International

Global Test Finds Digital Divide Reflected in Math, Science Scores

By Sarah D. Sparks — January 21, 2021 3 min read
Image of data.
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

In both math and science, the divide between the nation’s highest- and lowest-performing 8th graders continues to widen on national and international tests, and ongoing gaps in access and support to use technology in the classroom are likely to make it worse.

Those findings were part of the first public release of the 2019 Trends in International Math and Science Study database this week.

The United States remains in the top quarter of countries in both math and science in grades 4 and 8, with most students proving capable of understanding and applying basic concepts in the subjects. However, U.S. students’ average performance has flattened since the test was last given in 2015. On average, U.S. 4th graders met intermediate benchmarks in math (535) and science (515)—meaning they showed understanding of some aspects of science and could apply basic math knowledge to solve simple problems. But the math score was a significant drop of 4 scale points since 2015. Likewise, 8th graders scored on average at the intermediate level in math (515) and science (522), meaning they showed some understanding of biology and physical science and could apply basic math concepts.

The test, given every four years, gauges the performance of some 330,000 4th graders in 64 countries and education systems and 250,000 8th graders in 46 education systems. While the results come from just before the pandemic, they echo trends in other global and national tests, and separate national studies this fall suggest U.S. students have experienced a so-called “COVID slide” in at least math and reading progress since then.

Moreover, the nation has lost all the ground it had previously made in ensuring all students had at least “some basic knowledge” in math and science. In 2019, 7 percent of 4th graders didn’t meet this lowest performance level in math and 6 percent failed to do so in science. Similarly, 12 percent of U.S. 8th graders didn’t meet this lowest achievement level in science and 13 percent lacked basic understanding of whole numbers and graphs in math. That’s the highest percentage of struggling 8th graders in both subjects since 1999, and means the United States has a significantly wider score gap than other high-performing countries such as Japan, Russia, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec and Ontario. Even the tiny Baltic country of Lithuania had a smaller share of students who performed below the lowest achievement benchmark before the pandemic, which has exacerbated global learning inequities.

Technology Support Is a Major Problem

TIMSS countries have reported implementing policies to encourage using technology in math and science instruction, with 4 in 5 countries, including the United States, having such policies in math and 2 in 3 having technology policies in science, according to the new TIMSS data. Similarly, more countries, including the United States, have moved from providing access to technology primarily in school computer labs to giving each student a laptop or tablet as part of 1-to-1 computing programs, but such efforts still remain relatively uncommon. On average, 20 percent of students had access to personal computers or tablets for science and math classes in 2019. These numbers are likely to have risen significantly since the pandemic took hold in 2020.

By contrast, though, the data suggests teachers have not received training or support to use technology successfully during their instruction in either subject or grade. At least 7 out of 10 students in both grades across the participating countries had teachers who said they needed professional development on technology to use it in their classes. In the United States, 67 percent of students had teachers who’d had at least some training on technology in the last two years, while 72 percent of students had teachers who reported needing more.

“This shows that even before the pandemic there was a need to better integrate technology … to not leave teachers alone to implement it, but get them the support they need,” said Dirk Hastedt, the executive director of the IEA, the international research group that runs TIMSS every four years.

Prior studies and Education Week surveys of educators since the pandemic began last year have found the gaps in access to computers and Internet connections as well as training for teachers have worsened in the United States since the pandemic began, particularly for students of color and those living in poverty and their teachers.

Events

Jobs Virtual Career Fair for Teachers and K-12 Staff
Find teaching jobs and other jobs in K-12 education at the EdWeek Top School Jobs virtual career fair.
Ed-Tech Policy Webinar Artificial Intelligence in Practice: Building a Roadmap for AI Use in Schools
AI in education: game-changer or classroom chaos? Join our webinar & learn how to navigate this evolving tech responsibly.
Education Webinar Developing and Executing Impactful Research Campaigns to Fuel Your Ed Marketing Strategy 
Develop impactful research campaigns to fuel your marketing. Join the EdWeek Research Center for a webinar with actionable take-aways for companies who sell to K-12 districts.

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

International England Pushes for Cellphone Bans in Schools. Could the U.S. Be Next?
England is the latest country seeking to keep cellphones out of class.
3 min read
Tight crop photo of a student looking at their cellphone during class. The background is blurred, but shows students wearing uniforms.
E+
International Photos PHOTOS: Take a Round-the-World Tour of the Return to School
Here's what back to school looks like in classrooms around the globe.
1 min read
A teacher gives a lesson on the first day of school at a cadet lyceum in Kyiv, Ukraine on Sept. 4, 2023.
Young cadets sing the national anthem during a ceremony on the first day of school at a cadet lyceum in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Sept. 4, 2023.
Efrem Lukatsky/AP
International Opinion School Reform Is Tough All Over, Not Just in the U.S.
Even though some reforms produce evidence of student success, that often isn't enough to overcome political hurdles.
6 min read
Image shows a multi-tailed arrow hitting the bullseye of a target.
DigitalVision Vectors/Getty
International In Their Own Words What a Teachers' Union Leader Saw in Ukraine
American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten was in the country just after widespread air strikes from Russia.
4 min read
American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten prepares to cross the border into Ukraine on Oct. 10.
Randi Weingarten visited Ukraine on Oct. 10—the day Russian missiles slammed into Lviv, Kyiv, and other cities.
Courtesy of AFT