The EMS article “Should mathematicians worry with PISA and TIMSS math results?” by Nuno Crato and João Marôco argues that European mathematics education is facing a serious and persistent decline. Drawing on more than two decades of PISA and TIMSS data, the authors point out that European students increasingly lag behind students in high-performing East Asian systems such as Singapore, Japan, Taiwan and Korea. PISA 2022 showed an average European mathematics decline of 18.8 points since 2018, with the authors noting that roughly 20–30 points can correspond to a year of schooling.
They stress that COVID-19 contributed to the deterioration but cannot explain the longer-term downward trend. Particularly striking is Singapore's combination of very high mathematics performance and high creative-thinking performance, challenging the idea that strong mathematical curricula necessarily come at the expense of creativity.
The authors argue that this decline matters not only for schoolchildren but also for European science, universities, mathematical research, innovation and economic competitiveness. Weak basic mathematics education reduces the pool of students capable of progressing to advanced mathematics and research. They therefore advocate evidence-based reforms: more coherent and demanding curricula, structured/direct instruction, rigorous assessment, greater emphasis on the usefulness of mathematics, targeted support for struggling students, additional opportunities for high-performing students, stronger attention to educational inequality, and more rigorous mathematics training for teachers.
Their central message is that PISA and TIMSS should be treated as an important warning signal rather than dismissed as imperfect international rankings: improving broad mathematical competence is also essential for maintaining Europe's future pool of highly capable mathematicians and scientists.
ARTICLE [PDF]
They stress that COVID-19 contributed to the deterioration but cannot explain the longer-term downward trend. Particularly striking is Singapore's combination of very high mathematics performance and high creative-thinking performance, challenging the idea that strong mathematical curricula necessarily come at the expense of creativity.
The authors argue that this decline matters not only for schoolchildren but also for European science, universities, mathematical research, innovation and economic competitiveness. Weak basic mathematics education reduces the pool of students capable of progressing to advanced mathematics and research. They therefore advocate evidence-based reforms: more coherent and demanding curricula, structured/direct instruction, rigorous assessment, greater emphasis on the usefulness of mathematics, targeted support for struggling students, additional opportunities for high-performing students, stronger attention to educational inequality, and more rigorous mathematics training for teachers.
Their central message is that PISA and TIMSS should be treated as an important warning signal rather than dismissed as imperfect international rankings: improving broad mathematical competence is also essential for maintaining Europe's future pool of highly capable mathematicians and scientists.
ARTICLE [PDF]
┌────────────────────────────────┐
│ KONSTANTINOS MICHAILIDIS │
└────────────────────────────────┘
│ KONSTANTINOS MICHAILIDIS │
└────────────────────────────────┘