3 517 lower 513 lower 524 lower 524 lower 532 lower 527 lower 524 lower 529 lower 526 lower 7 16 * 1 # -2 -2
Serbia4 524 lower 506 lower 519 lower 527 lower 522 lower 521 lower 3 16 * 1
Northern Ireland-GBR5 517 lower 521 lower 503 lower 518 lower 519 lower 520 lower 1 -3 17 *
Spain2 516 lower 499 lower 496 lower 522 lower 514 lower 517 lower 6 15 * 21 *
New Zealand 511 lower 496 lower 503 lower 496 lower 497 lower 497 lower 504 lower 502 lower 514 lower -7 6 11 * 8 * 5 17 *
Italy2 535 lower 541 523 lower 532 lower 523 lower 510 lower 521 lower 513 lower 511 lower -14 * -28 * -12 * -11 * -10 * 2
Slovak Republic 531 lower 527 512 lower 547 528 lower 514 lower 530 lower 517 lower 507 lower -2 -10 -4 -17 * -11 * -7
Portugal2 528 lower 515 lower 524 lower 507 lower 508 lower 506 lower -21 * -7 -19 *
Turkey 457 lower 463 lower 472 lower 478 lower 486 lower 483 lower 21 * 23 * 11
Norway (4)6 480 lower 472 lower 475 lower 502 lower 487 lower 493 lower 495 lower 494 lower 482 lower 14 * 22 * 7 -7 7 -10 *
Chile 483 lower 479 lower 477 lower 477 lower 476 lower 477 lower -5 -4 #
Bahrain2 454 lower 443 lower 442 lower 456 lower 462 lower 455 lower 2 18 * 13 *
United Arab Emirates 433 lower 421 lower 426 lower 453 lower 452 lower 444 lower 21 * 31 * 19 *
Qatar 388 lower 389 lower 404 lower 437 lower 430 lower 433 lower 49 * 41 * 29 *
Oman 376 lower 372 lower 354 lower 422 lower 435 lower 431 lower 46 * 63 * 77 *
Georgia7 429 lower 415 lower 379 lower 466 lower 452 lower 422 lower 460 lower 449 lower 426 lower 31 * 35 * 46 * -6 -3 3
Iran, Islamic Republic of 431 lower 443 lower 427 lower 448 lower 452 lower 459 lower 416 lower 417 lower 422 lower -15 * -25 * -5 -32 * -34 * -37 *
Saudi Arabia 432 lower 427 lower 416 lower 394 lower 388 lower 365 lower -38 * -39 * -51 *
Morocco8 237 lower 256 lower 240 lower 331 lower 357 lower 354 lower 94 * 101 * 114 *
Kuwait8 342 lower 334 lower 336 lower 322 lower 304 lower 266 lower -20 * -30 * -69 *
Benchmarking participants
Florida-USA7 550 543 536 553 550 541 4 7 5
Ontario-CAN 542 529 540 529 lower 526 lower 529 527 lower 534 lower 529 lower -15 * 6 -11 * -1 9 * #
Quebec-CAN9 517 lower 515 lower 526 lower 519 lower 514 lower 520 lower 524 lower 525 lower 526 lower 7 11 * # 5 12 * 7
Dubai-UAE 461 lower 458 lower 456 lower 467 lower 453 lower 455 lower 523 lower 517 lower 510 lower 62 * 59 * 54 * 55 * 64 * 55 *
Abu Dhabi-UAE2 415 lower 405 lower 416 lower 410 lower 417 lower 412 lower -4 11 -5