Examines international assessments, like the Third International Mathematics and Science Study, and what they can tell about how well Canadian students perform relative to other participating jurisdictions and how well jurisdictions do on different assessments at different points in time. Discusses uses of international comparisons to inform…

Examined the effects of early educational experiences on the academic achievement and social skills of 91 inner-city first graders. Found that, after controlling for first-grade teachers' instructional practices and beliefs, children with prekindergarten experience had higher scores in mathematics and language and higher social skills than…

Discusses effect of competition from charter schools and voucher programs on students who remain in public schools; focuses on Milwaukee (effect of vouchers), Arizona (charter schools) and Michigan (charter schools). By comparing test results between schools affected by competition and those not affected, argues competition improves public…

Examines how the wording of statistical problems affects 11-12 year old children's answers. Ninety-six children were given statistical problems on two statistical concepts (base-rate and the law of large numbers). Indicates that the children had a high level of statistical intuition and knew when to reason statistically. (CMK)

Third and fifth grade teachers rated the mathematical skill level, classroom behavior, and effort of their students, most of whom had completed mathematics and reading achievement tests. Results indicated that mathematics and reading achievement test scores, together with student effort, were significant predictors of teacher rating of mathematics…

Discusses implications for educational policy drawn from the report "The Nation's Report Card: Mathematics 2000." One finding may support the inclusion of special needs students in assessments. Implications for the use of educational technology focus on the use of computers and calculators in instruction and assessment. (SLD)

Middle school data from the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) are analyzed in this article to compare achievement difference between seventh and eighth grades. The statistical computing involves a selective subtraction of item scores in more than 40 countries. The research findings indicate that not all TIMSS items have…

The purpose of this study was to test a model of the relations between specific academic enablers (motivation, interpersonal skills, engagement, and study skills) and mathematics achievement. Using teacher judgments of academic enablers and achievement, we examined the fit of this model for primary (Grades K-2) and intermediate (Grades 3-6)…

Mathematics and science are key areas of knowledge for development but South African performance in these areas is still of concern. This policy-related article provides a nuanced analysis of performance indicators. Using Gauteng as a case study the article examines the mathematics trends (the period 1998-2003) in participation and in particular…

The ways boys and girls (N = 119) at different grade levels rated and explained their potential for improvement in mathematics and the mother tongue were compared in order to examine their subject-specific notions of the malleability of their academic ability. The findings indicate that children perceive their potential to improve their…

This article discusses the efforts made by the states by adding reading and math exams in previously untested grades as well as setting new performance standards. A survey conducted by the Editorial Projects in Education Research Center found that at least 11 states set new achievement levels in reading/language arts. About nine states did so in…

This article discusses how to help minority students prepare for tests and help them do better on math tests in general and on the mathematics section of college entrance exams. According to experts, the number of black and Latino students taking college entrance exams grew by about 50%, but their scores are lagging. It shows that white students…

It is widely believed and lamented that U.S. students perform poorly on international comparisons of academic achievement. For example, Edward Silver reports that U.S. seventh- and eighth-grade students performed poorly on the mathematics section of the Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS 1995) and that this indicates "a…

South African pupils performed well below the TIMSS international average in 1995 and 1999 and significantly below all other countries (including the other African countries) in the 1999 study. Path analysis, namely Partial Least Square (PLS) analysis, was applied to the South African TIMSS-R data to explore the effect of contextual factors at…

To engage in productive learning behaviors, students need to have a realistic understanding of their academic skills. The authors examined the perceived competence of students with different patterns of academic achievement. Four groups of 3rd graders were assessed at 2 time points: (a) children with difficulties in mathematics but not in reading…