1. PISA • PIRLS • TIMSS
Program for International Student Assessment
Progress in International Reading Literacy Study
Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study
By: Lynn Brady Vanessa Carter Mallory Weese Grace Tegga

2. Program for International Student Assessment (PISA)

3. What is the purpose?
Measures capabilities in reading literacy, math literacy and science literacy
Measures problem solving capabilities
2009-paper-and-pencil assessment
Measured students' capabilities in reading, mathematics, and science literacy

4. Who takes it? 15 year olds Two-hour assessment
Assessment items include a combination of multiple-choice and open-ended questions
PISA requires a minimum of 4,500 students from a minimum of 150 schools

5. Who administers it?
PISA is coordinated by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), an intergovernmental organization of industrialized countries

6. What is the public’s interest?
Shows where the US is compared to other countries
Shows how the students apply their knowledge (or if the can)

7. What are some of the recent results?
Reading literacy 30 percent of U.S. students scored at or above proficiency level 4
27 percent of U.S. students scored at or above proficiency level 4 in math literacy
29 percent of U.S. students and students in the OECD countries on average scored at or above level 4 on the science literacy scale

8. Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS)

9. What is the purpose of the assessment?
PIRLS is an international comparative study that focuses on the reading achievement and reading behaviors and attitudes.

10. Who takes the assessment?
United States’ fourth graders and the equivalent of fourth graders in other participating countries. The first PIRLS assessment was in 2001 and 35 countries participated.

11. Who administers the assessment?
In the participating countries, teachers administer the PIRLS. The International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA) is who supplies the assessment.

12. What is the public’s interest in this assessment?
The pressure on this test is not very high because it is simply a compartative study, therefore there is not too much public interest in the PIRLS.

13. What are some recent results of this assessment at the United States school levels?
In 2006, 45 jurisdictions participated in the PIRLS and the United States’ average was lower than the average in 10 jurisdictions, higher than 22, and not measurably different from the average in 12 jurisdictions.

14. Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS)

15. What is the purpose?
TIMSS is an international assessment of the mathematics and science knowledge of fourth and eighth graders that measures and compares student's achievement across borders

16. Who takes the assessment?
Students from different countries all over the world that are in fourth and eighth grade.
In 1995, the first year it was given, the assessment included grades 4, 8, and 12
In 1995, forty-one nations participated in the study.
In 2007, 48 countries participated.

17. Who administers the test?
personnel from the participating countries.

18. What is the public's interest in this assessment?
The results are available for the public to view and compare the achievement levels of different countries.

19. What are some recent results of this assessment at the United States school levels?
In the 2007, it was found that as a whole, grade 4 and 8 in the United States lagged the best Asian and European nations in the math and science test. However, Asian Americans in both grades and Asian nations and European Americans and European nations in grades 4 and 8 scored comparably.