BACKGROUNDER
2007EDU0173-001572 Dec. 4, 2007	Ministry of Education
PISA 2006 RESULTS

·         The average scores for each country have a margin of error, represented by confidence intervals on PISA results charts. A confidence interval is the range within which a score is likely to fall 19 times out of 20. When confidence intervals for countries overlap, differences in scores are not statistically significant.

 

·         For example, B.C.’s score for science is 539. When the confidence interval is taken into consideration, B.C.’s score could be as low as 529 or as high as 548. Alberta, the second-ranked jurisdiction in the world, scored 550. However, when the confidence interval is taken into consideration, it could have scored as low as 543. According to PISA, this overlap in the confidence intervals means there is no statistical difference between Alberta and B.C.

 

Top average scores for science, reading and math

 

 

Number of jurisdictions with results above, in the same range as, and below B.C.

 

 

B.C. highlights:

Science performance

·         Internationally, B.C.’s science score improved by 12 points and two ranking places over the 2003 results.

·         In Canada, B.C. and Alberta are the top provincial science performers, allowing for the test’s margin of error.

·         B.C. students scored well on the “enjoyment of science” index, one potential predictor of science achievement, but scored lower than the Canadian average on the “awareness of environmental issues” index, another predictor of science achievement.

 

Socio-economic Status and Achievement

·         Among other factors, such as gender, immigrant status and parental education, the PISA report shows a correlation between socio-economic status and student performance on the test.

·         British Columbia has been identified as the best Canadian example of a jurisdiction that has minimized the effect of socio-economic status on performance while still maintaining a high level of student performance.

 

Gender Differences

·         Boys performed better than girls on the math assessment, but girls performed better than boys on the reading assessment.

·         In science, the performance of boys and girls was essentially the same, but analysis of the results suggests that B.C. boys may be better at mastering scientific facts and knowledge, while girls may be better at understanding the scientific issues in a real-life situation.

• These results are consistent with past national and international assessments.

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Media contact:	Lara Perzoff Ministry of Education 250 356-5963 250 920-9040 (cell)
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