Latvian 4th graders’ performance in the international study “TIMSS 2023” on trends in mathematics and science remains significantly higher than the average among 58 member states. However, it has decreased when compared to the previous cycle of the study, according to the first results of the study.
The performance of Latvian 4th grade students in mathematics was evaluated with 534 points, taking the 14th place. The average performance of member states is 503 points.
The average performance of Latvian pupils in the mathematics test is higher than that of pupils in Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Germany and the US. In this cycle of research, Irish, Polish and Lithuanian pupils perform higher in mathematics than Latvia. The highest performance in the mathematics test was achieved by Singaporean pupils – 615 points.
In natural sciences, Latvian pupils are ranked 21st with 526 points. This is also higher than the average performance of the study member states, which is 494 points.
Compared to the previous “TIMSS” research cycle in 2019, the performance of Latvian 4th grade students in mathematics has decreased by 12 points, but in natural sciences – by 16 points.
Latvian pupils, who did the research tasks in the spring of 2023, started school during the Covid-19 pandemic, when the studies took place remotely for a long time. There was also an extension of holidays. Similarly, the learning process of these students coincided with the societal tensions associated with the Covid-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine, the researchers noted.
According to the first results of the study, in Latvia 12% of pupils are able to achieve a very high level of mathematical competence, which is slightly higher compared to 2019. At the same time, the proportion of students who are able to achieve a high level of competence has decreased by six percentage points. The proportion of pupils who cannot reach even the lowest level of competence has increased.
4 299 Latvian 4th grade pupils from 154 schools participated in the research.
In the mathematics tests, children were tasked with numbers and measurements, geometry tasks, and data reading, comparison, and display tasks. In the science tests, students completed tasks in biology, physical sciences, and earth sciences. Both students and teachers and school principals answered survey questions related to learning and teaching experiences and practices in schools and school environments.