Students Reaching International Benchmarks of Science Achievement in Grades 8 and 9
Exhibit 2.2.3 provides graphical and numerical representations of the percentages of students reaching the TIMSS International Benchmarks in both assessment years (2023 and 2024). These benchmarks are points along the achievement scale that describe the progression of knowledge and skills demonstrated by students with different achievement scores. The Low, Intermediate, High, and Advanced Benchmarks correspond to cut points of 400, 475, 550, and 625 scale score points, respectively, along the achievement distribution. Detailed descriptions of these benchmarks with illustrative example items can be found in the TIMSS 2023 International Results and information about the development of the benchmark descriptions is available in Chapter 14 of the TIMSS 2023 Technical Report.
The TIMSS International Benchmarks are ordered along the same dimension of achievement; therefore, students reaching higher benchmarks have also successfully reached the lower benchmarks. The percentages shown in Exhibit 2.2.3 indicate the proportion of students who have reached each benchmark, including those that also reached higher benchmarks. For example, in Korea, an estimated 50 percent of eighth-grade students reached the High Benchmark. The 50 percent includes the 18 percent that also reached the Advanced Benchmark, as well as the 32 percent that reached the High Benchmark but not the Advanced Benchmark. However, all of the 50 percent reached and surpassed the Low and Intermediate Benchmarks.
Greater percentages of students reached higher benchmarks in Grade 9 compared to Grade 8 when looking at those benchmarks that are close to the average achievement of the country. Benchmarks further away from the mean of the country will show low growth, no growth, and occasionally even a tiny decrease in the estimate, as these benchmarks are less sensitive to the overall growth for a country with a much higher or lower average achievement. For example, in Korea 18 percent of students reached the Advanced Benchmark in eighth grade, whereas 22 percent of them reached the Advanced Benchmark in ninth grade. In Sweden, only 39 percent reached the High Benchmark at the eighth grade, increasing to 43 percent by the time the students were in ninth grade. When looking at the graphical results tab, an improvement from eighth grade to ninth grade is reflected by a shift of the markers to the right.
While the overall percentage of students reaching each benchmark typically increased, this does not guarantee that every single student who reached a benchmark in the eighth grade also reached it in the ninth grade. However, as the average achievement grows, more students reached higher benchmarks in 2024 compared to 2023 in all countries.
