Trends in International Mathematics & Science Study (TIMSS) 2011

"TIMSS is used to compare over time the mathematics and science knowledge and skills of fourth- and eighth-graders. TIMSS is designed to align broadly with mathematics and science curricula in the participating countries. The results, therefore, suggest the degree to which students have learned mathematics and science concepts and skills likely to have been taught in school. In 2011, there were 54 countries and 20 other educational systems that participated in TIMSS, at the fourth- or eighth-grade level, or both.

The results show improvement at grade 4 in reading since 2006, when PIRLS was last administered, and in mathematics since 2007, when TIMSS was last administered. Eighth-graders’ average scores held steady in both mathematics and science since the last TIMSS administration in 2007, as did fourth-graders’ average scores in science." IES Newsflash & NCES Statement on PIRLS 2011 and TIMSS 2011

The State of State Science Standards 2012

From the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, the State of State Science Standards 2012 is an analysis and comparison of science standards State-by-State. Michigan gets ranked solidly in the middle with a grade of C (an improvement over its 2005 grade of D). California, Indiana, Virginia, South Carolina and Massachusetts lead the states in the A range, although all the foregoing states excluding California have been downgraded from their 2005 Grade of A to A-.

Vocabulary Results from the 2009 and 2011 NAEP Reading Assessments

Vocabulary Results from the 2009 and 2011 NAEP Reading Assessments are now available. Generally, reading scores for 4th graders remain unchanged, and 8th graders score higher. Detroit tied with the District of Columbia for the 2 lowest positions in a comparison of 8th grade scores for arge city districts. However, the score gaps between higher- and lower-income students in Dallas, Detroit, Houston, and New York city were smaller than the score gap for large cities overall.