Math and reading scores of Canadian students continue to decline steeply, matching a global trend, according to a new study.
The state of global education was given a bleak appraisal in the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA), which is the first study to examine the academic progress of 15-year-old students in dozens of countries during the pandemic.
Released Tuesday, it finds the average international math score fell by the equivalent of 15 points compared to 2018 scores, while reading scores fell 10 points.
The study found Canada’s overall math scores declined 15 points between 2018 and 2022. According to PISA, which defines a drop of 20 points as losing out on a fully year of learning, that means Canada’s math score dropped by an equivalent of three-quarters of a year of learning.
During that same time period, reading scores of Canadian students dropped by 13 points and science by three.
Grade 10 math scores are slipping in Canada, study finds
Results from an international math assessment of 15-year-olds in dozens of countries place Canada in the top 10. But rankings aside, the numbers paint a troubling picture of declining math skills in the country.
Only 12 per cent of Canadian students were high math achievers, scoring at Level 5 or 6. That’s fewer than some of the top Asian countries and economies: In Singapore, 41 per cent of students performed at the top level; in Hong Kong, 27 per cent; and in Japan and Korea, 23 per cent.
Louis Volante, a professor of education governance at Brock University in St. Catharines, Ont., believes the pandemic had more of a negative effect on math learning than reading and science.
“I think reading skills, for instance, can still be developed outside of a traditional face-to-face classroom,” Volante told CBC News.
“But I do think that having a student in a classroom with a teacher getting that support, either individually or in small groups, will have a more beneficial impact in terms of achievement outcomes.”
Volante added that Canada’s PISA scores may not be indicative of the whole country, as some provinces — notably Alberta, B.C., Ontario and Quebec — often score higher than the national average.
‘Some provinces declining more than others’
Anna Stokke, a math professor at the University of Winnipeg, notes that math scores in Canada have been trending in the wrong direction since 2003, “with some provinces declining more than others.”
According to the study, the provinces with the largest drop in math scores since 2018 were Newfoundland Labrador with 29, Nova Scotia with 24, New Brunswick with 23 and Manitoba with 22. Meanwhile, Alberta’s score only dropped by seven and B.C.’s just eight.
Trend in math performance on PISA in Canada. In particular, Manitoba has fallen 58 points since 2003. Alberta 45 points. Obviously COVID will have impacted the most recent scores, but the trend started well before that. These are significant declines. <a href=”https://twitter.com/macintoshmaggie?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>@macintoshmaggie</a> <a href=”https://t.co/ckv57Ca60Q”>pic.twitter.com/ckv57Ca60Q</a>
“I do think part of the problem is the philosophy of how to teach math,” Stokke told CBC News.
“First of all, we’re not spending enough time on math in schools. And second of all, kids just aren’t getting good instruction in a lot of cases. They’re not getting explicit instruction. They’re not getting enough practice. And that really needs to change.”
Pandemic’s effect ‘not so direct,’ study says
The new results point to an “unprecedented drop in performance,” the PISA report says. It raises concerns about countries like Germany, Iceland and the Netherlands, which saw drops of 25 points or more in math scores.
Across all participating countries, the average math score fell by about 15 points since the 2018 tests. Reading scores fell by 10 points. Neither subject had seen a change of more than five points previously. The bright light was in science, where scores changed little since 2018.
There’s no doubt the disruption of the pandemic was a major factor in the global setbacks. But the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) also cautions against blaming it all on COVID-19. It agrees science and reading scores were falling before the pandemic, and some countries such as Belgium, Finland, Canada and France were already trending downward in math.
High schools face exam anxiety after years of pandemic learning
Some high school students are anxiously preparing to write exams for the first time ever, since many schools paused the tests during the height of the pandemic. It’s reigniting a debate among educators over whether exams are truly the best way to grade students.
It also finds the link between school closures and academic setbacks was “not so direct.”
A survey of students found about half faced closures of more than three months, but it didn’t always lead to lower scores. There was “no clear difference” in performance trends between countries that had limited closures, including Iceland and Sweden, and those with longer closures, including Brazil and Ireland, according to the report.
“Many other factors impacted learning during this period, such as the quality of remote teaching and levels of support granted to struggling students,” it said.
Canada still in top 10
Singapore, long seen as an education powerhouse, had the highest scores by far in every subject. It was joined in the upper echelons by other East Asian countries, including Japan and China.
Despite the declines across the subjects, Canada did well compared to the other countries in the report, placing ninth in math, sixth in reading and seventh in science.
Albania saw the biggest decrease in math scores, with a staggering 69-point decrease, followed by Jordan with 39 points, and Iceland with 36. Iceland’s drop knocked it below the U.S. and the OECD average. Norway fell 33 points, dropping to the global average.
???? Out now: New OECD PISA Report 2022.<br><br>Discover students’ proficiency in mathematics: <a href=”https://t.co/WMTjvKSQ87″>https://t.co/WMTjvKSQ87</a> |<a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/OECDPISA?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#OECDPISA</a> <a href=”https://t.co/rOpnONyRQf”>pic.twitter.com/rOpnONyRQf</a>
Most of the countries that saw math gains had relatively low performance levels to start with, including Saudi Arabia, Dominican Republic and Cambodia.
Usually given every three years, the latest test was delayed a year because of the pandemic. It was administered in 2022 to a sample of 15-year-olds in 37 countries that are OECD members, plus 44 other partner countries. The test has been conducted since 2000.
In 2022, 81 countries participated, with 23,000 Canadian high school students writing the test.
Canadian schools grappling with use of ChatGPT
As artificial intelligence like ChatGPT begins to arrive in Canadian schools, teachers consider its impact on education. Some argue it should be banned, while others suggest making it a part of learning while focusing on critical thinking and creativity.
Over the years, the test has helped drive policy decisions and curriculum changes in many jurisdictions, but has also exposed government inaction.
Volante says he hopes the results spur officials to improve the education experience overall instead of fixating on specific subjects highlighted in the study.
“I think there is a danger with these results for governments in different provinces to narrow the curriculum, focus specifically on math to the exclusion of other subject areas,” he said.
“There’s simply students that come to school and their strengths lie outside of those tested domains. We need to create an environment where those strengths are also recognized.”
EDMONTON – Jake Allen made 31 saves for his second shutout of the season and 26th of his career as the New Jersey Devils closed out their Western Canadian road trip with a 3-0 victory over the Edmonton Oilers on Monday.
Jesper Bratt had a goal and an assist and Stefan Noesen and Timo Meier also scored for the Devils (8-5-2) who have won three of their last four on the heels on a four-game losing skid.
The Oilers (6-6-1) had their modest two-game winning streak snapped.
Calvin Pickard made 13 stops between the pipes for Edmonton.
TAKEAWAYS
Devils: In addition to his goal, Bratt picked up his 12th assist of the young season to give him nine points in his last eight games and now 15 points overall. Nico Hischier remains in the team lead, picking up an assist of his own to give him 16 points for the campaign. He has a point in all but four games this season.
Oilers: Forward Leon Draisaitl was held pointless after recording six points in his previous two games and nine points in his previous four. Draisaitl usually has strong showings against the Devils, coming into the contest with an eight-game point streak against New Jersey and 11 goals in 17 games.
KEY MOMENT
New Jersey took a 2-0 lead on the power play with 3:26 remaining in the second period as Hischier made a nice feed into the slot to Bratt, who wired his third of the season past Pickard.
KEY RETURN?
Oilers star forward and captain Connor McDavid took part in the optional morning skate for the Oilers, leading to hopes that he may be back sooner rather than later. McDavid has been expected to be out for two to three weeks with an ankle injury suffered during the first shift of last Monday’s loss in Columbus.
OILERS DEAL FOR D-MAN
The Oilers have acquired defenceman Ronnie Attard from the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for defenceman Ben Gleason.
The 6-foot-3 Attard has spent the past three season in the Flyers organization seeing action in 29 career games. The 25-year-old right-shot defender and Western Michigan University grad was originally selected by Philadelphia in the third round of the 2019 NHL Entry Draft. Attard will report to the Oilers’ AHL affiliate in Bakersfield.
UP NEXT
Devils: Host the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday.
Oilers: Host the Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 4, 2024.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Patrick Mahomes threw for 291 yards and three touchdowns, and Kareem Hunt pounded into the end zone from two yards out in overtime to give the unbeaten Kansas City Chiefs a 30-24 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Monday night.
DeAndre Hopkins had two touchdown receptions for the Chiefs (8-0), who drove through the rain for two fourth-quarter scores to take a 24-17 lead with 4:17 left. But then Kansas City watched as Baker Mayfield led the Bucs the other way in the final minute, hitting Ryan Miller in the end zone with 27 seconds to go in regulation time.
Tampa Bay (4-5) elected to kick the extra point and force overtime, rather than go for a two-point conversion and the win. And it cost the Buccaneers when Mayfield called tails and the coin flip was heads. Mahomes and the Chiefs took the ball, he was 5-for-5 passing on their drive in overtime, and Hunt finished his 106-yard rushing day with the deciding TD plunge.
Travis Kelce had 14 catches for 100 yards with girlfriend Taylor Swift watching from a suite, and Hopkins finished with eight catches for 86 yards as the Chiefs ran their winning streak to 14 dating to last season. They became the sixth Super Bowl champion to start 8-0 the following season.
Mayfield finished with 200 yards and two TDs passing for the Bucs, who have lost four of their last five.
It was a memorable first half for two players who had been waiting to play in Arrowhead Stadium.
The Bucs’ Rachaad White grew up about 10 minutes away in a tough part of Kansas City, but his family could never afford a ticket for him to see a game. He wound up on a circuitous path through Division II Nebraska-Kearney and a California junior college to Arizona State, where he eventually became of a third-round pick of Tampa Bay in the 2022 draft.
Two year later, White finally got into Arrowhead — and the end zone. He punctuated his seven-yard scoring run in the second quarter, which gave the Bucs a 7-3 lead, by nearly tossing the football into the second deck.
Then it was Hopkins’ turn in his first home game since arriving in Kansas City from a trade with the Titans.
The three-time All-Pro, who already had caught four passes, reeled in a third-down heave from Mahomes amid triple coverage for a 35-yard gain inside the Tampa Bay five-yard line. Three plays later, Mahomes found him in the back of the end zone, and Hopkins celebrated his first TD with the Chiefs with a dance from “Remember the Titans.”
Tampa Bay tried to seize control with consecutive scoring drives to start the second half. The first ended with a TD pass to Cade Otton, the latest tight end to shred the Chiefs, and Chase McLaughlin’s 47-yard field goal gave the Bucs a 17-10 lead.
The Chiefs answered in the fourth quarter. Mahomes marched them through the rain 70 yards for a tying touchdown pass, which he delivered to Samaje Perine while landing awkwardly and tweaking his left ankle, and then threw a laser to Hopkins on third-and-goal from the Buccaneers’ five-yard line to give Kansas City the lead.
Tampa Bay promptly went three-and-out, but its defence got the ball right back, and this time Mayfield calmly led his team down field. His capped the drive with a touchdown throw to Miller — his first career TD catch — with 27 seconds to go, and Tampa Bay elected to play for overtime.
UP NEXT
Buccaneers: Host the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Darcy Kuemper made 16 saves for his first shutout of the season and 32nd overall, helping the Los Angeles Kings beat the Nashville Predators 3-0 on Monday night.
Adrian Kempe had a goal and an assist and Anze Kopitar and Kevin Fiala also scored. The Kings have won two of their last three.
Juuse Saros made 24 saves for the Predators. They are 1-2-1 in their last four.
Kopitar opened the scoring with 6:36 remaining in the opening period. Saros denied the Kings captain’s first shot, but Kopitar collected the rebound below the goal line and banked it off the netminder’s skate.
Fiala, a former Predator, made it 2-0 35 seconds into the third.
The Kings held Nashville to just three third-period shots on goal, the first coming with 3:55 remaining and Saros pulled for an extra attacker.
Elsewhere in the NHL on Monday:
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DEVILS 3 OILERS 0
EDMONTON, Alta. (AP) — Jake Allen made 31 saves for his second shutout of the season and 26th of his NHL career, helping the New Jersey Devils close their western Canadian road trip with a 3-0 victory over the Edmonton Oilers.
Jesper Bratt had a goal and an assist and Stefan Noesen and Timo Meier also scored. The Devils improved to 8-5-2. They have won three of their last four after a four-game skid.
Calvin Pickard made 13 saves for Edmonton. The Oilers had won two straight.
