Average 8th-grade science scores by content areas, and average time spent studying out of school, by country: 1999

2001 Tables and Figures
Download this table as a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet (88 KB)
Download this table as a Lotus 123 spreadsheet (36 KB)
Download this table in PDF format (15 KB)
Table 401.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
                                |           Average achievement scale score                                            |     Distribution of daily out-of-school study time
                                |                                                                                      |      in science, with mean science scores
            Country             |______________________________________________________________________________________|______________________________________________________________________
                                |          |           |          |          |             |             |             |                       |                      |
                                |Overall   |Earth      |Life      |Physics   |Chemistry    |Environmental|Scientific   |No time                |Less than 1 hour      |1 hour or more
                                |science   |science    |science   |          |             |and resource |inquiry and  |_______________________|______________________|_______________________
                                |scores    |           |          |          |             |issues       |the nature   |Percent   |Mean        |Percent   |Mean       |Percent   |Mean
                                |          |           |          |          |             |             |of science   |          |score       |          |score      |          |score
________________________________|__________|___________|__________|__________|_____________|_____________|_____________|__________|____________|__________|___________|__________|____________
               1                |    2     |    3      |    4     |    5     |      6      |     7       |     8       |     9    |    10      |    11    |    12     |    13    |    14
________________________________|__________|___________|__________|__________|_____________|_____________|_____________|__________|____________|__________|___________|__________|____________
                                |          |           |          |          |             |             |             |          |            |          |           |          |
  International average\1\ .....|488  (0.7)| 488  (0.9)|488  (0.7)|488  (0.9)|   488  (0.8)|   488  (0.7)|   488  (0.7)| 14  (0.2)| 462   (1.2)| 49  (0.2)| 495  (1.0)| 36  (0.2)| 486   (1.0)
                                |__________|___________|__________|__________|_____________|_____________|_____________|__________|____________|__________|___________|__________|____________
Australia ......................|540  (4.4)| 519  (6.1)|530  (4.4)|531  (6.3)|   520  (5.0)|   530  (6.3)|   535  (4.9)| 21  (1.4)| 510   (6.6)| 65  (1.4)| 553  (4.4)| 14  (0.8)| 533   (6.9)
Belgium (Flemish) ..............|535  (3.1)| 533  (3.5)|535  (4.6)|530  (3.5)|   508  (3.3)|   513  (3.5)|   526  (4.9)| 14  (1.1)| 537   (8.7)| 55  (1.2)| 543  (4.0)| 31  (1.4)| 520   (3.9)
Bulgaria .......................|518  (5.4)| 520  (5.7)|514  (6.9)|505  (5.8)|   527  (5.7)|   483  (6.4)|   479  (5.6)| 17  (1.6)| 505   (8.7)| 38  (1.2)| 523  (6.7)| 45  (1.5)| 528   (7.0)
Canada .........................|533  (2.1)| 519  (3.7)|523  (3.8)|521  (3.8)|   521  (5.4)|   521  (3.5)|   532  (5.1)| 20  (1.0)| 525   (4.1)| 62  (0.9)| 541  (2.3)| 18  (0.7)| 515   (4.4)
Chile ..........................|420  (3.7)| 435  (7.0)|431  (3.7)|428  (5.6)|   435  (5.2)|   449  (4.8)|   441  (4.7)| 17  (0.7)| 415   (4.9)| 53  (0.8)| 431  (4.7)| 30  (1.0)| 417   (5.4)
                                |          |           |          |          |             |             |             |          |            |          |           |          |
Chinese Taipei .................|569  (4.4)| 538  (3.0)|550  (3.3)|552  (3.9)|   563  (4.3)|   567  (4.0)|   540  (4.9)| 38  (1.3)| 530   (5.7)| 42  (0.9)| 588  (4.4)| 20  (0.9)| 607   (4.7)
Cyprus .........................|460  (2.4)| 459  (5.4)|468  (3.8)|459  (2.9)|   470  (3.4)|   475  (4.3)|   467  (4.6)| 18  (0.7)| 425   (6.6)| 57  (0.9)| 474  (3.1)| 25  (1.0)| 461   (5.0)
Czech Republic .................|539  (4.2)| 533  (6.9)|544  (4.1)|526  (4.2)|   512  (5.2)|   516  (5.7)|   522  (5.7)| 18  (1.1)| 529   (7.0)| 62  (1.2)| 546  (4.5)| 20  (1.1)| 530   (5.0)
England ........................|538  (4.8)| 525  (3.9)|533  (6.2)|528  (4.5)|   524  (5.5)|   518  (5.8)|   538  (5.1)|---   --- | ---    --- |---   --- | ---   --- |---   --- | ---    ---
Finland ........................|535  (3.5)| 520  (5.5)|520  (4.0)|520  (4.4)|   535  (4.5)|   514  (7.1)|   528  (4.0)|  8  (0.8)| 514   (9.7)| 84  (0.9)| 541  (3.5)|  8  (0.6)| 511  (10.8)
                                |          |           |          |          |             |             |             |          |            |          |           |          |
Hong Kong ......................|530  (3.7)| 506  (4.3)|516  (5.5)|523  (4.9)|   515  (5.2)|   518  (4.9)|   531  (2.8)| 39  (1.3)| 513   (4.2)| 48  (1.0)| 543  (4.0)| 13  (0.6)| 539   (6.6)
Hungary ........................|552  (3.7)| 560  (3.9)|535  (4.0)|543  (4.3)|   548  (4.7)|   501  (6.6)|   526  (5.9)|  6  (0.6)| 505   (8.6)| 49  (1.2)| 558  (4.0)| 45  (1.3)| 554   (4.0)
Indonesia ......................|435  (4.5)| 431  (6.4)|448  (3.6)|452  (5.5)|   425  (3.9)|   489  (4.8)|   446  (4.3)| 13  (0.8)| 432   (6.7)| 40  (0.9)| 442  (4.9)| 47  (1.1)| 435   (5.9)
Iran, Islamic Republic .........|448  (3.8)| 459  (5.2)|437  (3.7)|445  (5.7)|   487  (4.1)|   470  (5.5)|   446  (5.3)|  3  (0.3)| 432  (16.0)| 29  (1.0)| 453  (4.1)| 68  (1.1)| 451   (4.6)
Israel\2\ ......................|468  (4.9)| 472  (5.2)|463  (4.0)|484  (5.3)|   479  (4.7)|   458  (4.0)|   476  (8.3)| 17  (0.8)| 449   (7.8)| 60  (1.1)| 487  (4.6)| 23  (1.1)| 450   (6.5)
                                |          |           |          |          |             |             |             |          |            |          |           |          |
Italy ..........................|493  (3.9)| 502  (5.9)|488  (4.6)|480  (4.1)|   493  (4.8)|   491  (5.4)|   489  (4.6)|  7  (0.7)| 435   (8.6)| 48  (1.4)| 501  (4.3)| 45  (1.4)| 498   (4.3)
Japan ..........................|550  (2.2)| 533  (6.2)|534  (5.4)|544  (2.9)|   530  (3.1)|   506  (5.5)|   543  (2.8)| 39  (1.4)| 535   (3.2)| 50  (1.2)| 560  (2.3)| 12  (0.7)| 555   (7.5)
Jordan .........................|450  (3.8)| 446  (3.5)|448  (4.1)|459  (3.6)|   483  (5.5)|   476  (6.0)|   440  (5.5)|  7  (0.5)| 396   (9.2)| 37  (1.0)| 466  (5.0)| 56  (1.1)| 465   (3.7)
Korea ..........................|549  (2.6)| 532  (2.7)|528  (3.6)|544  (5.1)|   523  (3.7)|   523  (4.5)|   545  (7.3)| 45  (0.8)| 527   (2.9)| 42  (0.7)| 564  (3.1)| 13  (0.6)| 578   (4.6)
Latvia (Latvian-speaking        |          |           |          |          |             |             |             |          |            |          |           |          |
 schools)\2\ ...................|503  (4.8)| 495  (5.4)|509  (3.9)|495  (3.9)|   490  (3.7)|   493  (5.2)|   495  (4.7)|  9  (0.6)| 480   (9.9)| 66  (1.0)| 509  (5.4)| 25  (1.0)| 496   (6.3)
                                |          |           |          |          |             |             |             |          |            |          |           |          |
Lithuania\2\ ...................|488  (4.1)| 476  (4.4)|494  (4.6)|510  (4.3)|   485  (4.6)|   458  (5.1)|   483  (6.4)| 10  (0.9)| 456   (8.2)| 66  (1.2)| 493  (4.8)| 25  (1.2)| 494   (4.9)
Macedonia, Republic of .........|458  (5.2)| 464  (4.2)|468  (4.9)|463  (6.0)|   481  (6.1)|   432  (4.2)|   464  (3.6)|  3  (0.3)| 428  (15.3)| 25  (1.0)| 453  (5.9)| 72  (1.2)| 470   (5.3)
Malaysia .......................|492  (4.4)| 491  (4.2)|479  (5.4)|494  (4.1)|   485  (3.5)|   502  (4.4)|   488  (4.5)|  4  (0.3)| 460  (10.6)| 36  (1.1)| 493  (5.1)| 60  (1.2)| 495   (4.9)
Moldova ........................|459  (4.0)| 466  (4.2)|477  (3.9)|457  (5.5)|   451  (5.6)|   444  (6.2)|   471  (3.8)|  7  (0.6)| 439  (10.8)| 29  (1.0)| 460  (5.8)| 63  (1.2)| 467   (4.2)
Morocco ........................|323  (4.3)| 363  (3.3)|347  (2.8)|352  (4.2)|   372  (4.8)|   396  (5.1)|   391  (4.2)| 14  (0.8)| 323  (12.4)| 35  (1.2)| 330  (4.9)| 51  (1.7)| 335   (6.4)
                                |          |           |          |          |             |             |             |          |            |          |           |          |
Netherlands ....................|545  (6.9)| 534  (7.2)|536  (7.2)|537  (6.5)|   515  (6.4)|   526  (8.5)|   534  (6.5)|  6  (0.8)| 530  (11.6)| 80  (1.5)| 555  (6.4)| 15  (1.3)| 507  (12.9)
New Zealand ....................|510  (4.9)| 504  (5.8)|501  (5.6)|499  (4.7)|   503  (4.9)|   503  (5.2)|   521  (6.8)| 18  (1.1)| 472   (6.8)| 66  (1.2)| 528  (4.8)| 15  (1.0)| 491   (7.7)
Philippines ....................|345  (7.5)| 390  (5.0)|378  (5.7)|393  (6.3)|   394  (6.5)|   391  (7.6)|   403  (5.5)|  5  (0.4)| 294  (14.4)| 41  (0.8)| 365  (9.7)| 54  (0.9)| 348   (7.7)
Romania ........................|472  (5.8)| 475  (5.5)|475  (6.0)|465  (6.8)|   481  (6.1)|   473  (6.6)|   456  (5.5)| 16  (0.9)| 451   (8.4)| 36  (1.0)| 479  (7.8)| 48  (1.3)| 484   (5.6)
Russian Federation .............|529  (6.4)| 529  (5.1)|517  (6.5)|529  (6.3)|   523  (8.0)|   495  (6.6)|   491  (4.9)|  5  (0.4)| 494   (8.4)| 34  (1.3)| 534  (7.1)| 61  (1.3)| 536   (6.4)
                                |          |           |          |          |             |             |             |          |            |          |           |          |
Singapore ......................|568  (8.0)| 521  (7.3)|541  (7.2)|570  (6.7)|   545  (8.3)|   577  (8.3)|   550  (5.9)|  7  (0.6)| 507  (13.2)| 38  (1.1)| 573  (9.9)| 55  (1.2)| 573   (7.1)
Slovak Republic ................|535  (3.3)| 537  (4.3)|535  (6.2)|518  (4.1)|   525  (4.9)|   512  (4.5)|   507  (3.9)|  8  (0.7)| 521   (7.5)| 67  (1.2)| 539  (3.7)| 25  (1.2)| 532   (4.8)
Slovenia .......................|533  (3.2)| 541  (4.3)|521  (3.9)|525  (4.4)|   509  (5.4)|   519  (3.4)|   513  (4.3)| 10  (0.8)| 526   (6.7)| 52  (1.1)| 546  (3.7)| 38  (1.1)| 521   (4.2)
South Africa ...................|243  (7.8)| 348  (4.8)|289  (7.3)|308  (6.7)|   350  (4.0)|   350  (8.5)|   329  (6.4)| 15  (1.8)| 211  (14.0)| 39  (1.1)| 269 (11.1)| 47  (1.3)| 237   (8.7)
Thailand .......................|482  (4.0)| 470  (3.9)|508  (4.5)|475  (4.2)|   439  (4.3)|   507  (3.0)|   462  (4.2)|  8  (0.5)| 455   (4.8)| 50  (1.1)| 480  (4.8)| 42  (1.2)| 493   (5.2)
                                |          |           |          |          |             |             |             |          |            |          |           |          |
Tunisia ........................|430  (3.4)|442   (2.7)|441  (5.0)|425  (6.3)|   439  (3.7)|   462  (5.0)|   451  (3.4)| 13  (0.8)| 438   (8.2)| 39  (0.9)| 434  (5.3)| 48  (1.0)| 425   (2.8)
Turkey .........................|433  (4.3)|435   (4.6)|444  (4.5)|441  (4.0)|   437  (5.0)|   461  (3.6)|   445  (6.3)|  6  (0.5)| 409  (12.9)| 44  (0.9)| 433  (4.0)| 51  (1.2)| 444   (4.4)
United States ..................|515  (4.6)|504   (4.2)|520  (4.1)|498  (5.5)|   508  (4.8)|   509  (6.4)|   522  (4.3)| 24  (1.4)| 495   (6.4)| 60  (1.3)| 532  (4.6)| 16  (0.8)| 502   (5.9)
________________________________|__________|___________|__________|__________|_____________|_____________|_____________|__________|____________|__________|___________|__________|____________
---Not available.
\1\Data are for 8th grade or equivalent in most countries.
\2\Countries not meeting all International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement's sampling specifications. NOTE: Standard errors appear in parentheses. Because results are rounded to the nearest whole number some totals may appear inconsistent.
SOURCE: International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement, Third International Mathematics and Science Study 1999, TIMSS 1999 International Science Report, by Michael O. Martin et al. Copyright @ 2000 International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA). (This table was prepared June 2001.)
2001 Tables and Figures
All Years of Tables and Figures
Most Recent Issue of the Digest
NCES Headlines
